| 6.01. |
ELIGIBILITY |
|
Membership in the Centre shall be open to all persons who are interested in astronomy, as provided by the Letters Patent of the Society. |
| |
| 6.02 |
CLASSES OF MEMBERS |
|
(1) |
There shall be four classes of membership in the Centre: ordinary, youth, life, and associate. Every member of the Centre shall be elected to membership under Article 6.03. |
|
(2) |
An ordinary member of the Centre is a member of the Centre who has paid the ordinary membership fee under Article 6.05(1). |
|
(3) |
A youth member of the Centre is a member of the Centre who has paid the youth membership fee under Article 6.05(1) and who is less than twenty-one years of age at the beginning of the year for which such payment is made. |
|
(4) |
A life member of the Centre is a member of the Centre who has been elected either directly as a life member or previously as an ordinary, youth, or senior member, and has paid the life membership fee under Article 6.05(1), or a member of the Centre upon whom the National Council has conferred life membership in recognition of specified meritorious service to the Society or to a Centre. A life member shall not pay any annual membership fee other than any applicable surcharge established under Article 6.06. |
|
(5) |
An associate member of the Centre is a member of the same family as an ordinary, youth, or life member of the Centre, or an ordinary, youth, or life member of another Centre who has been elected to associate membership in the Centre by special resolution of the Centre Council, and who has paid the associate membership fee referred to in Article 6.05(2). |
| |
| 6.03 |
ELECTION OF MEMBERS |
|
(1) |
A person who has submitted an application and the fee under Article 6.05(1) may be elected as a member of a Centre by a special resolution of the Council of the Centre. |
|
(2) |
Any person whose nomination for membership is defeated shall be entitled to immediate refund of all fees submitted with his or her application. |
| |
| 6.04 |
RELATIONSHIP OF CENTRE MEMBERS AND THE SOCIETY |
|
Every ordinary, youth, and life member of the Centre is also a member of the Society. A person who for any reason ceases to be a member of the Society thereupon ceases to be a member of the Centre. An associate member of the Centre is not a member of the Society, except through membership in another Centre. |
| |
| 6.05 |
MEMBERSHIP FEES |
|
(1) |
The annual membership fees for ordinary and youth members and the life membership fee shall be determined from time to time by ordinary resolution of the Society. |
|
(2) |
The annual membership fees for associate members shall be determined from time to time by special resolution of the Centre Council. |
|
(3) |
Annual membership fees, Centre surcharges if any, and life membership fees, for members attached to the Centre, shall be paid to the Treasurer of the Society. Associate membership fees, if any, shall be paid to the Treasurer of the Centre. |
| |
| 6.06 |
CENTRE SURCHARGES AND ENTITLEMENT OF MEMBERS TO CENTRE RIGHTS AND SERVICES |
|
(1) |
Subject to Article 6.06(2), the Centre may by special resolution establish one or more surcharges applicable to the members of the Centre or to any class thereof, in respect of any Centre right or service. |
|
(2) |
Subject to Article 6.06(3), every voting member is entitled to exercise the following rights: |
|
|
(a) |
to attend and to vote at all Centre meetings; |
|
|
(b) |
to attend all meetings of the Council, unless, in exceptional circumstances, the Council declares, by special resolution of Council, a meeting or a part of a meeting to be closed to the membership; |
|
|
(c) |
where permitted by applicable legislation, and where the member is at least 18 years of age, to stand for election as an officer or councillor of the Centre; |
|
|
(d) |
where he or she is twenty-one years of age or more, to stand for election as a National Council Representative under Articles 8.03 and 8.04; and |
|
|
(e) |
inspect the Books and Records of the Centre. A time and place for such inspection shall be mutually agreeable to the requestor and the person in charge of the Books and Records. |
|
|
If the Centre imposes any surcharge upon its members before allowing them to exercise such rights, then this surcharge shall be designated a "basic surcharge", and this basic surcharge must be set in an amount no higher than is necessary to recover the direct costs of providing such rights, including the cost, if any, of meeting facilities for meetings of the Centre and the Council. Additional surcharges may be required for additional Centre rights and services, but entitlement to the above specified Centre rights shall not be conditional upon payment of such additional surcharges. |
|
(3) |
Associate members of the Centre shall be entitled to exercise such rights as are determined from time to time by ordinary resolution of the Council. |
| |
| 6.07 |
DURATION OF MEMBERSHIP |
|
(1) |
A life member shall be a member for life. Any other person shall be a member for twelve months after becoming a member, and thereafter for successive twelve-month periods as long as that person renews his or her membership in accordance with this article 6.07. A person may pay the membership fee for any multiple of twelve months, to a maximum of thirty-six months, in which case the duration of his or her membership is extended accordingly. A person may not pay the youth membership fee for any period that extends more than twelve months beyond the time when the member becomes twenty-one years of age. |
|
(2) |
Renewal fees for existing members are due and payable before expiry of the person's membership, in default of which (subject to Article 6.07(3)) the person ceases to be a member of the Society and of the Centre. |
|
(3) |
Notwithstanding Article 6.07(2), a person who submits a membership fee within four months after the expiry of his or her membership shall be considered to have renewed his or her membership for a twelve-month period (or multiple thereof, if applicable) as of the previous expiry of membership, with no interruption in membership. If a person submits a membership fee later than four months after expiry of a previous membership, then such person shall be considered a new member, with a break in continuity of membership. |
| |
| 6.08 |
DURATION OF ENTITLEMENT TO CENTRE RIGHTS AND SERVICES |
|
(1) |
A member who is entitled to the specified Centre rights under Article 6.06(2) is so entitled during the period provided under Article 6.07(1). If the Centre does not have a basic surcharge, a life member attached to the Centre is entitled to the specified Centre rights under Article 6.06(2) as long as he or she remains attached to the Centre. If the Centre has a basic surcharge, a life member attached to the Centre is entitled to the specified Centre rights under Article 6.06(2) upon payment of this annual basic surcharge. |
|
(2) |
Where a person fails to renew his or her membership by paying the required renewal fee before expiry of the person's membership and thereby ceases to be a member of the Society, the person's entitlement to all rights and services of the Centre specified in Article 6.06(2), is suspended. Further, if such a person is a member of the National Council, the holder of any office or position within the Society, a member of the Council of the Centre, or the holder of any office or position within the Centre, then that person is suspended from such a position. If the person subsequently renews his or her membership within the four-month period referred to in Article 6.07(3), then |
|
|
(i) |
the suspension of the person's entitlement to rights and services shall be removed, |
|
|
(ii) |
that person's suspension from all Society and Centre positions shall be removed, and |
|
|
(iii) |
the person shall be entitled to receive all back issues of all Centre publications that the person did not receive during the period of suspension. |
|
|
If the person does not renew his or her membership within the four-month period referred to in Article 6.07(3), then |
|
|
(iv) |
the person's entitlement to all rights and services of the Centre specified in Article 6.06(2), terminates, |
|
|
(v) |
if such a person is a member of the National Council, the holder of any office or position within the Society, a member of the Council of the Centre, or the holder of any office or position within the Centre, then that person is thereupon removed from each such position, and |
|
|
(vi) |
Article 8.21 (Vacancy of an Office) thereupon applies to such person. |
| |
| 6.09 |
TRANSFER OF MEMBERSHIP |
|
A member of another Centre may transfer his or her membership and become attached to the Centre, and an unattached member may become a member of and attached to the Centre, upon application to and acceptance by special resolution of the Council. Such transfer or attachment is effective from the beginning of the month following that in which the transfer or attachment is so accepted. |
| |
| 6.10 |
TERMINATION OF AND EXPULSION FROM MEMBERSHIP |
|
(1) |
A member's membership can be terminated as provided by Article 6.08(2) and by the National By-laws. |
|
(2) |
A member may terminate his or her membership in the Society by sending a notice in writing to that effect to the National Office of the Society and to the Secretary of the Centre, if any, to which he or she is attached. The notice shall take effect on the later of the date of receipt of the notice at the National Office and the date, if any, specified in the notice. |
|
(3) |
Any member of the Centre whose continued membership in the Centre is not in the best interests of the Centre may be expelled from membership in the Centre by special resolution of the Council and of the Centre. A member whose expulsion is proposed has the right to receive notice of the meetings at which such expulsion shall be proposed and of the intention to propose such expulsion, and to make representations at the meetings at which the votes are held. |
|
(4) |
Upon expulsion from membership in the Centre, a member shall be considered an unattached member of the Society. |
|
(5) |
Immediately upon a member being expelled from membership in the Centre, the Secretary of the Centre shall notify the Secretary of the Society of the expulsion and the grounds therefor. |
| |
