Section 1: Definition
A component society is an organization that furthers the objectives of the College, which complies with the requirements of these bylaws, and which is chartered by the Board of Directors as a component society. A component society is composed of physicians and other eligible occupational and environmental health professionals who practice or are interested in occupational and environmental medicine and who work or reside in a defined geographic area or choose an adjacent component with the approval of the receiving component.
Section 2: Organization
The Board of Directors may charter an organization as a component society if the organization meets the following requirements:
The organization, if within the United States, is composed of no fewer than fifty (50) voting members of the College over two consecutive years;
The defined geographic area of a component in the United States shall be comprised of one or more states. No state of the United States shall be split among components.
The organization, if a territory of the United States or outside of the United States, is composed of no fewer than twenty-five (25) voting members of the College over two consecutive years.
Except as provided in these bylaws, the defined geographic area of the organization does not encroach upon the territory of another component society;
The organizational documents of the organization do not conflict with those of the College or with any of the College’s policies and procedures;
The purposes and activities of the organization comply with the definition of a component society contained in Section 1 of this article;
No component may have members who are eligible for ACOEM membership but who are not members of ACOEM. Any component member who is not presently a member of the College shall be offered ACOEM membership, and declining such, their component membership shall be terminated. An individual who is not eligible for ACOEM membership may remain a component member.
To maintain its charter, the component shall meet the following additional requirements:
Notify ACOEM of any changes in component officers or official mailing address for the component.
Have a copy of the component bylaws on file with ACOEM and notify ACOEM of any changes in the component’s bylaws.
Hold at least one business meeting of the component yearly, open to all component members, and in geographically diverse locations that maximizes the potential for member attendance.
Have processes in place that keeps component members and ACOEM aware of matters of interest to occupational medicine physicians that take place within the component’s territory.
At an interval no less than annually, submit a written report to ACOEM regarding component activities in the previous year. Such reports will be reviewed by the House of Delegates.
Have at least 50% of the full delegation participate at three of the prior four each House of Delegates meeting.
Only voting members of the College, as specified in Article IV, Section 3, shall have the right to be directors and officers of component societies.
Section 3. Reorganization of Component Societies
A new component society may be formed within the existing boundaries of a component, or a geographic area may be reassigned to an existing component by petition and approval of the Board of Directors when:
This action is requested by at least 50 members of an existing United States component or 25 members in United States territories or outside of the United States eligible to vote at a membership meeting, AND
These members constitute at least two-thirds (2/3) of those eligible college voting members who are located within the proposed new geographical boundaries of a new component or when two-thirds (2/3) of those eligible voting members within an existing component request to be reassigned to a different existing component, AND
Such proposed changes do not violate any currently existing bylaws or Board of Directors requirements.
If issues of component reorganization regarding compliance with bylaws or Board directives require a vote by members or a subset of members of an existing component, a simple majority vote of those voting shall govern.
Section 4. De-Recognition of Components
A component not meeting the minimum requirements for being a component for two consecutive years will no longer be recognized to be a component of ACOEM, unless the component has a written plan for meeting the minimum requirements that is acceptable to the ACOEM Board of Directors. The Board of Directors may waive the minimum member requirements of section 2, paragraphs (a) and (b) on a case by case basis.
If it becomes necessary to dissolve a component that has not met the requirements to be a component, the component will be de-recognized by ACOEM.
If the component is in the United States, the territory of the de-recognized component will be realigned to the geographically closest component on a state by state basis and the members in that state will be reassigned as members of the component to which the state is assigned unless they request assignment to an adjacent component.
If the component is in the territories of the United States or not in the United States, the members of the de-recognized component will be assigned as direct members unless they request assignment to a component to which they might otherwise belong as per these Bylaws.
Where there are disputes about assignment of territory, the House of Delegates will resolve the dispute.