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BYLAW IX - ADMINISTRATION AND FINANCE

SECTION 1. ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION:

The basic governing document of the Association is the Articles of Incorporation.

SECTION 2. ASSOCIATION BYLAWS:

The Bylaws are rules established by the National BOD for governing and regulating the affairs of the Association.

SECTION 3. BOOKS AND RECORDS:

The Association shall keep accurate and complete books and records of accounts, (manually or in the computer files) minutes of the proceedings of its meetings and shall keep at the registered or principal office a record giving the names and addresses of the members entitled to vote. All books and records of the Association may be inspected by any member, their agent or attorney for any proper purpose at any reasonable time.

SECTION 4. FORMULATING POLICIES:

a. Policies: USAWOA policies reflect the decisions of the governing bodies of the Association. They include, but are not limited to, legislative, administrative or management matters. They define in broad terms the short and long-range objectives of the Association and express the aspirations of the general membership.

b. The General Membership Determines Policy: The USAWOA general membership dictates policy at the Annual Meeting of the Members. By their direct contact, members may influence their chapter, region and national Association leaders.

c. National BOD: Policies adopted by the Annual Meeting of the Members shall be carried out by the BOD. Between Meetings of the Members the National BOD, through the Executive Committee (and subject to review and approval of the National BOD), shall establish any additional policies necessary to carry on the operation of the Association. The responsibility of the BOD shall be governance while operational policies and procedures will be the responsibility of the Executive Director and staff.

SECTION 5. ADMINISTRATIVE PUBLICATIONS:

The National Board of Directors will authorize the issuance of appropriate manuals or similar publications promulgating the policies and procedures of the governing bodies of the Association.

SECTION 6. POLICY REGARDING THE ACQUISITION OR DISPOSITION OF PROPERTY, EQUIPMENT AND/OR SERVICES:

The Association may acquire or dispose of property, equipment and/or services as deemed necessary by the National Board of Directors.

SECTION 7. BONDING:

The National Treasurer and any Assistant Treasurers and any elected/appointed official authorized to handle/disburse USAWOA funds shall be bonded. The initial bond shall be in the amount of$100,000 with provisions for increases. The premium reimbursement for the bonds shall be made by the Association. This bonding requirement shall apply to all levels of the organization where funds are handled with the amount of the bond dependent upon the amount of funds handles, i.e., $10,000.00 or $25,000.00. The premium for the bonds will be paid by the organizational element to which the Treasurer is assigned.

SECTION 8. BUDGET:

a. Annual General Fund Budget: The Treasurer shall prepare a proposed annual budget for the operation and maintenance of the Association. The proposed budget will be presented to the EXCOM no less than ninety (90) days prior to the Annual Meeting of the Members for review, approval, and presentation to the National BOD subsequent to the meeting. Revisions to the current fiscal year's budget shall be presented to the EXCOM as needed for review, approval and presentation to the National BOD. All proposed budgets presented by the EXCOM must be approved by the National BOD prior to implementation.

b. Special Activities Support Fund Budget: The Treasurer shall be responsible for preparing this budget which shall be appended to the annual general fund budget.

SECTION 9. AUTHORITY TO INCUR EXPENSES:

The National BOD shall formulate and administer Association policy respecting authorized expenditures and procedures for reimbursement. The Treasurer or Assistant Treasurer(s) may pay only authorized expenditures that are within budget appropriations and financial ceilings prescribed by the National BOD.

SECTION 10. DUES REBATES TO CHAPTERS AND REGIONS:

Chapters and Regions shall receive dues rebates in accordance with USAWOAM 400-2, National Headquarters Financial Management Manual.

In order to standardize and simplify reporting of the Association's financial status with the Internal Revenue Service, the Association shall collect all membership dues. Each region headquarters and chapter shall receive a rebate from the National Headquarters based on membership during the period, as defined in USAWOAM 400-2 Sections 3 and 4.

SECTION 11. NATIONAL OFFICIALS EXPENDITURES:

a. General: In order for the National Officials to properly perform their duties, certain expenditures are authorized as outlined herein:

     (1) Postage.

     (2) Commercial telephone.

     (3) Out of pocket expenses incurred in conjunction with the conduct of official USAWOA business.

     (4) When it becomes necessary for a National Official to travel in support of activating a chapter, resolving chapter problems or other purposes as authorized or directed by the President, reimbursement is authorized in accordance with SECTION 12 c. When travel is at the request of a chapter/region, funds will come from unpaid regional rebates for the respective region to the maximum extent possible.

b. b. Funds for Regional Directors in non-activated regions will primarily come from unpaid regional rebates for their respective region. Reimbursement will be in accordance with Section 12c below.

c. Submission of Vouchers: USAWOA expense vouchers shall be used in submitting claims. Completed forms shall be submitted to the National Treasurer for review, certification and payment

SECTION 12. TRAVEL AND PER DIEM RATES:

a. Travel: For travel by privately owned conveyance, when deemed more advantageous to the Association, reimbursement shall be made for actual expenses not to exceed the rate prescribed by the DOD Joint Travel Regulation (for military travelers) based on official mileage. For travel by commercial carrier, actual cost of the fare, plus cost of berth, parlor car seats, etc. (Where use of a round-trip ticket is feasible and cheaper, it shall be used.) FIRST CLASS AIR IS NOT AUTHORIZED.

b. Per Diem: Each entitled member shall also be entitled to an allowance for ACTUAL EXPENSES NOT TO EXCEED THE RATES as prescribed by the DOD Joint Travel Regulations for all periods away from his domicile in connection with OFFICIAL ASSOCIATION BUSINESS to cover expenses for room rentals, tips, and other incidentals.

c. Reimbursement: Reimbursement under the terms of this section will only be made if approval for the travel and expenses was obtained from the National BOD prior to the commencing of the actual travel, except in the case of emergencies. In the event the Association is not financially capable of rendering the transportation and per diem reimbursements, the authorized member may submit a written statement of donation in the amount claimed to the National Treasurer. The National Treasurer shall provide this member with a receipt for the donation and shall reflect this donation in the next monthly financial statement to the members.

13. ANNUAL AUDIT:

a. Conduct of Audit: The accounts of the Association elements (chapters, regions, and national) shall be audited IAW USAWOAM 400-2, National Headquarters Financial Management Manual, and generally accepted auditing principles by one or more disinterested parties. Although a chapter member may be considered a disinterested party, no elected or appointed officer, from the same organizational level, may be so defined. This audit will normally be conducted with the change of the Treasurer, immediately after the election, or immediately after the end of the established fiscal year. The audits shall be conducted at the place or places where the accounts of the Association are normally maintained. All books, accounts, financial records, reports, files, and all other papers, things or property belonging to or in use by the Association and necessary to facilitate the audits shall be made available to the person(s) conducting the audits. Full facilities for verifying transactions with the balances or securities held by depositories, fiscal agents and custodians shall be afforded to such persons.

b. Reports to National BOD: The report of each annual independent audit shall be submitted to the National BOD not later than ninety (90) days following the close of the fiscal year for which the audit was made. The report shall set forth the scope of the audit and include such statements as necessary to present fairly the Association's assets and liabilities, surplus or deficit with an analysis of the changes therein during the year, supplemented in reasonable detail by a statement of the Association's income and expenses during the year including the results of any commercial endeavor carried on by the Association together with the independent auditor's opinion of those statements. The approved report shall be published to the membership.

SECTION 14. ACCESS TO MEMBERSHIP LISTS:

The list of names and addresses of members of the Association may, at proper times, be open to inspection by all members. Any member who wishes to inspect a list of members must submit a written or email application for permission to inspect such list to the Executive Director setting forth their reasons for wishing to do so. This request will be submitted by the Executive Director with a recommendation to the Executive Committee for action in accordance with its authority. If approved, the member will be notified of the time and place when such inspection will be permitted. The Executive Committee may authorize the Executive Director to provide the requestor electronic or paper copy listings of all personnel who have not requested that their personal information be keep confidential. This does not preclude Chapters or Directors from reclaiming their copies of the membership list for use in verifying information or recruiting drives.

SECTION 15. FUND RAISING:

Chapters and Regions shall be permitted to conduct fund raising activities for such civic and charitable projects as the membership may direct. The National BOD may authorize a private concern to develop official USAWOA items for resale to the general membership in return for advertisement purchasing in the monthly newspaper and/or royalties as determined by the National BOD. Chapters and Regions conducting any fund-raising activities must follow the guidelines as prescribed in AR 210-22 and the host installations regulations.