ARTICLE VII. CONGRESS OF DELEGATES
Section 1. Voting Body of The Arc.
The Congress of Delegates shall constitute the voting body of The Arc.
Section 2. Composition.
The Congress of Delegates shall be composed of members who have been appointed as delegates by local, state and international chapters, each member of the board of directors of The Arc and each past president of The Arc.
Section 3. Staff
Any person who is a paid employee of The Arc, any state, local or international chapter of The Arc, any associated organization or any subsidiary of The Arc may not be a voting member of the Congress of Delegates with the exception of the National Conference of Executives of The Arc’s (NCE) two representatives on the board of directors of The Arc.
Section 4. Powers, Duties and Responsibilities.
The Congress of Delegates shall have the following powers, duties, and responsibilities:
A. To elect the officers of The Arc.
B. To elect members of the board of directors of The Arc.
C. To elect directors-at-large to the board of directors of The Arc, nominated by the president in those years in which there are no elections for officers, directors, or board development committee members.
D. To elect members of the Board Development Committee of The Arc.
E. To act on any other business that may appropriately come before the Congress of Delegates including core values, position statements, policies, substantive resolutions and agenda of The Arc.
F. To establish membership dues with the exception of national at-large members, or any other categories of members allowed by Article III, Section 1 of these bylaws, and chapter affiliation fees (except the cost-of-living increase referenced in Article VI, Section 3).
G. To adopt changes in the core values, position statements, affiliation agreement, resolutions or bylaws of The Arc
ARTICLE VIII. VOTES
Section 1. Allotment of Votes.
A. Each state chapter shall be allotted for its representative delegation to the Congress of Delegates as follows:
(1) Ten (10) votes.
(2) One (1) additional vote for each $1,000.00 of affiliation fees paid by the affiliated state chapter to The Arc.
(3) One (1) additional vote for each associated organization from the state.
B. Each local and international chapter shall be allotted for its representative delegation to the Congress of Delegates as follows:
(1) One (1) vote.
(2) One (1) additional vote for each one hundred (100) members with a maximum allotment of (10) additional votes.
(3) One (1) vote for each $1,000.00 of affiliation fees paid by the affiliated local or international chapter to The Arc.
C. Each voting member of The Arc’s board of directors will be allotted one (1) vote in the Congress of Delegates.
D. Each past president of The Arc shall be allotted one (1) vote in the Congress of Delegates.
For purposes of vote computation under subsection B.2. above, a family membership is counted as two (2) members.
For purposes of vote allotment, memberships shall be determined using the chapter’s membership figures on record with The Arc as of the preceding December 31 and all chapter affiliation fees assessed for and paid through June 30 of the year of the meeting.
Section 2. Loss of Voting Rights.
A state, local or international chapter that has had some or all of its voting privileges suspended as part of a disciplinary proceeding against the chapter or for nonpayment or delinquent payment under Article VI, Section 5 shall forfeit its allotted votes in accordance with the disciplinary action or with the board of directors’ policy for nonpayment or delinquent payment.
Section 3. Notification of Allotted and Eligible Votes.
The secretary of The Arc shall notify each chapter of the number of its allotted votes under Section 1 above and the number of its votes eligible to be cast after taking into account any loss of votes for delinquent payment of affiliation fees, or other causes, at least sixty (60) days before the date of the meeting of the Congress of Delegates.
Section 4. Allocation of Votes to Delegates by Chapters.
A state, local or international chapter that wants to divide its eligible votes among more than one delegate may do so. However, no delegate may hold a fraction of a vote.
Section 5. Methods of Conducting Business.
Upon prior approval by the Congress of Delegates, the Congress of Delegates may conduct business by any means authorized by statute of the jurisdiction in which The Arc is legally organized.