And
Bylaws
Of the
Colorado Public Trustees’ Association
As Amended, 10/17/2002
We, the duly elected and appointed County Public Trustees of the established counties of the State of Colorado, do hereby establish this Constitution and Bylaws.
Section 1. This organization shall be known as The Colorado Public Trustees’ Association, hereinafter known as the Association.
Section 2. The principal office of the Association shall be located at the office of the current Secretary of the Association.
Section 1. The Association is designed as a means to develop a practical study of problems encountered by County Public Trustees, thereby specifically increasing the efficiency and character of service rendered to the general public and county government. Said objective shall be achieved through the exchange of information and ideas at conferences and any other procedure deemed advisable.
Section 2. Members of the Association shall strive to assist one another in promoting efficient systems and methods thereby promoting the public welfare.
Section 3. The Association shall encourage and promote legislation beneficial to the welfare of the general public and the County Public Trustees.
Section 1. The membership shall be comprised of Voting Members, Associate Members, and Honorary Members.
Section 2. Voting Member: Each county may have one voting member of the association. A voting member shall be an elected or appointed County Public Trustee, or their representative as designated by written proxy.
Upon registration and payment of current dues to the Association, elected or appointed County Public Trustees as voting members shall have full and complete powers and privileges of the floor, acting on committees, and holding and discharging duties as Officers of the Association.
Section 3. Associate Member: An associate member shall be a Deputy Public Trustee, County Treasurer, Deputy County Treasurer, an employee of a County Public Trustee’s Office, or any other organization whose functions are related to the Public Trustee’s Office. Upon registration and payment of current dues with the Association, the Associate member shall be entitled to all privileges of the Association except the right to vote or become an officer of the Association; (however, upon appointment by the president, any Associate Member may serve on any committee as a non-voting advisory member). An Associate Member may attend the Annual Conference and the Annual Seminar at the same cost as a Voting Member.
Section 4. Honorary Member: An Honorary Member shall be a retired Public Trustee and such other persons whom the Association designates as Honorary Members by a vote of the membership-at-large. An Honorary Member may serve on any committee as a non-voting advisory member.
Section 1. The officers of the Association shall be regular voting members of the Association and consist of a President, First Vice President, Second Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer. Such officers shall be elected by the Voting Members at the Annual Conference of the Association. In order to protect the integrity of the Association and receive the benefit of the knowledge and experience of more of our members, the offices of President, First Vice President and Second Vice President shall be elected yearly and shall be alternated between elected and appointed Public Trustees and an officer of this Association shall not serve as an officer of the Colorado County Treasurer’s Association concurrently.
Section 2. There shall be a Board of Directors of the Association and shall consist of the President, First Vice President, Second Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and immediate Past President of the Association, whose duties will be to direct the affairs of the Association as provided by the Constitution and Bylaws. The president will act as Chairperson of the Board, and will preside at all Board meetings. A majority of the Directors shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of any business.
Section 1. Annual dues may be determined by the Board of Directors subject to a vote of the Voting membership at the next general meeting (Annual Conference or Seminar) of the Association.
Section 2. Dues for Appointed Public Trustees shall be $300 per year. Dues for Public Trustees who collect at least $3,000 annually in fees shall be $125 per year. Dues for Public Trustees who collect less than $3,000 annually in fees shall be $50 per year. Dues for Associate members shall be $125 per year.
Section 3. Registration fee for the Annual Conference or Seminar may be determined by the Board of Directors.
Section 4. Disbursements of all Association funds shall be authorized, in both amount and nature, by the President up to the amount of $300. Any amount over $300 shall be authorized by the Board of Directors. Payment of all authorized disbursements shall be made by check only and signed by the Treasurer.
Section 1. Before each Annual Conference, the President shall appoint a nominating committee comprised of a minimum of 3 (three) Voting Members of the Association for the purpose of submitting nominations for all elective offices, and to present the same to the Association membership at a regular session of the Conference, provided, however, that additional nominations for any elective office shall be accepted from the floor of the Conference. The election of officers will be at the last session of such Conference.
Section 2. The newly elected Officers and Board of Directors shall assume office upon installation.
Section 3. The tenure of office of the President shall be limited to a one-year elected term and all elected or appointed officers shall subscribe to the following oath:
“I (NAME) do solemnly swear to uphold and support the Constitution of the United States of America, and the Colorado State Constitution, and subscribe to and be governed by the Constitution and Bylaws of the Colorado Association as an officer or governing board member, and to faithfully perform my duties to the best of my ability. So help me God.”
Section 1. It shall be the duty of the President to preside at all Association Conferences, Seminars and Board of Directors’ meetings, to appoint committees and perform any other acts stipulated in the Constitution and Bylaws. Upon the direction of the Board of Directors, The President shall secure a contract with an attorney licensed to practice law in the State of Colorado for services for the Association. Upon the direction of the Legislative Committee and the Board of Directors, the President shall secure a contract with a lobbyist in the State of Colorado for services for the Association.
Section 2. It shall be the duty of the First Vice President to perform the duties of the President in the event of absence or inability of the President to perform; or in the case of death or removal from office of the President, the First Vice-President shall become the President. The First Vice-President shall be a member of the Legislative Committee.
Section 3. It shall be the duty of the Second Vice President to work with, and assist the President, and to perform such other duties as the Board of Directors may assign. The Second Vice-President shall be a member of the legislative committee.
Section 4. It shall be the duty of the Secretary to keep accurate minutes of all meetings of the Association and all Board of Directors meetings and to provide a copy of the approved minutes to the members; to keep all records, books and documents of the Association in a safe place; keep bylaws current for reference; and turn all records and documents over to their successor at the end of their term.
It shall also be the duty of the secretary to conduct all correspondence as directed by the President, including, but not limited to, correspondence with other Public Trustees and gifts for Public Trustees as needed. The cost of such gifts shall be no greater than $50 or an amount determined by the board of directors. The secretary shall prepare and present resolutions honoring guests that participate in the annual conference or annual seminar.
Section 5. It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to keep accurate records and accounts of all the Association’s funds in an approved bank, including the Association Legal Fund, as may be directed and approved by the Board of Directors, and present a financial summary to the membership at the Annual Conference; after review and approval of the Audit Committee. The Treasurer shall pay all bills authorized by the President and Board of Directors and/or the voting membership present at a Conference or Seminar. The treasurer shall send out notice of membership dues and legal fund dues in the month of December of each year and keep a list of all current members of the Association. It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to have available and provide all records required by the Board of Directors when so requested. The Treasurer shall turn all records and documents over to their successor at the end of their term.
Section 1. There shall be an Annual Conference and an Annual Seminar to coincide with the time and place of the Colorado County Treasurers’ Association Annual Conference and Seminar.
Section 2. Additional meetings of the Association may be called at times other than the Annual Conference or Seminar, if the Board of Directors considers it necessary, and all the Voting members of the Association have been advised, in writing, at least ten or more days prior to the meeting date.
The President, upon taking office,
shall appoint the following committees:
By-laws, Audit, Legislative,
Nomination, Manual and Forms, and such other committee as considered necessary.
Committee Chairpersons shall make reports and findings to the membership at each
Annual Conference or as requested by the President.
Section 1. The Association shall create an Association Legal Fund for the purpose of paying for the costs of legal assistance beneficial to the association as a whole. The initial payment of counties to the Association Legal Fund shall be $100 for the first year and $50 per year for each year after.
Section 2. The Board of Directors shall designate an attorney at law to act as the Association’s legal advisor in matters of general interest, which help the members better understand and perform their duties as prescribed by Colorado Revised Statutes (as amended). The Board of Directors shall secure a contract with an attorney who is licensed to practice law within the state of Colorado. Such contract shall state the hourly rate that the association will be charged for legal services, the hourly rate that will be charged to individual counties who seek legal advice for their offices from the association attorney, the cost of attendance at both the conference and the seminar, and that the Board of Directors is the only body of the Association authorized to request services for the Association as a whole. The contract shall run from a period beginning on September 1 and continuing until September 1 of the next year.
Section 3. Any regular member requesting legal assistance will first consult the President or other officer of the association so designated by the President to act in the event the President is not available, to determine whether the assistance required is of general interest to the association, and whether the association will be responsible for the cost of such legal assistance. If the determination is that the legal request is specific and not of general interest to the association, or if the regular member does not consult with the appropriate officer before contacting the legal advisor, the cost of the legal assistance shall be borne by the regular member.
Section 4. Any proposed legal expense, which is expected to be more than 1/3 of the balance of the legal fund, must receive the approval of the Board of Directors prior to contracting for service.
Section 1. The Legislative Committee of the Association shall meet prior to the annual seminar to determine the need for a legislative lobbyist. The Legislative Committee shall interview and recommend to the Board of Directors a candidate or business qualified to serve as the Association Legislative Lobbyist. Upon approval of the Board of Directors, the President shall secure a contract with the Legislative Lobbyist.
Section 2. The duties of the legislative lobbyist shall be stated in the contract with the legislative lobbyist and shall include the hourly rate that the association will be charged for services, the cost of attendance at both the conference and the seminar, and that the President of the Association or the Chairman of the legislative committee are the only voting members of the Association authorized to request services for the Association as a whole. The contract shall also state when, how, and to whom, the lobbyist is to direct reports on information regarding the state legislature. The contract shall run from a period beginning on November 1 and continuing until November 1 of the next year.
All amendments to this Constitution and Bylaws must be submitted in writing, by the Secretary to the Regular members at least 30 days prior to any Annual Conference or Seminar. A majority of the Regular members will comprise a quorum. Two-thirds of the quorum will be necessary for the passage of any change to the Constitution and Bylaws.
In the event that the Association should be dissolved for any reason whatsoever; any funds remaining in the Association’s Treasury shall be returned to the contributing counties in the proportion that each County contributed.
The parliamentary authority of the association shall be Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised.