Section 1. Councils
The President may appoint councils and the members thereof. Councils will be the primary bodies within ACOEM for programs and projects.
Section 2. Executive Committee
The Executive Committee of the Board of Directors shall be composed of the officers of the College, the speaker of the House of Delegates, and the immediate Past-President. To the extent permitted by law, the Executive Committee shall have and exercise the authority of the Board of Directors in the management of the business of the College between meetings of the Board of Directors. It shall remain in effect unless revoked by the Board, which may be done at any time at a regular or special Board meeting. Meetings of the Executive Committee may be called by the president or by any two officers of the College. Notice of place, day, and hour of meetings of the Executive Committee shall be provided to the members thereof prior to each meeting. Only members of the Executive Committee, the chief executive officer, Board of Directors members or other invited persons may attend meetings of the Executive Committee. Only members of the Executive Committee shall vote.
Section 3. Committees and Councils of the College
Committees and Councils are responsible for the operational activities of the College necessary for preservation as a viable corporate entity. The nature and number of committees are outlined in the Policy and Procedure Manual and are determined by the Board of Directors unless specified in the Bylaws. The President appoints the chair, co-chair of committees and committee membership unless otherwise specified in the Bylaws or Policy and Procedure Manual. Committees require ACOEM leadership involvement but not specific assignments of the members of the Board of Directors, the Executive Committee, or the chief executive officer unless otherwise specified. Those committees which exist in perpetuity include:
Joint House/Board Liaison Committee comprised of three (3) House Officers and three (3) members or Officers of the Board of Directors. It shall be chaired by the Vice-President who shall vote only in the case of tie. The Joint House/Board Liaison Committee shall consider any resolutions proposed by the House but rejected by the Board once referred by the House. The recommendations of the Joint House/Board Liaison Committee shall be referred back to the Board for consideration.
Committee of Fellowship Examiners comprised of senior members of the College who are Fellows. This Committee shall consider applications for Fellowship and make recommendations to the Board of Directors regarding the awarding of Fellowship status. The treasurer will be the responsible officer.
Candidate Selection Committee shall meet about the time of the annual membership meeting to recommend director and officer candidates (see Article VII, Section 4 – Nomination, Election; (a) Nomination).
Finance and Audit Committee – responsible for advising the Board on budgets, financial results and policies and review of audit results and shall be chaired by the treasurer and comprised of Board members. Upon notification of election, the newly elected treasurer shall be added to the Finance and Audit Committee as a non-voting member.
Bylaws Committee – reviews proposed changes to the Bylaws and studies, edits and comments upon proposed revisions and/or amendments to the Bylaws. The Bylaws committee may recommend changes to the Bylaws that the Committee feels is indicated. The committee consists of a chair, four other members, and the Vice-President as responsible officer. This committee also coordinates with the 4Ps Committee to monitor compliance of policies and procedures with the bylaws. The committee may help negotiate or arbitrate disagreements with between the Board of Directors and House of Delegates regarding proposed Bylaws changes.
Section 4. Presidential Task Forces
Presidential task forces may be appointed by the President. The specific task or function of a presidential task force is to be defined by the President at the time of appointment and shall not overlap or conflict with the responsibilities of an existing committee or council. A presidential task force automatically ceases to exist upon acceptance of its final report or the end of the term of the President who appointed the task force, whichever is earlier.
Section 5. Sections of the College
A section is a group of professionals who have an interest in a particular field related to occupational and environmental medicine or who practice in a special field of occupational and environmental medicine. New sections must have at least 10 voting physician members. To create a new section, ACOEM members shall petition the ACOEM Board of Directors for status as an ACOEM section. Sections may have non-ACOEM participants, however all section participants eligible for ACOEM membership must be ACOEM members. Section chairs must be ACOEM physician members; other ACOEM non-physician members may hold section office. Non-ACOEM members may participate and vote in section business but may not hold office. ACOEM sections must maintain a minimum of 10 ACOEM physician members, conduct one meeting annually, and maintain formal meeting minutes. Sections may charge a nominal fee for membership of no more than twenty percent of national ACOEM dues. Sections must be financially self-sufficient. The Board may terminate sections based upon failure to comply with these criteria.
Section 6. Participation by Telephone
Members of any committee, council or section may participate in any meeting through the use of a conference telephone or similar communications equipment, where feasible, by means of which all persons participating in the meeting can hear each other. Such participation shall constitute presence in person at the meeting.