Constitution

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CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS

UNITED METHODIST MEN

NORTH GEORGIA CONFERENCE

THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

 

ARTICLE I – Name

 The name of the Organization shall be “North Georgia Conference United Methodist Men, the United Methodist Church”.

ARTICLE II – Headquarters

    The principle office of the Organization shall be where the Leadership Council establishes it.

ARTICLE III – Purpose

    The Organization shall work with the Districts and local units of United Methodist Men (“UMM”) that are within the North Georgia Conference (“NGC”) to develop programs and activities that meet the needs and interests of men and the concerns and responsibilities of discipleship.  It shall assist in personal witness and evangelism, enable outreach in missions and ministry, support personal growth and faith development, and promote the objectives and responsibilities of the General Commission on United Methodist Men of The United Methodist Church.

ARTICLE IV – Objectives

    The Organization shall provide inspiration, leadership and support to the District and local units of UMM.  The most important function is to focus all men in their quest for Christian service.

    All elected and appointed officers of the Organization shall seek the guidance of Jesus Christ in their lives and in the performance of their duties.  In addition they shall:

 Provide leadership and supervision for all UMM activities within the NGC.

  1. Provide training seminars for UMM within the local churches and the districts of the NGC.

  2. Work with the NGC Bishop, NGC and District Councils on Ministries, District Superintendents, and Pastors to under-gird all phases of the programs of The United Methodist Church.

  3. Promote personal evangelism, especially among men and boys.

  4. Cooperate with all branches of United Methodist Men, wherever located.

  5. Promote the study of and familiarization with The United Methodist Church, its doctrine and with the Organization.

  6. Receive, evaluate, and promote service projects on international, national, conference, district, and local levels.

  7. Promote the chartering and annual registration of UMM units for each local church and charge.

  8. Promote the annual UMM Spiritual Retreat and all other retreats and general gatherings of men that are sponsored by the Organization.

  9. Be a two-way channel for information among and between national, conference, district and local United Methodist Men.

  10. Encourage men in their ministry to reach out beyond the local church for the development of men of strong personal character that will radiate and motivate Christian principles and service.

ARTICLE V – Membership

    All members of each local UMM unit, whether chartered or unchartered, that is within the bounds of the North Georgia Conference shall be members of the Organization.

ARTICLE VI – Administration

    The Organization shall be governed by a body known as the “Leadership Council”, consisting of the elected officers, other persons as set forth below, and additional persons as the Leadership Council shall designate.  There shall be an “Executive Committee” with full power to act on behalf of the Leadership Council between meetings of the Leadership Council.

ARTICLE VII – Elected Officers

All Officers elected as members of the Leadership Council shall access the email account provided for them by the North Georgia Conference United Methodist Men (NGCUMM) to facilitate communications within the Leadership Council.

A.    (1)    PRESIDENT – The President shall be chief executive officer of the Organization.  Except as otherwise set forth herein, the President shall (a) preside at all regular and special meetings of the Organization, the Leadership Council and the Executive Committee with full power to act on behalf of the Leadership Council and the Executive Committee, (b) shall have general oversight of all work and activities of the Organization,  (c) may declare any office as being vacant due to lack of performance of duties, health issues, or other circumstances that might arise and, with the consent of the Executive Committee, may appoint a replacement to the office who will serve for the remainder of the term of office of the person replaced, (d) submit a written report of his activities to the Executive Committee and submit it five day prior to a regular meeting of the Executive Committee to the Secretary, (e) maintain appropriate files for his successor to facilitate smooth transition of the office, and (f) neither be an ordained member of the clergy not a full-time Lay Pastor.

 

  1. VICE-PRESIDENTS – There shall be three Vice Presidents as described herein who assist the President in areas defined by the Bylaws.  They shall submit timely written reports to the Executive Committee.  They shall maintain files that shall be given to their successor.

    1. There shall be a Vice President for Conference Affairs & Administration (“CA&A”) who (a) shall oversee the operations of the administrative office of the Organization, (b) shall be a member of the NGCUMM Personnel Policy Committee, (c) shall serve on such boards, agencies and committees of the North Georgia Conference as the President requests and (d) shall, when requested by the President, meet with the North Georgia Conference Cabinet, other conference leaders and other persons on matters concerning United Methodist Men.

    2. There shall be a Vice President for Membership, Organization and Chartering (“MO&C”) who (a) shall oversee the activities of each of the North Georgia Conference District UMM Organizations and of the UMM units in the districts, (b) shall develop and implement plans for UMM membership in local units, (c) shall be responsible for UMM charters and annual registration of local units, (d) shall develop, maintain and implement the training of local and district UMM leaders, and (e) shall be a member of the NGCUMM Personnel Policy Committee, (f) shall serve on such boards, agencies and committees of the North Georgia Conference as the President requests and (g) shall, when requested by the President, meet with the North Georgia Conference Cabinet, other conference leaders and other persons on matters concerning United Methodist Men.

    3. There shall be a Vice President for Activities and Retreats (“AR&R”) who (a) shall be responsible for coordinating activities and retreats of the Organization, (b) shall be a regular member of the Retreats Committee, (c) shall assist with the planning and implementation of district rallies, (d) shall oversee Conference UMM participation , displays, and events at the North Georgia Annual Conference and at any other major event at which UMM participation is appropriate, (e) shall serve on such boards, agencies and committees of the North Georgia Conference as the President requests, (f) shall, when requested by the President, meet with the North Georgia Conference Cabinet, other conference leaders and other persons on matters concerning United Methodist Men, and (g) shall be a member of the NGCUMM Personnel Policy Committee.

  2. SECRETARY – The Secretary shall keep all records of the Organization.  These records shall include all meetings of the Leadership Council, the Executive Committee and the Personnel Policy Committee.  His records shall be kept in an orderly manner and presented for approval as applicable at the appropriate meeting of the Leadership Council, the Executive Committee or the Personnel Policy Committee.  The Secretary shall give or cause to be given notices to the members of the Leadership Council, the Executive Committee and others as requested by the President or the Executive Committee.

  3. TREASURER – All funds shall be collected and disbursed by or under the supervision of the Treasurer.  Adequate, orderly and proper records shall be kept by the Treasurer or under his supervision.  A written financial report shall be made at each regular meeting of the Executive Committee, the Leadership Council, and at the Annual Meeting.  Disbursements shall be made only upon the authorization of the Executive Committee or the Leadership Council.  All funds received shall be deposited into one or more accounts maintained at financial institutions whose deposits are insured by agencies of the United States government. Disbursements or other withdrawals shall be made from the accounts only by the Treasurer or such persons so authorized by the Executive Committee.

B.    NOMINATING COMMITTEE – There shall be a Nominating Committee that shall consist of the President (as an ex officio member only), the Vice President for MO&C, and four (4) persons elected by the Executive Committee from among the members of the Leadership Council.

 

  1. Prior to each Annual Meeting the Nominating Committee shall be convened by the Vice President for MO&C and elect from among its members a chairman.  The Nominating Committee shall nominate at least one (1) person for each of those offices where a vacancy exists or will exist at the end of the current term of office.  Each nominee must be contacted by a member of the Nominating Committee and make a commitment that, if elected, he will faithfully serve.

  2. Each officer named in this article shall be elected for a two (2) year term by simple majority vote of the Voting Members at the Annual Meeting of the Organization.  Each term of office shall begin on July 1 of each year, and continue for the term prescribed for the office. No elected officer shall serve for more than four (4) years in the same office without at least a one (1) year break in service.

  3. Unscheduled vacancies of an elected office may be filled by the President with the advice and consent of the Executive Committee for the remainder of the term of office.

ARTICLE VIII – Elected Ministry Positions

A.    The Leadership Council will, at the Annual Meeting, elect members of the Executive Committee to serve as Conference Ministry Leads.  These Ministry Leads shall be voting members.  The Ministry Leads shall be the Director of Evangelism, the Director of Spiritual Growth, the Prayer Advocate, the Hunger Advocate, the Director of Missions, the Director of Disaster Response, the Director Prison Ministry, the Scouting Coordinator, the Director of Leadership Development, and the Director of Communications.
B.    The Conference Ministry Leads will work with the District Ministry Leads in each District to form a core team that accepts the responsibility to reach out in their respective ministries across the conference.  The District Presidents will include in their respective District Leadership Committees the District Ministry Leads in these ministry areas, in addition to their Zone Vice Presidents, the District Secretary, and the District Treasurer.  This District Leadership Committee will meet on a regular basis to not only conduct the business issues within the district but to both gather information from and give information to the ministry leaders and receive reports from these ministry leaders as to the activities in each ministry area since the previous meeting.  The District Ministry Leads in each of the ministry areas will be in regular contact, with each other, as well as the Conference Ministry Lead for new information and possible needs, ministry implementation guidance, encouragement, and communications of relevant activities.  The frequency of interactions and the communication method used for each ministry will be defined by the team consisting of the Conference Ministry Lead and the District Ministry Leads of that ministry area, with primary responsibility for this communication assigned to the Conference Ministry Lead.
C.    It is the responsibility of each ministry core team to develop specific goals, steps to achieve these goals, and the cost necessary to implement these tasks.  As ongoing guidance in these activities, the core team shall both use and update as necessary their part of the approved Strategic Ministry Plan so that the document changes over time to reflect the best practices and most recent implementations in each ministry area.  Conference Ministry Leads shall report regularly to the Executive Committee the recent month’s activities, including accomplishments, as well as problems needing resolution, and funding as necessary to implement currently defined ministry plans.  Any proposed changes to the Strategic Ministry Plan made during the course of a year shall be submitted to the Leadership Council for approval at the Annual Meeting.

ARTICLE IX – The Leadership Council

A.    The members of the Leadership Council shall consist of all elected officers, all former Presidents, the Presidents of each of the Districts, the Conference Scouting Coordinator, the chairman of each permanent committee for which provision is made in these By-Laws, the chairman of the Retreats Committee, each person holding a permanent position so designated by the Leadership Council as a member and other persons as shall from time to time be selected to serve as members in accordance with these By-Laws.

B.    The Leadership Council shall have as its Advisors the Bishop of the Conference, who shall serve as honorary President of the Organization, a person appointed from the Staff of the Conference Office of Connectional Ministries, the Conference Lay Leader, a District Superintendent appointed by the Bishop and other persons as the President may designate. The Advisors to the Leadership Council shall be ex officio members.

C.    The Leadership Council may create such positions and committees as it deems appropriate to fulfill the responsibilities of the Organization.  The chairman of each permanent committee shall be a member of the Leadership Council.  The chairman of a temporary committee or the person holding a temporary position shall be a member of the Leadership Council if the Leadership Council so indicates.  Between meetings of the Leadership Council, the President may create temporary committees and positions and appoint persons to serve on such committees and in such positions with the advice and consent of the Executive Committee.  The President shall report such actions to the next regular meeting of the Leadership Council and unless the Leadership Council takes affirmative action to void or change the actions of the President, each interim action shall be deemed to be affirmatively approved by the Leadership Council.

D.    Members of the Leadership Council shall serve for a term of one (1) year (unless a different term is designated in these By-Laws) or until a successor has been selected and qualified.

E.    Except as otherwise provided in these By-Laws, the Leadership Council shall establish a job description, or statement of purpose, for each committee and position created by the Leadership Council or these By-Laws.  Job descriptions and statements of purpose, except those in the By-Laws, may be changed by the Leadership Council.  Appointees shall comply with statements of purpose and job descriptions.  The Leadership Council may delegate its responsibilities set forth in this Paragraph “E” to the Executive Committee.

F.    Unless otherwise directed by the Leadership Council, the persons who are to hold positions created by the Leadership Council and the chairman of the several committees shall be appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Executive Committee.  The appointments shall be made near the end of each UMM Year for the persons who are to serve the following UMM Year. The members of each committee shall be selected jointly by its chairman and the President and confirmed by the Executive Committee, unless the Leadership Council, or if appropriate, the Executive Committee, makes some other provision for selecting the members of a committee.

G.    Any member of the Leadership Council, other than the elected officers, the members of the Retreats Committee, and the members of the Personnel Policy Committee, may be removed from his office or position by a majority vote of the Leadership Council.

H.    The Leadership Council shall meet when and where it determines to be appropriate.  It shall endeavor to have at least four (4) meetings each year.  The President or any three (3) elected officers may call a meeting of the Leadership Council at any time.  Notice of any meeting of the Leadership Council shall be given to each member of the Leadership Council at least fourteen (14) days in advance of the meeting.  Notice of a special meeting shall contain a statement of purpose for the meeting.  Without limiting the methods of giving notice, it shall be conclusively presumed that notice was sufficient if given in writing and mailed by regular mail to each member of the Leadership Council at his last known address.  The date of mailing of such notice shall be the date from which the fourteen (14) days shall begin running.

I.     A quorum for any regular or special meeting of the Leadership Council shall be those members who attend the meeting.

ARTICLE X – Personnel Policy Committee

A.     The Personnel Policy Committee which shall consist of eight (8) regular members: the President, the Vice President for CA&A, the Vice President for MO&M, the Vice President for A&R, and the Secretary. The other two (2) members shall be District Presidents who are elected to serve on the Personnel Policy Committee by the Executive Committee. Two (2) ex-officio members shall serve by virtue of their offices, to wit: the Cabinet Representative to UMM and the Director or representative of the North Georgia Conference Office of Connectional Ministries.

B.     Each regular member of the Personnel Policy Committee shall serve for the term of the office which resulted in membership on the Committee. The Chairman of the Committee shall be elected by the regular members of the Committee from among its regular members. The term of office of the Chairman shall be for one (1) year. The Chairman may not serve as such for more than four (4) successive years without a one (1) year break in service.

C.     The Committee shall establish guidelines for interviewing and hiring employees and affiliated agents of the Organization. It shall develop policies, procedures, and guidelines for employee conduct as deemed appropriate or required by federal, state or local laws, regulations, rules or ordinances. It shall periodically review and evaluate employee activity, performance and conduct. It shall act as a review board for any complaint made by or against an employee or agent of the Organization.

ARTICLE XI – Retreats Committee

A.     The Retreats Committee, (the “Committee”), shall consist of nine (9) regular members; eight (8) shall be laypersons who are not elected officers of the Organization, and one shall be the Vice President for A&R.  Ex officio members shall be the President and a clergy person who is serving as a pastor of a local NGC United Methodist church or charge within the bounds of the NGC or who is retired UMM clergy person living within the bounds of the NGC. The Clergy member shall serve for a term of two (2) years and may be elected for successive two year terms. The President shall serve during his term of office as President.  The term for each of the eight (8) laypersons shall be for four (4) calendar years. Two lay-persons shall be elected or appointed each year. The Vice President for A&R shall serve during his term of office as such Vice President.

B.     Each of the eight (8) laypersons shall be appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Executive Committee.  The Clergy member of the Committee shall be elected by a majority vote of the lay members of the Committee.  The Chairman of the Committee shall be elected from among its regular lay members by a majority vote thereof and shall serve for a term of one (1) year.  The Chairman shall not serve for more than two (2) consecutive years without a one (1) year break in service.  The Vice President for A&R may serve as Chairman of the Committee.  The Chairman shall have a vote only to break a tie.

C.     With the prior advice and consent of the Executive Committee, the Chairman of the Retreats Committee may serve as the Director of the annual Rock Eagle Spiritual Retreat.  The Chairman may serve as the Director of other retreats that are approved by the Leadership Council.  The Chairman, with the consent of the Executive Committee, may appoint other persons as directors of other retreats.

 

D.    The Committee may divide its responsibility by creating sub-committees.  Sub-committee chairmen shall be appointed by the Chairman of the Committee from among its members with the consent of its members.  The members of the sub-committees shall be appointed by the chairman of the respective sub-committee with the advice and consent of the Chairman.

E.    The Committee shall plan and implement spiritual retreats for United Methodist Men that reflect the policy, direction and vision of the  NGCUMM.

F.    The Committee shall advise the Executive Committee, in writing, at a scheduled meeting of the Executive Committee, of all persons being considered for main speakers for retreats and of the general program and budget for each forthcoming retreat.  Unless the Executive Committee disapproves any part of the proposals within forty five (45) days from its receipt of the proposal, the proposal shall stand approved as presented.  The Committee shall present to the Executive Committee names of proposed main speakers for retreats at least eighteen months in advance and present the general program and budget for each retreat at least ten (10) months in advance.

G.     The Committee shall provide financial accounting to the Executive Committee at the next regular meeting of the Executive Committee following the conclusion of the retreat or other event and to the Leadership at the  next regular  meeting of the Leadership.

ARTICLE XII – Executive Committee

A.     The members of the Executive Committee shall be the President, the immediate Past President, each of the Vice Presidents, the Secretary, the Treasurer, the Conference Scouting Coordinator, Conference Ministry Leads and the Chairman of the Retreats Committee.  Advisors to the Leadership Council shall be ex officio members of the Executive Committee.

B.    Meetings of the Executive Committee shall be held monthly or upon the call of the President or at the request of any three (3) of its members upon at least two (2) two days advance notice.  A quorum shall consist of those members who attend a meeting.  Any action that could be taken at a meeting may be taken by consent upon written approval by three-fourths (3/4) of the persons who would have been entitled to have attended a meeting and voted if a meeting had been held.  In lieu of an actual meeting or action by consent, the members of the Executive Committee may be polled by phone as to any issue that requires their approval provided all members are called and given an opportunity to vote for or against the proposal.  Action taken by phone shall require approval by two-thirds (2/3) of the members.  After the polling has been completed the President shall cause the Executive Committee members to be advised in writing of the results.  Action taken by phone shall be valid provided at least three-fourths (3/4) of the members are reached and those not reached were unavailable or refused to return a call within twenty-four (24) hours.

ARTICLE XIII – Districts

A.    Within each District of the North Georgia Conference there shall be a district wide Organization of United Methodist Men which shall be structured in a manner that is not inconsistent with the DISCIPLINE, the rules and regulations of the Conference or these By-Laws.

B.    If a district does not have such an organizational structure or if a vacancy exists in one or more of the leadership positions in the district that is not filled in accordance with the Organizational structure of the district, the Vice President for MO&C with the advice and consent of the Executive Committee and with the advice of the Superintendent for the district, shall cause a district structure to be created and a district Organization to be formed and activated or shall appoint persons to fill such vacant leadership positions on an interim basis until the district Organization can be vitalized sufficiently to assume control of its own affairs.

ARTICLE XIV – Annual Meeting

A.    (1)     Persons entitled to vote at an Annual Meeting of the Organization (“Voting Members”) shall be the members of the Leadership Council, the chairman and members of each Committee created by the Leadership Council and by these By-Laws, the officers of each District Organization and two (2) men from each local United Methodist Church that is within the bounds of the Conference.  The two (2) Voting Members from a church shall be the president of the local unit or his designee and an additional person the president of the local unit shall appoint.  If there is no UMM Unit in a local church, the two (2) Voting Members shall be two (2) men from the local church appointed as delegates to the Annual Meeting by (a) the Annual Charge Conference of the church, (b) the Administrative Board or Administrative Council, (c) by the chair of the Administrative Board or Council, or (d) by the senior pastor of the church.

    (2)    All men in attendance at an Annual Meeting may be designated Voting Members upon recommendation of the President and approval by a majority of the Voting Members attending.

B.    There shall be at least one (1) meeting each year of the Membership of the Organization at a place and time determined by the Leadership Council.  Unless the Leadership Council determines otherwise, the Annual Meeting shall be held on a Saturday in late May to early June, prior to Annual Conference.  The Annual Meeting should be the general business meeting of the Organization.  The report of the Nominating Committee shall be given and the officers elected as required by these By-Laws.  Voting Members shall not be required to elect the persons nominated by the Nominating Committee.  No person shall be elected to an office unless that person has been (a) nominated by the Nominating Committee or (b) is in attendance at the Annual Meeting and publicly states his willingness and commitment to serve, if elected, in the office for which he is being considered.

C.    The proposed budget for the following year shall be presented at the Annual Meeting.  Voting Members shall make any changes in the proposed budget as they deem appropriate and a final budget for the following year shall be approved.

D.    A quorum for the Annual Meeting shall consist of those Voting Members attending and participating.

E.    The President of the North Georgia Conference United Methodist Men shall preside over the Annual Meeting or someone he designates if he is unable on the day of the meeting.

ARTICLE XV – Miscellaneous

A.    The President shall: (1) represent the Organization on the Jurisdictional Committee on United Methodist Men; (2) represent the Organization on the National Association of Conference Presidents, United Methodist Men; (3) serve as an ex officio member of the Executive Committee of each District within the Conference. With the advice and consent of the Executive Committee, the President may appoint from the current or former members of the Executive Committee persons to represent the Organization in the absence of the President on any Committee, board or other Organization, where it is appropriate for a representative of the Organization to serve.  Each appointee shall serve at the pleasure of the President.

B.    (1)    With the advice and prior consent of the Executive Committee the Vice President for CA&A may interview and hire persons to serve as paid employees of the Organization to fill such positions authorized by the Leadership Council and for which funds are budgeted in the annual budget of the Organization.  All such employees shall work under the direct supervision of the Vice President for CA&A and shall be directly responsible to such Vice President for the performance of their duties.  The specific job description of each employee shall be determined by the Executive Committee within the general guidelines established by the Leadership Council.

    (2)    With the advice and prior consent of the Personnel Policy Committee the Vice President for CA&A shall have the exclusive authority to terminate the employment of any employee at any time, with or without cause, and to hire a replacement therefore?  The Leadership Council shall not be involved in the hiring, supervision, and terminating of employment of employees, but shall have the exclusive authority, subject to budget provisions, to authorize and terminate authorization for paid positions.

C.    Not later than ninety (90) days prior to an Annual Meeting, proposed amendments to this Constitution and By-Laws may be submitted in writing to the Secretary.  The President with the advice and consent of the Executive Committee shall appoint a person to review any and all proposed amendments, to re-draft them, if appropriate, and to present any and all proposed amendments to the Voting Members for consideration at the Annual Meeting.  An amendment will require a majority vote of the Voting Members who cast ballots at an Annual Meeting to modify and/or become a part of the existing Constitution and By-Laws.  The Executive Committee and/or the Leadership Council may recommend to the Voting Members approval or disapproval of each amendment.  The members of the Leadership Council shall have notice of each proposed amendment prior to the Annual Meeting.

D.    An ex officio member of any committee, board, or council shall have the right to receive notice of all applicable meetings and other communications, and may participate in the deliberations of the meetings.  An ex officio member shall have no vote.

E.    Unless specifically set forth herein to the contrary, the conduct of all meetings of the Organization, the Leadership Council, the Executive Committee and all other committees and sub-committees shall be in accordance with Roberts Rules of Order as they now exist or as they may from time to time hereafter be amended.

ARTICLE XVI – Standing Rules

A.    Standing Rules shall (a) be developed as needed to serve as explicit interpretations of the more generally stated By-Laws, (b) be subordinate to the By-Law in the sense that no Standing Rule can be in conflict with the By-Laws,  (c) be used to add detail to the more generally worded By-Laws as determined to be needed at any of the regularly scheduled or called meetings of the Executive Committee, the Leadership Council or the Annual Meeting,  (d) have the power of the By-Laws if properly presented and approved by a majority vote of those present at the meeting of the body where the need is determined and for which the rules are adopted.  Any Standing Rule can be suspended by a majority voted of the body adopting the rule if it is determined by the body that the Rule is an impediment to the efficient conduct of business at that particular meeting.  The suspension ends at the completion of that meeting and is then again operative immediately.  Though not a formal part of the By-Laws, the Standing Rules shall be shown in electronic form or printed form along with the By-Laws whenever the By-Laws are being publicly presented or being reviewed or used in a formal manner to answer a question concerning proper operation of the organization.  Any Standing Rule adopted by the Executive Committee or Leadership Council may be extended at the Annual Meeting.

End of By-Laws

The following ‘Editor’s notes’ reflect a history of changes to the By-Laws as approved by the Annual Business Meetings from December 1, 1989 to June 14, 2003.

[Editor’s Note of December 1, 1989: The above represents a complete re-writing of the Constitution and By-Laws of United Methodist Men, with significant editorial changes and revisions. The major substantive changes are (a) to more clearly define the authority and responsibility of the Executive Committee and the Executive Board; (b) to eliminate permanent By-Laws work areas and provide for the Executive Board to create permanent or temporary positions and committees on an “as needed basis; (c) to delete the provisions that designate one of the Vice Presidents as the Missions Vice President; (d) to include sub paragraphs A and B of Article XIII, which had been added at earlier times, but had never been written into the permanent document; (e) to add Article IX dealing with retreats and to make other adjustments to accommodate the inclusion of the Article IX provisions.]

 

[Editor’s Note of December 5, 1992: The. re-written Constitution and By-Laws as presented to the Annual Meeting on December 2, 1989, were duly adopted. At the Annual Meeting of December 5, 1992, two amendments were made. One was to reestablish the Director of Missions as a Vice President and the other added a new paragraph at the end of Article VIII which requires the Executive Board to create job descriptions for each committee and position. The By-Laws have been rewritten to incorporate these two changes and to correct some inadvertent transcription errors that were in the 1989 document.]

 

[Editor’s Note of December 4, 1993: The above represents several revisions to the Constitution and By-Laws done primarily to cause them to more nearly conform to provisions of The Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church (1992). Article III has been re-written to conform to Paragraph 744, Article 2 of the Discipline. Article V to conform to Paragraph 744, Article 4 of the Discipline. Article VII has been changed to provide that the term of office for elected officers is (2) years with a. maximum of four (4) successive terms. Article VIII has been changed to delete all designated permanent positions and to provide that the Executive Committee is to provide advice and consent to the President for the appointment of committee chairmen, to confirm appointment of committee members and to determine the term of committee chairmen and committee members. Article XII has been substantially re-written to define Voting Members at the Annual Meetings.  Sub-Paragraph A. of Article XIII has been rewritten to provide greater flexibility to the President in serving on various boards, committees and Organizations or appointing alternates. Sub-paragraph B. has been re-written to place greater responsibility on the President in hiring, supervising and terminating paid employees. Sub paragraph C has been rewritten to reflect the elimination of the “Director of By-Laws” as a permanent position. If these changes are adopted the above will become effective January I, 1994, and will replace the original Constitution and By-Laws and all amendments that have been enacted prior to December 4, 1993.]

[Editor’s Note of November 20, 1996: The 1993 changes were duly adopted on December 4, 1993. The current changes are primarily to change the Organization structure so that the Vice Presidents will have specific substantive responsibilities throughout the Conference rather than general responsibility for a specific geographical territory, to create a Personnel Policy Committee and define its duties and responsibilities, to remove some of the administrative responsibility from the President and reassign the responsibility to one or more of the Vice Presidents, to define the rights and limitations of an “ex officio” member, to change the name of the “Executive Board” to “Leadership Council”, to provide that (a) proposed changes to the By-Laws must be submitted to the Secretary at least 90 days prior to the Annual Meeting and (b) notice of such proposals must be given to the members of the Leadership Council prior to the Annua1 Meeting, to designate the Conference Scouting Coordinator as an official member of the Leadership Council and the Executive Committee, to change the maximum term of an elected officer to four (4) years to provide for filling vacancies in district leadership positions, and to make editorial changes to reflect the substantive changes just summarized. If these changes are approved at the 1996 Annual Meeting they will become effective January 1, 1997.]

– Prepared and submitted by Larry S. Bryant, Secretary

 

[Editor’s note – December 1, 2001:  Article VII, Section B, Paragraph 2 was changed to reflect the following motion, passed unanimously at the Annual Business Meeting held that date.  “Each term of office for the officers of the United Methodist Men of the North Georgia Conference will begin on July 1 of each year, and continue for the term prescribed for the office.”]

[Editor’s note – June 14, 2003: Following a recommendation by the Retreats Committee, and approval by the Annual Business Meeting of that date, Article X, Section A was changed to increase the number of laymen serving on the Retreats Committee from five (5) to eight (8), with two members starting each calendar year, instead of one.  The term of service was reduced from five (5) years to four (4).  Article X, Section B, was changed to reduce the term of office for the Chairman of the Retreats Committee from four (4) years to two (2) without a break in service.  A new “Section G” was added to Article X to require financial accounting from the Retreats Committee to the Leadership Council at the first meeting of the Leadership Council of the calendar year.]

[Editor’s note – June 3, 2004:  In order to comply with the motion of December 1, 2001 (noted above) the use of the phrase “calendar year” was replaced in Article VII, sub-paragraph B and in each subsequent occurrence by the phrase “UMM Year”, defined as 1 July-30 June.]

Prepared and submitted by Joe Hamilton, Secretary, June 5, 2004

[Editor’s note-December 9, 2007.]  Pursuant to request of the Executive Committee and others, the above represents the By-Laws as they existed as of June 4, 2004, with some changes that are to be considered at the 2007 meeting of the Members.  Most of the changes are cosmetic, not substantive.  The substantive changes reflect the proposed creation of an additional Vice President for Missions. It is proposed that here will be a Vice-President for International Missions that will be for missions outside the continental U.S., that the Vice-President for Local missions will be for those within the State of Georgia, and the new Vice-Presidency will be created for Missions in the continental US, but outside the State of Georgia.

Other changes are to reflect the reality of how the NGCUMM structure actually works.  The Leadership Council meets infrequently and some of its responsibilities are proposed to be transferred to the Executive Committee.  Another proposed change relates to the Retreats Committee-a clearer  definition of the clergy member of the committee.

Several technical changes have been made to reflect better sentence structure or other technical changes that do not affect the intent or meaning of the By-Laws.

— Larry S. Bryant, Secretary

[Editor’s Note – May 19, 2012] Reflects changes adopted at Annual Meeting on May 19, 2012.  Significant chages (adds and deletions) are direct result of adoption of Strategic Ministry Plan at same meeting. Changes include:

Creation of the “Article – Elected Ministry Positions” which define the Conference Ministry Leads role, in conjunction with the adoption of Strategic Ministry Plan.  The leads are the Director of Evangelism, the Director of Spiritual Growth, the Prayer Advocate, the Hunger Advocate, the Director of Missions, the Director of Disaster Response, the Director Prison Ministry, the Scouting Coordinator, the Director of Leadership Development, and the Director of Communications.

Removal of the mission Vice Presidents (VP of Local Missions, US Missions, and International) as the responsibilities are moved to the Director of Missions.

Also added was “Article – Standing Rules” to provide for additionally clarity of the more general descriptions and guidelines of the By-Laws.

Additional clarity of the role of the President, require Executive Committee monthly meetings, require Elected Officers to provide timely reports to Executive Committee, and all Elected Officers to use email environment provided by the United Methodist Men for enhanced communications.

Lastly, cleanup of additions and deletions of text remaining from approved changes at 2007 Annual Meeting.

— Respectfully Submitted – Cary Loesing, (acting) Secretary

Behance