Bylaws

Current Food Safety SS Bylaws


ARTICLE I—NAME

The name of this organization shall be the Food Safety Specialty Section of the Society of Toxicology, hereinafter designated as the Specialty Section.

ARTICLE II—OBJECTIVES

The objectives of the Specialty Section shall be as follows:

  1. To serve as the focal point for interaction of members of the Society of Toxicology interested in food toxicology which includes toxicology related to nutrition and dietary supplements.
  2. To foster the evolution of scientifically relevant approaches to and interpretation of toxicological aspects that are unique to food toxicology
  3. To develop, propose, and conduct a variety of cutting-edge programs and educational activities that emphasize the latest developments and issues in food toxicology.
  4. To act as a resource to the Society in the area of food toxicology.

No part of the net earnings of the Specialty Section shall inure to the benefit of or be distributable to its members, trustees, officers, or other private persons, except that the Specialty Section shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes herein-above set forth. Reasonable compensation for services rendered is to be limited to a recognition plaque for the outgoing president.

ARTICLE III—MEMBERSHIP

All members in good standing of the Society of Toxicology may become members of the Specialty Section upon payment of Specialty Section dues.

ARTICLE IV—OFFICERS AND COUNCILORS

Section 1. The Officers of the Specialty Section shall be President, Vice President, Vice President-Elect and Secretary/Treasurer. There shall be four Councilors. Only full, Associate, Retired or Emeritus members in good standing of the Society of Toxicology and the Specialty Section shall be eligible to serve as Secretary/Treasurer or Officers in the Presidential chain (Vice President-Elect, Vice President, President).

Section 2. There shall be a Student Representative and a Postdoctoral Representative, who shall act as liaisons between the students and the postdoctoral fellows, respectively, and the Executive Committee. Eligibility during the term requires current enrollment in a graduate program for Student Representatives and engagement in a formal mentored postdoctoral position for Postdoctoral Representatives.

Section 3. Officers, Councilors, and Representatives shall begin their terms of office on May 1 following the SOT Annual Meeting at which their election is announced or one month after the Annual Meeting if it is held, any year, after April 1.

ARTICLE V—ELECTION OF OFFICERS AND COUNCILORS

Section 1. The office of the Presidency shall be for a term of one year, becoming Immediate Past President in the following year. The President shall preside at all meetings.

Section 2. The Vice President shall become the President of the Specialty Section after serving one year as Vice President. The Vice President shall serve in the absence of the President.

Section 3. The Vice President-Elect shall be elected annually by a vote of the membership and shall become Vice President of the Specialty Section after serving one year as Vice President-Elect. The Vice President-Elect shall serve in the absence of the President and the Vice President.

Section 4. The Secretary/Treasurer shall be elected bi-annually by a vote of the membership for a term of two years.

Section 5. There shall be four Councilors. Two of these Councilors shall be elected by a vote of the membership for a term of two years, with two Councilors being elected each year.

Section 6. Student and Postdoctoral Representatives shall be elected by a vote of the membership. The Student and the Postdoctoral Representative shall serve for a two-year term.

Section 7. In the event of a vacancy in an elective office other than the Presidency or Vice Presidency, the Specialty Section's Executive Committee may make an appointment or provide for a special election to fill the vacancy until the unexpired term is completed. In the event of a vacancy in the Presidency, the Vice President accedes to that office until the unexpired term of the Presidency is completed and shall serve as President the following year; similarly, the Vice President-Elect accedes to the office of Vice President, should that office become vacant, until the unexpired term of the Vice Presidency is completed and shall serve as Vice President the following year. A special election must be held to fill the office of Vice President-Elect should this office become vacant; however, the Executive Committee may make an appointment to fill the vacancy until such time that an election can be conducted.

Section 8. Elections shall be held annually by electronic ballot in the format deemed appropriate by the Society of Toxicology prior to the SOT Annual Meeting.

ARTICLE VI—ADMINISTRATION

Section 1. The Specialty Section shall be governed by the Executive Committee except as otherwise herein expressly provided.

Section 2. The Executive Committee shall consist of the Officers, Councilors, Representatives, and Immediate Past President. The President of the Specialty Section shall serve as Chair of the Executive Committee. Five members of the Executive Committee shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.

Section 3. The President shall preside at all meetings of the Specialty Section and of the Executive Committee and shall perform such other duties as may be directed by the Executive Committee. In the President's absence, the succeeding order of Officers shall preside.

Section 4. The Specialty Section shall comply with the following provisions in order to retain its status as an authorized body within the Society of Toxicology.

  1. The Specialty Section shall provide annual reports of its activities for the current year as well as plans of programs, activities, and finances for the following year. Annual reports shall be submitted to the Society of Toxicology by the required date of each year.
  2. Annual Reports shall be reviewed by the SOT Council, which shall consult with the Specialty Section as necessary.
  3. Specialty Section policy statements must be reviewed and approved by the Society of Toxicology Council prior to release.

Section 5. The Secretary/Treasurer shall pay authorized bills incurred by the Specialty Section as directed by the Executive Committee. Dues and all other funds will be collected and held by SOT for use exclusively by the Specialty Section. The successor to the Secretary/Treasurer shall receive all property of the Section following installation of office. The Secretary/Treasurer shall keep an accurate record of all transactions of all meetings. The Secretary/Treasurer shall transmit to the successor in office all property of the Specialty Section in his/her possession.

No funds shall be expended by or in the name of the Specialty Section to the extent that the expenditure, if made by the Society of Toxicology, would represent use of funds for a purpose or purposes not within the Society's exempt purposes under 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Section 6. Any Specialty Section funds or other property remaining at the time of termination or abandonment or dissolution of the Specialty Section shall be turned over to the Society of Toxicology and shall become a part of the Society's general funds.

Section 7. The Councilors shall lead or chair specific areas associate with Specialty Section activitites. These areas shall be Awards Committee Chair, Membership Committee Chair, Newsletter editor, and Issues/Programs. Each Councilor shall lead their selected area for their two year term.

Section 8. The Graduate Student Representative will build the section poster for the annual SOT meeting.

Section 9. Additional duties of officers are described in Appendix 1 (Food Safety Specialty Section Executive Committee Officer Roles and Responsibilities)

ARTICLE VII—MEETINGS

Section 1. Specialty Section meetings shall be held at least annually and as directed by the scientific and educational programs of the Specialty Section. The time and place of each meeting shall be established Executive Committee and be communicated to the membership at least two weeks before each meeting by the Vice President-Elect.

Section 2. Special meetings may be called by the President at any time with the approval of the Executive Committee or by presentation to the President of a petition signed by 51% of the responding membership in good standing.

Section 3. A quorum shall consist of 51% of the responding members in good standing.

Section 4. Executive Committee meetings shall be held at the discretion of the President at any time during the year provided a notice of at least seven (7) days is given.

ARTICLE VIII—DUES

The dues are established by SOT Council and are the same for all Specialty Sections. A request for variance from the established rate shall be directed to SOT Council. Special fees outside of the dues structure can also be collected if pre-arranged through the Specialty Section Council Contact.

ARTICLE IX—COMMITTEES

Section 1. The Vice President shall be the Chairperson of the Program Committee and designate its members. The Program Committee shall develop scientific and educational programs consistent with the objectives of the Specialty Section, and provide copies of the materials to the Secretary/Treasurer who will, in turn, notify Council of SOT prior to developing the program. The Program Committee shall coordinate its activities with the SOT Program Committee and Food Safety Specialty Section Bylaws 5 with other appropriate Specialty Sections to develop programs. The Vice President shall coordinate program selection requirements as dictated by the Society of Toxicology

Section 2. A Nominating Committee consisting of not less than three officers of the Specialty Section shall be appointed by the Executive Committee within four months following the installation of officers. This committee shall provide a slate of candidates one month prior to each election. The Immediate Past President will (a) chair the Nominating Committee, (b) confirm that the candidates for Secretary/Treasurer, Vice President-Elect, Vice President, and President are Full, Associate, Retired, or Emeritus members of SOT in good standing and (c) delegate the responsibility of completing Biosketches for electing new officers to an officer. If, for some reason, the Immediate Past President cannot perform these responsibilities, they will pass to the President.

Section 3. The President shall appoint other committees as required and shall automatically become an ex-officio member of such committees. Members of such committees shall serve at the discretion of the President.

ARTICLE X—AMENDMENTS

Section 1. Amendments to these Bylaws may be presented by any member of the Specialty Section in good standing at any regular meeting of the Section or any special meeting called for that specific purpose. They shall be presented in writing and shall be offered to the membership present at that meeting on motion for consideration and circulation to the membership. A simple majority shall be necessary to pass the motion

Section 2. Amendments accepted for future consideration shall be forwarded to the Specialty Section Staff Liaison to be circulated with a ballot to all members in good standing. A two-thirds affirmative vote of the ballots returned within the specified timeframe shall be necessary for adoption of any amendment.

Section 3. Amendments to these Bylaws must be approved by the SOT Council before they become effective. This is done to ensure the Section that future changes in these Bylaws will have the same force as the original, which was so approved.