NHAND: Constitution and Bylaws
Constitution And By-Laws of The New Hampshire Association of Naturopathic Doctors December 5, 1995 reflecting By-Law Changes 1/01, 10/03, and 10/09
ARTICLE I
Section 1. This organization shall be known as: the New Hampshire Association of Naturopathic Doctors. Hereafter known as the Association or NHAND.
Section 2. This Association recognizes the definition of Naturopathic medicine as it?s defined by the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians.
ARTICLE II
Section 1. The purpose of this Association shall be to advance the philosophy and art of Naturopathic medicine; to promote the profession; to give each other moral, social, and intellectual support and where it is justified, financial and legal protection; and to educate the public as to the merits of Naturopathic medicine.
ARTICLE III
Section 1. The membership of this Association shall be categorized in six classes: Standard, Associate, Supporting, Honorary, Undergraduate, and Corporate.
Section 2. Standard Membership: Fee is $200 annually. First year graduates $100. Hardship deferral of 50% of dues available upon request. Membership fee may be waived for equivalent in volunteer time as approved by the Executive Committee, or by the general membership for members of the Executive Committee. Fees may be waived, due to hardship, if approved by the Executive Committee. Standard members of the Association shall meet the following requirements:
- Shall be Naturopathic Doctors who practice in the State of New Hampshire.
- Shall have an N.D. degree from a Naturopathic college approved by the AANP, or possess an AANP approved license.
- Shall be licensed in the State of New Hampshire.
- Shall be of good moral character.
- Shall have made application and paid the fees and dues provided for in the By-Laws.
Section 3. Associate Membership: Fee is $100 annually An Associate member is a health professional who is:
- A Naturopathic Doctor who has met the requirements for Standard membership in the NHAND, who has retired from his/her practice either entirely, or is more than semi-retired. OR
- Other health professional who believes in the principles of Naturopathy and wishes to forward Naturopathy.
The Associate member shall have a voice in the meetings or business of the Association, but no vote.
Section 4. Supporting Membership: Fee is $50 annually. A Supporting member is a non-health professional who believes in the principles of Naturopathy and wishes to forward Naturopathy. The Supporting member shall have a voice in the meetings or business of the Association, but no vote.
Section 5. Naturopathic Student Membership: Fee is $25 annually. An Student member shall be a Naturopathic student of any college whose graduates are eligible to sit for the national Naturopathic Physician?s Licensing board exam. They shall have a voice in the meetings or business of the Association, but no vote. Student members must be attending a Naturopathic medical school that meets licensing criteria for New Hampshire.
Section 6. Honorary Lifetime Membership: There is no fee. Honorary members shall consist of persons who have been elected to such membership by vote of the Association. They shall have no vote.
Section 7. Corporate membership: Any corporation donating during the calendar year is eligible. Gold Membership for over $1000. Silver Membership for over $500. They shall have a voice in the meetings or business of the Association, but no vote.
Section 8. It shall be the duty of the Membership Committee to notify the applicants of the results of their applications.
Section 9. The dues of the members shall be set by the Association. This shall include the amount, schedule of payment, renewal dates and starting date of the membership year, including setting fees for pro-rated time periods, if appropriate and approved by the Executive Committee.
Section 10. Special Project Fees may be levied by a majority vote at the quarterly or annual meeting or special meeting, after being approved by the Executive Committee. Assessments so levied shall become due immediately.
Section 11. Any member who shall fail to pay or fail to make suitable arrangements to pay either dues or assessments within sixty days after same became due, shall automatically become delinquent; all rights and privileges of the Association shall be denied such member until all dues and assessments shall have been paid in full.
Section 12. Any member who shall remain delinquent for a period of six months shall automatically cease to be a member, and such a person shall regain membership in the Association only by making the regular application and submitting to the regular investigation, just as if he/she had not been a member.
Section 13. Any member who has been found by the Association to have violated the code of ethics of the NHAND, or whose license to practice Naturopathic medicine has been revoked, shall automatically cease to be a member. Membership may be renewed when a revoked license is restored.
ARTICLE IV
Meetings
Section 1. The regular meetings of NHAND shall be the annual meeting and at the discretion of the Board, quarterly meetings. Special meetings may be held at any time, upon call of the President or by a majority of the Executive Committee, or upon request of twenty-five percent of the membership, the President shall call a special meeting.
Section 2. The time and place for holding an annual meeting shall be determined and stated at least thirty days before the date thereof. When not determined by a vote of the Association at an annual meeting, the time and place for holding the next annual meeting shall be determined by the Executive Committee.
Section 3. The meetings shall be held at such time and place as may be determined at the immediately preceding quarterly meeting, but if it should be neglected, the Executive Committee shall have authority to determine the time and place for holding any meeting. Electronic modes of communication shall be deemed acceptable methods of meeting.
Section 4. Members shall receive not less than ten days notice of annual meetings, and not less than five days notice of all other meetings. All members of committees shall be given at least five days notice of the committee meetings.
Section 5. A simple majority of members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at any meeting. A majority of any committee shall have the authority to act for that committee. Absentee ballots may be accepted at the discretion of the Association, as may electronic means of communication.
Section 6. The order of business of the annual meeting shall be as follows, unless suspended by a two-thirds majority of the members present:
- Call to order by the President
- Roll call of members
- Presenting minutes of the last monthly meeting and the last annual meeting and special meetings.
- Reception of new members
- Reports of committees
- Reports of officers
- Unfinished business
- New business
- Election of officers
- Installation of newly elected officers by the presiding officers
- Adjournment
Section 7. The order of business in the quarterly meetings shall be as follows, unless suspended by a two-thirds majority of the members present.
- Call to order by the President
- Presenting minutes of the last quarterly meeting and subsequent special meetings
- Reception of new members
- Treasurer?s report of the financial condition of the Association and receipts and disbursements, since the last quarterly meeting
- Secretary?s report
- Reports of committees
- Unfinished business
- New business
- Adjournment
ARTICLE V
Officers and Committees
Section 1. The officers of the New Hampshire Association of Naturopathic Doctors shall be chosen from the members in good standing; vote to be taken by ballot or absentee ballot, and the nominee receiving the greatest number of votes shall be declared elected. Nominations shall take place at the regular meeting before the annual meeting.
Section 2. The officers, or Executive Committee, of the Association shall be the President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, past Treasurer, and the past President. The past Treasurer and past President shall be the most recently elected past Treasurer and past President with current membership, who are willing and able to serve in this capacity. All officers, except the past Treasurer and past President, shall be elected in accordance with the provision of Article V, Section 1 of these By-Laws.
Section 3. The duties of the officers of the Association shall be respectively such as that specified by Roberts Rules of Order (revised) for such officers, except that the President shall act as chairperson of the Executive Committee, which shall consist of the elective officers and the past Treasurer and past President.
Section 4. The Vice-President shall act as the chairperson of the Ethics Committee. It will be the duty of said committee to take into account the advancement and the interests of the Association and of Naturopathic medicine, by investigating and reporting misconduct of members and reporting to the Association or the Executive Committee.
Section 5. The Secretary shall act as the chairperson of the Membership Committee. The Membership Committee shall keep record of all members taken into the Association, together with a list of all members suspended, expelled, fined, or dropped for non-payment of dues, as well as a list of members in good standing, and report the same to annual meeting, and perform such other duties as the Association may require, and which are not in conflict with the By-Laws.
The Secretary or Membership Committee shall perform the following tasks:
- New N.D.s coming to the state shall receive a letter of welcome inviting them to join the NHAND, along with a membership application and copy of the By-Laws (they must have read and agreed to abide by the By-laws and NHAND policies).
- Chair of Membership Committee shall send renewal applications to all members by November 1, for the following year.
- A follow-up written communication shall be sent by February 1 to any members who have not yet renewed. A copy of this letter, together with names of recipients, shall be sent to the President, who is chair of the Executive Committee.
- Shall send a written communication to any member behind in payment of dues for more than 60 days to notify them of their delinquency. Copies of such communication shall be forwarded to the President, who is chair of the Executive Committee.
- Official certificate of membership shall be sent to all members upon approval of membership in the NHAND, and ongoing members shall receive a new certificate annually indicating they are a member in good standing. Certificates shall state the expiration at the end of each year. Certificates shall be signed by the current NHAND President and Secretary. A schedule of NHAND meetings for the year will be sent out with certificates.
- Minutes of all regular and annual NHAND meetings shall be distributed to the membership within 3 weeks of previous meeting. The minutes must be approved by the majority of Association members present. Minutes shall indicate any future scheduled meetings of the Association.
- The Executive Committee has recommended the establishment of regularly scheduled quarterly meetings so that members will always be informed about where and when meetings are held. They will be held in January, April, July, and October. The annual meeting shall be designated as the regularly scheduled quarterly meeting in January. Specific dates will be decided at the January or annual meeting. Quarterly meetings shall be held in Concord, NH, unless otherwise noted.
Section 6. The Treasurer shall have a permanent post office address. If required by the Executive Committee, he/she shall execute a surety bond, in such amount as may be required by the Executive Committee. Said bond shall be in favor of the NHAND, for the faithful performance of the duties of the Treasurer and the accounting for all monies received, with itemization of disbursements. He/she shall deposit all Association money promptly in a bank which shall be designated by written order of the Executive Committee.
Section 7. The Legislative Committee shall be chosen by the Association or the Executive Committee. It shall consist of one or more members, their duties being to look after and report on proposed legislation pertaining to Naturopathic medicine. The Legislative Committee may be compensated from the legislative fund for all the expenses incurred while on duty for the Naturopathic profession, which are approved by the Association, or by the Executive Board in emergency situations. When the Association is not in session, the Legislative committee may report to the Executive Committee.
Section 8. The Association or Executive Committee shall elect a chairperson of the Public Relations Committee, which shall have charge of all publicity and continuing education. They may conduct campaigns, approved by the Association or by the Executive Board, for the education of the public as to merits of Naturopathic medicine, and shall have charge of all entertainment sponsored by the Association. They may report to the Association or the Executive Committee.
Section 9. The President shall be the ex-officio member of all committees with voice, and may vote if necessary to provide a quorum for the committee.
Section 10. The actions of all committees shall be reported to the Association at the first regular meeting held thereafter, and in case of disapproval, a two-thirds vote of the members present will be necessary for the revocation of the report or action.
Section 11. All committees shall report to the Executive Committee when requested to do so by that committee. The Legislative Committee may have representative to the AANP, and the Public Relations Committee is urged to have one as well.
Section 12. No monies over $200 shall be spent by any committee in between regular meetings unless it has been approved by the Executive Committee.
Section 13. The action of any committee may be reversed by a two-thirds vote of the members present at any meeting of the Association. However, if such action, previously approved by the Executive Committee shall have resulted in the payment of any monies, or entering into any contract, such an action of the Executive Committee shall stand as the action of the Association, any vote to the contrary withstanding.
ARTICLE VI
Conduct of Members And Officers Trials And Penalties For Misconduct
Section 1. Any member who shall be accused of misconduct, professional incompetence, unprofessional or other conduct prejudicial to the interest of the Association or to the profession of Naturopathic medicine, shall upon conviction of such charge, be expelled from the Association or suspended for a period not to exceed six months at the discretion of the Executive Committee, provided that such member be given a fair and impartial trial as hereinafter provided.
Section 2. Misconduct shall be defined as a violation of the Ethics Code adopted by the Association (Article VII). This shall not be construed to apply to any member who may work or talk against any measure or proposition under discussion, before its adoption.
Section 3. Any member may file charges in writing against any other member, on any other or all of the items specified in sections one and two of this article. Such charges must be specific and must be filed with the Secretary of the Association, who shall make record of the same and refer the original charges to the President, who shall make a true copy of the same for the Ethics Committee.
ARTICLE VII
Code of Ethics The Association may refuse to grant or may suspend or revoke membership in the Association for any of the following reasons:
- The use of fraud or deception in securing a license or Naturopathic degree.
- The impersonation of another doctor.
- Committing a fraudulent or dishonest act as a Naturopathic Doctor, resulting in substantial injury to another.
- Using any narcotic, stimulant or hypnotic drug, or alcoholic beverage to an extent or in a manner dangerous to him/herself, or to any other person, or to the public, and to an extent that such use impairs his or her ability to engage in the safe practice of Naturopathy.
- The commission of any act of sexual misconduct with a patient or client which is substantially related to the qualification, functions, or duties of a Naturopathic Doctor.
- Conviction of a crime, substantially related to the qualifications, functions, or duties of a Naturopathic Doctor, the record of conviction being conclusive evidence thereof.
- Purposeful negligence or abandonment of a patient by the Naturopathic Doctor.
- Directly or indirectly aiding or abetting an unlicensed person in a licensed jurisdiction to practice Naturopathy and receive compensation for it.
ARTICLE VIII
Miscellaneous
Section 1. The Secretary and Treasurer may receive such yearly compensation for their services as may be provided by the Executive Committee, to be paid in four equal payments quarterly.
Section 2. The President shall assure an annual audit or review of the books and records for the Secretary and the Treasurer, as well as the records of all committees, where their activities have resulted in monetary exchange, and report the results of such audit to the annual meeting.
Section 3. The Association shall maintain one general fund. All monies collected shall be deposited in the general fund to be used to defray the general expenditures of the Association. Expenditures over $500 made in the interest of the Association must be approved by a majority vote of the members at a meeting of the Association.
Section 4. For any point of procedure not covered by the By-Laws, Roberts Rules of Order (revised) shall be the governing standard.
Section 5. These By-Laws may be revised or amended only by a two-thirds vote of the members present at an annual meeting or a special meeting called for that purpose, provided that no amendment or revision shall be finally adopted until after its second reading.
