Escapees Social Network, Inc. Standing Rules for Chapter 8, Mexican Connection
As adopted at the General Meeting at Victor’s RV Park, San Felipe, B.C., Mexico, March 2, 2023
These Chapter Standing Rules are intended to supplement the Bylaws of the Chapter and if these Standing Rules shall conflict with current Bylaws as amended, the Bylaws shall prevail.
1. Dues
The dues shall be $10.00 per Membership per year to be paid by May 1st of each year. For any new Member who signs up between January and April of the current year, their Membership is in place through April 30th of the following year.
2. Assistant Treasurer or Secretary/Treasurer
At the discretion of the Board, an Assistant Treasurer may be added as a voting Member of the Board by majority vote at a General Membership Meeting. At the discretion of the Board, the offices of Secretary and Treasurer may be combined into one office of the Secretary/Treasurer.
3. Officers and the Board
a. One person may hold two officer positions, but shall only have one vote on the Board.
b. All Chapter 8 Officers/Board Members must be paid Chapter 8 Members throughout their term of office.
c. In case an Officer of the Board is not able to attend a Chapter 8 function, the President can appoint a qualified person (considering the suggestion of that Officer) to perform their duties. This appointment needs to be approved by the majority of the Board Members in person or through email. Only Officers retain voting rights.
d. In the case of the President being unable to complete their term, the Board will appoint a President by majority vote to complete the unexpired term.
4. Review of Chapter Finances
a. A review of the Chapter’s financial records shall be conducted annually. The person or persons conducting the review shall not be an Officer of the Chapter. The review shall take place no later than July 1st annually. The results shall be reported to the Board and published in the next Chapter Newsletter.
b. The Chapter 8 Fiscal Year shall be from May 1st through April 30th.
c. When there is a change of Treasurers, there shall be an internal audit done before the books are turned over. The President and outgoing Treasurer, in consultation, will appoint the auditors. The audit is to be completed no later than July 1st and published in the next Chapter Newsletter.
d. If the Treasurer is not able to connect with two Escapee Members to perform the audit, as described in the Escapees Treasurer Handbook, within a reasonable time, the audit can be done at the annual Escapade by giving the financial information to a representative of the Treasurer who will be attending the Escapade or by mailing information to the Chapter Officers who will then perform the audit.
5. Rally Protocol
a. Mission Statement It is the intent of the Chapter that Rallies will be in Mexico in accordance with the Chapter.
b. The First Vice President shall be the Wagonmaster for the current year’s rally. Subject to the oversight of the Board, the Wagonmaster will be the authority on all decisions regarding the rally, its administration, location(s), charitable actions, rally-connected expenditures, creation of special rally committees, and appointments of chairpersons and committee Members thereto.
c. Within one to three months after the current year’s rally, the President will convene a Board meeting to review and discuss the plans of the Wagonmaster for the next year’s Rally. In addition, no less than thirty (30) days prior to registration for the next Rally, the Board will review the plans and budget of the Wagonmaster for that year’s rally.
6. Rally Financial Coordination
The Wagonmaster and Treasurer shall have a close working relationship in all aspects of Rally finances, as well as registration and cancellation lists. The Treasurer shall pay Rally expenses as called for by the Wagonmaster and/or make such appropriate transfer of funds to the Wagonmaster for payment of Rally expenses providing such financial transactions are within any oversight provisions of the Board.
7. Rally Attendance
a. Each RV attending a Rally must include at least one person who is a current Member of both Escapees RV Club, Inc. and Chapter 8 Mexican Connection.
b. A current Escapees RV Club Membership number must be presented at the time of registration for that year’s Rally.
8. Registration and Rally fees
a. Registration and Rally fees are proposed by the Wagonmaster. The Registration and Rally fees shall be established by the Board after the Wagonmaster submits a proposed budget used to calculate these fees.
b. Registration Fees are set by the Treasurer with Board approval. The Registration fees are earned non-refundable administrative fees.
c. Rally Fees are related to the general costs specific to the Rally and are set by the Wagonmaster with Board approval. Rally Fees may be refundable in whole or in part depending upon the decision of the Wagonmaster.
9. Second Vice President
a. The position of the Second Vice President has been created to allow for Rally location planning in the year following the First Vice President’s current year Rally planning.
b. The Second Vice President will present the rally location(s) and a plan(s) to the Membership for a vote at the General Membership Meeting held during the previous year’s rally.
c. It is desirable for the Second Vice President to be Assistant Wagonmaster of the current Rally to allow the future Wagonmaster to gain valuable experience.
10. Reimbursements for Wagonmasters
With the approval of the Board, the First Vice President and Wagonmaster, or his/her designated representative, shall have their fuel costs in Mexico reimbursed for up to two (2) scouting trips to the Rally site(s) up to the amount established annually by the Board and upon presentation of expense documentation (receipts) to the Treasurer. Additional reimbursement for other scouting trip expenses may be authorized by the Board. In addition, in recognition of the costs incurred by the Wagonmaster in scouting trips, the Wagonmaster may register for their Rally at no charge. An Assistant Wagonmaster may register at the cost of one-half of the Rally and registration Fees.
11. Escapade Reimbursements
One Chapter 8 Member shall be designated by the President of the Chapter as Chapter 8’s Row Representative at an Escapees RV Club, Inc. Escapade, therefore, said Row Representative will be reimbursed for their Escapade fees along with up to $300.00 for miscellaneous expenses for decorations, favors, etcetera, to represent Chapter 8 adequately.
12. Charity Committee
The Charity Chairperson is an elected Board Member that appoints a Charity Committee for each Rally. That Committee is responsible for locating, evaluation and distribution of charitable assistance to needy residents of Mexico subject to the Wagonmaster’s rally plan and the following provisions:
a. Charity Committee Purpose:
The Charity Committee coordinates the collection and distribution of donated items or monies and selects charitable work projects for the attending volunteers. The Committee may receive and review charitable assistance requests and will make recommendations for the distribution of monies contributed for the Rally to the assembled Rally attendees at the General Meeting.
b. Monetary Charitable Contributions:
Monetary contributions to Charity shall be disbursed only after an affirmative vote by the majority of the Membership at a meeting in which a quorum is present. If a Rally has multiple locations, multiple such meetings may be called to disperse funds at particular locations.
c. In-Kind Charitable Contributions:
In-kind charitable Contributions (items of personal use) may be distributed at any time during the Rally at the discretion of the Charity Committee without a vote of Chapter Members attending the Rally.
d. Disbursement of Charity Funds Received for a Rally:
Charity Committee Funds received with each Rally’s registration specified for charity and all monies donated during the Rally must be spent on that year’s Rally Charity disbursements. However, an additional amount for Escapees CARE may be proposed by the Charity Committee and approved by an affirmative vote at the General meeting.
e. Composition of Charity Committee:
The Charity Committee shall serve under the Wagonmaster and be composed of the Charity Chairperson, Treasurer or Assistant Treasurer, and three (3) Chapter Members in good standing. Should any Charity Committee Member be unable to attend the current Rally, the Charity Chairperson will appoint a replacement from the attendees at the current Rally.
I. The Charity Committee shall serve under the Wagonmaster and be composed of the Charity Chairperson, Treasurer or Assistant Treasurer, and three (3) Chapter Members in good standing. Should any Charity Committee Member be unable to attend the current Rally, the Charity Chairperson will appoint a replacement from the attendees at the current Rally.
II. All Committee Members shall have one vote each.
III. At least one Committee Member should not have served on the Charity Committee in the past two (2) years.
IV. If possible, one of the Committee Members should be a first-time Rally Attendee.
V. If possible, one of the Committee Members should be a first-time Rally Attendee.
13. Rally Financial Report
At the conclusion of each annual Rally and after the General Membership meeting, the Board will meet to review the Rally and receive a tentative Financial Report from the Treasurer summarizing the income and expenses of the Rally, the Charity monies received and spent, and any other business necessary. The Board will establish a carryover amount of excess Rally funds, if any, for Charity monies available for the next annual Rally. A copy of the Treasurer’s report will be provided to the Historian in digital format (source and PDF).
14. Geographical Area
Resources available to the Charity Committee should be distributed only in the general geographical area(s) in Mexico in which the current year’s Rally is held, enabling Rally attendees, who have made the contributions, to see firsthand the needs of the people we are helping and the impact their generosity has. In addition, Charity Committee Members should investigate all donation requests so that they will have in-depth knowledge of how the resources will be used, thus ensuring their best and highest usage.
15. No Individual Beneficiaries
Chapter 8 Monetary Charity resources should not be given for the sole usage of an individual. Our resources should be allocated to ensure that we can help the greatest number of people. Monetary resources should be distributed only to established organizations that demonstrate a clear need for Chapter 8’s help and have a proven record of using donations efficiently and honestly. The Committee’s goal is to donate resources where they appear to be most needed.
16. E-Board Meetings
The Board may hold periodic e-Board Meetings as necessary. The President will send out an email with a call for an e-Board Meeting, an agenda of items to be discussed, a call for additional motions, a timeline for discussion, and finally a deadline when e-votes must be received by the President, who will then compile the votes and announce the results to the Board. Also, at any time, upon the request of two (2) Board Members, to consider specific issue(s), the President will call an e-Board Meeting. The Secretary will transmit to the Board any minutes, motion(s) voted on, rationale changes, and the results of each vote. Votes may also be taken by telephone. A copy of the minutes of the Board will be provided to the Historian in digital form.
17. Standing Rules Amendments
These Standing Rules may be adopted, amended, revised, or repealed upon an endorsement of the Board and the majority vote of the Chapter 8 Members following the current Bylaws.
Certification
The undersigned, being the appointed Secretary for the Rally, hereby certifies the foregoing Standing Rules of the Chapter were duly adopted by the Board and ratified by the Members of the Chapter at the General Meeting on the date above.
