GMCCC GOALS & OBJECTIVES

To always support the goals and objectives of the Council of Municipal Court Judges of Georgia and the Georgia Municipal Courts Training Council;

To serve as a conduit to State organizations and among courts;

To offer training and educational opportunities;

To promulgate professional and ethical standards; and,

To provide the courts access to performance qualification standards and evaluation procedures, and best practices in court operations and accounting procedures.

BYLAWS OF THE GEORGIA MUNICIPAL COURT CLERKS’ COUNCIL

BYLAWS OF THE GEORGIA
MUNICIPAL COURT CLERKS’ COUNCIL

ARTICLE I
Name

The organization shall be named the GEORGIA MUNICIPAL COURT CLERKS’ COUNCIL, herein referred to as the Association.

ARTICLE II
Mission

The mission of the Association shall be to act as the administrative support mechanism by assisting municipal court clerks throughout the state in their endeavor to (1) assure the administrative efficiency of the court; (2) protect the court’s ethical integrity; and (3) help maintain public confidence in the court’s fairness in dispensing justice impartially.

ARTICLE III
APPLICABILITY

Section 1.         The Association shall be governed by the Executive Committee and bylaws.

ARTICLE IV
Membership

Section 1.         The membership of the Association consists of any non-elected, non-judicial
employee working in a municipal court as a clerk or deputy clerk within the State of Georgia.  The Association shall have the following classes of members:

  1. Regular Member - Any non-elected, non judicial employee involved in the daily operations of Georgia municipal courts as defined in OCGA 36-32-1 may become a Regular Member upon payment of dues.  Regular Members may vote, hold office and serve on committees.

 

  1. Honorary Member - Any person whom the organization wishes to recognize for outstanding achievements in the field of court administration may become a member of this class.  A person becomes an Honorary Member after nomination by a Regular Member and a majority vote of the Executive Committee. Honorary Members shall not hold office, pay dues or vote, but may serve on committees.
  1. Retired Member – Upon retirement from the justice system, any Regular Member in good standing is eligible for this class or membership upon payment of dues.  Retired Members may vote and serve on committees, but shall not hold office.

 

  1. Associate Member – Any person in a judicial or non-judicial position or a student attending an accredited school, college or university may become an Associate Member upon payment of dues.  Associate Member shall not hold office and shall not vote, but may serve on committees.

Section 2.         Rights of Membership – All members shall have the full rights and privileges of membership in the Association as described in Section 1 above.  Each member shall be deemed to subscribe generally to the objectives of the Association.

ARTICLE V
Dues and Assessments

Section 1.         The Executive Committee shall establish dues.  The Treasurer shall send notices of renewal to the membership immediately following the beginning of the calendar year.  In addition to dues, special assessments may be imposed upon the recommendation of the Executive Committee and the affirmative vote of the members of the Association.  Each member of the Association shall pay dues and special assessments promptly upon receipt of notice.

Section 2.         The fiscal year of the Association shall be July 1 through June 30.

ARTICLE VI
Officers and Their Election

Section 1.         Officers.  Officers of the Association shall be a President, President-Elect, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer.

Section 2.         Executive Committee.  The Executive Committee shall consist of the five officers named above, the immediate past president and an Executive Board composed of five Regular Members elected by the Association.  The officers and two board members shall be elected annually, except the Treasurer and three board members, who will serve a two-year term.

Section 3.         Duties of the President.  The President shall preside at all meeting and shall be chair of the Executive Committee.  Nothing in these bylaws shall be construed to limit the authority of the President to perform tasks as may be reasonably necessary to promote the goals and objectives of the Association.

Section 4.         Duties of the President Emeritus.  The immediate past president shall be President Emeritus for a term of one year from the termination of his/her office, and shall be a member of the Executive Committee.

Section 5.         Duties of the President-Elect.  The President-Elect shall perform such duties as the President may delegate and the Executive Committee may prescribe.  In the event of the absence of the President, the President-Elect shall preside at all meetings of the Association and of its Executive Committee, and shall perform all the duties of the President.  The President-Elect shall succeed to the office of the President in the event of a vacancy in that office prior to the conclusion of the next Annual Meeting.  The President-Elect shall be the chair of the Nominating Committee and the Awards Committee.

Section 6.         Duties of the Vice President.  The Vice President shall perform such duties as the President may delegate and as the Executive Committee may prescribe.  In the absence of the President and of the President-Elect, the Vice President shall preside at all meetings of the Association and of its Executive Committee and the Vice President shall perform all duties of the President.  The Vice President shall be the chair of the Membership Committee.

Section 7.         Duties of the Secretary.  The Secretary shall keep the minutes of all meetings of the Association and of the Executive Committee, and shall keep a record of all matters as deemed advisable by the President.  The Secretary shall give notice of all meetings and keep a roll of the members.  The Secretary shall perform all such duties as the President and the Executive Committee may prescribe.

                        The Secretary shall be the GMCCC Historian.  If in the event that the Secretary is unable to fulfill the responsibilities of Historian, the President shall select a Historian during his or her term.  This is a non-voting position.

Section 8.         Duties of the Treasurer.  The Treasurer shall receive all dues and monies paid to the Association, shall disburse all corporate funds, and shall maintain an account in a bank protected by the FDIC.  Signatories on the account shall be the Treasurer, the President and the President-Elect, but only one signature will be necessary on any check.  The Treasurer shall make a report of all receipts and disbursements at the Annual Meeting, or more often if required by the President.  Accounts shall at all times be open to inspection by the members of the Association.  The Treasurer shall be the chair of the Budget Committee.

Section 9.         The Executive Committee.    The Executive Committee shall consist of the five elected officers, the immediate past president, and the five elected executive board members.  The five elected executive board members are to serve a two-year term.  Three of the initial executive board members will serve a two-year term.  The remaining two initial executive board members will serve a one-year term.  The Executive Committee shall be the governing body of the Association and shall perform other duties as the Association may delegate to it.

Section 10.       Election and Terms.

  1. The members of the Executive Committee shall be nominated as herein provided and shall be elected at the Annual Meeting to hold office for one year, except for the Treasurer, who shall hold office for a two-year term and until their successors are duly nominated and elected.

 

  1. In the event an officer shall eave his/her position as municipal court clerk in the State of Georgia, the office shall be vacated at the time of departure from the position.  The President-Elect shall succeed to the office of President and also serve the term to which he or she was elected.  A President-Elect filling the vacancy in the presidency shall be the chair of the Nominating Committee.  The Vice President shall be the chair of the Awards Committee.  Any other vacancy shall be filled by a vote of the Executive Committee until the next election.
  1.      The officers and the executed board members shall be elected as follows:

 

    1. The Nominating Committee shall solicit candidates for office, shall certify that the candidates are Regular Members in good standing, and shall nominate qualified members for each vacant office on the Executive Committee.
    1. The Secretary, by separate mailing, shall notify the membership of the nominees for each office.  This notice will be sent to the membership not less than 60 days prior to the Annual Meeting.  Each member of the Association qualified to vote shall mail their ballot back to the Nominating chairperson within a 30 day time line date set.

 

Section 11.       Eligibility for office.  Eligibility for office is limited to Regular Members in good standing for the two years immediately preceding the election or appointment to fill a vacant elective office.  A member is in good standing if dues are paid or renewed for the fiscal year.  A membership that has lapsed for nonpayment of dues may be reinstated without affecting a member’s eligibility for office if the delinquent dues are paid before the Annual Meeting.

Section 12.       Eligibility of past president.  Two years from the expiration of a term as Past President, a member may be eligible for election or appointment to any office.

ARTICLE VII
Meetings

Section 1.         Annual Meeting.  The Association shall hold an Annual Meeting at the time and place recommended by the Executive Committee.  The site selected and the approximate date for the Annual Meeting shall be announced at least 60 days in advance.
                       
The election of officers and executive board members, consideration of resolutions and proposed amendments to the bylaws and any other matters shall be conducted at the Annual Meeting.

Section 2.         Other Meetings.  The Association shall hold other meetings at such times and places as the Executive Committee shall direct, each to be announced 60 days in advance.

 

Section 3.         Notice.  The Secretary shall give all members 30-day notice of the exact time and place of the Annual Meeting and any other meeting of the Association, as directed by the Executive Committee.

Section 4.         Quorum.  A quorum at any meeting shall consist of a majority of all Regular and Retired members in good standing who are present.  Each qualified member shall be entitled to one vote on any matter presented for official action.

Section 5.         Executive Committee Meetings.  The Executive Committee shall hold at least two meetings annually; immediately following the Annual Meeting and prior to the first of the calendar year to receive and act upon the report of the Budget Committee.

  1. Notice.  The Executive Committee may hold additional meetings as may be necessary, upon the call of the President or a majority of the Executive Committee members with 5-days notice to the Executive Committee members.

 

  1. Quorum.  A quorum shall consist of a majority of the Executive Committee.  The Committee may act upon the vote of a majority present at any meeting.  All members of the Executive Committee shall vote, except the President who shall cast a vote only in case of a tie.

Section 6.        Vendors.  Vendors may sponsor activities or register and attend meetings of the Association as non-members.  Vendors may exhibit only upon the invitation or approval of the Executive Committee.

Section 7.        Endorsement of Programs. The GMCCC as an organization shall not endorse any products, nor endorse any legislation or programs, other than those initiated by GMCCC.

Section 8.         Parliamentary Procedures.  Roberts’s Rules of Order, Revised shall govern the conduct of all business meetings except as otherwise provided in the Articles of Incorporation or the bylaws.

ARTICLE VIII
Committees
Section 1.       Standing Committees.  The Standing Committees of the Association are Nominating, Budget, Education and Training, Publications, Awards and Membership.

A.       Nominating Committee.  The President-Elect shall chair and appoint a Nominating Committee, composed of not less than three members, which shall nominate officers as provided in Article VI, Section 10.

 B.        Budget Committee.  The Treasurer shall be the chair of the Budget Committee.  The Budget Committee shall recommend to the Executive Committee a budget for the Association for the next fiscal year, including any amounts to be requested in state funding from the General Assembly or any dues adjustments or special assessments deemed necessary.  The budget Committee may also recommend to the Executive Committee that the Treasurer invest the funds of the Association.

  1. Education and Training Committee.  The President shall appoint a chair for the Education and Training Committee.  The chair will work the Georgia Municipal Court Training Council.  Additionally, the committee shall recommend a meeting site to the Executive Committee, and, plan and provide for the educational program at the Annual Meeting and at any other meetings and conferences that may be held.  The committee shall also act as a clearinghouse for information about educational opportunities and shall provide educational articles for the newsletter.

 

  1. Publication Committee.  The President shall annually appoint a chair for the Publications Committee with the advice and consent of the Executive Committee.  The Publications Committee shall communicate with the general membership through a newsletter or other media as directed by the President.  The chair of the Publications Committee, if not a member of the Executive Committee, shall be invited to attend all meetings of the Executive Committee but shall not vote.
  1. Awards Committee.  The President-Elect shall be the chair and shall select as many members as necessary to the Award Committee.

 

  1. Membership Committee.  The Vice President shall be the chair of the Membership Committee.  The Vice President shall nominate a committee of no more than five members to solicit new members and to distribute information about the Association and its activities to new or prospective members.

Section 2.        Other Committees.  The President shall also appoint other committees as deemed necessary to carry out the work of the Association and the Executive Committee.  Special committees will automatically terminate at the conclusion of the next Annual Meeting unless re-established by the incoming President of the Association.

Section 3.         Rules for Committee Members.

  1. Don’t accept a position unless you are going to participate to your fullest.  At times things do come up but for the most part you need to participate.
  2. If the executive committee feels that you are not participating and doing your part on the committee that you volunteered for, we reserve the right to replace your position with someone else.
  3. Understand what the committee is about and what they need to accomplish.
  4. First person on the list is the chairman and second person on the list takes over if the chairman is absent.
  5. Majority of the members on a committee must agree before any action is taken.
  6. Your dues must be current for you to serve on a committee.                 

ARTICLE IX
Awards

Section 1.       The Awards Committee shall recommend to the Executive Committee nominees for the Court Program of the Year award or awards for the Executive Committee’s consideration.

Section 2.        The Court program of the year award shall be presented on an annual basis.  Nominations should be solicited in the newsletter, and in any other manner deemed appropriate.  The Publications Committee may assist the Awards Committee with the notification to the membership.  The program of the year award or awards may be made at any meeting of the Association.

Section 3.        The chair of the Awards Committee shall take action to have appropriate award plaques or certificates prepared for delivery to the President prior to their presentation.

Section 4.        Distinguished service awards for service to the GMCCC may be awarded by the outgoing President at the Annual Meeting.  No more than two such awards may be made by the President each year.

ARTICLE X
Amendments to the Bylaws

Section 1.        Proposed amendments to the bylaws may be introduced at any meeting of the Association, provided that notice of any proposed amendments is sent to the membership with notice of the meeting.  The proposed amendment shall be adopted if approved by a two-thirds vote of the members present at the meeting and qualified to vote.

Section 2.        The Secretary shall mail proposed amendments approved by the Executive Committee to each member at least 30 days in advance of the Annual Meeting.

Section 3.        Members may submit proposed changes to the bylaws to the President or to any member of the Executive Committee at least 90 days prior to the Annual Meeting.  The Executive Committee shall consider whether to submit the proposal, as may be amended and approved by the Executive Committee, to the Association.

Section 4.       Amendments shall be effective immediately upon adoption at the Annual or special meeting unless otherwise provided.

ARTICLE XI
Dissolution

Upon dissolution of the Association, the Executive Committee shall, after paying or making provision for payment of all of the liability of the corporation, dispose of all assets of the corporation in such manner and to such judicial organization or organizations operated exclusively for charitable or educational purposes as the Executive Committee shall determine.  All state funds shall lapse to the state.           

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