Eligibility for officer in non-profit.

[LinInTexas]

Hi there, new member here, swimming in the seas of RONR - or maybe just treading water.

Our bylaws state this about officers:

ARTICLE IV. Officers
All officers must be voting members in good standing (current in any dues, regular participant in corporate meetings and projects, and maintain Master Gardener Certification). Officers are elected at the Annual Meeting in November to serve a one-year term beginning January 1. Officers are elected by a majority vote of voting members when a quorum is present. Officers may serve two (2) consecutive terms in office. Should any officer be unable or unwilling to serve for three or more consecutive regular meetings that officer shall be replaced for the remainder of the term by a majority vote of the Executive Committee. An officer may be removed from office by a majority vote of the members present, proved there is a quorum at the meeting.

My question is, if a person serves two consecutive one-year terms in an office (let's say president), can they later (after a year or more not in office) be eligible to be president again,  or is two terms an absolute limit? 

Thanks in advance!

[Richard Brown]

50 minutes ago, LinInTexas said:

Hi there, new member here, swimming in the seas of RONR - or maybe just treading water.

Our bylaws state this about officers:

ARTICLE IV. Officers
All officers must be voting members in good standing (current in any dues, regular participant in corporate meetings and projects, and maintain Master Gardener Certification). Officers are elected at the Annual Meeting in November to serve a one-year term beginning January 1. Officers are elected by a majority vote of voting members when a quorum is present. Officers may serve two (2) consecutive terms in office. Should any officer be unable or unwilling to serve for three or more consecutive regular meetings that officer shall be replaced for the remainder of the term by a majority vote of the Executive Committee. An officer may be removed from office by a majority vote of the members present, proved there is a quorum at the meeting.

My question is, if a person serves two consecutive one-year terms in an office (let's say president), can they later (after a year or more not in office) be eligible to be president again,  or is two terms an absolute limit? 

Thanks in advance!

It is ultimately up to the members of your organization to interpret its bylaws. We cannot do that for you here. Our advice is based on the rules in RONR.

However, The issue of term limits comes up frequently in this forum. My own personal opinion, which is simply my opinion and doesn’t really count since only the opinions of your members count, is that the quoted language does not prohibit serving additional terms as president after sitting out for a term. I interpret it as being permissive, i.e., that an officer may serve two consecutive terms. I do not interpret it as a prohibition against serving again in the future.

Edited December 16, 2019 at 02:58 PM by Richard Brown
Deleted a paragraph that somehow repeated itself

[LinInTexas]

Excellent, thanks so much! That is how I interpreted it, as did most of our members. There were a vocal few who disagreed. 

[George Mervosh]

8 minutes ago, LinInTexas said:

Excellent, thanks so much! That is how I interpreted it, as did most of our members. There were a vocal few who disagreed. 

If he's elected again after sitting out a term, the vocal few can indeed raise a point of order at the time he is elected (assuming he is).  The presiding officer shall rule on their point and his decision is subject to appeal, so as Mr. Brown notes, ultimately, the members will decide.

[Josh Martin]

8 hours ago, LinInTexas said:

My question is, if a person serves two consecutive one-year terms in an office (let's say president), can they later (after a year or more not in office) be eligible to be president again,  or is two terms an absolute limit? 

The latter former, in my view. The rule prohibits serving more than two consecutive terms. If this person is out of office for a year (or more), and is subsequently re-elected, the third term is not consecutive, and therefore does not violate the rule.

Edited December 16, 2019 at 10:46 PM by Josh Martin

[Richard Brown]

23 minutes ago, Josh Martin said:

The latter, in my view.

Didn't you mean to say "The former", rather than "the latter"?

[Gary Novosielski]

4 hours ago, Josh Martin said:

The latter, in my view. The rule prohibits serving more than two consecutive terms. If this person is out of office for a year (or more), and is subsequently re-elected, the third term is not consecutive, and therefore does not violate the rule.

But that's the former.

[George Mervosh]

3 hours ago, Richard Brown said:

Didn't you mean to say "The former", rather than "the latter"?

I'm blaming it on Josh's dictation app and heavy Minneapolis accent.      

Yours truly, Bob Mahvash

[Gary Novosielski]

7 minutes ago, George Mervosh said:

I'm blaming it on Josh's dictation app and heavy Minneapolis accent.      

Yours truly, Bob Mahvash

I have been told that Bob's my uncle.  I was apparently misinformed.

[Josh Martin]

4 hours ago, Richard Brown said:

Didn't you mean to say "The former", rather than "the latter"?

Yes.