District of Columbia Library Association
Organization founded June 15, 1894
Bylaws adopted May 25, 1927. Last amended June 9, 2024.
1. NAME
The name of this organization is the District of Columbia Library Association (also known as DC Library Association or DCLA).
2. OBJECT
Its object is to promote and support libraries and information centers and to provide for professional development, continuing education, and collegial exchange among librarians, information specialists, and library workers in Washington, D. C. and vicinity.
3. MEMBERS
Any person interested in librarianship is eligible for membership in the DC Library Association.
There shall be the following classes of membership, with benefits and dues as stated:
3.1: Basic membership: Any person active or interested in libraries and librarianship. Active members shall receive the publications of the Association specified by the Board of Directors and have access to the Members Only areas of the Association website. Active members may vote and hold office. Annual dues: $35.00.
3.2: Associate Membership: Any individual who is active or interested in libraries and librarianship who is retired, unemployed/underemployed or working part-time. Active members shall receive the publications of the Association specified by the Board of Directors and have access to the Members Only areas of the Association website. Active members may vote and hold office Annual dues: $25.00.
3.3: Student membership: *Student membership is open to any person enrolled in a degree program leading to a Master's in Library Science. Membership in this category is limited to two years or length of full-time Master's in Library Science status. Student members may vote, and are limited to serving only in an appointed board role. See Section 4 for additional information. Annual dues: $35.00 (bundled DCLA/ALA membership) or $15.00 (DCLA-only membership)
3.4: Lifetime membership: Lifetime membership is open to any current member (basic or associate) of any age. Members in this category can make either a one time payment split payment into 2 year installments for a total of $526. The purchase of a lifetime membership exempts them from the annual membership dues payment for the remainder of their involvement with DCLA . Lifetime members have the same privileges as a Basic Active Member. Membership Dues: $526 single payment or $263/year over 2 years. (Adopted by the DCLA Executive Board on June 6, 2024, Lifetime Membership for Retired Library Workers: $375, or $187.50 over 2 years).
3.5: Honorary membership: Upon nomination by the Board of Directors, the Association may confer on any person the title of honorary member for life. Honorary members will receive the publications of the Association specified by the Board of Directors and have access to the Members Only areas of the Association website. Honorary members may not vote or hold office. Honorary members do not pay annual dues to the organization.
3.6: Temporary classes of membership: A majority vote of the Board of Directors may establish temporary categories of membership along with setting the prerequisites and dues for such temporary classes. No class shall be retained for more than two years except as incorporated into the By-Laws by vote of the membership of the Association. Following the establishment of any such temporary class of membership, notice shall appear in the next published issue of the Association publications.
3.7: The Board of Directors may suspend a member for cause, after a hearing, by a two-thirds vote of the members of the Board of Directors and may reinstate a member by a like or greater vote.
4. OFFICERS
4.1: The elected officers are a President, a President-Elect who shall serve as Vice-President, a Secretary, a Treasurer, Membership Director; who shall serve as membership records officer, and the ALA DC Chapter Councilor.
The Board of Directors consists of the elected officers, the immediate past president, three directors appointed by the president focused on Advocacy, Career and Leadership Development, and Systems; and Section Chairs who will be appointed by the President at the beginning of the President’s term : Academic, Public, School, and Special Library sections.
4.2: The officers shall be elected by ballot for terms of two years, except for the president who will serve for one year. The President shall be elected annually, and shall serve the first year after election as Vice-President, the second year as President, and the third as Immediate Past President, and shall not be eligible for reelection to a consecutive term. All other officers shall serve until a successor is chosen, and none is eligible for reelection to a consecutive term. The Secretary, Membership Director, and one Board Member shall be elected in one election cycle, and the Treasurer and two Board Members shall be elected in the following election cycle year. Newly elected officers shall take office on July 1st and this date shall be considered the start of DCLA's administrative and fiscal year. Appointed Section Chairs will serve for one-year terms.
4.3: Candidates for election to the various offices shall be chosen by a Nominating Committee. The Past-President will be the chair of the Nominating Committee. The chair may appoint no more than 3 other members to the nominating committee. Duties of the Nominating Committee are to ensure that nominations are received from active members. This will include obtaining the nominees sent to service unless self-nominated. The Nominating Committee shall present a slate of one member for each elected position. The ballot prepared by the Nominating Committee shall also include the names of any candidates nominated by petition signed by at least twenty dues-paying members.
4.4: Only members of the Board of Directors have voting privileges at official DCLA Board of Director meetings. The elected officers, together with the immediate past president, appointed directors, appointed chairs, and the ALA Chapter Councilor constitute the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors has the power to arrange programs, to appoint such committees as may be necessary, to appoint the Editor of the Association publications and any assistants to the Editor, and to act for the Association in all matters not reserved in these By-Laws. Five members of the Board of Directors shall constitute a quorum.
4.5: The Association's chapter representative on the Council of the American Library Association shall be elected for the term and in the manner prescribed by the ALA Constitution and By-Laws, shall carry out the duties prescribed for such chapter representatives by the ALA Constitution and By-Laws, insure that required reports are made to the appropriate office of ALA and shall serve as a voting member of the Board of Directors.
4.6: Vacancies in offices, except those of President and President-Elect, may be filled by the Board of Directors for the unexpired term, except that, if the vacancy occurs during the first year of a two-year term, an officer shall be elected by ballot to fill the vacancy during the second year. If the Presidency becomes vacant, the President-Elect shall act as President for the remainder of the unexpired term. If the office of President-Elect becomes vacant, a special election shall be held to fill it. In case of simultaneous vacancy in the offices of President and President-Elect, the Board of Directors shall appoint one of its members to act as President until an election can be held. Any elected officer who misses three consecutive Board of Director meetings without submitting a proxy report will be considered to have vacated office, and appropriate steps as outlined above may be taken by the Board of Directors to fill the vacancy.
4.7: The Board of Directors must approve all affiliations the DCLA makes in regards to financial or institutional cooperation.
5. MEETINGS
5.1: Board of Directors Meetings. The president of DCLA will establish a meeting schedule for the board after assuming office on July 1st. These meetings will be set at a schedule decided upon by the president. Committees and small groups within the organization may meet as needed. The primary function of Board of Directors meetings are to inform the board of potential action or events, review recommendations provided by board members, and to vote on action if needed.
5.2: Section and Committee Meetings: Sections are established by the DCLA Board and will have an appointed Section Chair. This Section Chair will serve in this role as stated in section 4.2 for one-year with the option for the president to re-appoint them for another one-year term. The DCLA Board will provide to each Section Chair a statement that will serve as the Sections purpose and function. Section Chair may establish committees as needed to accomplish the work of the section on behalf of DCLA. Section chairs will submit to the board a monthly progress report detailing the work of the section and any committee action and activities. The chair will recruit individuals from DCLA active membership to serve on the committee as needed. The chair will also establish when the committee will meet and provide this information in their monthly report.
5.3: General Membership Meetings. Meetings of the Association shall be held at the call of the Board of Directors, at such time and place as the Board may determine. A quorum for the transaction of business at such meetings shall consist of twenty-five members having the right to vote.
6. AMENDMENTS
Amendments to these By-Laws may be proposed by the Board of Directors, by a committee appointed for the purpose, or by petition signed by twenty-five members.
A proposed amendment or new by-law shall become effective when it shall have been approved by a majority of the Board followed by ratification by the members of the Association either by a vote by mail or electronic ballot of a majority of the members of the Association voting, or by a majority vote of the members present and voting at a membership meeting of the Association.
The Board of Directors, on approving a proposed amendment or new by-law, shall specify whether a vote for ratification shall be taken at a called membership meeting of the Association or by mail or electronic ballot, and if a mail or electronic ballot vote is ordered, the Board shall fix the time for the beginning and closing of the balloting. If a vote at a membership meeting is ordered, at least one month's written notice and the text of the proposal shall be mailed or emailed to each member and/or posted to the Association website. Publication in the Association newsletter fulfills the requirement that the text be distributed to each member.
7. PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY
Robert's Rules of Order (Revised), in the latest edition, shall govern the Association in all cases to which it can be applied and in which it is not inconsistent with these By-Laws or with special rules of order.
8. DISSOLUTION
Upon dissolution of this organization or the winding up of its affairs, the assets of the organization shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or shall be distributed to the federal government, or to a state or local government, for a public service. Charitable or educational organizations having purposes similar to those of this organization shall be preferred.
9. Historical Information
By Laws Amended Feb. 5, 1931; Mar. 5, 1931; Mar. 28, 1934; Dec. 5, 1934; Jan. 18, 1935; Dec. 17, 1935; Oct. 13, 1937; May 23, 1942; Dec. 13, 1948; Nov. 15, 1950; Apr. 30, 1952; Feb. 25, 1954; Nov. 17, 1955; June 6, 1957; May 8, 1963; May 20, 1964; Feb. 24, 1965; Apr. 22, 1970; Oct. 23, 1974; Apr. 20, 1977; May 18, 1983; May 3, 1988; May 1990; May 1992; May, 1997; May, 2000; May, 2002; Feb, 2015.