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HEALTHCARE FACILITIES MANAGEMENT SOCIETY of NEW JERSEY
CONSTITUTION

CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS WERE APPROVED BY THE MEMBERSHIP ON SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

ARTICLE I

Section 1. This Association shall be known as the Healthcare Facilities Management Society of New Jersey.

ARTICLE II

Section 1. The object of this Association shall be:

ARTICLE III

Section 1. Membership

  1. Regular Member-- This level of membership in the Society shall be available to individuals who are actively employed in a facilities management capacity at a Health Care Facility. Such membership shall also extend to their assistants and supervisory personnel of other facilities management related fields. Members in this category are eligible to vote and hold office. Individuals having served as President of this organization can maintain Regular membership providing they pay the appropriate dues independent of their employment situation.
  2. Associate Member-- (Special Criteria) -- This level of membership in the Society shall be available to individuals who had been a full member of the organization and, through changes in the work environment, were unable to continue in the healthcare field. If they obtain employment in a facilities management position outside of healthcare, they will be permitted to continue as a member of the Society, providing the membership is continuous and they are in good standing when the change occurs. Any failure in the future to keep the membership continuous will result in a loss of status, and the individual will be unable to be reinstated unless they return to a position that makes them eligible for a Regular membership in the Association. Members in this category are eligible to vote.
  3. Professional -- This level of membership in the Society shall be available to those professionals who provide support functions to the facilities management staff of a healthcare institution. Such individuals are identified as licensed architects, licensed engineers and other professional consultants whose firm(s) are active in the healthcare field. Individuals in this category are eligible to vote. At the discretion of the Executive Committee, limitations may be placed on the numbers of this category of member to insure a proper balance of membership.
  4. Professional Associate -- This level of membership in the Society shall be available to those who provide facilities related support services to healthcare institutions and whose membership would be of benefit to the organization. Individuals in this category are eligible to vote. At the discretion of the Executive Committee, limitations may be placed on the numbers of this category of this member to insure a proper balance of membership.
  5. Honorary Member-- Individuals in this category may be elected by a majority vote at a regular business meeting. Honorary members should be contributors to the healthcare facilities management field. Members in this category are not eligible to vote or hold office.
  6. Retired Member -- Any member in good standing who retires from healthcare employment and does not continue in any capacity in facilities management may retain membership upon approval of the majority of the membership present at the meetingwhere the status is proposed. This member will have voting privileges. Annually, members in this category shall not be assessed a membership fee and will be responsible for any associated costs of the Society to conduct business such as monthly meetings, special events and the like. Said member MUST return any change of address, phone number, etc. in order to be kept on the active membership list in accordance with section 6.

Section 2. An applicant upon submittal of an application along with the $40.00 initiation fee and one (1) year's dues shall be eligible for acceptance into the Society. The applicant's name will not be presented or voted upon for membership unless he is present at the meeting. A majority of those members present is required for acceptance.

Section 3. Only Regular members in good standing may hold the offices of President and President Elect. Members voting rights are identified in the prior 2 sections.

Section 4. RECLASSIFICATION OF MEMBERSHIP

Members who change employment affiliation so that reclassification of membership type is required, shall retain and have their membership changed to the appropriate membership type during the full term for which dues have been paid (in accordance with Section 6) with no dues adjustments during the reclassification year.

Section 5. A member who has been removed from membership for non-payment of dues may be reinstated within one year upon payment of all back dues. After one year of being removed from the active roles, they must pay the initiation fee and one year's dues.

Section 6. For each calendar year, dues are payable in January of that year. A member is in arrears if dues are not paid by March of that calendar year. A member will be removed from the active membership list on April 15th if dues are not paid. New members paying dues after the September meeting in a calendar year will have been considered dues paid for the following calendar year.

Section 7. TRANSFER OF MEMBERSHIP

Membership in the Society is personal and cannot be transferred between individuals.

ARTICLE IV

Section 1. The organization shall ordinarily meet ten (10) times each year. The organization may cancel a regular scheduled meeting by notifying the membership by phone, e-mail or other media source. Conditions causing cancellation would include severe weather conditions and other natural or man-made disasters, which are beyond the society's control. A cancelled meeting shall not be required to be rescheduled. No regular meeting will be scheduled in July and December.

Section 2. Regularly scheduled meetings will be held the third Thursday of each month in which a meeting is scheduled to be held.

Section 3. The annual meeting of this Society shall be the third Thursday in October. This is a regular meeting.

ARTICLE V

Section 1. The officers of this Society shall be a President, President Elect, Secretary and Treasurer.

Section 2. Those members of the organization who are present shall elect the officers, at the Annual meeting. The President Elect shall automatically succeed the President who leaves office at the end of his term or for any other reason and the then vacant President Elect position will be filled in accordance with the Constitution and Bylaws.

Section 3.

Section 4. The three most recent Past-Presidents shall constitute the Trustees of the Society. In the event that a Past-President cannot serve as Trustee, no substitution shall be made.

Section 5. To be eligible for any of the four elected offices, the individual must be in good standing (dues paid) of both HFMSNJ and the American Society for Healthcare Engineering (ASHE) and maintain that status throughout the term in office.

Section 6. The President and President Elect must be employed at a healthcare institution.

Section 7. Officers shall not hold more than one (1) elected office simultaneously with the Society.

ARTICLE VI

Section 1. The president shall appoint the following committees:

Section 2. The President may appoint such special committees that he deems necessary to conduct the business and/or activities of the Society. Such appointments are to be announced to the membership at the next regular membership meeting after the appointment is made.

Section 3. The President shall appoint 2 members and one alternate per year to the Engineering Advisory Board of the New Jersey Hospital Association. The length of the appointment shall be for three (3) years. Such appointments are to be renewable at the discretion of the president.

ARTICLE VII

Section 1. Any quorum for regular or special meetings of this Society must consist of at least six Regular Members and not less than ten total members.

Section 2. The dues of the Society shall be determined by the Executive Committee annually, and shall be presented to the membership at the annual meeting as information for the upcoming year.

Section 3. This Constitution may be amended by two-thirds vote of the members present at any regular or special meeting of the Society provided that the members have been notified of the meeting and the proposed changes. A reading of the proposed amendment must be accomplished at the official meeting prior to the next scheduled meeting when the votes will be taken.

Section 4. The Executive Committee shall be chaired by the President and shall consist of the Officers, Trustees and the Committee Chairmen. The President may add any specific individual he feels may add to the function of the Executive Committee and the organization. A quorum for Executive Committee meetings will be two of the four officers plus 1 of the Trustees plus any two of the remaining appointed members of the Executive Committee. (Minimum 5 people).

ARTICLE VIII

Section 1. Membership in this Society shall not be denied any person due to age, sex, color, creed or national origin.

Section 2. The term he/his also means she/hers in this constitution and bylaws.
The term chairman/chairmen also means chairperson/chairpersons in this constitution and bylaws.

ARTICLE IX

Section 1. This Society is recognized by the State of New Jersey as a Non Profit Organization under filing 0100613683.

Section 2. The Society is recognized by the U.S. Government as Non Profit under ID # 22-3382315

HEALTHCARE FACILITIES MANAGEMENT SOCIETY of NEW JERSEY
BYLAWS

CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS WERE APPROVED BY THE MEMBERSHIP ON SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

ARTICLE I

DUTIES OF OFFICERS

Section 1. It shall be the duty of the President to preside at official meetings and enforce due observance of the Constitution and Bylaws and to perform such other duties as pertain to this office.

Section 2. The President Elect shall complete any term remaining in the event the President is unable to complete the current year. In the temporary absence of the President, the President Elect shall act and be vested with the duties of the President. He shall also act as Education Committee Chairperson.

Section 3. The Secretary shall keep and transmit a record of all business transactions of the meetings and shall issue all notices of meetings and other business of the Society. Additionally, he shall be responsible for assisting in the coordination of the meeting site as well as selection of menus.

Section 4. The Treasurer's duty shall be that of handling the funds pertaining to the Society. He shall pay out funds only after having received and verified receipts for expenditures of the Society. Expenditures will be reported to the general membership at each formal meeting. He shall prepare the annual dues notices for all current members and mail by October 15th of the current year. The Treasurer will also prepare a membership status census after the November meeting for the Executive Committee meeting in December to aid the incoming board in budgeting and setting guidelines for the coming year.

Section 5. The President, and President-elect may serve (one) 2-year term in each position. After serving (one) 2-year term, 2 years must pass before being eligible to the same office. The Secretary & Treasurer may be elected to unlimited consecutive 1- year terms.

Section 6.

  1. The President Elect shall not be required to run for the office of President upon the conclusion of the
  2. Under no circumstances shall the President Elect serve as President for more than the remainder of the sitting President's current year plus one term as President (in accordance with Article V, Section 2 of the "Constitution" and Article I, Sections 2 and 5 of these "Bylaws").

Section 7. For immediate operations and situations beyond those duties covered in Section 2, the line of succession shall be:

ARTICLE II

DUTIES OF COMMITTEES

Section 1. Committees of the Society are expected to operate within the following guidelines:

  1. Committees will establish an annual agenda or operating goals.
  2. Committees will report in writing at each regular meeting.
  3. The report will be rendered by the chairman and will be verbal with a written and electronic copy for the secretary's use.
  4. In the absence of the chairman, an alternate will present the report.
  5. In the event no one from the committee is available to present the report, a written and electronic copy of the report will be provided to the secretary in advance to be read into the minutes.

ARTICLE III

ORDER OF BUSINESS

Section 1. The President or his designee shall determine the order of business, of all business meetings. It and the agenda should contain sufficient items to be reflective of the Society's operations.

Section 2. At meetings other than the above, the chair shall determine the order of business.

ARTICLE IV

ABANDONMENT OF OFFICE

Section 1. Unexcused absences by any officer for three (3) consecutive meetings may cause his position to be declared vacant by a two-third affirmative vote of the Executive Committee and a successor elected at the next meeting, and the vacancy filled in accordance with these Constitution and Bylaws.

Section 2. Should the President or President Elect leave the health care Facilities Management field voluntarily, they shall resign their office within ninety (90) days and their position shall be filled in accordance with these Constitution and Bylaws.

Section 3. Should the President or President Elect leave the health care field involuntarily, they shall be allowed a period of one hundred-eighty (180) days to secure a position in the healthcare management field.

Section 4. Special Consideration:

In the event that re-employment in a healthcare institution is not attained during the time frame described in Section 3, the President or President Elect shall be allowed to remain in their respective positions until the end of their term. Exception: Should the President or President Elect seek employment outside healthcare, they shall resign their office within ninety (90) days and their position shall be filled in accordance with these Constitution and Bylaws.

This consideration should be effective immediately and applied to the President and President Elect.

ARTICLE V

EXPULSIONS

Section 1. The Executive Committee, upon the recommendation of the President, may expel any member or guest who does not comply with these Constitution and Bylaws or whose conduct is detrimental to this Chapter. The Executive Committee reserves the right to limit the number of visits non-member guests can make to Society meetings in a calendar year.

ARTICLE VI

Section 1. All parliamentary business not covered by this Constitution and Bylaws shall be governed by the corporate law of the State of New Jersey and then by the Robert's Rules of Order.

ARTICLE VII

Section 1. These bylaws may be amended by a two-third affirmative vote of the members present and voting at any official regular or special meeting of the Society provided the object of the proposed amendment has been given in writing in the notice of said meeting. A reading of the proposed amendment must be accomplished at the official meeting immediately prior to that at which the vote will be taken.

ARTICLE VIII

Section 1. The Healthcare Facilities Management Society of New Jersey may be dissolved by a vote of two-thirds of the members present at a Special Meeting called for that purpose. Upon dissolution of the Corporation, the Executive Committee shall pay or make provision for the payment of all liabilities of the Corporation. They shall dispose of all assets of the Corporation to an organization operated for charitable, educational or scientific purposes. No individual shall be entitled to share in the distribution of any of its assets.