1. NATIONAL AFFILIATION: Birmingham Democratic Socialists of America (hereinafter “BDSA”) is a local chapter of the national organization Democratic Socialists of America.
2. MEMBERS:
   1. Any member of the public who supports the mission of BDSA and who pays yearly or monthly membership dues to BDSA, as determined by the members, will be a member.
   2. Members are entitled to serve as chair of any BDSA committees.
   3. Membership in BDSA can be refused to anyone, even members of the national Democratic Socialists of America organization, based on a simple majority vote of BDSA members.
   4. Access to any comprehensive database containing the names, addresses or contact information not explicitly granted in these bylaws can only be granted to specific individuals, whether they’re BDSA members or not, by a majority vote of BDSA members present. Only named individuals, not groups, can be granted such access.
3. MEETINGS OF THE MEMBERS:
   1. Meetings of the members will be held on a regular basis at a regularly scheduled time and place as determined by the members.
   1. The meeting will be run according to Robert’s Rules of Order and other procedures approved by the members, except that the presiding co-chair will make all reasonable efforts to reach a consensus of those members present at the meeting. If, in the opinion of the presiding co-chair, a consensus is not possible, the presiding co-chair may entertain a motion on the matter at hand. The motion will be disposed of according to the rules of order, normally a majority vote; except that decisions on endorsements in election campaigns must be adopted by a vote of two-thirds of the members present.
   2. Non-members may attend meetings at the invitation of a member. This member will make their guest’s intention to attend known to the rest of the group before the meeting via electronic or in-person communication. Non-member guests are allowed to speak at meetings, but not vote. If any member takes exception to a non-member’s attendance, that non-member will be barred from attending the meeting unless two-thirds of attending members vote to allow the non-member in question to attend.
   2. Current employees of law enforcement agencies including, but not limited to, municipal police, state police, county sheriff offices, the F.B.I., the I.C.E., the A.T.F., departments of corrections, jails, prisons, immigrant detention facilities, etc., will be barred from membership in BDSA as well as attendance at BDSA meetings.
4. DUES:
   1. The members will determine any membership dues for BDSA.
   2. From these dues and any funds donated for this specific purpose, the Treasurer will set aside a fund to pay for any dues to the national Democratic Socialists of America organization not already paid by members of BDSA.
5. OFFICERS AND ELECTIONS:
   1. Members will elect the officers of BDSA at the last meeting of January, or if for some reason this meeting is unforeseeably delayed, the meeting following the last meeting of January.
   2. Officer terms will be for one year except where noted.
   3. Officers will be elected by the following procedure: nominations will be open for any given officer position up to 11:59 PM on the day before the election is held. Any member of BDSA may nominate another member or themselves for any officer position, though nominations must be accepted by the nominated member before they will be recognized by the Co-Chairs. Only members may vote in BDSA elections. In officer elections where there are more than two nominees and no candidate receives more than fifty-percent of the vote, the two candidates with the highest vote totals in the first round of voting will immediately enter into a runoff accompanied by a second round of voting. Whichever candidate receives the highest number of votes in this second round of voting will take office. Members who know beforehand that they will be unable to attend an election meeting may cast absentee votes by written or electronically recorded communication verified by an officer. If a member casts an absentee ballot before a meeting, they must do so knowing that they will be unable to change their vote if their candidate of choice drops out during an election meeting. Votes cast for candidates who have dropped out or who have not accepted a nomination will not be counted. This procedure will be in place for all BDSA officer elections, except where specifically noted otherwise in these bylaws.
   4. BDSA officers will include two Co-Chairs, a Treasurer, a Secretary, and a Communications Officer.
   5. No member will hold more than one office.
   6. Officers will not not be compensated for time rendered to Birmingham DSA in their capacity as an officer.
6. CO-CHAIRS:
   1. Two Co-Chairs will serve as the chief executive officers of BDSA and will ensure that all resolutions and orders of the members will be carried out. In every aspect of their roles, powers and authority, they will be considered equal. The Co-Chairs will sign or countersign all certificates, contracts or other instruments of BDSA except where otherwise designated in these bylaws. The Co-Chairs will perform such other duties as are incident to the office required of them by the members of BDSA.
   2. Each Co-Chair will preside over meetings at alternating meeting dates, unless an agreement is worked out between them in advance. Even if a Co-Chair is not presiding over a particular meeting, their authority on matters of procedure will hold equal weight with that of the presiding Co-Chair. If both Co-Chairs are unable to come to an agreement on a matter related to BDSA, the question will be decided by a majority vote of members.
   3. Co-Chairs will serve year-long terms, but their elections will be staggered by six months. One Co-Chair election will take place at the last meeting in January along with the other officer positions, while the other will take place at the last meeting in June. If for some reason either meeting is unforeseeably delayed, Co-Chair elections will take place at the next meeting.
   4. At all times, at least one Co-Chair must be either a person of color, a woman, LGBTQ or disabled. If, when a Co-Chair election takes place, the Co-Chair position that is not up for election is not filled by a person who meets this requirement, then only candidates who do meet this requirement will be permitted to run.
   5. At the first election following the adoption of the Co-Chair system, in order to prevent having only one Co-Chair in place for six months, a special one-time election procedure will be used: first, a vote will be held for one Co-Chair to serve a full-year term. Then, an election will be held for a second Co-Chair to serve a six-month term. If the full-year term Co-Chair is neither a person of color, a woman, LGBTQ or disabled, then nominees for the six-month term Co-Chair who don’t meet any of those conditions will not be considered. Following this election, the procedure for electing Co-Chairs will revert to the normal conditions specified in these bylaws.
7. TREASURER:
   1. The Treasurer will, as directed by the members, have care and custody of the general funds, securities, properties, and assets of the BDSA.
   1. The Treasurer will ensure that the funds and securities shall be deposited in the banks(s), trust companies or depositories that the members will designate. At the direction of the members, the Treasurer will ensure disbursement and disposal of the same, taking proper voucher for such disbursements.
   2. They will ensure that accurate books of account are kept in accordance with commonly accepted accounting principles, recording therein the amount of all monies, funds, securities, properties and assets in their custody, wherever located, and showing the amount of disbursement made and the disposition of properties. They will exhibit said books and records when required by the members, the co-chairs, or government agency of appropriate regulator jurisdiction pursuant to law.
   3. They will prepare a yearly financial report to present at the last meeting to be held in January, or if this meeting is unforeseeably delayed, the meeting following the last meeting of January.
   2. The Treasurer will be responsible for collecting dues to BDSA and maintaining a separate fund for the sole purpose of paying membership dues for BDSA members to the national Democratic Socialists of America organization.
   3. They will maintain a list of dues-paying BDSA members available to all BDSA members. This list will not include how much each member has paid in dues and will not be online.
   4. The Treasurer will have the authority to disburse funds of their own accord to BDSA members totaling no more than twenty-five dollars in a given week. Said funds must only be used to compensate for or to further projects that are at least partially carried out by BDSA as a whole or by one of its affiliated action committees. Any disbursement totaling more than twenty-five dollars must be approved by a vote of BDSA members.
   1. Any disbursement that is to be made on a continuous or scheduled basis does not need to be voted on more than once as long as the continuous or scheduled nature of the disbursement is approved by a vote of BDSA members.
   2. Any disbursement that comes from a fund set aside for a specific purpose via a vote by BDSA members does not need to come to a further vote. Rather, this money may be spent at the discretion of the treasurer as long as it is spent towards the specific purpose it was initially approved for.
   3. Any BDSA member may ask to see a record of the Treasurer’s discretionary disbursements. This request must be made either directly to the Treasurer, at a BDSA meeting, or in a public forum used by BDSA members. Once this request is made, the Treasurer has 72 hours to comply. If they do not comply, the remaining officers must investigate and give one or more reports with proposals for further action at the following meeting.
8. SECRETARY:
   1. The Secretary will ensure that the minutes are kept of the meetings of the members and will ensure that the minutes are distributed.
   2. The Secretary will see that all notices are duly given in accordance with the provisions of these Bylaws or as required by law.
   3. The Secretary will be custodian of all BDSA records.
   4. The Secretary will, in general, perform the duties incident to the office of Secretary and such other duties as are from time to time assigned by the Co-Chairs or by the members.
9. COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER:
   1. The Communications Officer will be chiefly responsible for all internal and external publications and messaging issued by BDSA including, but not limited to, newsletters, newspapers, websites, fliers, posters, signs, mass e-mails, video, audio, zines, pamphlets and assorted printed or electronic materials.
   1. The Communications Officer can create and will have authority over whatever committees and assign any responsibilities that they see fit carry out this function.
   2. Members of committees created by the Communications Officer do not necessarily need to be members of BDSA.
   2. The Communications Officer will keep a register of the contact information of each BDSA member.
   3. Social Media. All social media will be posted by the Communications Officer or their chosen representative. No member of the Steering Committee except the Communications Officer will have the ability to post on social media. Only the Communications Officer or their appointed representative can be the administrator or owner of a social media account. Any member of the chapter shall be able to propose a social media post to Communications Committee via the Communications Officer. Passwords to social media will be changed by the new Communications Officer when a new Communications Officer takes office. Password to the chapter email account will be held only by Steering Committee and Communications Committee and will be changed after elections by the new Communications Chair. Committees will have their own email inboxes.
10. GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE:
    1. The Governance Committee will be a body tasked with interpreting the bylaws when needed and assuring that BDSA adheres to the bylaws.
    2. The Governance Committee will have an odd number of members and be made up of no less than three and no more than seven members.
    1. Members of the Governance Committee must be members of BDSA. Members of the Governance Committee will be elected at the same meeting as the officers.
    2. If the number of nominees is an odd number that is less than seven, a vote will not be necessary and all nominees will assume a position on the Governance Committee. However, if the number of nominees is an even number or greater than seven, a vote will be held. If the number of nominees is greater than seven, the top seven vote-getters will assume positions on the committee. If the number of nominations is an even number less than seven, all but the lowest vote-getter will take their place on the committee.
    3. At least one member of the Governance Committee must not be an officer of BDSA. If all top vote-getters are officers, the one with the least votes will be replaced by the non-officer nominee with the most votes.
    4. The Governance Committee will elect a Chair among its members. BDSA officers will be disqualified from running for Governance Committee Chair. If the Governance Committee is unable to elect a Chair, the position will be filled by the non-officer who received the most votes during the initial election.
    3. The Governance Committee can be convened to decide matters related to the bylaws by a majority vote of BDSA members.
    4. The Governance Committee Chair will be chiefly responsible for keeping proceedings compliant with the bylaws at BDSA meetings and for maintaining an up to date copy of the bylaws available to all members of BDSA.
11. GRIEVANCE COMMITTEE:
    1. The Grievance Committee will be a body tasked with hearing and investigating grievances brought by BDSA members against other BDSA members.
    2. The Grievance Committee will be made up of no less than three and no more than seven members, and will consist of an odd number of members.
    1. No more than one member of the Grievance Committee will be a straight, white, cis man. Members of the Grievance Committee must be members of BDSA. There should be at least one member each on the Grievance Committee who identifies as the following: a woman, a person of color, an LGBTQ person, a disabled person and a working person, (henceforth referred to as “must-seat groups”.)
    2. However, if there are no members who identify as any one of the must-seat groups who wish to serve on the Grievance Committee or if there aren’t enough members who wish to serve on the committee to represent all of the must-seat groups, then the committee will continue to carry out its responsibilities while keeping its membership open to anyone who does identify as whichever of the must-seat groups is not represented on the committee at the time.
    3. Grievance Committee members will be elected to one-year terms every year at the same meeting that officer elections are held .
    4. If there are seven or fewer candidates for the Grievance Committee, and if there are an odd number of eligible candidates, then every candidate will be seated on the committee without an election; however, if in this case there are multiple straight, white, cis male candidates, they will face off in an election to decide who will be seated.
    5. If there are more than seven candidates, or if there are an even number of candidates, an election will be held using the following method: each voting member of BDSA will cast a ballot listing their top seven or odd number of preferences among the candidates.
    1. Each candidate will be awarded a number of points inverse to each voters’ ranking, (example, favorite candidate out of seven would receive seven points.) The presiding Co-Chair will tally the points from all the ballots, and the total will be checked by the other Co-Chair, or if they’re not available, by the Secretary.
    2. The Grievance Committee Chair, or if they’re not available, the presiding Co-Chair, will check to see if the candidates with the top point scores contain at least one of each of the must-seat groups. If so, they will be seated on the Grievance Committee. If not, then the Grievance Committee Chair, or if they’re not available, the presiding Co-Chair will look among the remaining candidates, starting with the highest point-scorer and proceeding to the lowest, to see if there’s anyone who does meet the desired condition.
    3. If they do, then that candidate may replace one of the top point scorers on the Grievance Committee. Any white, straight, cis male will be the first candidate for replacement, but if there is none among the top point scorers, then the lowest point scorer among the top scorers will be considered the first candidate for replacement.
    4. If replacing this candidate would create another situation where one of the must-seat groups is no longer represented on the committee, then the next lowest point-scoring candidate will be considered for replacement.
    5. This process will repeat until as many of the must-seat groups as possible have at least one representative on the committee.
    3. Once the Grievance Committee is selected, they will elect the Grievance Committee Chair from among themselves. The Grievance Committee Chair can not be a white, cis man or the holder of another BDSA office, and such candidates will be disqualified.
    4. If, at any time, a BDSA member who identifies as a member of a must-seat group that isn’t represented on the Grievance Committee wishes to be seated on the committee, they may petition for membership if one of two conditions is met: 1. There’s a white, cis male on the committee (who would then step down,) or 2. If there are two or more members of another must-seat group on the grievance committee, (at which point, one would step down or the Grievance Committee hold an internal election to decide which one would step down.) The Grievance Committee may approve the petition by a simple majority vote. The petitioner will then be seated, but will have to stand for election at the next officer election if they wish to continue to serve.
    5. The Grievance Committee will set its own rules for its meetings.
    6. BDSA members who wish to bring a grievance to the Grievance Committee will be able to do so by one of two methods: a secure online form or by talking directly to any member of the Grievance Committee.
    1. Once the committee has received a grievance, it will immediately begin an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the grievance.
    2. Once the investigation is complete, the committee will deliberate on their findings and the best course of action.
    3. The Grievance Committee will strive, whenever possible, to pursue conversation and education as means to resolve grievances; punitive actions will be reserved for the harshest of offenses.
    4. If the grievance has been brought by or against a member or members of the Grievance Committee, they must recuse themselves from their role on the committee during proceedings during which said grievance is involved.
    5. Following the initial reception of a grievance, the Grievance Committee must immediately let all BDSA officers know that a grievance has been received without divulging the details of the grievance.
    6. After that, the Grievance Committee will have two weeks to decide whether to present its findings and recommend a course of action at the next BDSA meeting or at a specially called meeting of BDSA officers.
    7. The Grievance Committee may decide, in consultation with all involved parties, that the nature of the grievance may best be handled by the smaller group of officers rather than the larger body of BDSA members; (whichever body the committee chooses to present to will henceforth be referred to as “the chosen body”.)
    8. If the Grievance Committee feels more time is needed, it may petition for additional time, subject to a simple majority vote of the chosen body.
    9. The Grievance Committee will have discretion, in consultation with all involved parties, as to what evidence will be presented to the chosen body.
    10. In cases where all involved parties can agree to the Grievance Committee’s recommendation, no further action will be needed.
    11. In cases where one or more of the involved parties do not agree with the Grievance Committee’s recommendation, the chosen body will hold a simple majority vote on the recommendation.
    1. If the vote passes, the recommendation will be enforced; if not, the Grievance Committee will be tasked with creating a new recommendation.
    2. If the chosen body votes to enforce the recommendation and one or more of the involved parties refuse to abide by it, those parties will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including suspension or removal of membership, to be decided upon by the Grievance Committee and subject to approval by a simple majority vote of the chosen body.
    3. If the Grievance Committee chooses to present to the BDSA officers and the grievance has been brought by or against an officer or officers, that officer or those officers must recuse themselves from votes involving the resolution of said grievance.
    12. If the Grievance Committee chooses to present to the BDSA officers, they may decide, subject to a simple majority vote, to send the case to the larger body of BDSA members for deliberation.
12. VACANCIES:
    1. All vacancies of Officers, whether resulting from death, resignation or otherwise, will be filled temporarily by the Co-Chairs until the next meeting.
    2. From the time that an officer position becomes vacant, nominations to fill that position will be open until 11:59 PM on the day before the next meeting.
    3. At the next meeting, an election will be held to fill the vacant position which will follow BDSA’s normal election rules.
    1. If, however, an officer position becomes vacant less than 48 hour before the next meeting, the ensuing election and nomination deadline will be moved back to the meeting after the next meeting.
    4. If a current officer is elected to the vacant officer position or to the position of Co-Chair during the required mid-year Co-Chair election, their current position will be vacated immediately and the procedure for filling a vacant office will be repeated at the next meeting. If, however, an officer position becomes vacant less than 48 hour before the next meeting, the ensuing election and nomination deadline will be moved back to the meeting after the next meeting. If a current officer is elected to the vacant officer position or to the position of Co-Chair during the required mid-year Co-Chair election, their current position will be vacated immediately and the procedure for filling a vacant office will be repeated at the next meeting.
    5. An officer elected to fill a vacancy will only serve the remainder of the position's term. Normal elections for that position will take place at the appointed time laid out in the section titled 'OFFICERS AND ELECTIONS'.
13. REMOVAL:
    1. Any Officer may be removed by a two-thirds vote of the members.
    2. Any Officer may resign in writing.
14. ACTION COMMITTEES:
    1. The number, duties, and functions of the action committees, if any, shall be as determined by the members.
    2. If possible, a representative from each action committee will give a report on their committee’s activities at each meeting of BDSA members.
    3. Each action committee will have at least one chair or co-chair who is a member of BDSA; otherwise each action committee will determine its own governing structure and membership.
    1. Members of action committees do not necessarily have to be members of BDSA.
    4. The membership of BDSA may either dissolve or dissociate from an action committee by a two-thirds majority vote.
    5. Committee Structure. All proposed committees shall be put to a chapter-wide vote on OpaVote or a similar electronic platform. Committees will need to be approved by a simple majority. All existing committees will need to be reapproved by the general body and all committees will go before a vote to the chapter annually. Every committee shall have a democratically elected chair or two co-chairs. The chair or co-chairs will be elected by the chapter at large when the committee is proposed or re-affirmed.
15. SECTIONS
    1. Sections are formations in the chapter for the purpose of creating a shared space for members of a common identity, but unlike working groups are not dedicated to a specific campaign or policy issue. “Common identities” may include, but are not necessarily limited to, protected classes under federal law such as gender, race, ethnicity, or national identity.
    2. Sections may petition for recognition by submitting an application to the steering committee including no less than three Birmingham DSA members, a mission statement, and bylaws. Sections have the same rights and expectations as Working Groups or Action Committees as outlined in these bylaws, except where it may be inconsistent with this article, such as in the approval process. Sections are entitled to have criteria for which chapter members are eligible to join, which must be enumerated in their bylaws. Sections will communicate to a Steering liaison who are their contact points and what is the leadership structure of the section upon their formal recognition so that the section may be included in communications and have a direct line for requesting support.
16. CHANGES TO THE BYLAWS:
    1. Members shall have the power to approve changes to the Bylaws.
    2. Any proposed changes to the Bylaws shall be announced to the members one meeting in advance of any vote. Changes may be adopted by a vote of two-thirds of the members present.
17. DISSOLUTION:
    1. BDSA may be dissolved by motion approved by three-fifths of the members.
    2. The members will ensure that an appropriate agent is designated to complete the dissolution of the organization. Said agent will ensure that all financial and legal issues are properly resolved.