Bylaw Committee Meeting, 29 August 2002

The Bylaw Committee met on Thursday, August 29, 2002, 7:10 p.m., at the office of the Local, 2725 Hollywood Boulevard.  Present: Chairman Jeff Apana, Kurt Hagen, Katrenna Johnson, Tony Toran, and Scott Whitney.

Scott Whitney was appointed committee secretary by unanimous consent.

Chairman Apana reviewed the provisions in Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised (RONR) regarding bylaws, and discussed the mission of the Bylaws Committee.

A report of the Formatting Subcommittee was given by Scott Whitney.  The subcommittee presented a proposed draft revision of the current bylaws with:

  • the articles ordered according to RONR;

  • the addition of a “Parliamentary Authority” article;

  • the elimination of the “Miscellaneous” article, and;

  • the elimination of all dual-gender pronouns (he/she, him/her, etc.). 

Kurt Hagen moved to amend the proposed draft by retaining Sections 1, 2, and 3 in Article XVIII - Miscellaneous, and  placing them in Article II – Object and Jurisdiction. The motion was adopted.  The recommendations of the Formatting Subcommittee were then adopted as represented in the draft revision, as amended. (Draft #1).

A motion by Chairman Apana to change the name of Article V from “Dues, Fees and Assessments” to “Funds” was lost after discussion.

A motion by Chairman Apana to amend Article I by adding, “herein referred to as the ‘Local’” was adopted.  The committee secretary was directed to modify all references in the next draft to reflect this change.

Kurt Hagen moved to add to Article I:

  • “Section 1. Name:”, and

  • “Section 2. Affiliations: The Local shall be an affiliated Local of the American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada, herein referred to as the ‘Federation’” (from the AFM Model Local Bylaws).

The motion was adopted by unanimous consent.

Kurt Hagen moved to organize Article II as follows:

  • Section 1. Mission

  • Section 2. Jurisdiction

  • Section 3. Authorities

  • Section 4. Severability

The motion was adopted by unanimous consent.

Kurt Hagen moved to strike Article II, Section 1. Mission, (a), (b), and (c), and insert the objectives as shown in Article 2 of the Orlando Local 389 Bylaws, with the exception of objective 6).  Chairman Apana moved to amend the first objective to read, “The object of the Local shall be: 1) to unite musicians of the South Florida area without discrimination, regardless of race, creed, sex or national origin;”  The motion was adopted by unanimous consent.  A motion by Tony Toran to include objective 6) from the Orlando Bylaws was lost after discussion.  The motion to insert the objectives from the Orlando Bylaws, as amended, was adopted.

Chairman Apana moved to amend Article III, Section 1. Eligibility For Membership, to read, “All performers on musical instruments of any kind and vocalists, or other individuals who render musical services of any kind are eligible for membership, subject to the laws and jurisdiction of the Federation.”  The motion was adopted.

Chairman Apana discussed the issue of separating the responsibilities of the recording and business representatives from the offices of president and vice president.

The next meeting of the Bylaws Committee is Saturday, September 7, 2002, 1:00 p.m. at the Local offices, 2725 Hollywood Boulevard.

The meeting adjourned at 9:25 p.m.