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The revised Constitution and By-Laws, published below, were approved by members at The Chester Historical Society Annual Meeting, September 25, 2016.
CONSTITUTION
OF THE CHESTER HISTORICL SOCIETY, INC.
Chester, Morris County, New Jersey
Article I
The name of the organization shall be the Chester Historical Society.
Article II
Purpose
1) The purpose of the Society shall be to encourage and ensure the preservation, protection, organization, and management of materials with present or potential historical value relating to Chester Borough and Chester Township.
2) The Society shall provide access to materials, as far as feasible, for examination, study, or research.
3) The Society shall encourage the preservation and protection of buildings, monuments, and sites of present or potential historical value relating to Chester Borough or Chester Township.
4) The Society shall encourage cooperation with other historical societies to collect and preserve material and information of statewide significance.
5) The Society shall be a Nonprofit Public Benefit Corporation within the meaning of Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
6) The Society shall be organized and operated exclusively for charitable, educational, scientific and literary purposes. The assets of the Society shall be used exclusively for such purposes and no part shall benefit any private individual or commercial purpose.
Article III
Membership
Membership shall be of five classes:
- Individual – Any individual.
- Family – Any household, including minor children.
- Business – Any company, corporation or foundation.
- Life – An individual paying a one-time fee.
- Honorary – May be granted by the Board of Trustees to any person whose activities have exceptionally contributed to the objectives of the Society.
Article IV
Meetings
Annual, Board, and Special Meetings of the Society shall be held as stipulated in the By-Laws.
Article V
Officers and Trustees
1) The Board of Trustees shall consist of Officers and Trustees.
2) Elected Officers of the Society shall be President, Vice President, Recording Secretary, Corresponding Secretary, and Treasurer.
3) There shall be a minimum of four and a maximum of eight elected Trustees.
4) The term of office for Officers shall be two years. The President and Recording Secretary shall be elected in “even” years. The Vice President, Corresponding Secretary, and Treasurer shall be elected in “uneven” years.
5) The term of office for Trustees shall be two years.
6) A nominating committee, appointed by the Board of Trustees, shall present the nominations for Officers and Trustees to the members, thirty days prior to the Annual Meeting.
7) Any candidate for office shall be a member.
8) All Officers and Trustees shall be elected by a plurality of votes cast at the Annual Meeting by the members present.
9) Officers and Trustees elected at the Annual Meeting shall take office as of the commencement of the ensuing fiscal year and shall serve without compensation.
10) In the event of the resignation or incapacity of the President, the vacancy shall be filled by the Vice President whose office shall then be filled by vote of the Board of Trustees. In the event the Vice President is unwilling or unable to assume the office of President, the Board of Trustees shall elect a new President for the remainder of the unexpired term. In the event of the resignation or incapacity of any other Officer or Trustee, the Board of Trustees shall vote to fill the unexpired term.
Article VI
Amendments
1) This Constitution may be amended at an Annual or Special Meeting by a two-thirds vote of members present.
2) All proposed amendments shall be submitted in writing to the Recording Secretary at least fifty days prior to the Annual or Special meeting.
3) The Recording Secretary shall notify all members of the Society in writing of the proposed amendments to this Constitution at least thirty days prior to the Annual or Special meeting.
Article VII
Dissolution
1) Upon liquidation or dissolution, all properties, assets and obligations of the Chester Historical Society, Inc. remaining after payment of outstanding debts and liabilities, shall be distributed and paid to an organization or organizations whose purposes are similar to the purposes of the Chester Historical Society Inc. The recipient organization(s) shall be dedicated to the exempt purposes specified in Section 501(c)(3) of United States Internal Revenue Code.
2) A resolution containing all proposed details of the dissolution and distribution of assets shall be prepared by the Board and brought to the membership for a vote at an Annual or Special Meeting. The Recording Secretary shall notify all members in writing of the resolution thirty days before the Annual or Special Meeting. In the event there are not enough members to constitute a quorum at such a meeting, the Board shall vote on the resolution. Passage of the resolution requires an affirmative vote of seventy-five percent of members present. With an affirmative vote the Board shall proceed with the dissolution as outlined in the resolution. The Board shall notice and provide the IRS and the New Jersey Attorney General with any and all documents they require.
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