An ad hoc committee comprised of Drs. Candace Jacobs, Dan Lafontaine and Jim Payne have proposed changes to the AAFHV bylaws to correct inconsistencies, remove outdated/unused portions, and clarify or add sentences/sections to make the bylaws more functional. The changes were approved by the Governing Board at its October 23, 2004 meeting. The next step in adopting these proposed changes is for the membership to vote on them. The proposal will be mailed out in the spring along with the new officer ballot for membership review and voting.
The functional changes are summarized as follows:
Article IV. Membership classes – allows for Active members to include veterinarians interested in food safety, no longer requiring active engagement. Also allows for individuals other than veterinarians who are interested in AAFHV objectives and activities to become Associate members.
Article VI. Election to membership – streamlines nomination and election to membership procedures to follow existing practices.
Article XI. Directors – removes dates of election as these are tracked through routine records/minutes. Changes "military" reference to "uniformed service" here and elsewhere in bylaws.
Article XII. Delegates and representatives – outlines nomination procedure for the AAFHV's representative to the AVMA Committees. Moves this article from near the end of the Bylaws to a more appropriate point in the "flow".
Article XIII. Terms of office – sets the term of office for the AAFHV Delegate to the AVMA House of Delegates (HOD).
Article XV. Executive Council – adds the AVMA HOD Delegate to the Executive Council; removes the Immediate Past President, Vice President and Recording Secretary from the Executive Council. Allows for electronic methods of conducting business.
Article XVI. Meetings – removes specific timeline requirements for announcing special meetings of the general membership or Governing Board. Allows for more flexibility on secondary General and Governing Board meetings, and agendas of meetings.
Article XVII. Quorums – removes requirement for 25 members as a quorum at General meetings. Attendance at General Meetings has been extremely varied and the Board must conduct business at these meetings.
Article XVIII. Committees – removes Resolutions, Forward Planning, Legislation, Budget and Continuing Education committees and provides for ad hoc committee appointments. These committees had not been active for years and their responsibilities are addressed by the Governing Board and other committees.
Article XIX. Nominations and elections – streamlines election procedure and allows for electronic ballots. Allows for flexibility in the methodology of protest resolution but retains Governing Board responsibility in this area.
Article XX. Publication – allows for electronic distribution of the News-O-Gram.
Article XXI. Amendment – changes means of amending bylaws from a simple majority vote of the Active members to an approval step by the Governing Board, then a 60 day comment period by the Active members, followed by passage by affirmative vote of a majority of the Active members voting.
Article XXII. Parliamentary authority – changes from Deschler's Rules of Order to Robert's Rules of Order.
These changes are available on the AAFHV website (accessible through the AVMA website) for review. Language will be mailed out to AAFHV Active members for voting in conjunction with new officer ballots in the spring. If you have any questions/comments about the proposal, please contact Candace Jacobs at 404-676-1462.
View Proposed AAFHV Bylaws Revisions (PDF)
