skip to navigation
skip to content

Sponsors

O'Reilly logo
Google Inc logo
Oracle logo
The Linux Emporium logo
Net-ng logo
Bytemark Hosting logo
Packt Publishing logo
Scraperwiki Ltd logo

The EuroPython Society

The Society was formed in 2004 especially to run the EuroPython conferences. Here are its bylaws:

Bylaws of the EuroPython Society

 1. The name of the society is "The EuroPython Society", abbreviated "EP".

 2. The society is a non-profit society (ideel förening) under Swedish
 law. The purpose of the EP is to organise conferences centered around
 the programming language Python

 3. The legal residence of the board is in Göteborg, Sweden

 4. Membership is open to individuals wishing to participate in the
 organising of a EuroPython conference.

 5. To become a member, the applicant must submit an application
 to the board of the society. The board accepts or declines the
 application by a simple majority vote at its next meeting. The board
 may delegate the right to accept membership application to one or more
 individual board members, but denial of membership must always be done
 by a vote of the board.

 6. The formal decision making bodies of the society are
 - The General Assembly
 - The Board

 7. The General Assembly is the highest decision making body of the
 society. It meets in a regular annual meeting and in extra sessions
 when called.

 All decisions of the General Assembly are made by simple majority
 among the voting members. Members may vote by proxy or submit written
 votes in specific issues to the board. All written votes must be
 declared by the chairman at the beginning of the meeting. If there is
 a draw between two proposals a second vote shall be made. If that one
 fails, the issue shall be decided by the drawing of lots.

 8. At the annual meeting of the General Assembly the following items
 of business must be on the agenda:

 - Opening of the meeting

 - Selection of chairman, secretary and 2 checkers of the minutes for
   the meeting

 - Motion establishing the timeliness of the call to the meeting

 - Presentation of the annual report and annual accounts by the board

 - Presentation of the report of the auditor

 - Discharge from liability for the board

 - Determination of the size of the board for the period until
   the next annual meeting of the General Assembly

 - Election of chairman of the board

 - Election of members of the board

 - Election of one auditor and one replacement
   The auditor does not have to be certified in any way and is normally
   selected among the members of the society.

 - The optional election of a nomination committee for the next annual
   meeting of the General Assembly

 - Presentation of a budget by the outgoing board

 - Acceptance of budget and decision on membership fees for the
   upcoming year

 - Propositions from the board

 - Motions from the members

 - Closing of the meeting

 9. An extra meeting of the General Assembly must be called by the
 board when requested by

 - a member of the board

 - the auditor or the auditor replacement

 - at least one fourth of the members of the society

 The meeting must be held within 28 days of the request.
 At an extra meeting of the General Assembly the following items of
 business must be on the agenda:

 - Opening of the meeting

 - Selection of chairman, secretary and 2 checkers of the minutes for
   the meeting

 - Motion establishing the timeliness of the call to the meeting

 - The item of business that was the reason for the extra meeting

 - Propositions from the board

 - Motions from the members

 - Closing of the meeting

 An extra meeting of the general assembly may make decisions on any
 issue that has been duly announced, including the election of a new
 board, changing of membership fees and modifications of the bylaws.

 10. Meetings of the General Assembly must be called at least 14 days
 before they are to be held. Propositions of the board and motions of
 the members must be made available to all members at least 5 days
 before the meeting.

 The General Assembly may not make decisions on items of business that
 were not announced in due course before its meetings.

 11. Meetings of the General Assembly may be called by postal or
 electronic mail. It is up to each member to keep the board informed of
 current addresses for both forms.

 12. Meetings may be held in person, by telephone conference or over
 the Internet, using a text or audio based format. It is up to the
 board to decide the form of the meeting, subject to limitations
 imposed by the General Assembly. Under all circumstances the selection
 of medium for meetings should be made to ensure that all members have
 a chance to exercise their rights to vote and have a voice in the
 affairs if the society.

 13. The board consists of a chairman and 2-6 board members.

 14. The board handles all day-to-day business of the EP. It is allowed
 to enter contracts for the society and handle any issues that have not
 been otherwise regulated in the bylaws or by the General Assembly.

 15. The chairman of the board together with any one member of the
 board has the authority to sign for the society. The authority to sign
 for the society may be delegated to individual board members through a
 decision of the board.

 16. The board may within itself select officers for special
 functions. However, the board as a whole is responsible for the
 activities and finances of the society.

 17. The fiscal year of the EP is from 1 January to 31 December.

 18. A member may at any time terminate the membership by informing
 the board in writing.

 19. A member is automatically considered to have terminated the
 membership if the membership fee has not been paid within three months
 after the annual meeting of the General Assembly.

 20. A member that acts against the interests of the society may be
 suspended by a majority decision of the board. The member may then be
 expelled from the society at a meeting of the General Assembly by a
 regular vote.

 21. The society may be dissolved by the General Assembly if two thirds
 of the present voting representatives vote for the dissolution. If the
 motion to dissolve the society passes, the General Assembly has to
 decide on the disposition of the assets of the society.

 22. If the society at any time has less than two members or if it for
 a continuous period spanning two annual General Assembly meetings has
 less than five members, the society is automatically dissolved. In
 such a case, any assets shall be donated to the Python Software
 Foundation. If that organisation no longer exists, the assets shall go
 to the Red Cross.

 23. Any motion to amend the bylaws of the society has to be submitted
 with the actual wording of the proposed change. The General Assembly
 may modify the proposal in details before passing it, as long as the
 general intent of the motion is unchanged. A motion to change the
 bylaws must be supported by at least two thirds of the present voting
 representatives in order to pass.