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Board of Directors

WHO WE ARE

(As Amended on January 10, 2004)

The name of this organization shall be the Iranian-American Democrats (hereinafter called IAD)

1. The purpose of IAD shall be to advance the goals of the Democratic Party (hereinafter called the Party), through public policy and political issue analysis, education, fundraising, recruitment, coordination with other democratic groups, and other activities to benefit the Party.
2. IAD shall support the broadest possible registration on the Democratic Party, and recruitment of IAD membership without discrimination on grounds of race, sex, age, color, creed, national origin, religion, ethnic identity, or economic status.

IAD is an organization committed to the democratic principles of freedom and civil liberties. A branch of the Party, IAD will pursue the following objectives:

1. To create and maintain an effective political voice for Iranian-American in local, state, and federal politics.
2. To inform the Iranian-American Community of the Party’s political platform and agenda.
3. To encourage, assist and guide Iranian-Americans to join the Party and to register to vote.
4. To raise awareness among the Iranian-American population regarding any legislation affecting our communities.
5. To identify, encourage and support qualified members of the Iranian-American community to seek elected office at the local, state and national level.
6. To encourage support of the Party’s political campaign and candidates by Iranian-Americans.
7. To encourage active participation by Iranian-Americans Democrats in local, state and national politics.
8. To keep the Iranian-Americans community informed and up-to-date of the plans, programs and gatherings of IAD.

IAD operates under the authority of the Orange County Democratic Central Committee (hereinafter called Central Committee), and in compliance with its chartering requirement.

1. All regular and special meetings of IAD shall be conducted in accordance with these bylaws and Robert’s Rules of Order.
2. Except as otherwise provided in these Bylaws, all actions of IAD, provided a quorum is present, shall be by vote of a majority of members present, with the execution of amendment to Bylaws.
3. In accordance with Central Committee charter requirements, IAD:
   1. May not take a position in support of a candidate for partisan office other than a Democratic;
   2. Shall pay the required charter dues;
   3. Shall support the County, State and National Democratic Party;
   4. Shall support the platform of the State and National Party;
   5. Shall cooperate with other Democratic organizations;
   6. Shall provide annually to the Central Committee a roster of names, addresses and telephone numbers of all regular and associate members, and a copy of the Bylaws.
4. IAD shall support the National, State, County and City Democratic candidates.
5. IAD shall contribute to the Democratic discussion and recommendations on Democratic Party platforms.

1. Membership of IAD shall be drawn from the Iranian-American Community and any other interested individual;
2. There shall be three types of members (hereinafter called the general membership):
   1. A regular member shall be 18 years of age or older, and register as a Democrat.
   2. Associate – Associates shall be those persons not citizen.
   3. Ex-Officio – Ex Officio members shall be elected officials who are Democrats and who wish to participate in IAD activities.

1. There shall be three categories of dues:
   1. Students, Seniors and Associates.
   2. Individuals
   3. Spouse
2. The amount of dues in each category shall be recommended by the Board of Directors and presented to the General Membership for approval at the Annual Meeting.
3. IAD fiscal year shall be the calendar year.
4. Dues shall be paid annually and shall be due January 1. Dues paid after October 1 shall extend through the following year. Those who have not paid their dues by March 1 of each year shall be considered to have resigned their membership.
5. Membership is effective 30 days after receipt of dues.
6. Payment of dues shall not be obligatory to anyone for whom it constitutes an economic hardship, and after due consideration with approval of the Board of Directors.

All regular members, except Ex-Officio and Associate members are entitled to vote on IAD decisions pursuant to these Bylaws.

1. There shall be at least one General and four Board of Directors meeting annually, including the Annual Meeting. The date and time of the meeting shall be set by the Board of Directors.
2. Notification of a General Meeting is to be mailed, faxed, or E-mailed to the general membership at least two weeks prior to the meeting.
3. Board of Directors meetings shall be regularly scheduled throughout the calendar year, and announced in advance to the General Membership.
4. Board of Directors meetings is open to the General Membership, unless designated in advance “For Board of Directors Only”.
5. As a community service, all General Meetings shall be opened to the public unless designated in advance “For Members Only”.
6. The Annual Meeting of IAD shall be held in November or December for the purpose of installing officers.
7. Special meetings may be called by the President with approval of the Board of Directors.

1. The officers shall be President, First Vice President, Second Vice-President, Recording Secretary, Corresponding Secretary, Treasurer, and the immediate Past President.
2. The officers are empowered to act in emergencies in the interim between regular meetings of the Board of Directors.
3. The Board of Directors shall be composed of the officers and chairs of standing committees, and shall be responsible for implementing the goals and maintaining the financial viability of the IAD.
4. No officer shall be eligible for election for more than two years in succession for the same office, except by special approval of the membership.

1. The President shall appoint a Nomination Committee of three members by August 15, one of which shall be chosen from the membership at large and two from the Board of Directors, to nominate officers for the coming year.
   1. By September 1, the Nominating Committee shall request nominations from general membership. The deadline for submitting nominations is September 15th.
   2. The Nominating Committee shall submit nominations for IAD officers to the Board of Directors for review and approval by majority vote, provided a quorum is present.
   3. The Nominating Committee shall submit nominations for IAD officers at the October General Meeting. The nominations must have been presented in writing to the General Membership in the newsletter announcing the October meeting.
   4. No nominations may be made from the floor at any meetings.
   5. All persons nominated shall submit a statement about their goals for the IAD, their residence address, phone number, previous political experience, present employment of professional background, their agreement with the official Democratic Platform.
   6. Nominees’ statements shall be printed on the ballot and mailed to all voting members in November.
2. The President shall appoint an Election Committee which shall be responsible to receive and tally the votes.
   1. Members must vote and mail ballots within seven days of receipt to the Election Committee. The Election Committee shall inform the Nominees when the ballots will be counted (prior to the November General Meeting), so they may be present during the counting of the ballots. Results will be announced at the Annual Meeting in November.
   2. The officers shall be installed at the December General Meeting, and assume their full duties on January 1.

1. The President shall preside at all General and Board of Directors Meetings, shall appoint the Parliamentarian, shall establish special committee(s), as needed, with approval of the Board of Directors and shall be an Ex-Officio member of every committee except the Nominating Committee.
2. The President shall have supervision over all affairs of the IAD and shall be the official spokesperson for the IAD, unless the President has assigned another member of the Board of Directors to be the official spokeperson, with the approval of the Board of Directors.
3. The President shall appoint the Standing and Ad-hoc Committee chairpersons, with the approval of the Board of Directors. The Standing Committees shall be: Finance, Public Relations, Legislation and Campaign Support, Voter Registration, Nominating, Fund-Raising, Membership, and Cultural.
4. The President shall present an annual report that highlights the past year at the end of the term of office.
5. The President shall appoint representatives to the Central Committee and other appropriate groups with the approval of the Board of Directors.

1. The First Vice-President shall be assistant to the President, and preside in his/ her absence.
2. The First Vice-President shall be responsible for the General Membership Programs with the consultation and approval of Board of Directors.

1. The Second Vice-President shall be responsible for Membership development and support, including the functions of Voter Registration and Membership Recruitment and Membership Retention Program.
2. The Second Vice-President shall organize and maintain the “Telephone Tree”.

1. The Recording Secretary shall record and maintain the Minutes of General and Board of Directors Meetings, including attendance lists; and shall maintain all IAD records. He/she shall mail a copy of the Minutes to each member of the Board of Directors following each scheduled meeting.
2. The Recording Secretary shall assume the duties of the Corresponding Secretary in his/her absence.

1. The Corresponding Secretary shall maintain an up-to-date membership list, provide copies to the membership and send a copy to the Orange County Democratic Central Committee each year, along with a list of new officers, the By-laws and the required charter dues.
2. The Corresponding Secretary shall conduct the correspondence of the IAD.
3. The Corresponding Secretary shall mail the newsletter.
4. The Corresponding Secretary shall assume the duties of Recording Secretary in his/her absence.

1. The Treasurer shall have charge of all IAD funds, pay all legal obligations, and make a full report to the Board of Directors and General membership whenever in session.
2. The Treasurer shall open (or renew) an account for the IAD at a bank designated by the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors shall designate two officers who will be authorized to sign checks in the absence of the Treasurer. Two signatures will be required on all checks over $500.
3. All checks, invoices and contracts shall be first received by the Treasurer who shall maintain a permanent photocopy file. All contracts shall be signed by the President and the Treasurer. In the absence of either the President or Treasurer the Board of Directors shall appoint alternative.
4. The Treasurer is responsible to find out what reports are required from the Orange County Registrar of Voters and the State and Federal agencies, and shall fill out and send them within the required time limits.
5. The Treasurer shall be a member of the Finance Committee.

The Parliamentarian shall advise the President as to the proper procedures for the conduct of meetings, and shall rely on these bylaws and Robert’s Rules of Order.

The Board of Directors shall be responsible for establishing annual short and long-term goals for the IAD, to be approved at the March General Meeting.

1. To conduct the business of IAD in accordance with the policies and resolutions as decided by the General Membership and these Bylaws.
2. To schedule General and Board of Directors meetings.
3. Fill officer vacancies (to be approved by the General Membership).

1. No business shall be transacted in the absence of a quorum.
2. A quorum of the Board of Directors meetings shall be a majority of its membership.
3. A quorum of the General Meeting shall be a majority of the members attending as identified by membership lists.

1. The following are general responsibilities of the Standing Committees as identified in Article VI, Duties of Officers.
   1. Finance: prepare annual budget
   2. Public Relations: edit newsletter, supervise speakers bureau, prepare press releases, artwork, printing, copying and mailing.
   3. Legislative and Campaign Support: report legislative activity pertinent to IAD, present resolutions at General Meetings, and coordinate.
   4. Voter Registration: prepare an annual plan of voter registration activity in conjunction with the Central Committee.
   5. Nominating: comply with procedures outlined in Article V. Section 2.
   6. Fund Raising: Coordinate activities required to raise funds needed for operation of IAD.
   7. Membership: encourage Iranian-American Citizens to join the IAD Organization, and to educate non-Citizen Iranians to become citizens and IAD members.
   8. Cultural Committee: introduce the Iranian culture to the American community in order to promote better understanding, communication and exchange between our cultures.
2. Each Standing Committee is responsible for establishing its standing rules and procedures, and shall conduct activities which carry out the goals of IAD as established by the Board of Directors.
3. The Chairperson of each Standing Committee is a member of the Board of Directors and shall provide a written report of its activities for inclusion in the Annual Report.

On all matters of procedure not otherwise contained herein or in the standing rules of IAD Robert’s Rules of Order, latest revised edition, shall be the official guide.

The bylaws may be amended at any General Meeting of the IAD by a two-thirds vote of the members present, provided that written notice has been given to the members at least one week before the General Meeting and shall be effective upon approval.

Upon dissolution of IAD all funds and materials shall be transferred to the Orange County Democratic Central Committee.

1. An elected officer may be removed from office by resolution of a two-thirds vote of the regular members at a General meeting for such causes as missing three unexcused consecutive meetings or non-performance of duties, provided the membership and the officer have been notified ten days in advance of the meeting of the proposed action against the officer.
2. A member is removed from IAD membership for non-payment of dues by the date required in these bylaws, March 1, or for publicly supporting a candidate other than a Democrat in a partisan election.

In November 2002, a group of Iranian-American Democrats, joined together to form the IAD Charter Organization. After establishing the By-Laws, IAD was registered with the Orange County Chapter of the Democratic Party. The Charter Organization, whose number of members will be limited to the original ten (10) Founding Members shall serve as a guiding force to ensure that IAD adheres to the principles, goals and objectives of IAD, as identified in IAD’s Mission Statement. In the event of death, incapacitation, or resignation of an original founding member a new member shall be elected by the majority of the Charter Organization members to replace that member in the Charter Organization.

IAD shall have an advisory group, whose members will be recommended by IAD members for approval by the Charter organization. An advisory group member shall be a well-known and/or influential individual, who is likely to contribute to the goals of the IAD Organization.