Bylaws
of the Denver Green Party
I.
Name and Affiliation
1.1
The name of this group shall be the Denver Green Party (DGP).
1.2
It shall be affiliated as a local chapter with the Green Party of
Colorado.
II.
Purpose and Values
2.1
The organization exists for several purposes:
2.1.1
- to serve as a local focus for electoral efforts of the members
of the Green Party of Colorado in the Denver area.
2.1.2
– to serve as an incubator for the formation of other county-based
Green groups in the Denver metro area.
2.1.3
- to provide an organization which will work to achieve a society
as described by the Ten Key
Values
of the Greens:
Ecological Wisdom
Grassroots Democracy
Community Based Economics
Social Justice
Nonviolence
Decentralization
Respect for Diversity
Feminism and Gender Equity
Personal and Global Responsibility
Future Focus
III.
Membership
3.1
Membership in the Denver Green Party requires a person to be a registered
elector of the Green Party of Colorado, to agree to support the Ten
Key Values of the Green Party, to generally endorse the local platform
of the DGP, and to reside in accordance with provisions 3.1.1 and
3.1.2 below.
3.1.1
Initially, membership in the Denver Green Party shall be available
to any member of the Green Party of Colorado in the Denver metro
area (counties of Adams, Arapahoe, Denver, Douglas, and Jefferson)
where a Green local group does not exist.
3.1.2
As Green Party locals form in other metro Denver counties, the Green
Party members in those areas will become affiliated with their local
group, not the Denver Green Party. Ultimately, it is expected that
the DGP members will all be residents solely of the City and County
of Denver.
3.2
Membership is open to any individual regardless of race, gender, creed,
religion, national origin, sexual orientation, appearance, or physical
ability.
3.3
Dues are not a requirement to belong to the Denver Green Party. Members
are encouraged, however, to contribute financially and in other ways
to such other Green organizations as may exist.
3.4
Persons who do not meet the membership requirements of the Denver
Green party as stated in 2.1.1 and 2.1.2 may attend and participate
in meetings, but they shall not have the ability to block proposals,
serve as officers or candidates of the DGP, serve as State Council
representatives, national representatives, or portray themselves as
representing the Denver Green Party.
IV.
Structure and Meeting Procedure
4.1
Meetings of the Denver Green Party shall be conducted according to
the "Process Service" model adopted by the DGP, as subsequently
modified by the DGP membership. However, the choosing of officers
shall be done by majority vote.
4.2
The time and place of meetings will be determined by the members present
at the previous meeting. However, any such meeting will be announced
on the DGP web-site at least two weeks prior to the meeting.
4.3
An annual membership meeting will be held between February 1 and June
1 each year.
4.4
To be eligible to be endorsed for a local elective office within the
geographical area of the Denver Green Party, candidates must meet
the following criteria:
4.4.1
A candidate must embrace the Ten Key Values and shall use these
values as a basis for their political decision-making;
4.4.2
A candidate must maintain active membership in the DGP;
4.4.3
The candidate shall not be a registered member of any other political
party.
V.
Officers
5.1
There will be established four co-chairs of the Denver Green Party,
two of whom will be elected at the DGP annual meeting for one-year
terms. At the first annual meeting, two co-chairs shall be elected
for one-year terms and two for six-month terms. Subsequent elections
shall be for one-year terms. From these four, the membership will
subsequently elect one to serve as Treasurer and one as Secretary.
The other two will be designated as Co-Presidents.
5.2
The DGP Co-Presidents will set the initial agenda for meetings, take
actions on issues needing expedient attention between meetings, and
act as representatives to the press on local issues.
5.3
The Treasurer shall have charge of the books of the Denver Green Party,
shall account monthly for all moneys collected and disbursed, and
shall file whatever financial reports are required by local, Colorado,
and Federal government officials, or by Green Party of Colorado officials
.
5.4
The Secretary shall forward to the Webmaster for posting the minutes
of each DGP meeting within seven days of the conclusion of the meeting.
The Secretary shall also maintain a written copy of the bylaws, with
any current amendments, and shall forward the same to the offices
of the Green Party of Colorado. The Secretary shall also endeavor
to notify electors who have expressed an interest in receiving minutes
of meetings, but who did not attend a recent meeting.
5.4
The office of Webmaster shall be filled by a volunteer, with responsibilities
for maintaining the presence of the Denver Green Party on the world
wide web. The Webmaster may be one individual, or a team.
5.5
The membership shall also select representatives to the State Council,
to the state nominating convention, and to the national convention.
5.6
If any officer is found to be in contempt of the goals and platform
of the Denver Green Party or the Green Party of Colorado, or has failed
to perform the duties of the office, recall proceedings shall be initiated
if the officer will not voluntarily step aside. A 75% majority of
voting members present is required to achieve the recall of an officer.
5.7
The membership of the Denver Green Party may create any other office
as needed. A vote of two-thirds of members present at a local meeting
must approve the creation of any new office. After the office has
been created, an election shall be announced at least two weeks before
the date of the election on the DGP web site. The winner may be seated
after obtaining a majority of the votes among members present at that
local meeting.
5.8
If a DGP officer’s position is vacated between official meetings,
the remaining co-chairs may make a temporary appointment until the
next meeting for which proper notice of an election has been given,
at which time the position shall be filled by a majority vote of members
.
5.9
Officers are urged to encourage members to participate fully in the
functioning of the DGP.
VI.
Amendments
6.1
These bylaws may be amended on a two-thirds vote by members present
at a local meeting where notice of the agenda for the meeting as a
bylaw meeting has been announced on the DGP web site for at least
fourteen days.
