BYLAWS OF THE LANSDOWNE FIRE COMPANY
ARTICLE I MEMBERSHIP PAGE 3
ARTICLE II OFFICERS AND ELECTED POSTIONSPAGE 8
ARTICLE III NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS PAGE 13
ARTICLE IV MEETINGS PAGE 19
ARTICLE VBOARD OF TRUSTEESPAGE 20
ARTICLE VICOMMITTEESPAGE21
ARTICLE VIIDISPLINARY ACTIONPAGE 24
ACTILCE VIIIPARLIMENTARY AUTHORITYPAGE 29
ARTICLE IXAMENDMENTSPAGE 30
ARTCILE I MEMBERSHIP
SECTION 1 - There shall be five (5) classes of membership: Active, Junior, Life, Honorary and Cadet.
SECTION 1a – Active members shall be those who are twenty-one (21) years of age, other than Life or Honorary members.
SECTION 1b – Junior members shall be those members who are between the ages of sixteen (16) and twenty-one (21). They shall not be eligible for any office and shall not have a vote in any company business. (6/2006)
SECTION 1c – Life members shall be those members of the company who the company sees fit to elect to Life membership, They shall have all the rights and privileges of Active membership, They shall be exempt from the payment of dues or other assessments as may be made by the company from time to time.
SECTION 1d – Those non-members of the company who the company sees fit to elect to Honorary membership shall be called Honorary members. They shall be entitled to all the rights and privileges of an Active member except those of making motions, of voting, of holding office, and of responding to fires or other emergencies. They shall be exempt from the payment of dues or other assessments as may be made by the company from time to time.
SECTION 1e – Cadets shall be those members between the ages of fourteen (14) and sixteen (16) years of age. They shall not be eligible for any office and shall not have a vote in any company business. There shall be no more than fifteen (15) Cadets at any one time, not to include immediate families of members of the Fire Company. Cadets will not be voted on nor will they serve any probation period. At age sixteen (16), after completing the application process, if recommended by the Cadet committee and the Chief, they shall automatically become Junior members at which time their probationaryperiod will begin.
SECTION 2 – Any person with proof of United States Citizenship, U.S. Immigration Services Certified Permanent Residency or Legal Alien Status who has attained the age of sixteen (16) and who lives or works within the Borough of Lansdowne is eligible for membership, except that anyone residing outside this area who, in the opinion of the company, can be sufficient service to merit membership can be accepted or retained as a member. The prospective member shall present an application to the Membership Secretary of the company along with the annual dues for the current year; The dues shall be refunded should the applicant be rejected for membership. The prospective member shall undergo a physical examination, at the Company’s expense, by a physician approved by the company as set forth in the Standing Rules. Application for Junior membership must be accompanied by a letter from the applicant’s parent(s) or guardian(s) endorsing the application and expressly giving permission for the applicant to participate in company activities. The Membership Secretary shall submit the application to the Board of Trustees for its review; he shall report the application to the membership at the next regular meeting of the company following the receipt of the application, whereupon he shall post the application in the firehouse until the next regular meeting. Voting upon admission shall take place at the regular meeting following the report of the application to the company and shall be by written ballot. The Board of Trustees shall report the results of their review and their recommendations, if any, prior to the vote on admission. Applicants shall present themselves at a Board of Trustees meeting and a monthly company meeting before their application is presented to the company membership for a vote. A two-thirds (2/3) vote shall elect to membership.
SECTION 2a – Persons elected to membership shall serve a probationary period of twelve (12) months, except that the probationary period may be waived by a two-thirds (2/3) vote at the time the application is voted on provided that the applicant has previously been a member of the company for a period of at least twelve (12) months. Junior members shall not serve the probationary period except as specified in Article I, Section 2c. The expiration of a member’s probationary period shall be announced at the regular meeting closest to the one (1) month prior to the expiration date. Voting upon the confirmation of membership shall take place at the next regular meeting thereafter and shall be by written ballot. A two-thirds (2/3) vote shall confirm. Membership in the company shall terminate upon non-confirmation. Members on probation shall not be eligible for any office and shall not vote in any company business or election.
SECTION 2b – A Junior member who has been a member for at least twelve (12) months prior to their twenty-first (21) birthday shall have this fact announced at the regular meeting closest to one (1) month prior to their twenty-first (21) birthday. Voting upon the confirmation of membership as an Active member shall take place at the next regular meeting thereafter and shall be by written ballot. A two-thirds (2/3) vote shall confirm. Membership in the company shall terminate upon non-confirmation.
SECTION 2c – A Junior member who has been a member for less than twelve (12) months prior to their twenty-first (21) birthday shall serve the twelve (12) month probationary period upon becoming an Active member. However the period during which said member had been a Junior member shall be credited to the twelve (12) month probationary period. Said member shall not be subject to Article I, Section 2b.
SECTION 2d – Upon the signed recommendation of one member, seconded by another member and confirmed by a three-fourths (3/4) vote by written ballot at the Annual Meeting. Life or Honorary membership may be conferred upon a member or non-member, respectively.
SECTION 2e – Any American Citizen or Legal Alien between the ages of fourteen (14) and sixteen (16) may apply to be a Cadet. The prospective applicant will be required to present to the Cadet Committee the following information:
- Completed application form
- Letter of parental consent
- Proof of age
- Working papers
As part of the application, the applicant will be required to under go a physical examination (we will accept the physical from the working papers) and a police background check. The Cadets are subject to the Rules of the Cadet program, Rules of the Chief (where applicable) and the Rules of the House Committee. The Cadet Committee will have responsibility for the Cadets.(8/2005)
SECTION 3 – The annual dues, the amount of which shall be stated in the Standing Rules of the Company, shall be payable in advance on or before December 1 of the prior year. The Membership Secretary shall notify members who are one (1) month in arrears, and those whose dues are not paid within one (1) month thereafter shall be automatically dropped from membership. No member in arrears shall be permitted to vote in any election.
SECTION 4 – Any member desiring to resign from the company shall submit their resignation in writing to the Membership Secretary, who shall present it to the Board of Trustees and who shall report it to the membership at the next regular meeting after receipt.
SECTION 5 –All members, by signing the application for membership in the company, agree to comply with the Corporate Charter, Bylaws, Standing Rules, House Rules, Rules of the Chief and any other rules that may be binding, and this contract shall remain in place as long as that person is a member of the company. No member shall be allowed to act for the company in any capacity while appearing to be or actually under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or to act in such a way as to endanger or jeopardize safety, life and/or property. All members shall at all times conduct themselves to reflect credit and instill respect for themselves and the company whether on the fire ground or wherever and whenever they may be identified in any way with the company. Any member not acting in accordance shall be subject to disciplinary action under Article VI – Disciplinary Action.
SECTION 6 – All members shall exercise diligence and fidelity with any items of company property, or any items of which the company has temporary or permanent care, control, custody or use. All members shall be under the obligation to report violations of any and all duly constituted rules and regulations of the company to an appointed or elected and sworn officer of the company. In cases of doubt all members are to furnish the information in a prompt and complete fashion so that those responsible with authority can make necessary decisions regarding the circumstances. All such officers and members of the company shall act in accordance with the Bylaws to bring such matters to an appropriate resolution. Failure of the member or officer to act constitutes an offense and shall be cause for charges under Article VI – Disciplinary Action.
SECTION 7 – All members shall have specific responsibility to keep the Membership Secretary in possession of their current address and telephone number so that contact with the company and affiliated organizations may be maintained in a prompt and orderly fashion.
SECTION 8 – The affiliated organizations are defined as the Firemen’s Relief Association of Lansdowne, Pa. and the Ladies Auxiliary of the Lansdowne Fire Company. The Ladies Auxiliary of the Lansdowne Fire Company is specifically recognized as being under the Corporate Charter of the Lansdowne Fire Company and exists for some common purposes.
ARTCILE II – OFFICERS AND ELECTED POSITONS
SECTION 1 – The elected executive officers of the Company shall be a President, a First Vice President, a Second Vice President, a Corporate Secretary, a Membership Secretary, a Treasurer, Six (6) Trustees and a House Committee Chairman. The elected line officers of the Company shall be Chief, a Deputy Chief, and an Assistant Chief.
SECTION 2 – Any Active or Life member, who has been a member for a period of at least twelve (12) months prior to the date of election, may be nominated and may run for any of the elected offices and/or positions specified in Article II, Section 1 of these Bylaws with the exception of Chief, Deputy Chief and Assistant Chief positions.
SECTION 2a – Any Active or Life member who has been a member for a period of at least twelve (12) months prior to the date of the election may be nominated and run for the elected office of Chief, Deputy Chief or Assistant Chief. The Active or Life member being nominated for the positions must have at least a High school diploma or equivalent in their name. In the case of equivalent, the supplied document or transcript will require a majority vote by the Board of Trustees to be accepted at the board meeting prior to the nominations. The nominee must have completed the following fire training prior to the nomination. This is a minimum mandatory training/schooling required to be nominated to run for a position of Chief, Deputy Chief, and Assistant Chief. The nominee is to provide the documentation of this mandatory training/schooling to the President of the Fire Company at the nomination or the nomination will be deemed void.
The Assistant Chief shall have completed the following training or schools:
- Fire One (1) and Fire Two (2) or equivalent
- Vehicle Rescue (V.R.T.) or equivalent
- Rescue 1 or equivalent
- Pump school
- Incident Command
- Haz-mat awareness or equivalent
The Deputy Chief shall have the training/schooling of Ladder Company Operations and Fire Officer One (1) in addition to the requirements of the Assistant Chief.
The Chief shall have the training/schooling of Fire Officer Two (2), in addition to the requirements of the Deputy Chief.
SECTION 3- The President shall preside at all meetings of the membership, shall conduct any business ordered by these Bylaws or the Company, shall serve as a member of the Board of Trustees, and shall generally do what is necessary for the good of the Company as is consistent with the Charter, The Bylaws, the Standing Rules and the Parliamentary Authority adopted but the Company.
SECTION 4 – TheFirst Vice President shall serve in the place of the President in the event that the President fails to or is unable to perform his duties.
SECTION 5 - The Second Vice President shall serve in the place of the President in the event the President and the First Vice President both fail to or are unable to perform the duties of President.
SECTION 6 – The Corporate Secretary shall generally be responsible for all record keeping functions of the Company with the assistance of all elected and appointed officers and/or positions. The Corporate Secretary shall keep a complete and accurate record of those attending and the minutes of all business transacted at all regular and special meetings of the membership. The Corporate Secretary shall make these minutes available in a manner approved by the Board of Trustees. The Corporate Secretary may also serve as Secretary for the Board of Trustees if appointed as specified in Article V – Board of Trustees. In the event of the Corporate Secretary’s inability to attend a Company meeting, the Corporate Secretary shall promptly notify the President so that a Secretary-Pro-Tempore can be appointed to record and report the minutes for that meeting. The Corporate Secretary shall record in the minutes and shall report all deferred or old business to the appropriate meeting for the purpose of any necessary follow-up. The Corporate Secretary shall be responsible for receiving all incoming mail and the prompt and proper distribution of this mail. The Corporate Secretary shall receive and distribute all correspondence to the Company and shall be responsible for sending correspondence from the Company as he is directed to do so by the Company. The Corporate Secretary shall be the custodian of the Corporate Seal and shall affix the seal as necessary or as ordered by action of the Company. The Corporate Secretary shall also perform other duties as directed by the Company, and/or in accordance with the Corporate Charter, Bylaws, Standing Rules of Order, and the Parliamentary Authority established in Article VIII – Parliamentary Authority.
SECTION 6a – The Membership Secretary shall keep and promptly post in the firehouse an up to date list of all members and their classifications. This list shall be corrected as each change occurs, and the President, Corporate Secretary, Chief, Relief Association Secretary and the Funeral Committee Chairman shall immediately be furnished written copies of all updates. This listshall also include the member’s mailing address. The Membership Secretary shall receive and process all applications forms, and related items. The Membership Secretary shall notify all applicants for membership of their election or rejection and shall within five (5) days of a new member’s election deliver to the new member a copy of all necessary documents as specified in the Standing Rules of the Company, receiving an acknowledgement of receipt of the specific items signed by the individual member. This action shall be noted in the minutes of the next Membership meeting, and in the personal record of the individual member. The Membership Secretary shall collect dues and promptly pay same to the Treasurer, receiving a receipt from the Treasurer. Except as herein detailed in this section, the Membership Secretary shall issue membership cards to all members upon receipt of annual dues, In the case of Life or Honorary members, the Membership Secretary shall issue appropriate membership cards to them upon their election to Life or Honorary Membership. The Membership Secretary shall also issue membership cards specifically worded with the title, and dated, with the term of office to be used as needed to identify the duly executive and operations officers. The Membership Secretary shall also start and maintain a personnel file on each member as directed by the Company and/or accordance with the Corporate Charter, Bylaws, Standing Rules, Special Rules of Order, and the Parliamentary Authority established in Article VIII – Parliamentary Authority.
SECTION 7 –The Treasurer shall receive all money belonging to the Company, keeping an accurate accounting of all such money as prescribed by the Finance Committee. He shall make disbursements in accordance with the procedures prescribed by the Finance Committee and only with the approval of the Company. He shall present to the membership monthly and annual meeting written reports of the financial condition of the Company. The performance of the duties shall be in accordance with the accounting procedures approved by the Finance Committee. The Treasurer shall immediately upon request make available to the Finance Committee and/or Board of Trustees any and all documents and/or records pertaining to the finances of the Company which the Treasurer possesses or over which he has control.
SECTION 8 – The Six (6) Trustees shall serve as members of the Board of Trustees and shall have duties and specified in Article V.