• Section 1: Directors

  • The Officers of the Society along with the elected Directors at Large will constitute the  Board of Directors. The Board of Directors shall be the vested authority to manage the organization. 

• Section 2: Removal from Board of Directors

  • Removal from Board of Directors is defined in the ASAM National Bylaws. 

• Section 3: Interim Vacancies

  • Vacancies that occur on the Board of Directors between elections shall be filled by a majority vote of the remaining members of the Board of Directors, and each member so elected shall hold office during the remainder of such unexpired term and until his or her successor is elected and takes office. 

• Section 4: Terms of Directors

  • Directors shall be elected to terms equal to those of their respective offices. Directors-at-Large shall be elected to four-year terms. 

• Section 5: Meetings of the Board of Directors

  • Organizational Meeting: An organizational meeting of the Board of Directors shall be held within sixty (60) days following each election. 

  • Regular and Special Meetings: In addition to any organizational meeting, the Board  of Directors shall meet at least two times a year, and more frequently when necessary, at the call of the President, and in his/her absence, the President-Elect, or at the request of one-half of the members of the Board of Directors. The Board may also conduct its business, including voting, by telephone or by mail. 

  • Quorum: A majority of the Board of Directors shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business, except o adjourn as hereinafter provided. Each act or decision done or made by a majority of the Board members present at a meeting  duly called at which a quorum is present shall be regarded as an act of the Board of Directors. 

• Section 6: Resident Representative to Board of Directors

  • The Board of Directors may select Resident Representatives to serve as a non-voting member of the Board of Directors. 

  • The term of this Representative will be for a single year beginning at the time of  selection with approval by the majority of Board of Directors and ending at the conclusion of the academic year (end of June) during which they were selected. 

  • Resident Representatives may be selected from any ACGME-approved training program in Washington state.  

  • Resident Representatives will be able to attend all Regular meetings of the Board of Directors, but their participation will not count towards fulfillment of a quorum and Resident Representatives will not be able to vote on official Board business. 

• Section 1: Terms of Office

  • No member may hold the office of the President or President-Elect for more than one term, successively. Officers shall hold their offices until their successors are elected and assume office. If any Officer fails to complete his or her term of office because of resignation, removal for cause, or death, that office shall be filled for the duration of the term by an election of the Board of Directors. 

• Section 2: President

  • The President shall be the chief executive officer of the Society and serve as Chairperson of  the Board of Directors. The President shall serve ex-officio as a member of all other Committees, shall preside at meetings of the Society and shall perform such other duties as  may be prescribed by the Bylaws and the Board of Directors. The President or his/her designee will be responsible as state chapter representative, to the State Chapters Committee of ASAM. 

• Section 3: President-Elect

  • The President‐Elect, in the absence or disability of the President, shall exercise the powers of the President. The President‐Elect shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by the President or Board of Directors. The President-Elect must have served, or currently be serving, in the office of Secretary or Treasurer. 

• Section 4: Immediate Past-President

  • The Immediate Past-President shall undertake and perform duties as may be assigned by the President. 

• Section 5: Secretary/Treasurer

  • The Secretary/Treasurer shall: keep an accurate record of the proceedings of the meetings of the Society and the  Board of Directors; preserve records, documents and correspondence, cause notice  to be given of elections and of meetings of the Society and of the Board of Directors;  and perform all other duties incident to the office of the Secretary;

  • keep A complete list of the members entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting, with the  address of record for each, shall be prepared by the Secretary and filed in the corporate office of the Society and shall be available to all members. The Secretary shall have the list present at all membership meetings for inspection by any member;

  • be the custodian of the Society’s funds; deposit these funds in the Society’s name, following the guidelines of the Bylaws and the Board of Directors; dispense funds as authorized by the Board of Directors; and report an accurate account of all  transactions at the Annual meeting of the Society and at all Board of Directors meetings. 

• Section 6: Board Members at Large

  • Board members shall represent the general membership and shall attend all Board of Director meetings. They shall actively prosecute the Societies purposes. There shall be at least one Board Member at Large. 

• Section 7: Indemnification of Directors, Officers, and Others

  • Directors and Officers of the Society shall be indemnified to the fullest extent now or hereafter permitted by law in connection with any legal or threatened action or proceeding (including civil, criminal, administrative, or investigative proceedings) arising out of their service to the Society or to another organization at the Society’s request. Persons who are not Directors or Officers of the Society may be similarly indemnified in respect of such service to the extent authorized at any time by the Board of Directors. The provisions of this Section shall be applicable to action or proceedings commenced after the adoption hereof, whether arising from the acts or omissions occurring before or after the adoption hereof, and to persons who have ceased to be Directors, Officers, or employees and shall inure to  the benefit of their heirs, executors, and administrators. 

• Section 1: Standing Committees

  • The Standing Committees function under and at the pleasure of the President and Board of Directors and shall report thereto. There shall be such other standing Committees as the Board of Directors may establish. The Chairperson of all standing Committees shall serve two years, or at the pleasure of the President or Board of Directors, and shall be appointed by the President and approved by the Board of Directors. The Members of all Committees shall be appointed by the President. Committee members shall be approved by the Board of Directors. The recommendations of all Committees shall be presented to the Board of Directors for action. 

• Section 2: The following are the standing committees and their charges:

  • Education and Program Committee: this committee will be responsible for educational programs for the Society. In addition, the Committee will develop and implement a plan to enlighten and inform medical personnel and the public with regard to addiction. 

  • Public Policies & Relationships Committee: Members will oversee our relationship with the WSMA, state agencies and policy makers. The chairperson is the delegate to the WSMA House of Delegates and other members of the committee can act as the Society’s representative to WSMA’s inter specialty committee.

  • Ad-Hoc/Standing Committees: The President may select additional committees and appoint the chair and members of Ad‐hoc and/or Standing Committees, subject to approval of the Board of Directors. 

• Section 1: Dates and Eligibility

  • Officers shall be elected upon Chapter inception and every 2 years thereafter.

  • Only active members of the Society except for Student Members, are eligible to be elected Officers or Directors. 

• Section 2: Nominations

  • For the initial election, only Chapter members present for the Organizational Meeting shall serve as the Nominating Committee and ask for nominations from the Chapter members present. The committee will prepare ballots for Officers/Directors and proceed with elections as in Section 3. 

  • For future elections, nominations for Directors may be made upon petition of at least four (4) active members. 

  • The Board of Directors shall select Officers at least 30 days prior to the Annual Meeting of the year and announce their selection at the annual meeting of the year in which the elections are to be held. 

• Section 3: Balloting

  • The initial Officers/Directors should be selected within 90 days of Constitution and Bylaws approval. 

  • The Secretary will submit the list of nominees at least 30 days prior to the Annual  meeting to all active members entitled to vote for the nominees at their email and/or physical addresses on file in the American Society of Addiction Medicine membership database. 

  • Candidates obtaining a plurality of votes from ballots received at least 7 days prior to the Annual Meeting will be deemed elected to the Board of Directors. In the case of a tie between 2 or more candidates receiving the most votes, the President shall designate one of the candidates as elected. 

• Section 4: Filling Vacancies

  • In the event an Officer/Director position is vacant, either by resignation or failure to fill the  position via member nomination at an annual meeting, that vacancy may be filled by the Board of Directors. Any member of the Board of Directors may propose a nominee for the vacant position, which shall first be submitted in written form to the Board of Directors for approval. The board-selected nominee will be approved upon the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members of the Board of Directors at any duly constituted Board meeting, provided that the proposed nominee shall have been placed on the agenda for said meeting and distributed in advance to all Board members. This elected nominee shall serve out the remainder of the term. 

• Section 1: Meetings of the Membership of the Society

  • There shall be an Annual Meeting of the Society. The time and place of such Annual Meeting shall be determined by the Board of Directors, and communicated to all members at the email and/or physical address of record with the Society or other address supplied by the member for that purpose. All notices shall be sent not less than thirty (30) days prior to each meeting. 

  • The Annual Meeting shall be chaired by the President of the Society and shall be for the purpose of disseminating information to the membership, and conducting any other necessary business. 

  • A special meeting of the members for any purpose or purposes may be called at  any time by the President or by the Board of Directors, or by a majority of the Society. Notice of a special meeting shall be made in the same manner as for the Annual Meeting, except that the notice shall be sent by mail or email no later than fifteen (15) days prior to such special meeting. The notice of any special meeting shall specify the time, place, and the general nature of the business to be  transacted. No notice to other than active members needs to be given. 

  • The presence of at least ten (10) active members shall constitute a quorum at any meeting for the transaction of business for which that meeting was called, except for the installation of Officers at the Annual Meeting. 

  • In the absence of a quorum, no business may be transacted at any meeting. However, any meeting of the Society, whether or not a quorum exists, may be adjourned from time to time by the vote of a majority of the members present  and voting. When any meeting is adjourned for thirty (30) days or more, notice  of reconvening shall be given as per an Annual Meeting. No notice to other than active members needs to be given. 

  • Cumulative and proxy voting is expressly prohibited. 

  • A complete list of the members entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting, with address of record for each, shall be prepared by the Secretary and filed in the corporate office of the Society and shall be available to all members. The Secretary shall have the list present at all membership meeting for inspection by any member. 

• Section 2: Parliamentary Procedure 

  • All deliberations of the Society, its Board of Directors, and its Committees shall be governed by parliamentary usage as interpreted by the current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order, when not in conflict with the Constitution and Bylaws of this Society. 

No member of the Society shall make public statements in the name of the Society without prior consent of the Board of Directors. Individual members may mention their membership in public statements or scientific publications but shall state that their views do not necessarily represent those of the Society. 

• Section 1: Annual Dues

  • The Board of Directors shall establish dues for various classes of membership. Dues shall be uniform and equal within each class but dues may be different for each class. 

• Section 2: Other Sources of Revenue

  • Funds may be raised by the Society by: 

    • publications of the Society;  

    • voluntary contributions including bequests, legacies, and gifts;

    • income from conference fees and other programs and meetings. 

• Section 3: Use of Funds

  • All of the income, revenue and earnings of the Society shall be held, used, managed, devoted, expended and applied at the discretion and judgment of the Board of Directors to carry out the objectives and purposes of the Society. Any salary-type compensation paid to members of the Board of Directors must be approved in advance by a three-fourths vote of the Society membership. 

• Section 4: Contracts

  • The Board of Directors, except as otherwise provided in the Bylaws, may authorize any officer, agent, or agents to enter into any contract or execute any instrument in the name, or on behalf of, the Society, and such authority may be general or confined to specific instances. Such a contract shall first be reviewed by WSAM board of directors. Unless authorized by the Board of Directors, no officer, agent, or member shall have power or authority to bind the Society by any contract or engagement or to pledge its credit or to render it liable for any purpose or to any amount. 

Any member of the Board of Directors or any group of six (6) active members in good standing may propose one or more amendments to the Bylaws. Proposed additions, deletions, and changes shall first be submitted in written form to the Board of Directors for approval. An amendment will be approved upon the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members of the Board of Directors at any duly constituted Board meeting, provided that the proposed amendment shall have been placed on the agenda for said meeting and distributed in advance to all Board members.

Unless otherwise required by applicable law, if any provision of these Bylaws of the Society requires a notice or communication to any member, director, or committee member, or any record to be in writing, an electronic record or an electronic communication satisfies the requirement. 

Similarly, unless otherwise required by applicable law, if any provision of these Bylaws of the Society requires the signature or written consent or approval of a member, director, or committee member, an electronic signature or authenticated electronic communication satisfies the requirement.