The following commentary was rejected by the editor of the Healey Marque as
not being compatible with the magazine's purpose to "inform and entertain."
I post it here in hopes it will be at least informative
NOT A GIANT LEAP FOR DEMOCRACY
The semi-annual meeting of the Austin Healey Club of America Delegates
occurred on Tuesday, June 23, 2007. The first order of business was to
address the issue of revising the definition of a quorum in the AHCA bylaws.
>From what I understand, last year at Conclave 2006, two delegates left the
meeting to participate in a Conclave event, resulting in the delegate's
meeting no longer having a quorum. I also understand that this was the
first time in the 46-year history of the AHCA that a quorum didn't exist at
an official business meeting.
To address this once-in-a-lifetime occurrence, someone proposed revising the
bylaws to redefine a quorum as only the number of delegates present at the
meeting, and eliminating the requirement for a simple majority of delegates
to be present when items required a vote. This motion passed by a vote of
20-8. The result of this change in the bylaws is that only 1 person needs
to be present at a delegate's meeting to pass policy.
Democracy seems to have taken another blow to the head. As one delegate
expressed, this action seems to be sending a message to the local chapters
that the AHCA does not need the local clubs, but be sure to keep sending in
your dues. While an organization needs to respond to circumstances that
prohibit it from making official decisions, it seems that there are many
options other than letting a small handful of members make all the
decisions. If the problem is lack of participation at the national level by
some local clubs, maybe determining the reason for this lack of
participation and proposing a solution makes more sense. Or even defining a
quorum as 40 percent (pick a number) of the delegates, rather than whoever
shows up, considering the history of the democratic process within the AHCA.
This is not a nickel and dime operation here. The Austin Healey Club of
America has an annual income of approximately $180,000.00 with a cash
balance on June 21, 2007 of $107,474.74. Expenses for 2007 are at
$89,426.74 through June 21. The 2007 annual budget has $11,000 for 2007
delegate's meetings. With significant numbers like these involved, it is
clear that having a quorum at every delegate meeting is essential. But do
we want by-laws that allow one or two people to be able to make business
decisions? Additionally, maybe it is time for the AHCA to look into how the
Austin Healey Club USA handles it's business meetings, since they do not
spend any club money to conduct their monthly board meetings. For those
that feel this is a topic of concern, I encourage to contact your club's
delegate and the AHCA national club officers to express your views.
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