International Council on English Braille (ICEB)
Bylaws

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Constitution means the Constitution of the International Council on English Braille (ICEB).

These Bylaws have been developed in accordance with Constitution Clause 6.10.

1 Membership

(Refer to Constitution Article 4.)

1.1 Application for Membership

1.1.1 A nation's standard setting body for English braille seeking full membership in ICEB should forward, in writing, a request for membership to the President of ICEB. The request must include the applicant's authority for representing its nation's interests in English language braille (such as its status as a recognized braille standard setting body), and its willingness to abide by the Constitution, Bylaws, and Policies of ICEB. Requests for membership should be made on the membership form which is on the ICEB website at www.iceb.org.

1.1.2 A nation seeking associate membership in ICEB should forward, in writing, a request for membership to the President of ICEB citing its compliance with the purposes of ICEB and observer membership obligations. Requests for associate membership should be made on the membership form which is on the ICEB website at www.iceb.org.

1.1.3 If an organisation or individual from a Full Member country seeks Associate Membership in ICEB, the Executive Committee will exercise its power to accept or reject the application based on consultation with the braille authority of that country.

1.1.4 After careful consideration, the Executive Committee of ICEB will formulate a decision on the acceptance or rejection of the applications for Full and Associate Memberships in ICEB. The Executive Committee's decision will be forwarded by the President to the applicant and Full and Associate Members within ninety days of receipt of the membership application.

1.2 Fees

(Refer to Constitution 4.3 and 8.2.)

The Executive Committee shall set the fees in US dollars for Full and Associate membership in ICEB, and shall notify all Full and Associate Members when there is a change in the ICEB membership fee at least sixty days before the fees are due. The present annual membership fee for a Full Member is US$500, and for an Associate Member is US$300. The Executive Committee, under special circumstances, has the right to subsidize the annual membership fee of a Full Member.

2 Meetings of the General Assembly

2.1 Establishment of date and venue

(Refer to Constitution 5.1.)

2.1.1 The Executive Committee shall establish the exact date and venue of the next General Assembly, and shall inform Full and Associate Members, and publicize the date and venue information at least one year in advance of the convening of the General Assembly.

2.1.2 The ICEB Executive Committee may, in exceptional circumstances, decide on a virtual General Assembly replacing a pre-planned face-to-face General Assembly contemplated in Bylaw 2.1.1 above, read together with subsection 5.1(b) of the Constitution.

2.2 Delegates and Observers to the General Assembly

(Refer to Constitution 5.2 and 5.4.)

Each Full Member shall forward a list of its delegates and observers to the President of ICEB at least sixty days prior to each General Assembly. The official list of all delegates and observers to the General Assembly shall be forwarded to the Full and Associate Members at least thirty days prior to each General Assembly.

2.3 Observers to the General Assembly

Associate Members who apply to the President of ICEB shall have observer status at the General Assembly. Others who wish to observe at the General Assembly shall apply, in writing, to the President of ICEB.

3 Executive Committee

3.1 Powers and Duties

3.1.1 The President shall:

determine input from the Executive Committee members;
set the date(s) of the Executive Committee meetings;
prepare and circulate the agenda for each meeting seven days prior to the meeting date;
approve all payments to be made from the accounts of ICEB except in the case where payments are to be made to the President, when approval shall be authorised jointly by the Treasurer and Vice President;
be a signatory on all ICEB bank accounts when feasible, or appoint an Executive Committee member as the second signatory; and
work with the hosting Full Member to agree the arrangements for the General Assembly including the date, venue, call for papers, program, distribution of papers and other related matters.

3.1.2 The Vice President shall:

act in the President's absence;
be a member of the Papers Committee for the General Assembly;
be a member of the Bylaws Committee.
perform other duties as assigned.

3.1.3 The Secretary shall:

record and distribute Minutes of the Executive Committee's decisions taken at each meeting of the Executive Committee, recording in the meeting Minutes resolutions adopted by electronic means between meetings;
prepare and distribute widely, at least nine months in advance, the information about the General Assembly, its dates, venue, hotel, program, fees, call for delegations, and other information given by the host of the General Assembly;
be responsible for the final minutes (proceedings) of the General Assembly; and
work with the host of the General Assembly for the recording of the proceedings electronically to provide a complete record of all sessions of the General Assembly.

(Refer to Constitution 6.5.4)

3.1.4 The Treasurer shall:

chair the Budget and Finance Committee;
present a current financial report at each meeting of the Executive Committee and the General Assembly;
pay all outstanding accounts on the authority of the President or where accounts are to be paid to the President on the authority of the Treasurer and Vice President;
maintain adequate funds in an account with chequing privileges;
invest surplus funds as approved by the Executive Committee; and
maintain the policy for the reimbursement of reasonable expenses for Executive Committee members to attend official meetings (refer Constitution 6.7).

(Refer to Constitution 6.5.5, and Article 8).

3.1.5 The Public Relations Officer shall:

be responsible for the maintenance of the ICEB website and any other social media that the Executive Committee has decided to utilize in the publication of ICEB activities and decisions; and
prepare all press releases agreed upon by the Executive Committee.

(Refer to Constitution 6.5.6)

3.1.6 The Immediate Past President shall:

be a contributing member of the Executive Committee;
be a resource for the President; and
serve on the Nominations Committee.

3.1.7 The Members-At-Large shall:

bring the opinions of their full members on braille matters to all discussions of the Executive Committee; and
assume whatever other duties are assigned to them by the Executive Committee.

3.1.8 The Chair of the UEB Code Maintenance Committee shall be responsible for carrying out the charge of the UEB Code Maintenance Committee.

3.2 Vacancies

A vacancy in the office of Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Public Relations Officer, Member-At Large, or Chair of the UEB Code Maintenance Committee shall be filled by the Executive Committee. The individual selected to fill a vacancy may be from any Full Member provided that the appointment has first been discussed with the Full Member from which the selection has been made.

3.3 Fundraising

The Executive Committee may raise funds to support ICEB activities. It shall appoint a Fundraising Committee to carry out the desired fundraising activities when it has been deemed necessary to raise funds to support ICEB activities. Fundraising shall be carried out only in those Full and Associate Members' nations that have given their consent for the fundraising activity.

3.4 Methods of Carrying on Business

3.4.1 The Executive Committee shall establish a listserv for its members to conduct business between face-to-face, teleconference, and real time electronic meetings for which provision has been made in the Constitution. The Executive Committee, at a face-to-face or teleconference meeting, shall establish the rules and procedures for conducting business by electronic mail, which rules and procedures shall remain in effect until altered by the Executive Committee.

3.4.2 All votes conducted via email shall be ratified at a subsequent face-to-face meeting or at any meeting conducted in real time via telephonic or electronic means.

3.4.3 The results of a postal vote or one taken by electronic mail shall be recorded in the minutes of the next meeting of the Executive Committee.

(Refer to Constitution 5.3.)

4 Committees

4.1 Standing Committees

(Refer to Constitution 7.2.)

4.1.1 The Budget and Finance Committee shall:

prepare a budget each year for presentation to the Executive Committee for approval;
review the financial statements prior to their presentation to the General Assembly; and
recommend any change in the fee structure for all ICEB Full and Associate Members to the Executive Committee for approval.

4.1.2 The Bylaws Committee shall:

conduct a review of the Constitution between each meeting of the General Assembly;
present the draft revisions of the Constitution to the Executive Committee in a timely fashion so that any recommendations will have the approval necessary to meet the pre-circulation time required by the General Assembly;
review the Bylaws between meetings of the General Assembly and present any recommended revisions to the Executive Committee;
draft new Bylaws as necessary; and
be responsible for the policy manual (Refer to Constitution 7.2.2) containing the Constitution, the Bylaws, and copies of resolutions on governance and administrative matters made by the General Assembly or the Executive Committee.

4.1.3 The Nominations Committee shall:

prepare a proposed slate of Officers (with the exception of the Immediate Past President), Members-At-Large and Chair of the UEB Code Maintenance Committee, none of whom may be serving members of the Nominations Committee;
secure the consent of each candidate prior to the slate's distribution; and
be responsible for accepting further nominations from Full Members at the General Assembly and for preparing the ballots should a secret ballot election be required.

(Refer to Constitution 6.3.)

4.1.4 The Public Relations Committee shall:

Assist in carrying out the duties of the ICEB Public Relations Officer;
Create materials and identify outlets for publicity and promotional activities, including press releases and newsletters.
Make known to the outside world the policies, decisions and activities of ICEB.
Promote the teaching and use of braille; and
Establish and maintain relationships with relevant bodies, including outreach to non-member countries of ICEB.

4.2 Technical Committees

(Refer to Constitution 7.3.)

4.2.1 The UEB Code Maintenance Committee shall undertake its work in accordance with its charge which shall be reviewed at least once following each meeting of the General Assembly; the charge shall be approved by the Executive Committee.

5 Amendments

These Bylaws may be amended by the Executive Committee with no fewer than two-thirds of the voting members voting in their favour at any meeting of the Executive Committee or by electronic vote of its members, provided that the proposed amendments were distributed electronically to each member at least thirty (30) days prior to the vote thereon. The approved changes shall be effective immediately unless otherwise stipulated.

Appendix 1 Timetable

Here is the planning timetable as specified in the Constitution or these Bylaws for events leading up to each General Assembly and for events that occur in each calendar (fiscal) year.

General Assembly events

The Executive Committee shall establish the exact time and venue of the next General Assembly, and shall inform Full and Associate Members, and publicize the date and venue information at least one year in advance of the convening of the General Assembly (Bylaws 2.1).
The Secretary shall prepare and distribute widely, at least nine months in advance, information about the General Assembly, its dates, venue, hotel, program, fees, call for delegations, and other information given by the host of the General Assembly (Bylaws 3.1.3).
The President shall have the papers distributed to the field at least nine months before the beginning of the General Assembly (Bylaws 3.1.1).
The President, in consultation with the Executive Committee, shall appoint a Chair and at least two members to the Nominations Committee at least six months prior to a meeting of the General Assembly (Constitution 6.3.2).
The Executive Committee of ICEB will formulate a decision on the acceptance or rejection of the applications for Full and Associate Memberships in ICEB. The Executive Committee's decision will be forwarded by the Secretary to the applicant and Full and Associate Members within ninety days of receipt of the membership application (Bylaws 1.1.4).
The Nominations Committee Chair shall circulate the proposed slate of Executive Committee members to be elected to all Full Members at least three months prior to a meeting of the General Assembly (Constitution 6.3.2).
A proposed amendment of the Constitution to be considered at a meeting of the General Assembly must be distributed to Full Members no less than sixty (60) days prior to the scheduled opening date of the meeting (Constitution Article 9).
Each Full Member shall forward a list of its delegates to the President of ICEB at least sixty days prior to each General Assembly (Constitution 5.2).
The official list of all delegates to the General Assembly shall be forwarded to the Full and Associate Members at least thirty days prior to each General Assembly (Bylaws 2.2).

Bylaws events

These bylaws may be amended by the Executive Committee with no fewer than two-thirds of the voting members voting in their favour at any meeting of the Executive Committee or by electronic vote of its members, provided that the proposed amendments were distributed electronically to each member at least thirty (30) days prior to the vote thereon (Bylaws 5).

Calendar (fiscal) year events

The Executive Committee shall set the fees in US dollars for Full and Associate Membership in ICEB, and shall notify all Full and Associate Members when there is a change in the ICEB membership fee at least sixty days before the fees are due (Bylaws 1.2).
The Treasurer shall invoice each Full and Associate Member for its membership fee at least 60 days prior to the beginning of each fiscal year (Constitution 8.2.2).
A second invoice shall be sent as soon as practicable to each member nation whose membership fee has not been received within 90 days following the beginning of the fiscal year (Constitution 8.2.2).
Full and Associate Members whose membership fees have not been received within six months following the beginning of the fiscal year may be deemed by the Executive Committee to have forfeited their membership (Constitution 8.2.3).
A statement of the financial position and prior year's performance of ICEB, certified by the reviewing accountant, shall be sent to each full and associate member within six months after the close of the preceding fiscal year (Constitution 8.3.2).

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Page content last updated: September 18, 2020.

International Council on English Braille (ICEB) Bylaws