BMWRO Club Bylaws and Guidelines

Here are the official bylaws and guidelines for the club. There are six bylaws and guidelines and you can simply click on the title of each one to jump to the beginning of that bylaw or guideline.

• BMWRO Bylaws
• Ambassador Policy
• Alcohol at Events Policy
• Event Hosting and Spending
• Charitable Contributions
• Video Projector Policy

Revised Bylaws of BMW Riders of Oregon – Enacted: November 1, 2001

The name of the organization shall be BMW RIDERS OF OREGON (hereinafter known as “BMWRO”).

The organization is a non-profit corporation under the laws of the State of Oregon and under I.R.C. § 501(c)(7). The organization was incorporated under the laws of the State of Oregon February 15, 1977. The organization’s federal identification number is 93-0759984.

The object of the BMWRO shall be:

• To create fellowship among BMW motorcycle owners.
• To help create a positive image of motorcycling.
• To promote safety in motorcycle operation.

Full Members:

• Full members shall be the owner of a BMW motorcycle or have an interest in BMW motorcycling.
• Full members shall be residents of the State of Oregon.
• Full members shall pay annual dues as stipulated.

Passport Members:

• BMW owners and riders living outside the State of Oregon may join as “Passport Members.”
• Passport members shall pay annual dues as stipulated.

All Members:

• All members (full and passport) shall have a valid driver’s license in their state of residence.

Honorary Members:

From time to time, certain members may be given honorary membership in the BMWRO. Any member may propose a member for honorary membership, in writing, to the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee shall approve the honorary membership, which entitles that member to full membership rights with no further payment of membership dues. The Executive Committee shall set the criteria for honorary membership i.e. exemplary service to BMWRO over a long period of time.

• All members in good standing shall receive the monthly newsletter, The Beemer Beat.
• All members (full and passport) shall have one (1) vote.
• Spouses of full members and passport members shall be granted full membership and have one (1) vote.
• Full members shall have the right to be elected officers of BMWRO.
• Passport members do not have the right to be elected officers of BMWRO.

The officers of BMWRO shall be President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. These officers shall perform the duties prescribed by these bylaws and by the parliamentary authority adopted by the BMWRO.

The officers shall be elected by ballot to serve for one (1) year or until their successors are elected, and their term of office shall begin January 1 of each year.

No member shall hold more than one office at a time.

Annual membership dues for full and passport members shall be twenty dollars ($20.00) payable by the January business meeting each year. Full member spouses are included in the annual dues. Membership dues for new full and passport members joining the BMWRO in any month other than January shall be pro-rated at two dollars $2.00 per month.

Regular business meetings shall be held four (4) times per year, and generally be organized in conjunction with a BMWRO scheduled event. Regular business meetings shall be planned for the months of January, May, September and November.

The regular meeting held in November shall be known as the annual meeting and shall be for the purpose of electing officers, receiving reports of officers and committees, and for any other business that may arise.

The exact dates and times of the regular business meetings shall be established by the officers of the BMWRO and be announced in the monthly newsletter.

It is in the interest of BMWRO to encourage member participation in the above business meetings by financial contribution to the organization of those meetings. Payment or re-imbursement of expenses by the club for motel accommodations, food, and rental of facilities and equipment will happen only when and if the financial status of the club warrants it. Any decision shall be made at the discretion of the BMWRO Executive Committee and members shall be informed accordingly in the Beemer Beat.

Motions made at regular business meetings concerning strategic and financial decisions shall require a voting quorum of thirty (30) members in good standing to include two (2) elected officers, in order to be enacted.

Special meetings may be called by the President or by the Executive Committee and shall be called upon the written request of ten (10) members of the BMWRO. The purpose of the meeting shall be stated in the call. Except in cases of emergency, at least three (3) days’ notice shall be given. Thirty members (30) shall constitute a quorum.

The officers of the BMWRO shall constitute the Executive Committee.

The Executive Committee shall have general supervision of the affairs of the BMWRO between its regular business meetings, fix the hour and place of meetings, make recommendations to the BMWRO, and shall perform such other duties as are specified in these bylaws. The Executive Committee shall be subject to the orders of the BMWRO, and none of its acts shall conflict with the action taken by the BMWRO.

Unless otherwise ordered by BMWRO, generally, regular meetings of the Executive Committee shall be held in conjunction with regularly scheduled business meetings, the exact time and location of which are to be decided by the Executive Committee.

Special meetings of the Executive Committee may be called by the President and shall be called upon the written request of any of the other officers or the Chief Joseph Rally Chair. The purpose of the meeting shall be stated in the call.

The president shall appoint the chair of the Chief Joseph Rally Committee. The Chief Joseph Rally Committee shall be composed of the chair, president, vice president, treasurer, secretary and other key members appointed to specific tasks by the chair. The chair is responsible for overall organization of the Chief Joseph Rally and reports directly to the president. The Chief Joseph Rally Committee shall meet at the call of the chair. The rally shall take place annually, typically the third weekend in June, from Friday through Sunday.

Arrival at the rally site on Thursday shall not be promoted in advertisements, newsletters and magazines, rally programs or any other rally communications. However, assuming that a specific rally location would allow early arrival and camping on Thursday any BMWRO officer or rally committee member upon inquiry shall not discourage it. BMWRO shall not provide any services or assume any responsibility for guests arriving before the official opening on Friday.

Nominations for club officers shall be made by letter, fax, or e-mail to the secretary of the BMWRO or at the September business meeting and be announced at that meeting. The nominations shall be published in the October issue of the Beemer Beat.

Elections shall be made annually by mail, fax or email vote and new officers shall be installed at the annual business meeting in November. Ballots shall be included in the October Beemer Beat and votes shall be submitted to and received by the BMWRO secretary no later than Friday preceding the November meeting. The results of the election shall be announced in the December issue of the Beemer Beat.

The following officers shall be elected: President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer.

Only full members that ride a BMW motorcycle more than any other brand shall have the right to be elected president of BMWRO.

The rules contained in the current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised shall govern the BMWRO in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these bylaws and any special rules of order the BMWRO may adopt.

Proposed changes of the Bylaws shall be approved or rejected by ballot, submitted by mail, fax or email.

Proposed changes shall be published in the newsletter at least one (1) month prior to a regular business meeting. Ballots shall be included with the newsletter containing the proposed change to all members.

All ballots must be received by the Secretary ten (10) days prior to the regular business meeting. The Secretary shall present the results at the regular business meeting.

Members shall not engage in disorderly conduct, profanity, use of drugs, or excessive consumption of alcohol while attending club functions.

In the event of dissolution of BMWRO, all funds in the treasury shall be donated to a state charity selected by a majority vote of the membership.

Officers shall be eligible for reimbursement of reasonable expenses incurred during the administration of club business. Major expenses are to be listed separately on the treasurer’s report at each business meeting. This rule is to be reevaluated annually at the November business meeting.

End.

Ambassador Policy

Goal:

To provide first and second year (or never/rarely participated before) BMWRO members with a contact person to help them meet new people and integrate into the club.

Positions:

One Ambassador Coordinator and one or more Regional Ambassadors.

Responsibilities:

Ambassador Coordinator: This position is responsible for the overall coordination and success of the Ambassador program in BMWRO.

• Recruits, with the help of club Executive Committee members, Regional Ambassadors for a 2 year rotation period
• Coordinates with Regional Ambassadors for coverage on all BMWRO outings
• Coordinates with the newsletter Editor for posting of Regional Ambassadors for each club outing
• Coordinates with Rally Chair the Friday night New Member Welcome at the beer garden.
• Creates (for those willing members) a new member profile for the newsletter.
• Helps Regional Ambassadors with their responsibilities whenever possible.
• Coordinate with rally registrar to flag new member packets for gate folks to give a special welcome.

Regional Ambassador: This position is primarily responsible for the warm welcome new members receive from our club.

• Attend selected club outings each year and be point of contact for new members in regional area.
• Attend, if possible, Chief Joseph Rally and be contact for regional new members.
• Participate in New Member Welcome at rally.
• Send each new regional member a welcome letter or email after initial welcome letter sent by Executive Committee.
• If possible, coordinate one simple day ride (meet at a diner or café for lunch) in region for all members with focus on new members.
• Have Ambassadors introduce all new members at final rally presentation and during the evening gathering at outings. Additionally, ask for new folks to raise their hands (no self introductions since some maybe shy). Everyone give them a hearty welcome.

General Guidelines:

• Post in every newsletter the email contact for all Ambassadors.
• Create Regional Ambassadors from each major grouping of members in the state (Portland, Eugene, Bend and Greater Southern Oregon).
• Regional Ambassadors will have access to club roster.

Revision History:

Date	Person Responsible for Revision	Revision
8/1/08	Liz Jones	As Issued

BMW Riders of Oregon Policy on Alcohol at Club Sponsored Events

Although members are permitted to bring their own alcoholic beverages and encouraged to drink responsibility, the club will not purchase nor reimburse members for expenditures on alcohol.

Event Hosting and Spending

The following guidelines are provided to assist members in organizing events for the club. Since the vitality of our club is everyone’s responsibility, these guidelines are intended to encourage you to become more actively involved.

Types of Events

Campouts, outdoor activities, dinner parties, sporting events and resort overnight stays are only a few of the type of functions you might organize. Be creative. If you have an idea for something fun, consider organizing it to share with the club. To do so, contact the Vice President.

Organizing an Event

Time
Identify a date & time for the event. Check in advance to see whether any facility and/or permit that might be required is available at that time. Try to plan at least a couple months in advance so that everyone can be notified through the newsletter and email distribution and plan accordingly. Submit a completed Activity/Event Proposal Form available on the BMWRO web site or from any member of the Activity Coordination Committee to the Vice President who is in charge of the events calendar. The VP will need to forward this information to Beamer Beat Editor and the BMWRO web site webmaster by the 15th of the month preceding the first newsletter edition in which the notice of your event is to appear.

Place
Gather information on the location of the event. Get an address, phone number and good directions that everyone can follow. If possible, visit the location beforehand. If a facility needs to be reserved, do so well in advance.

Fees
Be sure to identify all fees for the event so that everyone will know up front what to expect. Remember that the club will subsidize any facility and food within the annual budget. If it is necessary to incur any expenditures in advance, you can submit before an event and again after the event for the remaining expenses. Save all receipts, as you will need them for reimbursement. All requests for re-imbursement are to made to the club Treasurer.

Any part of the facility and food costs not covered by the club shall be equally divided among participants. All other fees & expenses shall be paid by participants. Collecting payment from participants at the event has been common practice. However, you might consider requiring advance payment from participants with refunds only prior to a determined cut-off date.

Food
The club will reimburse for food if it’s within the annual budget. See your Activities committee liaison for assistance on the amount to be reimbursed. As a host of an event where food will be provided, identify those participants who might bring their own food so that per-person cost can be adjusted accordingly. In the event that reimbursement by participants exceeds the actual costs (e.g. last minute drop-ins), all excess balances shall be placed in the club treasury.

Although this extra effort has been a much appreciated, part of these campouts, it certainly isn’t necessary and should not deter anyone from hosting such events. As an alternative, consider having dinner at a local eatery or having everyone bring their own food. Another idea would be to have a “theme potluck”, whereby everyone contributes to the banquet.

Have Fun
These guidelines are intended to encourage you to share a great idea and to become more actively involved in your club. Don’t be intimidated by the thought of “hosting” an event. If you have a great idea, contact one of the club officers who will help you put the event together. Remember that we all joined this club because of or love of motorcycling.

Activities Coordinating Committee

The Activities Coordinating Committee (A.C.C.) is responsible for creating and maintaining the schedule and budget for events. The A.C.C. is a 4-6 member team and chaired by the Vice President. They will plan out a draft schedule and budget for the entire calendar year and present that to the Ex- Comm early each year. The committee has a budget for the year of $3600 maximum.

The A.C.C will also submit an updated schedule and budget to the Ex-Comm for review and confirmation on a quarterly basis. The schedule is flexible to allow for changes during the year, but firm enough to stay within the annual budget and allows members to reliably schedule in advance. The A.C.C. members have the authority to make financial decisions before and at the event. As a backup, in rare cases, Executive Committee members can make event-spending decisions if no A.C.C. member is at the event. An A.C.C. person will be assigned as a liaison for each event, so the host will know who to contact for questions but another A.C.C. member could step in if the assigned A.C.C. liaison is not available. The VP will continue to keep the master schedule for the club and be ultimately responsible for the A.C.C., schedule and budget.

This $3600 does not include large, winter event spending (Holiday Party and January meetings) these continue to be authorized separately.

Revision History:

Date	Person Responsible for Revision	Revision
2/1/01	Vice Presidents –Kit Vercella and Don Weber	Published Feb 2001 BB
5/15/05	Club Vote	Raised limits to $200 per event and $400 per month
11/12/07	Jay Bennett and Club Vote	Activities Committee established and limit raised to $3,600 per year
1/17/08	Jay Bennett and Tom Dew	Changed name to Activities Coordinating Committee and several other small changes.

Charitable Contributions

Review

The text of the proposed policy was printed in the Sept. 2003 Beemer Beat for review by the membership.

Approval

The policy was approved unanimously by both the Executive Committee & the general membership at the November 2003 meeting.

Preface

This policy should not be restricted to the viewpoints of the current club officers and to the financial status of the club at any specific time. Rather, the policy should be a viable document to guide club members and officers well into the future.
This policy should not be so limiting that it will screen out potential worthy causes even prior to consideration.

Policy Guidelines

1. As an Oregon statewide club, our membership and club activities are Oregon-centered. Similarly, the personal and employment commitments of most of the members are within the state. Therefore, it is reasonable that we expect our contributions to directly benefit our state as well. However, this is not to suggest that other charities outside of Oregon might not merit consideration.
2. Donations should directly benefit the individuals and causes for whom they were directed, rather than support organizational overhead. It is accepted that administrative costs are a reality of any non-profit activity, but these costs tend to consume a greater portion of donations of large organizations. Therefore, greater consideration might be given to smaller community-based organizations that show that they direct a greater portion of donations to the intended recipients. This guideline does not, however, preclude larger national charitable organizations that operate efficiently.
3. The practice of supporting grassroots charities in our rally communities is justified for several reasons: (a) it is a respectful way to thank the community for its support, (b) it is simply good public relations if we are considering holding our rally there in the future, and (c) it adheres to guidelines #1 and #2 above. Nevertheless, we should always retain the option to donate outside of the host community if we deem a cause to be deserving.
4. The process of prioritizing charities for the disbursement of donations is inherently subjective. It is recognized that there are indeed many worthy causes. Also, everyone’s priority ordering differs. Organizations benefiting children should be given special consideration because children’s needs are often great and they are among the least able to help themselves. Often, a valid justification can be made for other groups of people who are challenged by medical, mental, and age-related conditions. It would be heroic to assume that everyone would agree that one deserving group should always be on the list. Therefore, consideration might be given to any organization which benefits people whose situation in life has occurred through no fault of their own.
5. The level of contributions should be assessed each year after the rally accounting is final. The volume of money available for giving should be apparent in time to be distributed prior to the holiday season. Previous donations should not unduly influence future donations. Instead, the amount should ne determined based on the financial status of the club. This should not, however, preclude the club from re-evaluating its resources during the year because of unforeseen and unanticipated circumstances.
6. It is recognized that occasional ad hoc requests for funds will surface from both members and non-members. It is difficult to fashion a firm policy when some requests might be deemed worthy by most of the members and, thus, perhaps merit deviation from these standards. This, however, should not be a way to circumvent these guidelines. If monies allocated for donations have been committed, all additional donations should voluntarily come from individual members, rather than the club treasury. The club might aid the petitioner in seeking individual donations.
7. All recommended disbursements to charities from the club treasury recommended by the Executive Committee shall be approved by the general membership.

Revision History:

Date	Person Responsible for Revision	Revision
11/22/05	Kit Vercella	Voted on at the Nov ’05 meeting and approved

Video Projector Policy

Introduction

The BMWRO has purchased a video projector for the use and enjoyment of the club. It has been purchased entirely with club money, and so the club has complete ownership and control of its use.

Guidelines

• The club will use the projector for BMWRO presentations ONLY.
• Club members need pre-approval to use the projector for club events and activities.
• Although the club owns the projector, one member will be the curator for the machine. He or she will have responsibility to check the machine in and out as appropriate with these guidelines. The curator will assist others with the technical aspects of the projector. That responsibility currently resides with a person appointed by the Ex-Comm.

Assumptions

• The projector has an expensive (approx. $310) light source that will last approximately 2000 to 3000 hrs. The machine will require infrequent but periodic maintenance of the light source.

Other Information

• Model: Optoma DV10 MovieTime
• Serial Number: 081R45AAAA1C0204
• Purchase Date: 1/26/07
• Purchase Price: $799.00

Revision History:

Date	Person Responsible for Revision	Revision
2/15/07	Jay Bennett	Enacted
8/3/08	Jay Bennett	Change curator responsibility from VP to appointed person