AMENDED AND RESTATED BYLAWS
OF
PACIFICA FOUNDATION
A California Non-Profit Public Benefit Corporation
ARTICLE ONE
IDENTITY AND PURPOSE
SECTION 1. NAME SECTION 1. NAME
The name of this corporation is the PACIFICA FOUNDATION, and it shall be referred to in these Bylaws as the "Foundation".
SECTION 2. PURPOSES
The purposes of the Foundation, as stated in Article II of the Articles of Incorporation, are as follows:
To establish a Foundation organized and operated exclusively for
educational purposes no part of the net earnings of which inures to the
benefit of any member of the Foundation.
To establish and operate for educational purposes, in such manner
that the facilities involved shall be as nearly self-sustaining as
possible, one or more radio broadcasting stations licensed by the
Federal Communications Commission ("Commission") and subject in their
operation to the regulatory actions of the Commission under the Federal
Communications Act of 1934, as amended.
In radio broadcasting operations to encourage and provide outlets
for the creative skills and energies of the community; to conduct
classes and workshops in the writing and producing of drama; to
establish awards and scholarships for creative writing; to offer
performance facilities to amateur instrumentalists, choral groups,
orchestral groups and music students; and to promote and aid other
creative activities which will serve the cultural welfare of the
community.
In radio broadcasting operations to engage in any activity that
shall contribute to a lasting understanding between nations and between
the individuals of all nations, races, creeds and colors; to gather and
disseminate information on the causes of conflict between any and all
of such groups; and through any and all means compatible with the
purposes of this Foundation to promote the study of political and
economic problems and of the causes of religious, philosophical and
racial antagonisms.
In radio broadcasting operations to promote the full distribution
of public information; to obtain access to sources of news
not commonly brought together in the same medium; and to employ
such varied sources in the public presentation of accurate,
objective, comprehensive news on all matters vitally affecting
the community.
SECTION 3. PRINCIPLES
The Foundation is committed to peace and social justice, and seeks
to involve in its governance and operations individuals committed to
these principles.
SECTION 4. COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY
The Foundation is committed to diversity and inclusion of people of
all nations, races, ethnicities, creeds, colors, classes, genders,
sexual orientations, ages and people with disabilities in its
programming, staff, management, committees and governance.
ARTICLE TWO
OFFICES OF THE FOUNDATION
SECTION 1. PRINCIPAL OFFICE
The principal office and place of business of the Foundation shall
be located in the County of Alameda, State of California, or at such
other place as the Board of Directors may designate.
SECTION 2. OTHER OFFICES
The Foundation shall also have other offices at other places within
or without the State of California as the Board of Directors may from
time to time designate.
ARTICLE THREE
MEMBERS OF THE FOUNDATION
SECTION 1. MEMBERS DEFINED
There shall be two classes of members: (A) "Listener-Sponsor
Members" and (B) "Staff Members", who shall collectively be referred to
as "Members."
A. LISTENER-SPONSOR MEMBERS
"Listener-Sponsor Members" shall be any natural
persons who within the preceding 12-month period: (1) have
contributed a minimum of $25 to any Foundation radio station,
or such minimum amount as the Board of Directors may from
time to time decide; or (2) have volunteered a minimum
of three (3) hours of service to any Foundation radio station.
Said contribution shall be considered non-refundable. Said
volunteer work shall be performed under the supervision of
the Foundation radio station management, and shall include
volunteer work on committees of the Local Station Board. Where
a contribution is made jointly by two individuals and the
contribution is in an amount equal to or more than the annual
membership contribution required for two memberships (as set
by the Board from time to time), then each of the joint donors
shall be considered an individual and separate Listener-Sponsor
Member. (For example, if John and Mary Smith jointly contribute
$50.00 or more, then John Smith and Mary Smith will each be
Members and will each have individual and separate Membership
rights. However, if John and Mary Smith jointly contribute
$40.00, then they shall jointly share one membership.)
B. STAFF MEMBERS
"Staff Members" shall be: (1) any non-management full-time or
part-time paid employee of a Foundation radio station; or (2) any
member of a Foundation radio station "Unpaid Staff Organization" or
"Unpaid Staff Collective Bargaining Unit" which has been recognized by
station management, or, if the station has neither such organization or
bargaining unit, then any volunteer or unpaid staff member of a
Foundation radio station who has worked for said radio station at least
30 hours in the preceding 3 months, exclusive of fundraising
marathon telephone room volunteer time. Said volunteer work shall be
performed under the supervision of the Foundation radio station
management and shall not include volunteer work on committees of a
Local Station Board. Radio station management employees and Foundation
staff employees who are not employed at a Foundation radio station
shall not qualify as Staff Members, however, such employees may qualify
as Listener-Sponsor Members by contributing the requisite minimum
dollar amount as set forth in Section 1(A) of this Article of these
Bylaws.
SECTION 2. TERM.
A Listener-Sponsor membership term shall expire twelve (12) months
from that date on which said Member: (A) contributed a minimum of $25
to any Foundation radio station, or such minimum amount as the Board of
Directors may from time to time decide; or (B) volunteered a minimum of
3 hours of service to any Foundation radio station. A Staff membership
term shall expire: (A) on that date on which s/he is no longer a member
of a radio station Unpaid Staff Organization or Bargaining Unit, or if
the radio station has no such organization, then on that date on which
s/he failed to volunteer a minimum of 30 hours in the preceding 3-month
period; or (B) upon termination of employment as a non-management
employee of a Foundation radio station, as applicable.
Membership terms shall be considered "rolling," and calculated
forward from the last date of a Member's qualifying act. For example,
if a Listener-Sponsor Member makes a $25 contribution on January 1,
2003 and does not make any additional contribution or volunteer at
least 3 hours within the following 12-month period, said Member's
membership would expire on December 31, 2003. If, however, in the same
example, said Member contributes at least $25 on August 1, 2003, or
volunteers for at least 3 hours, then his/her membership will not
expire until July 31, 2004, provided no additional contribution or
volunteer time is made after the August 1, 2003 contribution.
SECTION 3. MEMBERSHIP AFFILIATION BY RADIO STATION
All Members shall be members of the Foundation. For purposes of
voting and exercising their rights hereunder, Members shall be
affiliated with one of the Foundation's five radio stations: KPFA in
Berkeley, California, KPFK in North Hollywood, California, WBAI in New
York, New York, KPFT in Houston, Texas, or WPFW in Washington, D.C.
Members shall be affiliated with that Foundation radio station: (A) in
the case of a Listener-Sponsor Member, to which said member made a
contribution or volunteered time in the preceding 12 months; or (B) in
the case of a Staff Member, by which said member is employed or for
which said member volunteers and/or serves as unpaid staff. Each
Foundation radio station shall maintain a register of its
Listener-Sponsor Members and Staff Members. In the event that a person
qualifies for membership affiliation with more than one Foundation
radio station, s/he shall be entitled to only one membership and shall
notify the Foundation and each applicable Foundation radio station of
which radio station s/he wishes to be affiliated as a Member. In the
event that a Member does not notify the Foundation of which radio
station s/he wishes to be affiliated, s/he shall be deemed to be
affiliated with that radio station to which said Member last
contributed or volunteered. In the event that a person qualifies as
both a Listener-Sponsor Member and as a Staff Member, such person shall
be deemed to be a Staff Member.
SECTION 4. WAIVER OF REQUIREMENTS
The Local Station Board for each Foundation radio station (also
referred to herein as "LSB") may adjust or waive the contribution
requirement for Listener-Sponsor Membership set forth in Section 1(A)
of this Article of these Bylaws on a case by case basis for reasons of
financial hardship, where said LSB, in its discretion, determines that
the proposed member has demonstrated a sincere interest in becoming a
Member of the Foundation and is also genuinely unable to afford the
contribution amount or to volunteer the minimum 3 hours of service.
SECTION 5. RIGHTS
All Members shall have all rights granted to them by law or by these
Bylaws, including without limit the right to vote, on the terms and in
the manner set forth in these Bylaws, on the election and removal of
Delegates; on the sale, exchange, transfer or disposition of all or
substantially all of the Foundation's assets; on the sale, exchange,
transfer or disposition of any of the Foundation's broadcast licenses;
on any merger, its principal terms and any amendment of its principal
terms; on any election to dissolve the Foundation; on any amendment to
these Bylaws for which Member approval is required or permitted as set
forth in Section 1(B) of Article 17 of these Bylaws; and on any
amendment to the Articles of Incorporation.
SECTION 6. MEETINGS OF THE MEMBERS.
A. ANNUAL MEETING
No annual meeting of the Members shall be required.
B. SPECIAL MEETINGS
The Board of the Directors, a Local Station Board, the Foundation's
Executive Director, the Chairperson of the Board, or one percent (1%)
or more of the Members may call a special meeting of the Members for
any lawful purpose at any time. Said request for a special meeting
shall be made in writing and shall specify the general nature of the
business proposed to be transacted at said meeting. Said written
request must be submitted to the Chairperson of the Board, the
Executive Director or the Foundation's Secretary. The officer receiving
the request must promptly give notice to all Members of record entitled
to vote. Said notice must state the location, date and time of the
meeting, specify the general nature of the business to be transacted
and provide that no other business than that set forth in said notice
shall be transacted at said meeting. Said notice shall be given at
least 20 days and no more than 90 days before the meeting date. The
meeting date must be at least 35 days, but no more than 90 days after
receipt of the written request for the special meeting. If notice of
the special meeting is not provided to the Members within 20 days after
the written request is received, the person(s) requesting the meeting
may give notice to the Members in a manner consistent with this
Section. Voting on any matter discussed at a special meeting shall be
by written ballot consistent with the provisions of Section 8 of this
Article of the Bylaws.
C. ACTION IN LIEU OF A MEETING
Any action that may be taken at any special meeting of Members
may be taken without a meeting if the Foundation distributes,
or otherwise makes available, a written ballot to every Member
entitled to vote on the matter. Such written ballot shall
set forth the proposed action, provide an opportunity to specify
approval or disapproval of any proposal, provide a reasonable
time within which to return the written ballot to the Foundation
and otherwise conform to the requirements of Section 8 of
this Article of the Bylaws. Said ballots shall also be accompanied
by brief written arguments in favor of and against the proposed
action, which arguments may be prepared and submitted by the
Board of Directors, any LSB or by 10 or more Members, if they
are provided no later than thirty (30) days prior to the date
of mailing of said ballot.
SECTION 7. QUORUM
For purposes of any election or written ballot, a quorum of the
Listener-Sponsor Members shall be ten percent (10%) of those
Listener-Sponsor Members entitled to vote on the matter as of the
applicable record date. A quorum of the Staff Members shall be
one-third (1/4) of those Staff Members entitled to vote on the matter,
as of the applicable record date. A quorum for any action requiring the
approval of "the Members", as opposed to a separate vote by each class
of Members, shall be 10% of all Members entitled to vote on the matter
as of the applicable record date.
SECTION 8. VOTING: VOTING BY WRITTEN BALLOT
To ensure the opportunity for all Members to participate in the
voting process, all voting shall be by written ballot distributed by
mail, or otherwise made available, by the Foundation, or the Local
Station Board with which the Members are affiliated, as appropriate, to
each of the Members entitled to vote.
A. ELIGIBILITY TO VOTE
All Members in good-standing on the record date as determined under
Section 10 of this Article of these Bylaws shall be entitled to vote by
written ballot as to any matter that properly comes before the Members
for a vote.
B. DISTRIBUTION OF BALLOTS
The Foundation shall make reasonable efforts to distribute, or
otherwise make available, one written ballot to each Member entitled to
vote on the matter. Where the Members are required to vote in classes,
there shall be a ballot for Listener-Sponsor Members and a separate
ballot for Staff Members. In the case of election of Delegates, there
shall also be separate sets of ballots for the Members affiliated with
each Foundation radio station. The ballots shall be mailed, or notice
of the posting of the ballot on the Foundation's website shall be
delivered, to Members at their postal address or electronic mailing
address of record. All solicitations of votes by written ballot shall:
(1) state the number of responses needed to meet the quorum
requirement; (2) state, with respect to ballots other than for the
election of Delegates, the percentage of approvals necessary to pass
the measure or measures; (3) specify the time by which the ballot must
be received in order to be counted; (4) include instructions for where
to return the completed ballot; and (5) provide a reasonable time in
which to return the ballot to the Foundation. With the exception of
ballots related to the election of Delegates, each ballot so
distributed shall also: (6) set forth the proposed action; and (7) give
the Members an opportunity to specify their approval or disapproval of
each proposal. Ballots relating to the election of Delegates shall
also: (8) set forth the names of the candidates; and (9) give the
Member an opportunity to select his/her choice(s) or rank his/her
choices. The Foundation may, in its discretion, provide a secure means
of voting by electronic means via the internet, provided however that
Members shall still have the option of returning written ballots by
mail. Any such internet voting shall have a coded system to identify
Members and to prevent Members from casting more than one vote
electronically or from voting by both mail and by internet.
C. NUMBER OF VOTES AND APPROVALS REQUIRED
Each Member shall be entitled to cast one vote on each matter
submitted to the vote of the Members. Approval by written ballot shall
be valid only when: (1) the number of votes cast by ballot within the
time specified equals or exceeds the quorum required to authorize the
action; and (2) the number of approvals equals or exceeds the
percentage of votes required for approval of said action as set forth
in these Bylaws. Unless otherwise specifically set forth in these
Bylaws, when the Members vote in classes, a vote of a majority of those
Listener-Sponsor Members voting in any matter and a vote of a majority
of those Staff Members voting in any matter, provided that a quorum of
votes for each class is obtained, shall be sufficient to approve an
action or consent to any matter. Unless otherwise specifically set
forth in these Bylaws, when the Members vote collectively as a group, a
majority vote of the Members together, provided there is a quorum,
shall be sufficient to approve an action or consent to any matter.
D. VALIDITY OF WRITTEN BALLOT
A PIN identification system shall be used, whereby each Member
entitled to vote will be assigned a PIN Number that is printed on the
ballot. The Foundation is entitled to reject a ballot if the ballot
does not bear, or does not bear a valid, PIN Number. The Foundation and
any officer or agent thereof who accepts or rejects a ballot in good
faith and in accordance with the standards of this Section shall not be
liable in damages to the Member for the consequences of the acceptance
or rejection of his/her ballot. Action by the Foundation or its
agent(s) based on the acceptance or rejection of a ballot under this
Section is valid unless a court of competent jurisdiction determines
otherwise.
E. ELECTION AND VOTING SUPERVISION
Consistent with the provisions of Article 4 of these Bylaws, the
Members' elections of Delegates shall be supervised by a national
elections supervisor and local elections supervisors and all said
ballots shall be counted under their supervision at such place or
places designated by the national elections supervisor. All other
voting by Members shall be supervised by the Board of Directors, or the
Board's designated agent, which shall also be responsible for ensuring
and monitoring compliance with its voting procedures and processes and
for counting ballots consistent with these Bylaws.
SECTION 9. MANNER OF NOTICE
Whenever notice to Members is required under these Bylaws, notices
shall be submitted, at the Foundation's sole discretion, either
personally, by first class, registered or certified mail, by electronic
mail or by other means of written communication, charges, pre-paid, and
shall be addressed to each Member entitled to vote at the postal
address or email address of that Member as it appears on the
Foundation's books or at the address given by the Member to the
Foundation for purposes of notice.
If no address appears on the Foundation's books and no address has
been given, then notice shall be deemed to have been given if notice is
broadcast at least twenty-one (21) times on the Foundation radio
station with which the Member is affiliated. Such broadcast notice
shall be made at least 3 times per day on 7 consecutive days and shall
state the web page address where the full notice is posted.
SECTION 10. RECORD DATE
The record date for purposes of determining the Members entitled to
receive notice of any meeting, entitled to vote by written ballot or
entitled to exercise any other lawful membership action, shall be
forty-five (45) days before the date of the special meeting, 45 days
before the day on which the first written ballot is distributed, or
made available, to the Members, or 45 days before the taking of any
other action, as applicable.
SECTION 11. PROXIES NOT PERMITTED
The voting rights of the Members shall be exercised by the
Member personally and may not be exercised by alternates,
by proxy or the like.
ARTICLE FOUR
DELEGATES
SECTION 1. DELEGATES DEFINED
The Members of each class for each Foundation radio station shall
separately elect Delegates who shall serve as representatives of the
Members in the election of Foundation Directors from each radio station
area and who shall have such other duties and powers as are specified
in these Bylaws.
SECTION 2. ELIGIBILITY; NOMINATION OF DELEGATES
A. ELIGIBILITY
Any Listener-Sponsor Member in good standing, except radio station
management personnel or Foundation management personnel or staff
members, may be nominated for the position of Listener-Sponsor Delegate
for the Foundation radio station with which s/he is affiliated by the
signatures of fifteen (15) Listener-Sponsor Members in good standing
who are also affiliated with that radio station, provided, however,
that no person who holds any elected or appointed public office at any
level of government , federal, state, or local , or is a candidate for
such office shall be eligible for election to the position of Delegate.
A Delegate shall be deemed to have resigned the position of Delegate if
s/he becomes a candidate for public office or accepts a political
appointment during his or her term as a Delegate. This restriction
shall not apply to civil service employment by governmental agencies.
Any Staff Member in good standing may be nominated for the office
of Staff Delegate for the Foundation radio station with which s/he is
affiliated by the signatures of five (5) Staff Members in good standing
who are also affiliated with that radio station, provided, however,
that no person who holds any elected or appointed public office at any
level of government , federal, state, or local , or is a candidate for
such office shall be eligible for election to the position of Delegate.
A Delegate shall be deemed to have resigned the position of Delegate if
s/he becomes a candidate for public office or accepts a political
appointment during his or her term as a Delegate. This restriction
shall not apply to civil service employment by governmental agencies.
B. NOMINATION PROCEDURES
Each Member seeking to be a nominee shall submit: (1) the required
number of nominating signatures on the form provided by the local
elections supervisor; (2) a statement of whether the candidate is
running for election as a Listener-Sponsor Delegate or a Staff
Delegate; (3) a written statement of up to 500 words in length by the
candidate introducing himself/herself and his/her interest in, or
qualifications for, serving as a Delegate, which statement shall be
distributed, or otherwise made available, to the Members entitled to
vote along with the written ballot; and (4) a statement acknowledging
that s/he has read and understood the "Fair Campaign Provisions" set
forth in Section 6 of this Article of the Bylaws. The names of up to
five (5) of the candidate's nominators may be listed at the end of a
candidate's statement. Each candidate also may, but is not required to,
for informational purposes indicate his/her gender and racial or ethnic
heritage.
SECTION 3. ELECTION OF DELEGATES
All elections for Delegates shall be by written ballot, provided,
however, that the elections supervisor shall also have the option of
providing a secure electronic means of voting via the internet. Members
shall only have the right to vote for Delegates for the Foundation
radio station with which the Member is affiliated. Members shall vote
in classes: Listener-Sponsor Members shall elect 18 Delegates for each
radio station and Staff Members shall elect 6 Delegates for each radio
station, for a total of twenty-four (24) Delegates for each Foundation
radio station. Elections of Delegates shall be staggered over a 3-year
period with elections for 3 Staff Delegates and 9 Listener-Sponsor
Delegates held in the first year, elections for 3 Staff Delegates and 9
Listener-Sponsor Delegates held in the second year and no elections in
the third year. The ballots shall be counted by the Single Transferable
Voting method. All ballots related to the election, and the removal, of
any and all Delegates shall be filed with the Foundation Secretary and
maintained with the corporate records for a period of three (3) years.
SECTION 4. ELECTIONS SUPERVISORS
A. NATIONAL ELECTIONS SUPERVISOR
In May of each year in which there will be an election of Delegates
by the Members, the Executive Director shall appoint a national
elections supervisor whose role shall be to oversee and certify the
fairness of the Delegates elections in each station area and to confirm
said elections' compliance with these Bylaws. The national elections
supervisor shall also oversee the nominations process, the preparation
of the ballots and the counting of the ballots and shall prepare a
written statement reporting the results of every election for
distribution to the Members or posting on the Foundation's and radio
station's websites. To be eligible for appointment to the position of
the national elections supervisor, said person shall not be an employee
of the Foundation or any Foundation radio station or a Delegate,
Officer, or Director of the Foundation or any LSB, or a radio station
staff member, paid or unpaid. The national elections supervisor should
be experienced with election procedures and supervision and preferably
recommended by an organization experienced in elections procedures and
supervision. The national elections supervisor does not have to be a
Member of the Foundation. Upon the completion of, and certification of
the results for, all of the elections, the national elections
supervisor's term shall end.
B. LOCAL ELECTION SUPERVISORS
In preparation for an election of Delegates, the National
Elections Supervisor shall appoint, subject to approval of
the Executive Director, a local election supervisor for each
Foundation radio station area. A local elections supervisor
may not be an employee of the Foundation or any Foundation
radio station or a Delegate, Officer, or Director of the Foundation
or any LSB, or a radio station staff member, paid or unpaid.
The local elections supervisors preferably should be experienced
with election procedures and supervision. Under the direction
and supervision of the National Elections Supervisor, each
local election supervisor shall coordinate the elections of
the Delegates for the radio station area to which s/he is
assigned to ensure a fair election in compliance with the
terms of these Bylaws. His/her duties shall include preparing
a nomination petition form for use by all potential nominees,
reviewing each potential candidate's nomination papers for
eligibility and completeness, overseeing the preparation and
distribution of the election ballot, closing the election,
and counting and assisting with ballot counting, as requested.
To assist him/her in the conduct and oversight of the election,
each local elections supervisor may appoint a committee of
volunteer Members, all of which volunteer Members the local
elections supervisor must, in good faith and in his/her sole
discretion, believe to be neutral individuals. Said committee
shall consist of that number of volunteer Members the local
elections supervisor deems necessary. The local elections
supervisors do not have to be Members of the Foundation. Upon
the completion of, and certification of the results for, the
elections s/he supervised, each local elections supervisor's
term shall end.
SECTION 5. ELECTION TIME FRAME
In a Delegate election year, the nominations for vacating
seats shall open on July 25th and remain open for
sixty-two (62) days, closing on September 25th.
The national and local election supervisors shall thereafter
prepare the written ballots for each radio station, listing
all of the candidates and setting forth all other information
required by these Bylaws. Ballots shall be mailed, or otherwise
made available, to the Members on October 15th
(or the following day if October 15th is a mail
holiday). To be counted a ballot must be received on or before
November 15th (the "Election Close Date").
All ballots shall be held sealed until the Election Close
Date. If the required quorum of ballots is not received by
the Elections Close Date, then the Elections Close Date shall
be extended by two additional weeks. The national and local
elections supervisors shall have up to 15 days after the Election
Close Date to count the ballots and to certify the results
to the LSBs, the Board, and the Members, which results must
be reported by December 1st or, if the Election
Close Date was extended, by December 15th, and
shall be posted on the Foundation's and the radio stations'
websites. If no quorum of ballots is obtained by the extended
date, then those Delegates whose terms would have expired
upon the election of new Delegates shall remain in office
until the next regularly scheduled Delegate election.
SECTION 6. FAIR CAMPAIGN PROVISIONS
No Foundation or radio station management or staff (paid or unpaid)
may use or permit the use of radio station air time to endorse,
campaign or recommend in favor of or against any candidate(s) for
election as a Listener-Sponsor Delegate, nor may air time be made
available to some Listener-Sponsor Delegate candidate(s) but not to
others. All candidates for election as a Listener-Sponsor Delegate
shall be given equal opportunity for equal air time, which air time
shall include time for a statement by the candidate and a question and
answer period with call-in listeners. No Foundation or radio station
management or staff (paid or unpaid) may give any on-air endorsements
to any candidate(s) for Listener-Sponsor Delegate. The Board of
Directors may not, nor may any LSB nor any committee of the Board or of
an LSB, as a body, endorse any candidate(s) for election as a Delegate.
However, an individual Director or Delegate who is a Member in good
standing may endorse or nominate candidate(s) in his/her individual
capacity. In the event of any violation of these provisions for fair
campaigning, the local elections supervisor and the national elections
supervisor shall determine, in good faith and at their sole discretion,
an appropriate remedy, up to and including disqualification of the
candidate(s) and/or suspension from the air of the offending staff
person(s) (paid or unpaid) for the remainder of the elections period.
All candidates and staff members (paid and unpaid) shall sign a
statement certifying that they have read and understood these fair
campaign provisions.
SECTION 7. 2003 TRANSITION ELECTION
Following the adoption of these Bylaws, and consistent with that
Settlement Agreement dated December 12, 2001, there shall be an
election for all Delegates for each radio station area. The interim
Board of Directors, by resolution, shall establish a nomination and
election timeframe for said elections, which timeframe may be shorter
and on dates other than those set forth in Section 5 of this Article of
these Bylaws.
For this transition election only, the 3 Staff Delegates and 9
Listener-Sponsor Delegates for each radio station highest ranked in
this first election shall serve for a term expiring December 2006, and
the next highest ranked 3 Staff Delegates and 9 Listener-Sponsor
Delegates shall serve for a term expiring in December 2004. Beginning
with the 2004 election of Delegates, Delegate elections shall
thereafter proceed in accordance with the remainder of the provisions
of this Article of these Bylaws.
SECTION 8. DELEGATES: TERMS OF OFFICE; TERM LIMITS
A Delegate's term of office, shall be three (3) years, beginning in
December. A Delegate may serve a maximum of two consecutive 3-year
terms, and in no event more than six (6) consecutive years. A Delegate
shall not be eligible for further service as a Delegate until one year
has elapsed after the termination of the Delegate's second consecutive
three-year term.
SECTION 9. REMOVAL OF DELEGATES
Any Delegate shall be removed from the position of Delegate, and
cease to be a Delegate, upon the occurrence of any of the following:
(A) said Delegate's death or resignation; (B) upon the occurrence of a
disqualifying act, e.g. the appointment to an elected political office;
(C) failure of a Delegate to attend three consecutive Local Station
Board meetings, which absences have not been excused by a majority vote
of the LSB members present at the meetings in question; (D) upon the
fair and reasonable determination, by a " vote of all the Directors of
the Foundation, or a 2/3 vote of all the Delegates for the same radio
station as the Delegate in question, at a meeting on said issue, after
a review of the facts, that, in its sole discretion, said Delegate has
exhibited conduct that is adverse to the best interests of the
Foundation or the radio station; or (E) upon the majority vote of the
class of Members associated with the radio station who originally
elected the Delegate voting by written ballot in an election to remove
said Delegate, provided that a quorum is established by written ballot,
and further provided that before any such election may be held the
Secretary of the appropriate Local Station Board shall first have
received a petition signed by at least two percent (2%) of the
appropriate class of Members affiliated with that radio station seeking
said Delegate's removal due to conduct by the Delegate that is
specifically alleged in the petition to be adverse to the best interest
of the Foundation or the local radio station. In the event of a removal
proceeding pursuant to this Section 9(D) or 9(E), the Delegate must be
afforded reasonable and appropriate due process according to the
circumstances, including notice and an opportunity to be heard at the
meeting or in writing if a written ballot is submitted to the Members.
Any Delegate who is removed who was simultaneously serving as a
Foundation Director or an officer of the Foundation or an LSB shall
also be deemed removed from any and all of these positions and from any
positions on a committee that s/he held by reason of his/her role as a
Delegate or Director. Notice of a meeting to remove a Delegate must be
given in writing at least thirty (30) days in advance. A Delegate
removed pursuant to this Section 9(D) or 9(E) shall not be eligible for
reelection as a Delegate for a period of three (3) years.
SECTION 10. FILLING OF VACANCIES
If a Delegate position becomes vacant mid-term, that Delegate shall
be replaced for the remainder of his/her term by the highest ranked
candidate from the last election of Delegates for that Class of Members
for that station who was not elected and who is available and continues
to meet the Delegate eligibility requirements as set forth in Section
2(A) or 2(B) of this Article of these Bylaws. In the event that no
eligible and available candidate from the last election is found, then
the Delegates for that radio station shall appoint a Member of the
appropriate class to serve as Delegate and fill the seat for the
remainder of the term.
SECTION 11. COMPENSATION
Delegates shall serve without compensation except that they
shall be allowed reasonable advancement or reimbursement of
expenses incurred in the performance of their regular duties.
ARTICLE FIVE
BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE FOUNDATION
SECTION 1. BOARD OF DIRECTORS - ELIGIBILITY, NUMBER, POWERS AND DUTIES
A. DIRECTORS DEFINED
Directors are those natural persons who have been elected to and are serving on the Foundation's Board of Directors ("Board").
B. ELIGIBILITY
Any Delegate who is currently serving as a Delegate and has served
at least one (1) year as a Delegate is eligible for election to the
office of Director by the Delegates for his/her radio station area
subject to Section 3 of this Article of the Bylaws. Any natural person
who is not currently serving as a Delegate for any radio station area
is eligible for nomination and election as an "affiliate" director or
an "at large" director, subject to Section 4 or 5 of this Article of
the Bylaws. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no person who holds any
elected or appointed public office at any level of government --
federal, state, or local -- or is a candidate for such office, shall be
eligible for election to the position of Director. A Director shall be
deemed to have resigned the position of Director if s/he becomes a
candidate for public office or accepts a political appointment during
his or her term as a Director. This restriction shall not apply to
civil service employment by governmental agencies.
C. NUMBER
There shall be a minimum of twenty-two (22) and a maximum for
twenty-three (23) Directors of the Foundation. The Board of Directors
shall fix by resolution, from time to time, the exact number of
Directors within the minimum and maximum numbers permitted herein. The
Board shall have equal representation from each of the Foundation's
five radio stations. The Delegates from the five Foundation radio
stations shall each elect four (4) Directors : three (3) of whom shall
be Listener-Sponsor Delegates and one (1) of whom shall be a Staff
Delegate -- for a total of twenty (20) "Station Representative"
Directors, as set forth in Section 3 of this Article of the Bylaws. In
addition, the Board shall elect two (2) "Affiliate Representative"
Directors from nominees submitted as set forth in Section 4 of this
Article of the Bylaws. If the Board, by resolution, fixes the number of
Directors at 23, then one additional Director shall be nominated and
elected as an "At-large" Director as set forth in Section 5 of this
Article of the Bylaws.
D. GENERAL POWER AND AUTHORITY
Subject to the provisions of the California Nonprofit Public
Benefit Corporation law, and any limitations in the Articles of
Incorporation and these Bylaws relating to action required or permitted
to be taken or approved by the Members or Delegates of the Foundation,
the activities and affairs of the Foundation shall be conducted and all
corporate powers shall be exercised by or under the direction of the
Board.
E. SPECIFIC POWERS AND DUTIES
Without prejudice to the general power of the Board set forth above
in Section 1D of this Article of these Bylaws, and subject to any
limitations set forth in these Bylaws, the ongoing duties and powers of
the Board shall include, but not be limited to:
(1)Ensuring and facilitating fulfillment of the purposes of the Foundation as set forth in the Articles of Incorporation;
(2)Ensuring compliance with applicable state and federal laws;
(3)Ensuring the financial health of the Foundation by adopting and
monitoring an annual budget and overseeing an independent annual audit
of the Foundation's books and accounts;
(4)Ensuring regular communication with the Members;
(5)Appointing, supervising and discharging the Foundation's
Executive Director, Chief Financial Officer and all Foundation
officers, prescribing powers and duties for them as are consistent with
the law and these Bylaws, and setting salaries and wages;
(6)Overseeing the conduct, management and control of the
Foundation's affairs and activities, including the monitoring of the
activities and actions of its radio stations and national staff
consistent with applicable law and regulations, the Articles of
Incorporation and these Bylaws;
(7)Meeting at such regular times and places as required by these
Bylaws and meeting at such other times as may be necessary in order to
carry out the duties of the Board;
(8)Registering their addresses, telephone numbers, facsimile
telephone numbers and email addresses with the Foundation's Secretary.
Notices of meetings mailed, transmitted by telecopier or facsimile, or
emailed to them at such addresses shall be deemed valid notices thereof.
SECTION 2. TERM
The term of a Director shall be one (1) year. A Director may serve
no more than five consecutive one-year terms. A Director shall not be
eligible for further service as a Director until one year has elapsed
after the termination of a Director's fifth consecutive one-year term.
SECTION 3. NOMINATION AND ELECTION OF STATION REPRESENTATIVE
DIRECTORSSECTION 3. NOMINATION AND ELECTION OF STATION REPRESENTATIVE
DIRECTORS
A. NOMINATION
Any current Delegate of any class of Members may nominate any other
current Delegate of any class of Members serving the same radio station
for the office of Director, provided that the nominee has served at
least one year as a Delegate for that radio station. Said nominations
shall be given in writing to the Recording Secretary for the radio
station Local Station Board ("LSB") by December 31 prior to the
election of Directors in January.
B. ELECTION
The Delegates for each radio station shall meet annually in early
January to elect four Directors to represent that radio station on the
Board. The Delegates of both classes of Members, voting together, shall
elect three Listener-Sponsor Directors using the Single Transferable
Voting method, and shall elect one Staff Director using the Instant
Runoff Voting method, to represent that radio station on the Board. The
Staff Director must be a Staff Delegate. The Listener-Sponsor Directors
must be Listener-Sponsor Delegates.
C. SEATING OF STATION REPRESENTATIVE DIRECTORS
All newly elected Station Representative Directors shall be seated
at the Meeting of the Board of Directors held in late January each
year, when their terms shall commence.
SECTION 4. NOMINATION AND ELECTION OF AFFILIATE REPRESENTATIVE
DIRECTORSSECTION 4. NOMINATION AND ELECTION OF AFFILIATE REPRESENTATIVE
DIRECTORS
A. NOMINATION
Any Foundation "affiliate station" (as defined below) or any
association of affiliate stations may nominate one or more candidates
for the two Affiliate Director positions on the Board. Nominations
shall close on February 15th each year and shall be submitted in
writing to the Foundation Secretary. Every affiliate station or
association of affiliate stations submitting nominee(s) shall include
with said nomination(s) a written explanation of its procedure for
selecting the nominee(s). Said statement shall be certified by the
station general manager or the governing board secretary of each
affiliate station nominating said candidate(s) or by the secretary of
the association of affiliate stations, as appropriate. In addition,
each nominee shall submit his/her resume and a statement of his/her
interest in serving as a Director of the Foundation. The Foundation
Secretary shall forward to all Foundation Directors all materials
submitted supporting each nominee not later than March 1st.
For purposes of this Section, an "affiliate station" shall be
defined as any non-profit non-commercial broadcaster that broadcasts
programming provided or distributed by the Foundation pursuant to a
written agreement with the Foundation, including, for example,
community radio stations, internet broadcasters or digital
broadcasters, as such technology may be developed. An affiliate station
shall not be a radio station whose broadcast license is held by the
Foundation. For purposes of this Section, an "association of affiliate
stations" shall be defined as any group of affiliate stations that have
joined together to form an association, provided that said association
has adopted bylaws and its membership is limited solely of affiliate
stations.
B. ELECTION
As the first order of business at the Board meeting in March each
year, the Directors present and voting (excluding any then current
Affiliate or At-Large Directors from the vote) shall elect two (2)
Affiliate Representative Directors from the nominees submitted by
affiliate stations and/or affiliate station associations, using the
Single Transferable Voting method. Affiliate Directors shall serve for
a one-year term which shall commence immediately upon their election.
SECTION 5. NOMINATION AND ELECTION OF AT-LARGE DIRECTORSECTION 5. NOMINATION AND ELECTION OF AT-LARGE DIRECTOR
A. NOMINATION
In the event that the Board resolves that there shall be twenty
three (23) Foundation Directors (the maximum number of Directors
permitted under these bylaws) then there shall be one "At-Large"
Director elected each year. Candidates for election as an "At-Large"
Director shall be nominated by majority vote of the Delegates from a
minimum of three radio stations, with the Delegates from each station
voting separately by station area. Nominations shall close on February
15th each year and shall be submitted in writing by that date to the
Foundation Secretary together the nominee's resume and a statement of
his/her interest in serving as a Director of the Foundation. The
Foundation Secretary shall forward to all Directors all materials
submitted supporting each nominee not later than March 1st.
B. ELECTION
As the second order of business at the Board meeting in March each
year in which an At-large director is to be elected, the Directors
present and voting (excluding any then current Affiliate Representative
or At-Large Directors from the vote) shall elect one (1) At-Large
Director from the nominees submitted by the Delegates, using the
Instant Runoff Voting method. The At-Large Director shall serve for a
one year term which shall commence immediately upon his/her election.
SECTION 6. TRANSITION ELECTION
Following the adoption of these Bylaws, and within the timeframe
established by the interim Board, and following the election of
Delegates pursuant to Section 7 of Article 4 of these Bylaws, the
Delegates from each station area shall meet and elect four (4)
Directors : three (3) of whom shall be Listener-Sponsor Directors
elected by Single Transferable voting, and one (1) of whom shall be a
Staff Director elected by Instant Runoff Voting. For the purposes of
this election only, and contrary to the provisions of Section 3(A) of
this Article, one year's previous service as a Delegate shall not be an
eligibility requirement. The term of these Station Representative
Directors shall expire upon the election and seating of their
successors in January 2005. In addition, nominations for the two (2)
Affiliate Directors shall be opened.
SECTION 7. REMOVAL OF DIRECTORSSECTION 7. REMOVAL OF DIRECTORS
Consistent with applicable law, any Director shall be removed from
the position of Director, and cease to be a Director upon the
occurrence of any of the following: (A) said Director's death or
resignation; (B) upon the occurrence of a disqualifying act, e.g.
candidacy, election or appointment to a political office; (C) failure
of a Director to attend three consecutive Board meetings, which
absences have not been excused by a majority vote of the Directors
present and voting at the meetings in question; (D) upon the fair and
reasonable determination by a 2/3 vote of all the Directors on the
Board (excluding the Director in question) after a review of the facts
that said Director has exhibited conduct that is adverse to the best
interests of the Foundation; (E) upon the 2/3 vote of the Delegates
present and voting (but not less than a majority of all the Delegates)
of the radio station that elected said Director (excluding the vote of
the Director in question) that said Director has exhibited conduct that
is adverse to the best interests of the Foundation; or, in the case of
an "Affiliate Representative" or "At-Large" Director, upon the vote of
the Delegates from a minimum of three radio stations, voting
separately, that said Director has exhibited conduct that is adverse to
the best interests of the Foundation, provided that a 2/3 vote of the
Delegates present and voting (but not less than a majority of all the
Delegates) for each radio station shall be required to remove an
"Affiliate Representative" or "At-Large" Director; or (F) upon the
expiration or termination for any reason of said Director's term as a
Delegate for his/her radio station s/he represents or upon the removal
of the Director as a Delegate by the Members pursuant to Section 9 of
Article 4 of these Bylaws. In the event of a removal proceeding
pursuant to this Section 7(D) or 7(E), the Director shall be afforded
reasonable and appropriate due process according to the circumstances,
including notice and an opportunity to be heard. Removal of a Director
hereunder shall also constitute removal of said Director from any
position as a Foundation Officer and from any positions on a committee
that s/he held by nature of his/her role as a Director. Notice of a
meeting to remove a Director must be given at least 30 days in advance
of said meeting.
SECTION 8. FILLING VACANCIES ON THE BOARDSECTION 8. FILLING VACANCIES ON THE BOARD
If a Director's seat previously held by a "Station Representative"
Director becomes vacant for any reason, that seat shall be immediately
filled for the remainder of the term by a Director elected by the
Delegates from that radio station, provided, however, that if the
previous Director was a Staff Director, the Delegates shall election a
Staff Director and if the previous Director was a Listener-Sponsor
Director, then a Listener-Sponsor Director shall be elected. If a
Director's seat previously held by an "Affiliate Representative" or
"At-Large" Director becomes vacant for any reason, that seat shall be
filled for the remainder of that term by the majority vote of the Board
from the most recent list of nominees it had received for "Affiliate
Representative" or "At-Large" Directors, as applicable, or if none,
then nominations shall be declared open and the seat shall be filled
the following March for a new one-year term.
SECTION 9. COMPENSATIONSECTION 9. COMPENSATION
Directors shall serve without compensation except that they shall be
allowed reasonable advancement or reimbursement of expenses incurred in
the performance of their regular duties.
SECTION 10. RESTRICTION REGARDING INTERESTED DIRECTORS
Notwithstanding any other provision of these Bylaws, not more than forty-nine
percent (49%) of the persons serving on the Board may be interested
persons. For purposes of this Section, "interested person"
means either: (1) Any person who currently is being or has
been compensated by the Foundation for services rendered within
the previous 12 months, whether as a full-time or part-time
officer, employee, independent contractor, or otherwise, or
(2) any brother, sister, ancestor, descendant, spouse, domestic
partner, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law,
mother-in-law, or father-in-law of any such person.
ARTICLE SIX
MEETINGS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
SECTION 1. TIME AND PLACE OF MEETINGS
The "Annual Meeting" of the Board of Directors shall take place in
late January each year, or at such other times and places as agreed by
a majority vote of the Board of Directors. The Board shall also
regularly meet in March, June and September of each year. The four
regular Board meetings shall rotate through the five Foundation radio
station areas so that meetings do not take place twice in the radio
same station area until a meeting has been held in all other station
areas.
SECTION 2. SPECIAL MEETINGS
Special meetings of the Board of Directors may be called by the
Chairperson of the Board, any two Officers of the Foundation, or by any
three Directors.
SECTION 3. TELEPHONIC MEETINGS
The Board may hold special meetings, but not regular meetings, by
telephone conference, video screen communication or other
communications equipment, provided, however, that telephone appearance
at meetings scheduled as "in-person" meetings is not permitted.
Participation in a telephonic meeting under this Section shall
constitute presence at the meeting if all of the following apply:
A. Each Director participating in the meeting can communicate concurrently with all other Directors.
B. Each Director is provided the means of participating in all
matters for the Board, including the capacity to propose, or to
interpose an objection to, a specific action to be taken by the
Foundation.
C. The Board has a means of verifying that the person participating
at the meeting is a Director and that all votes cast during said
meeting are cast only by Directors.
SECTION 4. NOTICE
Notice of every regular meeting of the Board of Directors, stating
the time and place of said meeting, and the purposes thereof, shall be
sent to each Director by first class mail, facsimile or email,
according to the preference each Director specifies in writing to the
Foundation's Secretary, at least thirty (30) days before any such
meeting. Special meetings shall require only seven (7) days advance
notice, but shall also require telephonic notice by leaving a message
at the telephone number given to the Foundation's Secretary for such
notice by each Director, and shall specify the purpose of the meeting.
No additional business not stated in the notice shall be conducted at a
special meeting. Notice of all meetings shall be placed on the
Foundation's website and announced a minimum of 3 times daily on air
for five consecutive days on all Foundation radio stations, beginning,
whenever reasonably possible, no later than ten days before the date of
said meeting.
Notice of a meeting hereunder will be deemed waived by a Director
who affirmatively agrees to attend a meeting or to waive this advance
notice requirement, signs a waiver of notice or a written consent to
hold the meeting, or who attends the meeting without protesting prior
to the meeting or upon commencement of the meeting to the lack of
notice to that Director.
SECTION 5. QUORUM AND APPROVAL
A quorum at any meeting of the Board of Directors shall consist of a
majority of the then serving Directors. If after a quorum has been
established at a meeting of the Directors some Directors leave the
meeting and there is no longer a quorum present, those Directors
remaining may continue to take action so long as a resolution receives
at least that number of affirmative votes as would constitute a
majority of a quorum. (E.g., if the quorum is 12 Directors, and a
majority of a quorum is 7 Directors, then so long as 7 Directors remain
present and vote in the affirmative the resolution shall be adopted.)
Except as otherwise expressly provided herein, the approval of a
majority of the Board present and voting shall be required for any
action of the Board.
SECTION 6. PROXIES
All action taken by Directors shall be taken by the elected Director
personally. The powers of members of the Board may not be exercised by
alternates, by proxy or the like.
SECTION 7. OPEN MEETINGS
All meetings of the Board of Directors and its committees shall be
open to the Members and to the public, with the exception of those
meetings dedicated to or predominantly regarding personnel, proprietary
information, litigation and other matters requiring confidential advice
of counsel involving commercial or financial information obtained on a
privileged or confidential basis, or relating to a purchase of property
or the use or engagement of services whenever the premature exposure of
said purchase or sale, in the Board's sole opinion may compromise the
legitimate business interest of the Foundation. In the event that all
or a portion of a meeting is closed, the Board shall indicate in its
notice of said meeting that the meeting or a part of it shall be
closed. In addition, within a reasonable period after the closed
meeting, the Foundation's Secretary shall post on the Foundation's
website a general statement of the basis on which all or part of said
meeting was closed.
No person shall be required, as a condition for attendance at any
public meeting or to publicly comment, to register his/her name or to
provide any other information. With the exception of telephone
meetings, all public meetings of the Board and its committees shall
include public comment periods. Public comment periods at Board
meetings shall be not less than one hour, and at committee meetings,
not less than one-half hour.
The Board shall make reasonable efforts to broadcast or webcast all
its public meetings, and committee meetings, whether such meetings are
in-person or telephonic.
SECTION 8.ACTION BY UNANIMOUS WRITTEN CONSENT
Any action that the Board is required or permitted to take may be
taken without a meeting if all Directors consent in writing to the
action; provided, however, that the consent of any Director who has a
material financial interest in a transaction to which the Foundation is
a party and who is an "interested director" as defined in California
Corporations Code Section 5233 (as it may be amended from time to time)
shall not be required for approval of said transaction. Such action by
written consent shall have the same force and effect as any other
validly approved action of the Board. All such consents shall be filed
with minutes of the proceedings of the Board.
SECTION 9. ACCESSIBILITY
All public Board meetings shall be held in spaces fully accessible
as defined in the Americans with Disabilities Act and any other
applicable state and federal laws. Properly closed sessions may be held
otherwise unless this would preclude access for any individual entitled
to attend.
ARTICLE SEVEN
LOCAL STATION BOARDS
SECTION 1. LOCAL STATION BOARDS
There shall be a standing committee of the Board of Directors for
each Foundation radio station which shall be known as the Local Station
Board ("LSB"). The powers, duties and responsibilities of the LSBs
shall be those set forth in these Bylaws and such other powers, duties
and responsibilities as the Board of Directors may from time to time
delegate to them.
SECTION 2. COMPOSITION OF THE LOCAL STATION BOARDS
Each LSB shall consist of the 24 Delegates elected by the Members
for that radio station - 18 Listener-Sponsor Delegates and 6 Staff
Delegates. (Four of the Delegates for each radio station shall also
concurrently serve as Directors of the Foundation, as set provided in
Section 3 of Article 5 of the Bylaws.)
In addition, an "associate station," if any, as that term is defined
in Section 8 of this Article, may appoint one representative to the LSB
of the radio station with which it is associated. Associate station
representatives shall be voting members of the LSB; provided, however,
that no associate station representative shall have the right to vote
for the election or removal of any Foundation Director or Delegate nor
may s/he be eligible for election by the Delegates to the office of
Director. No LSB shall have more than a total of three (3) associate
station representatives (and no more than one (1) from any one
associate station) at any given time. The term of office of an
associate station representative shall be three years, with a maximum
of two consecutive three-year terms of service on an LSB.
The station's General Manager shall serve as a non-voting member of the station's LSB.
SECTION 3. SPECIFIC POWERS & DUTIES
Each LSB, acting as a standing committee of the Foundation's Board
of Directors, shall have the following powers, duties and
responsibilities related to its specific radio station, under the
direction and supervision of the Foundation's Board of Directors:
A. To review and approve that station's budget and make quarterly
reports to the Foundation's Board of Directors regarding the station's
budget, actual income and expenditures.
B. To screen and select a pool of candidates for the position of
General Manager of its respective radio station, from which pool of
approved candidates the Executive Director shall hire the station's
General Manager.. The LSB may appoint a special sub-committee for this
purpose.
C. To prepare an annual written evaluation of the station's General Manager.
D. Both the Executive Director and/or an LSB may initiate the
process to fire a station General Manager. However, to effectuate it,
both the Executive Director and the LSB must agree to fire said General
Manager. If the Executive Director and the LSB cannot agree, the
decision to terminate or retain said General Manager shall be made by
the Board of Directors.
E. To screen and select a pool of candidates for the position of
station Program Director, from which pool of approved candidates the
station's General Manager shall hire the station's Program Director.
The LSB may appoint a special sub-committee for this purpose.
F. To prepare an annual written evaluation of the station's Program Director.
G. To work with station management to ensure that station
programming fulfills the purposes of the Foundation and is responsive
to the diverse needs of the listeners (demographic) and communities
(geographic) served by the station, and that station policies and
procedures for making programming decisions and for program evaluation
are working in a fair, collaborative and respectful manner to provide
quality programming.
H. To conduct "Town Hall" style meetings at least twice a year, devoted to hearing listeners views, needs and concerns.
I. To assist in station fundraising activities.
J. To actively reach out to underrepresented communities to help the
station serve a diversity of all races, creeds, colors and nations,
classes, genders and sexual orientations, and ages and to help build
collaborative relations with organizations working for similar
purposes.
K. To perform community needs assessments, or see to it that separate "Community Advisory Committees" are formed to do so.
L. To ensure that the station works diligently towards the goal of
diversity in staffing at all levels and maintenance of a
discrimination-free atmosphere in the workplace.
M. To exercise all of its powers and duties with care, loyalty,
diligence and sound business judgment consistent with the manner in
which those terms are generally defined under applicable California
law.
SECTION 4. OTHER LOCAL STATION BOARD POWERS AND AUTHORITY
By resolution, the Foundation's Board of Directors may delegate any
other corporate powers it deems appropriate to an LSB with regard to
that specific radio station. Any such power delegated to an LSB is
subject to revocation at any time by the Board of Directors. Any and
all actions, resolutions and policies taken or adopted by an LSB may be
overridden by a majority vote of the Directors if said action,
resolution or policy is found by the Board of Directors to be adverse
to the mission and/or charitable or business purposes of the
Foundation, to exceed the power or authority granted to said LSB or to
be inconsistent with these Bylaws, the Articles or applicable laws and
regulations.
SECTION 5. ELECTION OF OFFICERS
Each Local Station Board shall elect a Chair, a Vice-Chair, a
Recording Secretary, and a Treasurer, who shall be elected annually at
the December meeting of the LSB for a term of one year using the
Instant Runoff Voting method. Each of these officers shall serve at the
pleasure of the LSB and shall have those powers and shall perform those
duties as may be prescribed by its LSB. With the exception of the Chair
and the Vice Chair, an officer of an LSB is not required to be a
Delegate. Local Station Board officers may not serve concurrently as
Foundation Directors, and must resign their position as an LSB officer
if elected to the Board of Directors.
SECTION 6. MEETINGS
A. FREQUENCY
Each LSB shall meet as often as required to accomplish it duties, but not less than every other month.
B. TIME AND PLACE
The LSB shall establish, by majority vote, the time and place of
each meeting, provided, however that no meeting shall occur sooner than
ten (10) days from the date of the vote scheduling said meeting without
the unanimous agreement of all the LSB officers that a shorter period
is required to address urgent matters and, in the event of less than
10-days notice, notice shall be given by telephone message to all LSB
members at least 24 hours before the meeting. There shall be a meeting
of the LSB in December each year to seat newly elected Delegates and to
elect LSB officers, and in early January to elect Director(s). Meetings
shall be held within the local radio station area in facilities of
sufficient size to accommodate Members affiliated with that radio
station and the public, preferably in the station.
C. MEMBERS & PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
LSB meetings shall be open to the public and to all Members, with
the exception of those meetings dedicated to, or predominantly
regarding, personnel, proprietary information, litigation and other
matters requiring confidential advice of counsel, involving commercial
or financial information obtained on a privileged or confidential basis
or relating to a purchase of property or the use or engagement of
services whenever the premature exposure of said purchase or sale, in
the LSB's sole opinion, may compromise the legitimate business interest
of said radio station or the Foundation. In the event that all or a
portion of a meeting is closed, the LSB shall indicate in its notice of
said meeting that the meeting or a part of it shall be closed. In
addition, within a reasonable period after the closed meeting, the
LSB's Secretary shall post on the station's website a general statement
of the basis on which all or part of said meeting was closed. Each
meeting shall include a public comment period of not less than thirty
(30) minutes. No person shall be required, as a condition for
attendance at any public meeting or to publicly comment, to register
his/her name or to provide any other information.
D. NOTICE
The public and all Members shall be notified of each LSB meeting.
Four on-air announcements, made during prime time on the radio station
on four different days, beginning, whenever feasible, at least 7 days
prior to the date of each meeting, shall be considered adequate notice.
In the event of LSB meetings convened on short notice for urgent
business, all reasonable efforts shall be made to broadcast notice of
the meeting at least three times during prime time for two days prior
to the meeting. Whenever feasible, notice shall also be posted on the
station's website at least 7 days prior to the date of each meeting.
E. RECORDKEEPING AND RULEMAKING
Meetings and actions of the LSB shall be governed by the provisions
of these Bylaws. A book of Minutes of all meetings and actions of the
LSB shall be kept and shall be filed with the records of the LSB, which
book shall include the time and place of each meeting, the notice
given, how authorized, any waivers or consents, the names of those
present, and a summary of the proceedings. Minutes of closed meetings
shall be maintained, but sealed as confidential. A copy of all Minutes
and actions of the LSB shall also be forwarded to the Foundation's
Secretary for maintenance pursuant to Section 1(A) of Article 12 of
these Bylaws. Each LSB may adopt additional rules for the governance of
its LSB so long as the rules are not inconsistent with these Bylaws.
SECTION 7. QUORUM AND APPROVALSECTION 7. QUORUM AND APPROVAL
A quorum at any meeting of an LSB shall be a majority of the then
currently serving LSB members, not including the Station Manager.
Associate station representatives shall not be counted for purposes of
establishing a quorum for matters on which they are not entitled to
vote. If after a quorum has been established at a meeting of the LSB
some of the LSB members leave the meeting and there is no longer a
quorum present, those LSB members remaining may continue to take action
so long as a resolution receives at least that number of affirmative
votes as would constitute a majority of a quorum. (E.g., if the quorum
is 13 LSB members, and a majority of a quorum is 7, then so long as 7
LSB members remain present and vote in the affirmative the resolution
shall be adopted.) Except as otherwise expressly provided in these
Bylaws, the approval of a majority of the LSB members present and
voting shall be required for any action of said LSB. In the event that
the vote on any motion results in a tie, the motion shall not pass.
SECTION 8. ASSOCIATE STATIONS
A. A Foundation radio station may choose to associate with any
geographically contiguous community radio station for the purpose of
re-broadcasting no less than seventy-five percent (75%) of that
Foundation radio station's programming. The terms of said association
shall be memorialized in a written agreement between the Foundation
radio station and the community radio station, which agreement must
first be approved by the Board of Directors to be effective. Such a
community radio station must produce some local programming, operate
under a mission statement compatible with that of the Foundation and
have a democratically elected station board. Such a community radio
station will be referred to as an "associate station", which station is
different from an "affiliate station" as referenced in Section 4(A) of
Article 6 of these Bylaws. An associate station may be permitted to
appoint one (1) representative to the LSB of the Foundation radio
station with which it is affiliated for a term of three years
commencing in December of the year of appointment, provided, however,
that no LSB shall have representatives from more than 3 associate
stations on its LSB.
B. Associate station representatives sitting on LSBs are subject to
removal by either their own station boards according to their own
respective terms of accountability and appropriateness or by the
majority vote of all the LSB (excluding the vote of the associate
station representative in question). The LSB must notify the associate
station board at least 30 days prior to any vote to remove its
representative about any difficulties or concerns regarding its
associate station representative in order to provide said associate
radio station the opportunity to consult with its representative about
the LSB's concerns and/or to designate a replacement representative.
SECTION 9. PROXIES NOT PERMITTED
All actions taken by LSB members shall be taken personally. The
powers of Delegates and associate station representatives may not be
exercised by alternates, by proxy or the like.
SECTION 10. LOCAL STATION BOARD ADVISORY COMMITTEES
A. An LSB may, by resolution, designate one or more advisory
committees, to serve at the pleasure, direction, and supervision of the
LSB. Any such advisory committee shall include, at least, two (2) LSB
members. Members affiliated with that radio station shall be eligible
for appointment to a committee. Station Advisory Committee members
shall not be considered agents of the Foundation or the radio station
and shall not have the authority to bind the Foundation or the radio
station with which it is affiliated.
B. Meetings and actions of local station advisory committees shall
be governed by the provisions of Section 6 of this Article of these
Bylaws with such changes as are necessary in said provisions to
substitute the committee(s) and its members for the LSB and its
members, except that the time of regular meetings of committees may be
determined by resolution of the LSB as well as a vote of the committee
and that the committees shall not be required to meet in December or
January unless they otherwise agree, or the LSB resolves that it should
do so, and provided that notice of committee meetings shall be deemed
adequate if announced at LSB meetings and, when feasible, posted on the
station's web page. Special meetings of committees may also be called
by resolution of the LSB or the committee. The LSB may adopt additional
rules for government of any committee that are not inconsistent with
the provisions of these Bylaws.
C. The general duty of advisory committees shall be to advise the
LSB on the issues for which the committee was created. Advisory
committees shall have only those duties and powers set forth by
resolution of the LSB, which powers shall not include the power to: (1)
approve any action which, under the California Nonprofit Public Benefit
Corporation Law or these Bylaws, requires the approval of the Members,
Directors, the LSB, or the Delegates; (2) fill vacancies on the Board,
LSB or on any committee; (3) amend or repeal these Bylaws or adopt new
bylaws; (4) amend or repeal any resolution of the Board or the LSB; (5)
create any other committees of the Board or LSB; (6) approve or execute
any contract or transaction; or (7) incur any indebtedness, or borrow
money, on behalf of the Foundation or any LSB.
ARTICLE EIGHT
OTHER COMMITTEES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
SECTION 1. COMMITTEES OF THE BOARD
In addition to the Local Station Boards, the Board of Directors may,
by resolution, designate one or more committees, to serve at the
pleasure of the Board. Any such committee shall have only such
authority as provided by resolution of the Board and no committee may
without full Board review and approval:
A. Approve any action which, under the California Nonprofit Public
Benefit Corporation Law or these Bylaws, also requires the approval of
the Members or the Delegates;
B. Fill vacancies on the Board or in any committee (except that
Delegates may fill vacancies on the board for their local station area);
C. Fix compensation for Directors for serving on the Board or on any committee;
D. Amend or repeal these Bylaws or adopt new bylaws;
E. Amend or repeal any resolution of the Board;
F. Create any other committees of the Board or appoint members of
the committees to the Board, provided, however, LSBs shall be entitled
to create subcommittees of the LSB;
G. Approve or execute any contract or transaction to which the Foundation is a party; or
H. Incur any indebtedness, or borrow money, on behalf of the Foundation.
SECTION 2. COMPOSITION OF BOARD COMMITTEES
Except as otherwise provided in these Bylaws, all committees shall
include at least one Director from each Foundation radio station and
two Delegates, who are not then serving as Directors, from each radio
station, provided, however, that the inclusion of Delegates on a
committee shall not be required where the Board by a majority vote
determines that the privileged, sensitive or confidential nature of the
matters to be addressed by said committee preclude the inclusion of
Delegates as committee members in order for said committee to
effectively and efficiently perform its duties. The Board may designate
one or more Directors as alternate members of any committee. Director
committee members shall be selected by a majority vote of the Board
using the Instant Runoff Voting method, provided however that if there
is an election for more than one committee member, then the Board shall
use the single transferable method of voting to select committee
members. Delegate committee members shall be elected by their
respective LSBs using the Instant Runoff Voting method, provided
however that if there is an election for more than one committee
member, then the LSBs shall use the single transferable method of
voting to select committee members.
SECTION 3. STANDING COMMITTEES
In addition to the LSBs for each of the Foundation's radio stations,
the Board of Directors shall also have the following standing
committees: (A) a Coordinating Committee, which shall coordinate Board
activities between meetings, which committee shall include as members
all Foundation officers and at least one Director from each radio
station area, but shall not include any non-Director LSB Delegates,
provided however that the Coordinating Committee shall not be
considered an "executive committee" and shall not exercise any powers
of the Board without Board approval; (B) a Governance Committee, which
shall regularly review the Foundation's bylaws and policies for
governance of Board activities; (C) a Technology Committee, which shall
advise the Board as to emerging technologies; (D) a Programming
Committee, which shall insure that programming at all Foundation radio
stations meets and fulfills the Foundation's purposes as stated in the
Articles of Incorporation; (E) a Finance Committee, The Finance
Committee which shall review and recommend the annual budget for board
approval and shall monitor and report Foundation financial activities
at least quarterly and shall include as members the Chief Financial
Officer, a Director from each radio station area and the treasurers of
each LSB. (The chair of the Finance Committee shall be a Director who
may be referred to as the Board "Treasurer". However, the Board
Treasurer shall not be an officer of the Foundation. The Foundation's
Chief Financial Officer shall be an employee of the Foundation and
shall not be the Board Treasurer. The Board Treasurer shall not
represent him/herself to any party as an officer of the Foundation nor
may s/he sign documents on behalf of the Foundation requiring the
signature of the Chief Financial Officer nor represent him/herself to
have any authority to bind the Foundation.); and (F) an Audit
Committee, which shall oversee the annual audit of the Foundation's
books and shall not include Finance committee members..
SECTION 4. COMMITTEES OF INCLUSION
In addition, there shall be established, in each of the Foundation's
radio station areas, standing committees of the Board to monitor the
under-representation of communities in their respective radio station
areas. These "Committees of Inclusion" shall include one Director and
three LSB members from each radio station area who shall be elected by
their respective LSBs, and such additional individuals as those four
shall choose by majority vote. The Committees of Inclusion will monitor
both station programming and staffing in consultation with the LSBs.
They will also monitor the diversity of election candidates and work
with the LSBs' appropriate committees to improve the diversity of
election candidates at the local and national level. These Committees
of Inclusion shall monitor diversity participation in consultation with
the general manager, local committees and the Board, the status of
which will be published and maintained in each respective radio station
area. Communities deemed to be under-represented by the Committees of
Inclusion will be identified and the extent of their
under-representation shall be communicated to the Board, the respective
LSBs and any local outreach committees. Station managers and
appropriate LSB committees will be expected to consider these
communities in their future decisions about staffing, programming, and
candidate outreach, subject to any applicable state and federal laws
and regulations. All station managers and Committees of Inclusion will
report to the Board and their respective LSBs quarterly on the status
of diversity within their radio station areas. The Board shall query
and monitor radio station areas with identified under-represented
communities and any plans for addressing these under-represented
communities' increased participation. Where necessary with due notice,
the Board will suggest and/or direct managers and committees to
implement specific measures to improve the status of under-represented
communities in their respective radio station areas. The Board will
assist and encourage station managers and Committees of Inclusion in
finding new ways to improve recruitment efforts in their respective
radio station areas.
SECTION 5. MEETINGS AND ACTIONS OF COMMITTEES.
Meetings and actions of committees shall be governed by,
and held and taken in accordance with, the provisions of Article
6 of these Bylaws with such changes in the context of those
sections as are necessary to substitute the committee and
its members for the Board and its members, except that the
time of regular meetings of committees may be determined by
resolution of the Board as well as the committee. Special
meetings of committees may be called by resolution of the
Board or by the committee Chair or by any two committee members
and notice of special meetings of committees shall also be
given to all alternate committee members, who shall have the
right to attend all meetings of the committee. Any committee
member shall have the right to place a matter on the agenda
for discussion by the committee. The Board may adopt additional
rules for the government of any committee that are not inconsistent
with the provisions of these Bylaws.
ARTICLE NINE
OFFICERS OF THE FOUNDATION
SECTION 1. DESIGNATION OF OFFICERS
The officers of the Foundation shall be a Chairperson, a Vice
Chairperson, an Executive Director, a Secretary, and a Chief Financial
Officer. The Foundation may also have, at the discretion of the Board
of Directors, one or more Assistant Secretaries. Any number of offices
may be held by the same person, except that neither the Secretary nor
the Chief Financial Officer shall serve concurrently as the Chairperson
of the Board or the Executive Director. With the exception of the
Chairperson of the Board and the Vice-Chairperson of the Board, no
officer is required to be a Director.
SECTION 2. ELECTION OF OFFICERS; TERM
The officers of the Foundation shall be appointed and/or elected by
the Board of Directors, and each shall serve at the pleasure of the
Board (subject to the rights, if any, of an officer under any contract
of employment, if any). With the exception of the Executive Director
and the Chief Financial Officer, all officers shall serve for a term of
one (1) year, unless s/he resigns, is removed or is otherwise
disqualified to serve prior to the expiration of his/her term, and
shall be elected by the Board at its annual meeting in January each
year using the Instant Runoff Voting method. (The Chair, Vice Chair and
Secretary shall be elected at the first meeting of the Board following
the adoption of these Bylaws for terms to expire in January 2005,
subject to the rights, if any, of an officer under any contract of
employment, if any.)
SECTION 3. REMOVAL AND RESIGNATION OF OFFICERS
A. Subject to the rights, if any, of an officer, under any contract
of employment, any officer may be removed, either with or without
cause, by the Board at any regular or special meeting thereof.
B. Any officer may resign at any time by giving written notice to
the Board. Any such resignation shall take effect upon the receipt of
such notice or at any later time specified therein; and, unless
otherwise specified therein, the acceptance of such resignation shall
not be necessary to make it effective. Any such resignation is without
prejudice to the rights, if any, of the Foundation under any contract
to which the officer is a party.
SECTION 4. VACANCIES IN OFFICES
A vacancy in any office of an officer because of death, resignation,
removal, disqualification or any other cause shall be filled for the
remainder of the term by the Board.
SECTION 5. CHAIRPERSON OF THE BOARD
The Chairperson of the Board shall, if present, preside at all
meetings of the Board of Directors and exercise and perform such other
powers and duties as may be from time to time assigned to him/her by
the Board or prescribed by these Bylaws.
SECTION 6. VICE CHAIRPERSON OF THE BOARD
The Vice Chairperson of the Board shall, in the absence of the
Chairperson, preside at meetings of the Board of Directors and exercise
and perform such other powers and duties as may be from time to time
assigned to him/her by the Board or prescribed by these Bylaws.
SECTION 7. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
A. The President of the Foundation shall be referred to as the
"Executive Director." The Executive Director shall be the general
manager, chief executive officer and chief administrator of the
Foundation. S/he shall be selected, supervised and discharged by the
Board. In addition, his/her performance will also be subject to annual
evaluation by each LSB, which may make recommendations to the Board.
B. Subject to the control of the Board, the Executive Director shall
have general supervision, direction and control of the business and the
officers of the Foundation and the primary responsibility for
implementing the directives, decisions and policies of the Foundation
and the Board pertaining to administration, personnel, programming,
financing and public relations. The Executive Director shall generally
promote, coordinate and supervise the mission of the Foundation and
shall have such powers and perform such duties as may be delegated or
assigned to him/her by the Board.
SECTION 8. SECRETARY
A. The Secretary shall keep or cause to be kept at the principal
executive office, or such other place as the Board may designate, a
book of minutes of all meetings and actions of the Board and committees
of the Board, with the time and place of holding, whether regular or
special, and, if special, how authorized, the notice thereof given, any
waivers or consent the names of those present at every Board and
committee meetings, and the proceedings thereof. Minutes of closed
meetings shall be maintained but sealed as confidential.
B. The Secretary shall give, or cause to be given, notice of all
meetings of the Board required by the Bylaws or by law to be given, and
s/he shall keep the seal of the Foundation, if one be adopted, in safe
custody, and shall have such other powers and perform such other duties
as may be prescribed by the Board or by the Bylaws.
SECTION 9. CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
A. The Chief Financial Officer shall keep and maintain, or cause to
be kept and maintained, adequate and correct books and records of
accounts of the properties and business transactions of the Foundation,
including accounts of its assets, liabilities, receipts, disbursements,
gains, losses, capital, and retained earnings. . The books of account
shall be open at all reasonable times to inspection by any Director
upon demand.
B. The Chief Financial Officer shall cause to be deposited all
moneys and other valuables in the name and to the credit of the
Foundation with such depositaries as may be designated by the Board.
S/he shall cause the funds of the Foundation to be disbursed as s/he
may be properly directed from time to time, shall render to the
Executive Director and the Board an account of all of his/her
transactions as Chief Financial Officer and of the financial condition
of the Foundation whenever requested, and shall have other such powers
and perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board or the
Bylaws.
ARTICLE TEN
GENERAL PROVISIONS
SECTION 1. MEMBERSHIP NOT TRANSFERABLE
One's position as a Member, Delegate, Director or Officer of the
Foundation shall not be transferable and may not be assigned or
inherited.
SECTION 2. EFFECT OF TERMINATION OF MEMBERSHIP OR POSITION : NO CLAIMS OR REFUNDS
Except as specifically set forth herein, no withdrawn or
terminated Members, Delegates, Directors or Officers (nor
their heirs or personal representatives) shall have any claim
whatsoever upon the assets of the Foundation, or any claim
whatsoever arising out of said membership or the holding of
any office or position in the Foundation. Furthermore, no
Member, Delegate, Directors or Officers shall be entitled
to the return of any monies contributed to the Foundation
or any Foundation radio station.
ARTICLE ELEVEN
INDEMNIFICATION OF DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, DELEGATES
EMPLOYEES, AND OTHER AGENTS
SECTION 1. NON-LIABILITY OF DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, & DELEGATES
Directors, Officers and Delegates shall not be personally liable for
the debts, liabilities, or other obligations of the Foundation and
private property of such individuals shall be exempt from Foundation
debts or liabilities, subject to the applicable provisions of
California's Corporation Code, unless said debts, liabilities or other
obligations are the direct result of intentional misconduct by a
Director, Officer or Delegate. The personal liability of Directors,
Delegates and Officers shall be eliminated to the fullest extent
permitted by California law.
SECTION 2. DEFINITIONS: AGENTS, PROCEEDINGS AND EXPENSES
For the purposes of this Article 11, "agent" means any person who is
or was a Director, Officer, Delegate, employee or agent of this
Foundation; "proceeding" means any threatened, pending or completed
action or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative, or
investigative; and "expenses" includes, without limitation, attorneys'
fees and any expenses of establishing a right to indemnification under
Section 3 or Section 4 of this Article.
SECTION 3. ACTIONS OTHER THAN BY THE FOUNDATION
Subject to the provisions of Section 5238 of the California
Corporations Code (as amended from time to time), the Foundation shall
indemnify any person who was or is a party, or is threatened to be made
a party, to any proceeding (other than an action by or in the right of
this Foundation to procure a judgment in its favor, an action brought
under Section 5233 of the California Corporations Code or an action
brought by the Attorney General or a person granted relator status for
any breach of duty relating to assets held in charitable trust) by
reason of the fact that such person is or was an agent of the
Foundation, against expenses, judgments, fines, settlements and other
amounts actually and reasonably incurred in connection with such
proceeding, if that person acted in good faith and in a manner that
person reasonably believed to be in the best interests of this
Foundation, and, in the case of a criminal proceeding, had no
reasonable cause to believe his or her conduct was unlawful. The
termination of any proceeding by judgment, order, settlement,
conviction, or upon a plea of nolo contendere or its equivalent shall
not, of itself, create a presumption that the person did not act in
good faith and in a manner which the person reasonably believed to be
in the best interests of this Foundation or that the person had
reasonable cause to believe that his or her conduct was unlawful.
SECTION 4. ACTIONS BY THE FOUNDATION
Subject to the provisions of Section 5238 of the California
Corporations Code (as amended from time to time), the Foundation shall
indemnify any person who was or is a party, or is threatened to be made
a party, to any threatened, pending or completed action by or in the
right of this Foundation to procure a judgment in its favor by reason
of the fact that that person is or was an agent of this Foundation,
against expenses actually and reasonably incurred by that person in
connection with the defense or settlement of that action if that person
acted in good faith, in a manner that person believed to be in the best
interests of the Foundation, and with such care, including reasonable
inquiry, as an ordinary prudent person in a like position would use
under similar circumstances. No indemnification, however, shall be made
under this section:
A. In respect of any claim, issue or matter as to which that person
shall have been adjudged to be liable to this Foundation in the
performance of that person's duty to this Foundation, unless and only
to the extent that the court in which that action was brought shall
determine upon application that, in view of all the circumstances of
the case, that person is fairly and reasonably entitled to be
indemnified for the expenses which the court shall determine; or
B. Of amounts paid in settling or otherwise disposing of a
threatened or pending action, with or without court approval, if said
settlement or disposition was not first approved by the Board.
SECTION 5. SUCCESSFUL DEFENSE BY AGENT
To the extent that an agent of this Foundation has been successful
on the merits in defense of any proceedings referred to in Section 3 or
Section 4 of this Article, or in defense of any claim, issue, or matter
therein, the agent shall be indemnified against expenses actually and
reasonably incurred by the agent in connection therewith.
SECTION 6. REQUIRED APPROVAL
Except as provided in Section 5 of this Article, any indemnification
under this Article shall be made by this Foundation only if authorized
upon a determination that indemnification of the agent in the specific
case is proper because the agent has met the applicable standard of
conduct set forth in Section 3 or Section 4 of this Article, by:
A. A majority vote of a quorum of the Board who are not parties to the proceeding; or
B. The court in which the proceeding is or was pending, upon
application made by this Foundation or the agent or the attorney or
other person rendering services in connection with the defense, whether
or not such application by the agent, attorney, or other person is
opposed by this Foundation.
SECTION 7. ADVANCE OF EXPENSES
Subject to the provisions of Section 5238 of the California
Corporations Code(as amended from time to time), expenses incurred in
defending any proceeding may be advanced by this Foundation before the
final disposition of the proceeding upon receipt of an undertaking by
or on behalf of the agent to repay the amount of the advance unless it
shall be ultimately determined that the agent is entitled to be
indemnified as authorized in this Article.
SECTION 8. OTHER CONTRACTUAL RIGHTS
Nothing contained in this Article 11 shall affect any right to
indemnification to which persons other than Directors and Officers of
this Foundation or any subsidiary hereof may be entitled by contract or
otherwise.
SECTION 9. LIMITATIONS
No indemnification shall be made hereunder, except as provided in
Section 5 and Section 6(B) of this Article, or as otherwise required by
law, in any circumstance where it appears:
A. That it would be inconsistent with a provision of the Articles of
Incorporation, the Bylaws, or an agreement in effect at the time of the
accrual of the alleged cause of action asserted in the proceeding in
which the expenses were incurred or other amounts were paid which
prohibits or otherwise limits indemnification; or
B. That it would be inconsistent with any condition expressly imposed by a court in approving a settlement.
SECTION 10. INSURANCE
The Foundation may, upon a determination by the Board, purchase and
maintain insurance on behalf of any agent of the Foundation against any
liability which might be asserted against or incurred by the agent in
such capacity, or which might arise out of the agent's status as such,
whether or not this Foundation would have the power to indemnify the
agent against that liability under the provision of this Article.
SECTION 11. FIDUCIARIES OF CORPORATE EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN
This Article does not apply to any proceeding against any trustee,
investment manager, or other fiduciary of an employee benefit plan in
that person's capacity as such, even though that person may also be an
agent of this Foundation as defined in Section 1 of this Article.
Nothing contained in this Article shall limit any right to
indemnification to which such a trustee, investment manager, or other
fiduciary may be entitled by contract or otherwise, which shall be
enforceable to the extent permitted by applicable law.
SECTION 12. AMENDMENT TO CALIFORNIA LAW
In the event that California Law regarding indemnification of
directors, officers, employees and other agents of this Foundation, as
in effect at the time of adoption of these Bylaws, is subsequently
amended to in any way increase the scope of permissible indemnification
beyond that set forth herein, the indemnification authorized by this
Article 11 shall be deemed to be coextensive with the maximum afforded
by the California Law as so amended.
ARTICLE TWELVE
CORPORATE RECORDS, REPORTS AND SEAL
SECTION 1. MAINTENANCE OF CORPORATE RECORDS
The Foundation shall keep at its principal office in the State of California:
A. MINUTES
Minutes of all meetings of the Board of Directors, LSBs, of
committees of the Board and LSBs and, if held, of Members, indicating
the time and place of the holding of such meetings, whether regular or
special, how called, the notice given, and the names of those present
and the proceedings thereof; as well as all waivers of notice and
consents to holding of Board or LSB meetings, notices and statements
regarding closed meetings, approval of board minutes and written
consents to Board action without a meeting. Minutes of closed meetings
must be put under seal.
B. BOOKS AND RECORDS
Adequate and correct books and records of account.
C. MEMBERSHIP RECORDS
A record of its Members indicating their names, addresses, class of
membership, the radio station s/he is affiliated with and the
termination date of any membership.
D. ARTICLES AND BYLAWS
A copy of the Foundation's Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws, as
amended from time to time, which shall be open to inspection by the
Members of the Foundation at all reasonable times during office hours
or available upon written request.
E. TAX RECORDS
A copy of the Foundation's annual information return on IRS Form
990 for each of the preceding 3 years and a copy of the Foundation's
approved application for recognition of exemption.
SECTION 2. CORPORATE SEAL
The Board may adopt, use, and, at will, alter, a corporate seal.
Such seal shall be kept at the principal office of the Foundation.
Failure to affix the seal to corporate instruments, however, shall not
affect the validity of any such instrument.
SECTION 3. DIRECTORS: INSPECTION RIGHTS
Every Director, or his or her designated agent, shall have the
absolute right at any reasonable time to inspect and copy all of the
Foundation's books, records and documents of every kind and to inspect
the physical properties of the Foundation.
SECTION 4. MEMBERS: INSPECTION RIGHTS
Members of the Foundation shall have the following inspection
rights, but only for a purpose reasonably related to such person's
interests as a Member of the Foundation, and subject to the
Foundation's right to provide a reasonable alternative method for
achieving the Member's articulated purpose:
A. To inspect and copy the record of all Members' names, addresses
and voting rights, at reasonable times, upon five (5) business days'
prior written demand on the Foundation, which demand shall state the
purpose for which the inspection rights are requested. Where the
Foundation reasonably believes that the information will be used for an
improper purpose, or where the Foundation provides a reasonable
alternative to achieve the Member's articulated purpose, the Foundation
may deny the Member access to its membership list and information;
B. To inspect at any reasonable time the books, records, or minutes
of proceedings of the Members or of the Board or committees of the
Board, upon written demand on the Foundation by the Member, for a
purpose reasonably related to such person's interests as a Member,
provided, however, that said Member will not be permitted to review
sealed Minutes from closed meetings; and
C. To inspect and review copies of reports filed by the Foundation
with the Attorney General consistent with Section 6324 of the
California Corporations Code.
SECTION 5. RIGHT TO COPY AND MAKE EXTRACTS
Any inspection under the provisions of this Article may be made in
person or by agent or attorney and the right to inspection includes the
right to copy and make extracts.
SECTION 6. ANNUAL REPORT TO THE BOARD
The Foundation shall cause an annual report to be prepared and
furnished to the Board not later than one hundred and twenty (120) days
after the close of the Foundation's fiscal year and, upon payment of
reasonable copying costs by the Member, to any Member who requests it
in writing, which report shall contain the following information in
appropriate detail:
A. The assets and liabilities, including the trust funds, of the Foundation as of the end of the fiscal year;
B. The principal changes in assets and liabilities, including trust funds, during the fiscal year;
C. The revenue or receipts of the Foundation, both unrestricted and restricted to particular purposes, for the fiscal year; and
D. The expenses or disbursements of the Foundation, for both general and restricted purposes, during the fiscal year.
The annual report shall be accompanied by any report thereon of
independent accountants, or, if there is no such report, the
certificate of an authorized officer of the Foundation that such
statement(s) were prepared without audit from the books and records of
the Foundation.
SECTION 7. ANNUAL STATEMENT OF SPECIFIC TRANSACTIONS
The Foundation must furnish a statement to its Members and Directors
by posting it at each of its radio stations and posting it on the
Foundation's website and, at the Foundation's discretion, by otherwise
delivering it to them within one hundred and twenty (120) days after
the close of its fiscal year. Said statement shall briefly describe:
A. The amount and circumstances of any indemnifications or advances
aggregating more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) paid during the
fiscal year to any Officer, Delegate or Director of the Foundation
pursuant to Section 5238 of the California Corporations Code, provided
that no such report need be made if the indemnification or advance was
approved in advance by the Members;
B. Any transaction involving fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) to
which the Foundation was a party during the previous fiscal year in
which a Director, Delegate or Officer had a direct or indirect material
financial interest or which was one of a number of transactions
involving the same Director, Delegate or Officer and which transactions
in the aggregate involved more than $50,000. Said statement shall
briefly indicate the names of the interested persons involved in such
transactions, stating each person's relationship to the Foundation, the
nature of such person's interest in the transaction and, where
practical, the amount of such interest, provided that in the case of a
transaction with a partnership of which such person is a partner, only
the interest of the partnership need be stated.
SECTION 8. ANNUAL REPORTS TO THIRD PARTIES
A. The Foundation shall file with the California Secretary of State
a biannual statement containing the names and addresses of its
Executive Director, Secretary and Chief Financial Officer, the street
address of its principal California office, and a designation of an
agent for the service of process, which statement must be provided on
the appropriate Secretary of State form.
B. In addition to providing a copy of the Foundation's annual report
set forth in Section 6 of this Article and the annual statement in
Section 7 of this Article, the Foundation shall also annually file with
the Attorney General a Registration/Renewal Fee Report within four
months and 15 days after the end of the Foundation's fiscal year.
SECTION 9. EXEMPT ACTIVITIES
Notwithstanding any other provision of these Bylaws, no Member,
trustee, Officer, employee, Director, Delegate or representative of
this Foundation shall take any action or carry on any activity by or on
behalf of the Foundation not permitted to be taken or carried on by an
organization exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue
Code and its regulations as they now exist or as they may hereafter be
amended, or by an organization, contributions to which are deductible
under section 170(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code and regulations as
they now exist or as they may hereafter be amended.
ARTICLE THIRTEEN
CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
SECTION 1. DEFINITIONS
A "CONFLICT OF INTEREST" is any circumstance described in Section 2
of this Article, or such substantially similar circumstances.
An "INTERESTED PERSON" is any person serving as a Director, Officer,
Delegate, associate station representative, employee, or member of a
committee of the Board or LSB.
A "FAMILY MEMBER" is a brother, sister, ancestor, descendant,
spouse, domestic partner, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, son-in-law,
daughter-in-law, mother-in-law, or father-in-law of an Interested
Person.
A "FINANCIAL INTEREST" in an entity is a direct or indirect
financial interest, which, in view of all the circumstances, would, or
reasonably could, affect an Interested Person's or Family Member's
judgment with respect to transactions to which the entity is a party.
SECTION 2. CONFLICT OF INTEREST DEFINED
A Conflict of Interest exists where the financial or business
interests of an Interested Person are or may be inconsistent with the
best interests of the Foundation. The following circumstances shall be
deemed to create a Conflict of Interest:
A. A contract or transaction between the Foundation (or a Foundation radio station) and an Interested Person or Family Member.
B. A contract or transaction between the Foundation (or a Foundation
radio station) and an entity in which an Interested Person or Family
Member has a Financial Interest or with which such Person has a
relationship, for example as a director, officer, trustee, partner, or
guardian.
C. A compensation arrangement between any entity or individual with
which the Foundation (or a Foundation radio station) has a contract or
transaction and an Interested Person or Family Member.
D. A compensation arrangement between any entity or individual with
which the Foundation (or a Foundation radio station) has a contract or
transaction and an entity in which an Interested Party or Family Member
has a Financial Interest.
E. An Interested Person competing with the Foundation in the
rendering of services or in any other contract or transaction with a
third party.
F. An Interested Person accepting gifts, entertainment or other
favors from any individual or entity that: (1) does or is seeking to do
business with, or is a competitor of, the Foundation (or a Foundation
radio station); or (2) has received, is receiving or is seeking to
receive a loan or grant, or to secure other financial commitments from
the Foundation (or a Foundation radio station), in both cases under
circumstances where it might be reasonably inferred that such action
was intended to influence or would likely influence the Interested
Person in the performance of his or her duties.
SECTION 3. DISCLOSURES, FINDINGS AND APPROVAL PROCEDURES
An Interested Person must disclose in writing all material facts
related to an actual or potential Conflict of Interest to the Board
and/or the members of a committee considering a proposed contract or
transaction to which the Conflict of Interest relates. If a contract or
transaction is not being considered by the Board or a committee, the
required disclosure must be made to the Board Chairperson. Until a
Conflict of Interest has been voted upon by the Board in accordance
with this Section 3, an Interested Person shall refrain from any action
that might affect the Foundation's participation, or that of any of its
radio stations, in any contract or transaction affected by a Conflict
of Interest.
After disclosure of the Conflict of Interest and all material facts,
and after the Interested Person responds to any questions that the
Board may have regarding the Conflict of Interest, the Board shall
discuss the matter, outside the Interested Party's presence, and vote
on the contract or transaction in question. If the Interested Person is
a Director, s/he may not vote on the contract or transaction to which
the Conflict of Interest relates, but may be counted in determining the
presence of a quorum for purposes of the vote.
The Board shall determine by a majority vote of the disinterested
Directors whether a Conflict of Interest exists and, if so, whether it
is in the Foundation's (or a Foundation radio station's) best interest
to nonetheless enter into the contract or transaction. If appropriate,
the Board Chairperson may appoint a disinterested person or committee
to investigate alternatives to a proposed contract or transaction. In
order to approve the contract or transaction, the Board must in good
faith after reasonable investigation make the following determinations:
(A)that the contract or transaction is for the benefit of the Foundation; and
(B)that the contract or transaction is fair and reasonable; and
(C) that the Foundation is not likely to obtain a more advantageous arrangement with reasonable effort under the circumstances.
The minutes of the Board or committee meeting shall reflect: (D)
that the Conflict of Interest was disclosed; (E) the Board or
committee's decision regarding the Conflict of Interest, including a
statement that the Interested Person was not present during the final
discussion and vote; and (F) that the Interested Person abstained from
voting.
SECTION 4. VIOLATIONS OF THE CONFLICTS OF INTEREST PROCEDURES
If the Board or committee believes that an Interested Person has
failed to disclose an actual or potential Conflict of Interest, it
shall inform the Interested Person of the basis for such belief and
afford the Interested Person an opportunity to explain the alleged
failure to disclose.
If, after hearing the response of the Interested Person and making
any further investigation, the Board reasonably believes is warranted
in the circumstances, the Board determines that the Interested Person
has in fact failed to disclose an actual or potential Conflict of
Interest, it shall take that action it, in its sole discretion,
believes to be appropriate in light of the circumstances.
ARTICLE FOURTEEN
VOLUNTARY DISSOLUTION
AND PROHIBITION AGAINST
SHARING FOUNDATION PROFITS AND ASSETS
SECTION 1. METHOD
In addition to the provisions of California Corporations Code
§6610(b), the Members of the Foundation may elect to voluntarily
dissolve the Foundation in the following manner:
A. A petition for the voluntary dissolution must be signed by ten
(10%) percent of the Members of the Foundation and submitted to the
Foundation's Secretary. Within 45 days of the Board's receipt of said
petition, a vote of the Board on said petition for voluntary
dissolution shall be held.
B. If a majority of all Directors of the Board vote in favor of
voluntary dissolution, then the matter shall be submitted to a vote of
the Members (within 45 days after the Board's vote) via a ballot
prepared and distributed in accordance with the terms of Sections 8(A),
8(B), 8(C) and 8(D) of Article of these Bylaws. An action for voluntary
dissolution shall be deemed approved upon the majority vote of the
Members voting, provided that a quorum is met.
C. If the Directors of the Board vote against, or fail to approve,
voluntary dissolution, then the matter shall be submitted to a vote of
the Members (within 45 days after the Board's vote) via a ballot
prepared and distributed in accordance with the terms of Sections 8(A),
8(B), 8(C) and 8(D) of Article of these Bylaws. An action for
dissolution under this Section 1(C) shall be deemed approved upon the
majority vote of all the Members.
D. The Attorney General must be notified in the event of the commencement of a voluntary dissolution of the Foundation.
SECTION 2. DISPOSITION OF ASSETS
Upon the dissolution of the Foundation, the Board shall, after
paying or making provisions for payment of all known debts and
liabilities of the Foundation, dispose of the assets in a manner
consistent with the Foundation's mission as set forth in its Articles
of Incorporation and/or to such organization(s) as shall at the time
appear devoted to the same mission as this Foundation, subject to the
approval of the Attorney General.
SECTION 3. NO BENEFIT SHALL INURE TO ANY MEMBER, DIRECTOR, OFFICER OR EMPLOYEE OF THE CORPORATION
No Member, Director, Delegate, Officer, employee, or other person
connected with the Foundation, or any private individual, shall receive
at any time any of the net earnings or pecuniary profit from the
operations of the Foundation, provided, however, that this provision
shall not prevent payment to any such person of reasonable compensation
for services performed for the Foundation in effecting any of its
public or charitable purposes, provided that such compensation is
otherwise permitted by these Bylaws or is fixed by resolution or
approval of the Board. No person(s) shall be entitled to share in the
distribution of, and shall not receive, any of the corporate assets on
dissolution of the Foundation. All Members of the Foundation shall be
deemed to have expressly consented and agreed that on such dissolution
or winding up of the affairs of the Foundation, whether voluntarily or
involuntarily, the assets of the Foundation, after all debts have been
satisfied, shall be distributed as required by the Articles of
Incorporation, Bylaws and/or California law and not otherwise.
ARTICLE FIFTEENARTICLE FIFTEEN
VOTING METHODS
SECTION 1. VOTING METHODSSECTION 1. VOTING METHODS
Unless otherwise expressly provided in these Bylaws, all elections
by the Members, Delegates, Directors, and LSBs, shall be conducted by
the Single Transferable Voting method where there is more than one seat
or position to be filled, and by the Instant Runoff Voting Method where
there is only one seat or position to be filled.
A. SINGLE TRANSFERABLE VOTING METHOD.
The following manner of single transferable voting shall be used in order to achieve proportional representation:
1. Each ballot shall list all candidates for the position and give
each voter the option of voting for one candidate or of ranking the
candidates in order of preference.
2. Vote counting shall start with a tabulation of each voter's first, or only, choice vote.
3. A threshold number of votes a candidate needs to be elected
shall then be established ("Threshold"). The Threshold shall be that
number which is equal to the total number of valid ballots cast divided
by the sum of one plus the number of seats to be filled, plus one
{[total number of valid ballots cast/(1 + the number of seats to be
filled)] +1}.
4. Those candidates receiving the Threshold number of votes, or
more, shall be declared elected. Votes acquired by a candidate in
excess of the Threshold shall be deemed that candidate's "surplus."
5. If no candidates, or an insufficient number of candidates,
obtain a winning number of votes to be elected, then in order to fill
those remaining seat(s), votes shall be transferred as follows:
a. Transfer of surplus votes shall commence with the candidate
having the largest surplus. A portion of that candidate's surplus votes
shall be transferred to the next candidate choice of those voters who
elected him/her. The portion of the surplus distributable to the next
candidate choice shall be that amount determined by dividing the
transferring candidate's surplus amount by the total number of votes
received by that candidate. (For example, if the candidate received
1000 votes and the threshold was 900 votes, then s/he had a surplus of
100 votes. Therefore 0.10 (100/1000) of a vote from each of those 1,000
ballots is transferred to those voters' next choices.) Votes may not be
transferred to candidates who have already been elected (nor may votes
be transferred to candidates who have been eliminated as set forth
below.) When a voter's next choice is not eligible for receipt of
transferred votes, that portion of a vote shall be transferred to that
voter's next indicated choice unless all choices on that ballot have
been exhausted. If all choices on that ballot have been exhausted, that
portion of a vote shall be transferred to a special "exhausted vote"
tally. After the transfer of all that candidate's surplus votes, a
tally shall be taken.
b. If said tally does not result in a sufficient number of winning
candidates to fill the remaining seats and if the previous transfer of
surplus votes creates a new surplus, then surplus votes of the
candidate then having the largest surplus shall be transferred to those
voters' next choices, consistent with subsection (a) above, until all
said candidate's surplus has been transferred or all declared choices
on a ballot have been exhausted.
c. After each distribution of a candidate's surplus, a tally shall
be taken to determine the winning candidate(s). This process of
distributing surplus votes shall continue until all open seats are
filled, until all surplus votes have been transferred or until ballot
choices have been exhausted.
d. If, after all surplus votes have been distributed in the manner
described above, there remain unfilled seats, the candidate with the
least number of votes shall be eliminated and his/her votes at their
current value shall be transferred to those voters' next choice
candidates who have not been previously declared elected or eliminated.
The order in which candidates are eliminated shall be recorded as their
ranking (highest rank given to the last eliminated, lowest rank given
to the first eliminated). If there is a tie as to the candidate with
the least number of votes, the candidate to be first eliminated shall
be decided by drawing straws. Once all of that eliminated candidate's
votes have been transferred, a new tally shall be taken to determine
new winning candidates, if any. If there are no new winning candidates,
then the candidate remaining with the least number of votes shall be
eliminated and his/her votes at their current value shall be
transferred, as above, until there are one or more new winning
candidates. The new winning candidate(s) surplus votes shall then be
distributed as in (a) through (c) above.
e. If, at any point when eliminating candidates under point (d)
above, it can be determined that the elimination of more than one
candidate is mathematically inevitable, then all such candidates may be
eliminated at the same time. Elimination of multiple candidates is
mathematically inevitable when:
i. The number of unelected candidates remaining after the
elimination is equal to or greater than the number of unfilled seats;
and
ii. The total of all votes allocated to the candidates in question
is less than the total number of votes of the candidate with the next
higher vote count.
f.This process of distributing surplus votes of winning candidates
and eliminating losing candidates, as described in (b) through (e)
above, shall be repeated until all seats have been filled, or until the
number of unfilled seats equals the number of continuing candidates. In
the latter case, all remaining continuing candidates are declared
elected.
B. INSTANT RUNOFF VOTING METHOD
For purposes of these Bylaws, the method for Instant Runoff Voting shall be as follows:
1.Each voter shall have one vote.
2.Each ballot shall list all candidates for the position, on which
ballot the voter shall rank the candidates in order of preference (with
1 representing the voter's first choice, 2 representing the voter's
second choice and so on).
3.Vote counting shall start with a tabulation of all first choices
among the voters. If any candidate receives a majority of the first
choice votes, that candidate is declared the winner.
4.If no candidate achieves a majority, the "last place candidate"
(defined as the candidate receiving the least number of first choice
votes) is eliminated. In the case of a tie for last place, the first to
be eliminated will be decided by lot. The votes of the voters who
ranked the eliminated candidate as their first choice are redistributed
to said voters' next-choice candidate(s) as indicated on their ballots.
Any votes where there is no second choice indicated on the ballot go to
an "exhausted vote" tally.
5.After this redistribution, the votes are tabulated again. If no
candidate receives a majority of the non-exhausted votes, then the last
place candidate after this vote is eliminated and the votes of those
voters who ranked him/her as their highest choice among continuing
candidates are redistributed to each of said voter's next-choice
candidate, or to the "exhausted vote" tally if no further choices
remain on the ballot. Another tabulation is then done.
6.This process of successively eliminating last place candidates,
redistributing votes and tabulating continues until only one candidate
remains or a candidate gains more than 50% of the non-exhausted votes.
ARTICLE SIXTEEN
PARLIAMENTARY PROCEDURE
The rules contained in Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised, as amended from time to time, shall govern
the Foundation in all cases where they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these Bylaws or
any special rules of order which the Foundation may adopt.
ARTICLE SEVENTEEN
AMENDMENT OF ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION AND BYLAWS
SECTION 1. AMENDMENT OF BYLAWS
A. PROPOSING AMENDMENTS
Amendments may be proposed by:
(1) six (6) Directors;
(2) a majority vote of the Delegates of each of two radio stations;; or
(3) a petition signed by at least one percent (1%) of all Members,
which petition to be considered "proposed" must be delivered to the
Foundation's Secretary.
B. VOTING AND APPROVAL
(1) Unless the Board by a 2/3 vote decides otherwise, there shall
be a maximum of one ballot per 12-month period related to the amendment
of the Foundation's Bylaws, which annual voting period shall be
determined by the Board. All properly proposed Bylaw amendments shall
be held until that date which is 60 days before the earliest of the
voting dates of the Board and of the Delegates, as determined by the
Board (the "Notice Date"). On the Notice Date, the proposed
amendment(s) to the Bylaws shall be posted on the Foundation's website
and the Foundation's radio stations shall broadcast an announcement
twice a day for a period of 60 days (the "Notice Period") regarding the
existence of the proposed amendment(s) on the Foundation's website for
review and the upcoming vote by the Board and Delegates regarding said
amendment(s). The results of said voting by the Board and the Delegates
on the proposed amendment(s) shall be reported within 15 days of the
Board and Delegates meetings to vote on these amendments.
(2) In order for new Bylaws to be adopted, or these Bylaws amended or repealed and subject to Section 1(B)(3) below:
(i)except as provided in Section 1(B)(3) below, the proposed
amendment(s) must be approved by the majority of all Directors on the
Board and by the majority vote of all the Delegates of at least three
of the Foundation radio stations.. The Delegates shall vote on the
proposed amendment(s) within the same calendar month as the Board; or
(ii)in the case of amendment(s) proposed by Member petition
pursuant to Section 1(A)(3) above, said proposed amendment(s) must
first be presented to the Board and the Delegates for approval as set
forth in Section 1(B)(2)(i) above. If any proposed amendment is
approved by the Board and the Delegates, then, unless membership
approval is required under Section 1(B)(3) below, the amendment shall
be adopted. If any proposed amendment is not approved by the Board and
Delegates, then it shall be submitted to the Members for approval and
shall be adopted if approved by the Members as set forth in Section
1(B)(4) below.
(3) The Members shall vote on any proposed amendment approved by the
Board and the Delegates , even if said amendment was not proposed by
Member petition, if said amendment would do any of the following:
(i)increase or extend the terms of Directors or Delegates;
(ii)increase the quorum for Members' meetings or Members' actions;
(iii)change proxy rights;
(iv)authorize cumulative voting or a change in the voting method or manner of counting ballots; or
(v)materially and adversely affect a Member's rights as to voting or transfer.
In the event that a proposed amendment would do any one of the
above-mentioned things, it shall not be adopted unless also approved by
the Members; provided however, that such adoption, amendment or repeal
also requires approval by the members of a class if such action would
materially and adversely affect the rights of that class as to voting
or transfer in a manner different than such action affects another
class.
(4) If a vote of the Members is required hereunder for the approval
of any proposed amendment, then no later than 60 days after the vote of
the Board and Delegates above, written ballots shall be distributed, or
otherwise made available to the Members, pursuant to the provisions of
Sections 8(A), 8(B), 8(C) and 8(D) of Article 3 of these Bylaws, to
vote on the proposed amendments. To be approved, a proposed amendment
must receive the approval of the Members by a majority vote, provided
that a quorum must be established by written ballot. If the proposed
amendment would impact one class of Members differently from another
class, the Members shall vote in classes and the majority vote of the
Members of each class shall be required to approve the amendment,
provided that a quorum of each class must be established by written
ballot. The results of said amendment ballot shall be reported within
30 days of the date the ballots must be returned to be counted and
shall be posted on the Foundation's website.
(5) Notwithstanding any of the provisions of this Section 1(B),
these bylaws may not be amended or repealed if said amendment or repeal
would: (i) violate any state or federal statute or regulation; (ii)
conflict with the Foundation's Articles of Incorporation; or (iii)
create conflicting provisions in these bylaws.
SECTION 2. AMENDMENT OF ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION
A. PROPOSING AMENDMENTS.
Amendments to the Articles of Incorporation may be proposed by:
(1) 6 Directors;
(2) a majority vote of the Delegates of each of two Foundation radio stations; or
(3) by a petition signed by 2% of all Members, which petition to be
considered "proposed" shall be delivered to the Foundation's Secretary.
B. APPROVING AMENDMENTS.
(1) The Board and Delegates shall vote on all amendments to the
Articles proposed pursuant to Section 2(A) of this Article, above,
within 90 days from that date on which the Foundation's Secretary
receives the Members' petition or receives notice of the Board proposal
or the Delegates' vote proposing said amendment.
(2) In order for an amendment to the Articles proposed pursuant to
Section 2(A) of this Article, above, to be approved or adopted, and
subject to Section 2(B)(5) of this Article, below:
(i) the proposed amendment(s) must be approved by: (a) the 2/3 vote
of all Directors; (b) the 2/3 vote of all the Delegates of at least
three the Foundation radio stations (the Delegates shall vote on the
proposed amendment(s) within the same calendar month as the Board); and
(c) the 2/3 vote of the Members, provided a quorum of the Members has
been established by written ballot; OR
(ii) in the case of an amendment(s) proposed by Member petition
pursuant to Section 2(A)(3) above, said amendment may be adopted in the
absence of an affirmative vote by the Board and/or the Delegates if
said proposed amendment(s) is approved by a 3/4 vote of the Members,
provided a quorum of the Members has been established by written ballot.
(3) Notice of a proposed amendment to the Articles shall be shall
be posted on the Foundation's website on that date which is 60 days
before the earliest of the voting dates of the Board and of the
Delegates, as determined by the Board (the "Notice Date") and the
Foundation's radio stations shall broadcast an announcement twice a day
for a period of 60 days (the "Notice Period") regarding the existence
of the proposed amendment(s) on the Foundation's website for review and
the upcoming vote by the Board and Delegates regarding said
amendment(s). The results of said voting by the Board and the Delegates
on the proposed amendment(s) shall be reported within 15 days of the
Board and Delegates meetings to vote on these amendments.
(4) No later than 30 days after the vote of the Board and the
Delegates, written ballots shall be distributed, or otherwise made
available to the Members, pursuant to the provisions of Sections 8(A),
8(B), 8(C) and 8(D) of Article 3 of these Bylaws, to vote on the
proposed amendment(s). The results of said amendment ballot shall be
reported within 30 days of the date the ballots must be returned to be
counted and shall be posted on the Foundation's website.
(5) Notwithstanding any of the provisions of this Section 2(B),
these Articles may not be amended or repealed if said amendment would
(i) violate any state or federal statute or regulation; or (ii)
conflict with other provisions of the Articles.
ARTICLE EIGHTEEN
SAVINGS CLAUSE
In
the event that any provision of these Bylaws is or becomes illegal,
unenforceable or invalid in whole or in part for any reason, the Board
of Directors shall have the right to amend said provision, pursuant to
Sections 1(A) and 2(B) of Article 17 of these Bylaws and in a timeframe
shorter than that set forth in Article 17, to bring said provision in
conformity with applicable law.
CERTIFICATION OF BYLAWS
THIS IS TO CERTIFY, that I am the duly elected, qualified and acting
Secretary of PACIFICA FOUNDATION, a California non-profit corporation,
and that the foregoing First Amended and Restated Bylaws were approved
for the Foundation by 2/3rds of the Interim Board of Directors present
and voting at a Directors' meeting on July ___, 2003. I also certify
that, consistent with the requirements of that certain settlement
agreement dated December 12, 2001 of the consolidated lawsuits of
Adelson et al v. Pacifica Foundation et al, The People of the State of
California, ex rel Spooner et al v. Pacifica Foundation et al, and
Robinson et al v. Pacifica Foundation et al., Alameda County Superior
Court Case No. 814461-0, certain portions of these Bylaws were approved
by majority vote of at least three of the Foundation's radio station
Local Advisory Boards ("LABs")as follows: KPFA LAB approved/disapproved
on July ____, 2003; KPFK LAB approved/disapproved on July ____, 2003;
WBAI LAB approved/disapproved on July ____, 2003; KPFT LAB
approved/disapproved on July ____, 2003 and WPFW LAB
approved/disapproved on July ____, 2003.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereto set my hand this ____TH day of_____, 2003.
_______________________________
Carol Spooner, Secretary
|