ACM SIG Bylaws: SIGBED

BYLAWS of the Special Interest Group on EMBEDDED SYSTEMS of the Association for Computing Machinery, Inc.

  • Adopted: July 1, 2003

Article 1. Name and Scope

  1. This organization will be called the Special Interest Group on Embedded Systems ("SIGBED") of the Association for Computing Machinery, Inc. ("the ACM"); it will be referred to herein as "the Group."
  2. The scope of the Group's specialty is embedded computing, including all aspects of its organization, structure, design, and engineering.

Article 2. Purpose

  1. This Special Interest Group is organized and will be operated for educational, technical, professional, and scientific purposes in the subject area of embedded systems and in furtherance thereof.
  2. The organization shall promote the interest of professionals by:
    1. Affording opportunity for discussion of problems of common interest.
    2. Encouraging presentation of papers of special interest to this group at national and regional meetings of the ACM and at other special meetings organized by this Group.
    3. Providing guidance to the ACM Council on matters of importance to the Group.
    4. Other appropriate means. No addition may contradict the main purpose as stated in Article 2(a) above.

Article 3. Charter

The Group will exist until dissolved by the Council of the ACM as provided in Bylaw 6 of the ACM.

Article 4. Officers and Board of Directors

  1. The Group's officers are the Chair, the Vice-Chair, and the Secretary-Treasurer. The Group's Board of Directors will consist of eight members. The officers are elected for two-year terms beginning July 1 of odd-numbered years. The Board of Directors is appointed by the Chair, with the advice of the other officers.
  2. The Chair is the principal officer and is responsible for leading the Group and managing its activities. The duties of the Chair are:
    1. Calling and presiding at the Group's Executive Committee and business meetings;
    2. Conducting the Group's activities in accordance with the policies of the ACM; and
    3. Making all appointments and filling vacancies as authorized herein.
  3. The duties of the Vice-Chair are:
    1. Assisting the Chair in leading and managing the Group; and
    2. Presiding at meetings when the Chair is absent.
  4. The duties of the Secretary-Treasurer are:
    1. Maintaining the records and correspondence of the Group;
    2. Notifying Executive Committee members of the time, place and agenda of Committee meetings and likewise notifying Group members of business meetings;
    3. Keeping and distributing the minutes of business and Executive Committee meetings of the Group; and
    4. Managing the Group's finances according to the Financial Accountability Policy of the ACM. This includes preparing the annual budget, monitoring the Group's disbursements for adherence to the annual budget, and preparing financial reports as required.
  5. The duty of the Board of Directors is to serve on the Executive Committee.

Article 5. The Executive Committee

  1. The Executive Committee comprises the officers, the Past Chair, and the Board of Directors. No person may hold two positions on the Executive Committee.
  2. The general duties of the Executive Committee are to advise the Chair on all matters of interest to the Group. Specific duties or responsibilities may be specified in these Bylaws or assigned by the Chair. All the major management policy decisions of the Group must be approved by the Executive Committee.
  3. All members of, or candidates for, the Executive Committee must be voting members of the ACM and of the Group.

Article 6. Vacancies and Appointments

  1. Should the Chair leave office before his or her term expires, the Vice-Chair will assume the duties of the Chair. Should any other position on the Executive Committee become vacant, the Chair of the Group may appoint a replacement to fill the vacancy.
  2. Should a vacancy be unfilled, either because of inadequacy of these Bylaws or because of a dispute or for any other reason, the SIG Governing Board may fill it (as provided in Bylaw 6 of the ACM).
  3. All appointments expire automatically when the Chair's term of office expires. Appointees, however will continue to serve until a successor is appointed by the new Chair.

Article 7. Membership, Dues, and Voting Privileges

  1. A person becomes a member only after enrolling and paying the required dues. The dues for the Group are determined by the Group's Executive Committee with the approval of the Chair of the SIG Governing Board. The dues shall be consistent with ACM bylaws.
  2. All members of the Group may vote in any ballot conducted with the Group. The counting of the votes and the definition of effective votes shall be consistent with Bylaw 6.

Article 8. Reports and Records

The Group's Chair is responsible for filing reports about the Group required by the SIG Governing Board. These include:

  1. An annual report, due in February of each year, on the activities of the Group during the previous calendar year;
  2. All reports required by the Financial Accountability Policy of the ACM; and
  3. Closing reports on conferences and symposia (co)-sponsored by the Group as required by the ACM.

The membership records of the Group will be maintained by ACM Headquarters.

Article 9. Elections

  1. By September 30 of each even-numbered year, the Chair, with the approval of the Executive Committee, will appoint a nominating committee which will propose at least two consenting candidates for each elective office of the Group. The slate of candidates elected by the nominating committee must be presented to all the Group's members by the following January 31.
  2. A petition from one percent of the voting members of the Group will place other consenting candidates on the ballot. Petitions must be received by the Secretary-Treasurer of the Group no later than March 15.
  3. The election will be conducted among eligible voters by ACM headquarters by June 1, following the election procedures of the ACM, unless different procedures have been approved by the SIG Governing Board. Of all the ballots returned in an election, the candidates receiving the largest numbers of effective votes win. The SIG Governing Board will resolve ties.

Article 10. Amendments

  1. These Bylaws may be amended by a vote of the Group's members as provided below.
    1. A resolution of the majority of the Executive Committee of the Group shall be sufficient to cause a Bylaw amendment to be voted on by the Group members.
    2. Any member of the Group may submit an amendment to the Group Chair; the Group Secretary-Treasurer shall determine whether a majority of the Executive Committee of the Group are in favor of proposing the amendment and shall announce this determination.
    3. A petition by one percent of the Group members shall be sufficient to cause a Bylaw amendment to be voted on by the Group members. The right to petition shall be independent of any decisions taken with respect to the procedures provided in Article l0(b), i and ii.
  2. The proposed amendment shall be reviewed, prior to the distribution of ballots referred to in Article l0(d) below, by the Chairs of both the SIG Governing Board and the Constitution and Bylaws Committee of ACM.
  3. The ballot on the proposed amendment(s) will be conducted among the eligible voters by ACM Headquarters following the procedures of the ACM for voting Bylaw amendments, unless a different procedure has been approved by the SIG Governing Board. The proposal is adopted only if at least two-thirds of the effective votes of returned ballots approve it, provided at least 10% of the ballots are returned. The Secretary-Treasurer will send a clean copy of the amended Bylaws to the Executive Director of ACM and to the Chair of the SIG Governing Board.

Article 11. Dissolution

Should the Group be dissolved, control of its assets will revert to ACM.

Article 12. Meetings

The Group will conduct at least one business meeting each year. All meetings sponsored by the Group must be open to all members of the ACM. The Group may hold meetings only in places that are open to all classes of ACM members.

Article 13. Consistency

The Constitution, Bylaws, and policies of the ACM and of the SIG Governing Board take precedence over any conflicting provisions of these bylaws or internal policies of the Group.