ACM SIG Bylaws: SIGOPS

BYLAWS of the Special Interest Group on Operating Systems (SIGOPS) of the Association for Computing Machinery

  • Adopted: 9/2/70

  • Amended: 7/1/79

Article 1.   Name and Scope

  1. This organization will be called the Special Interest Group on Operating Systems (SIGOPS) of the Association for Computing Machinery, Inc. ("the ACM"); it will be referred to herein as "the Group".
  2. The scope of SIGOPS specialty is: computer operating systems and architecture for multiprogramming, multiprocessing, time-sharing, and parallel and distributed computing; resource management, evaluation, and simulation; reliability,integrity, and security of data and communications among computing systems; and computer systems modelling and analysis.

Article 2.   Purpose

SIGOPS is organized and will be operated exclusively for educational, scientific, and technical purposes in its specialty. Its services will include:

  1. Collecting and disseminating information in the specialty, through a newsletter and other publications approved by the Publications Board of ACM;
  2. Organizing sessions at conferences of the ACM;
  3. Sponsoring conferences, symposia, and workshops;
  4. Organizing working groups for education, research and development;
  5. Serving as a source of technical information for the Council and sub-units of the ACM;
  6. Serving as an external technical representative of the ACM when authorized by the Council or Executive Committee of the ACM; and
  7. Working with sub-units of the ACM on technical activities such as lectureships or professional development seminars.

Article 3.   Charter

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

Article 4.   Officers

  1. SIGOPS officers are the Chairman, the Vice-Chairman, and the Secretary-Treasurer. The Officers are elected for two-year terms beginning July 1 of odd-numbered years.
  2. The Chairman is the principal officer and is responsible for leading SIGOPS and managing its activities. The duties of the Chairman are:
    1. Calling and presiding at SIGOPS Executive Committee and business meetings;
    2. Conducting SIGOPS activities in accordance with the policies of the ACM;
    3. Making all appointments and filling vacancies as authorized herein;
  3. The duties of the Vice-Chairman are:
    1. Assisting the Chairman in leading and managing SIGOPS; and
    2. Presiding at meetings when the Chairman is absent.
  4. The duties of the Secretary-Treasurer are:
    1. Maintaining the records and correspondence of SIGOPS;
    2. Keeping and distributing the minutes of business and Executive Committee meetings of SIGOPS; and
    3. Managing SIGOPS's finances according to the Financial Accountability Policy of the ACM. This includes preparing the annual budget, monitoring SIGOPS's disbursements for adherence to the actual budget, and preparing financial reports as required.

Article 5.   The Executive Committee

  1. The SIGOPS Executive Committee comprises the officers, the Past Chairman, the Editor of the SIGOPS newsletter, and the representative (if any) of the Technical Committee chairman. No person may hold two positions on the Executive Committee.
  2. The general duties of the Executive Committee will be to advise the Chairman on all matters of interest to SIGOPS. Specific duties or responsibilities may be specified in these Bylaws or assigned by the Chairman. All the major management policy decisions of SIGOPS must be approved by the SIGOPS Executive Committee.
  3. All members of, or candidates for, the SIGOPS Executive Committee must be voting members of ACM and of SIGOPS.

Article 6.   Vacancies and Appointments

  1. Should the Chairman leave office before his term expires, the Vice-Chairman will assume the duties of Chairman. Should any other office or the position on the Executive Committee reserved for the Past Chairman of SIGOPS become vacant, the Chairman of the SIG Board may, on nomination of the Chairman of SIGOPS, fill the vacancy. The Chairman may fill vacancies in offices he has appointed according to the procedures for making the original appointments as provided herein.
  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 Board may fill it (as provided in Bylaw 6 of the ACM).
  3. All appointments expire automatically when the Chairman's term of office expires. Appointees, however, will continue to serve until a successor is appointed by the new chairman.

Article 7.   The Newsletter

  1. SIGOPS will publish a newsletter at regular intervals as determined by the Executive Committee. The newsletter will be distributed to all SIGOPS members. Newsletter subscriptions may be sold to non-members.
  2. With the advice of the officers, the Chairman will appoint the Editor of the Newsletter, who will be a member of the SIGOPS Executive Committee.

Article 8.   Technical Committees

  1. Technical Committees (TECs) are subunits of SIGOPS, established to facilitate management of activities in a subspecialty of SIGOPS. The activities of a TEC may include (but are not limited to) the following:
    1. Providing information or guidance for the official ACM (or SIGOPS) representatives to any development groups or standardization committees involved with the subspecialty.
    2. Developing tutorial papers.
    3. Holding meetings to disseminate and exchange information about the subspecialty.
  2. Membership. Membership in a TEC is open to anyone. TEC membership does not confer any form of SIG membership or any of the privileges of SIG membership.
  3. Formation. A majority of the SIG Executive Committee, including at least two of the officers, may petition the SIG Board for approval of a TEC. A proposal for a TEC must include (1) a petition from at least 50 persons, twenty-five of whom must be voting Members of ACM and also members of SIGOPS; (2) a budget for the first year's operation; (3) a set of approved bylaws (see section 8.d.i); and (4) nominations of two persons who consent to be the TEC's Chairman. The petition will include a statement of the technical scope and objectives of the proposed TEC.
  4. Structure of a Technical Committee.
    1. Bylaws.
      Each TEC shall have a set of bylaws. These bylaws and all amendments proposed thereto must be approved by the Chairman of SIGOPS, the SIG Board, and the Constitution and Bylaws Committee.
    2. Officers.
      A Technical Committee may have elected or appointed officers, as specified in its Bylaws. If the officers are to be appointed, the SIGOPS chairman appoints the TEC Chairman who in turn appoints the other officers subject to the approval of SIGOPS's Chairman. Only a person who is both a voting Member of ACM and a full member of SIGOPS may be a candidate for, or hold office in a TEC.
    3. Finances.
      Members of the Technical Committee will pay dues, as determined by SIGOPS's Executive Committee with the approval of the Chairman of the SIG Board. Finances of each TEC are supervised by SIGOPS in accordance with the financial accountability policy. Each TEC is required to prepare an annual budget, which must be approved by the Chairman and Secretary- Treasurer of SIGOPS. This budget will be incorporated in a composite budget for the SIG. Final approval of the TEC budget is contingent upon approval of the composite SIGOPS budget by the SIG Board. Expenditures and handling of money outside the approved TEC budget must be approved by the TEC's Chairman and be approved by SIGOPS's Chairman and Secretary-Treasurer.
    4. Dissolution of a Technical Committee.
      Dissolution of a TEC is covered by Section 11 of Bylaw 6. In the case of dissolution, the assets and liabilities of the TEC are combined with those of SIGOPS.

Article 9.   The Advisory Board

At his discretion, the Chairman, with the advice of the other officers, may appoint an Advisory Board. The purpose of the Advisory Board is to allow members outside of the Executive Committee to participate in setting policy and direction for SIGOPS.

Article 10.   Membership, Dues and Voting Privileges.

  1. SIGOPS is an open SIG as defined in Section 6 of Bylaw 6 of the ACM. Anyone may join the SIG.
  2. A person becomes a member only after enrolling and paying the required dues. The dues for SIGOPS are determined by SIGOPS's Executive Committee with the approval of the Chairman of the SIG Board. In addition to the SIG dues, the non-ACM members of the SIG will be assessed annually a surcharge equal to 1/3 the dues set for membership in the ACM, rounded to the next highest dollar. All dues, and any fees for activities and services of SIGOPS must be lower for members of the ACM. TEC membership alone does not include any reduced fees or subscription rates for SIG activities or publications.
  3. All members of SIGOPS (or any TEC) may vote in any ballot conducted with SIGOPS. On any ballot, the votes cast by non-ACM members of SIGOPS (TEC) will, if necessary, be pro-rated downward so that their effective total cannot exceed 50% of the eligible votes; when it applies, the proration factor will be specified on the ballot.

Article 11.   Reports and Records

SIGOPS's Chairman is responsible for filing reports about SIGOPS and all its TECs as required by the SIG Board. These include:

  1. An annual report, due in February of each year, on the activities of SIGOPS and its TEC 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 SIGOPS or any of its TECs, as required by the ACM. The membership records of SIGOPS will be maintained by ACM Headquarters.

Article 12.   Elections

  1. By September 30 of each even-numbered year, the Chairman will appoint a nominating committee which will propose at least two consenting candidates for each elective office of SIGOPS. The slate of candidates elected by the nominating committee must be presented to all the SIGOPS members by the following January 31.
  2. A petition from 1% of the voting members of SIGOPS will place other consenting candidates on the ballot. Petitions must be received by the Secretary-Treasurer of SIGOPS 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 Board. Of all the ballots returned in an election, the candidates receiving the largest number of effective votes win. The SIG Board will resolve ties.
  4. The chairman of SIGOPS's Technical Committees may select one of their members to represent them on the Executive Committee.

Article 13.   Amendments

  1. These bylaws may be amended by a majority vote of the Council, or by a vote of SIGOPS's members as provided below. With the approval of SIGOPS's Executive Committee and the Executive Committee of the ACM, 2/3 of all members of the SIG Board may amend Article 1 of these Bylaws without a referendum of the members.
  2. Amendments to these Bylaws may be proposed by SIGOPS's Executive Committee, the SIG Board, or a petition of 1% of the voting members of SIGOPS. All proposed amendments must be approved, prior to being submitted for a vote of the membership, by the Chairman of both the SIG Board and the Constitution and Bylaws Committee of the ACM after the Executive Director of ACM has provided his advice.
  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 Board. The proposal is adopted only if at least 2/3 of the effective votes of returned ballots approve it, and only if at least 1/4 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 Chairman of the SIG Board.

Article 14.   Dissolution

If SIGOPS should be dissolved, control of its assets will revert to the ACM. Should a TEC be dissolved, its assets and liabilities will be combined with the assets and liabilities of SIGOPS.

Article 15.   Meetings

SIGOPS will conduct at least one business meeting each year, normally in conjunction with the annual conference of the ACM. All meetings sponsored by SIGOPS must be open to all members of the ACM. SIGOPS may hold meetings only in places that are open to all classes of members of the ACM.

Article 16.   Consistency

The Constitution, Bylaws, and policies of the ACM and of the SIG Board take precedence over any conflicting provisions of these Bylaws or internal policies of SIGOPS or any of its TECs.