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[On Officers generally, see By-Laws: Articles III (elections), IV (duties); Sections 2.10 (vacancies), 5.3 (reports, overruling decisions), 5.7 (Executive Board meetings), 5.8 (bonding), 5.9 (records), 6.4(a) (ineligible for Rules Committee), 7.3 (ineligible for Fellowship), 8.3, 8.4, 8.5 (removal).]
1.1 The President
[See By-Laws: Sections 4.1 (duties
of President), 2.1, 2.3 (scheduling meetings), 2.8 (absence), 2.10
(vacancy), 5.4(b), (c) (signing checks and contracts), 6.2, 6.3, 6.5, 6.5A (committees),
11.2, 11.3, 11.3A (Boskone Chairman, Treasurer), 11.4(d) (Boskone checks).]
1.1(1)M [Authorized President to pencil in NESFA for Boskone facilities; passed 10/86, became irrelevant when Downtown Boston ceased to be the default location, repealed 5/92.]
1.2 The Vice-President
[See By-Laws: Sections 4.2 (duties
of Vice-President), 2.8 (absence), 2.10 (vacancy).]
1.3 The Treasurer
[See By-Laws: Sections 4.3 (duties
of Treasurer), 5.4 (authorizing expenditures), 5.10 (auditing), 11.3,
11.4(a) (and Boskone Treasurer). In the
Standing Rules, see particularly the financial rules in Sections 2.3-2.8.]
1.3(1)E The Treasurer may appoint any number of Assistant Treasurers (either Regular or General Members) to serve at the Treasurer's pleasure, and may prescribe their duties. [5/71]
1.3(2)M The Treasurer need not accept more than ten cents in pennies from any Member, and no Member need accept more than ten cents in pennies from the Treasurer. [12/69]
1.3(3)M The Treasurer, with the approval of the Executive Board, shall set a general check approval policy for all payments to NESFA in any of its guises and may set additional policies for specific circumstances or events. [1/03; see also 2.7(3).]
1.4 The Clerk
[See By-Laws: Sections 4.4 (duties of
Clerk), 1.2(c) (dues-due notification), 1.3 (petitions), 2.3, 2.4 (notice of meetings), 2.9 (absence), 3.11 (not
Massachusetts resident), 6.8 (committee records),
11.4(d) (Boskone checks). In the Standing
Rules, see particularly Section 4.3 on
Instant Message.]
1.4(1)E The Clerk may appoint one or more "Mailmen," who shall be responsible for picking up and distributing mail, for removing money from the mail (upon which the amount removed shall be noted), and for delivering such money to the NESFA or Boskone Treasurer. [8/83. The office of "Mailman" was in fact established by the Clerk in 10/80.]
1.4(2)E The Clerk shall be responsible for making payments, when due, on the Post Office Box. [1/68]
1.4(3)M The Clerk is directed to renew NESFA's non-profit Bulk Rate and Imprint permits with the Post Office when necessary. [1/75. The permits mentioned were obtained in 4/74.]
1.4(4)F Clerk: It would be appreciated if Members submitting long and complex motions would present them in typed form, in order to simplify the Clerk's job of including such motions in the minutes. [8/87]
1.4(5)M The Clerk is directed to keep our telephone listings up to date. In both the Boston / Cambridge / Somerville Business Directory and the Framingham Directory our main telephone number should be listed under "NESFA", "New England Science Fiction Association", and "Boskone". [5/97]
1.4(6)F Clerk: Wit, brevity and e-mail are encouraged when submitting annual reports. Especially e-mail. [4/01]
1.5 The Executive Board
[See By-Laws: Article V (management);
Sections 2.1, 2.3
(scheduling meetings), 3.9 (filling vacancies), 3.11 (naming Resident Agent), 4.1 (President presides at), 4.3 (directives on handling funds), 4.4 (Clerk records meetings), 6.3, 6.6 (committees), 7.2 (Fellowship election), 8.4(c) suspension), 10.2(i) ("Board"), 11.4(b) (Boskone Treasurer). In the Standing
Rules, see particularly Section 2.3 on
budgeting.]
1.5(1)E The Executive Board would like to see policy-type letters before they are sent out so they can be changed if necessary. [pre-1974]
1.5(2)M [Authorized Exec. Board to prepare lease agreement for Index Production programs and databases; passed 2/74, nothing ever came of it, repealed 5/92.]
1.5(3)M The Executive Board is directed to, where feasible, eliminate royalties paid on sale by replacing all existing royalty agreements with lump-sum payments for all unsold copies and by negotiating all new royalty agreements as lump-sum payments due on printing. [9/94]
1.5(4)M The Executive Board is authorized to implement the club's parking enforcement policy after the Membership sets one. [9/97]
1.6 The Rules Committee
[See By-Laws: Articles VIII
(discipline), IX (amendments); Sections 2.10 (absence of Officers), 3.7 (counting ballots), 3.9 (ineligible for temporary Officer), 5.8 (bonding Officers or agents), 5.9 (examining records), 6.4, 6.5 (appointment
of).]
1.6(1)M The Rules Committee shall be
responsible for maintaining the NESFA Code. From time to time, but preferably
quarterly, the Rules Committee shall report to a business meeting, in the form
of an amendment or addition to the appropriate part of the Code, all decisions
made by the Membership or the
Executive Board having the character of a rule or
regulation of general and continuing effect. If necessary the Rules Committee
may rephrase the rule, preserving its original substance. The text of the code
shall be modified in accordance with the Rules Committee report unless a
different wording is specifically adopted by the originating body by the close
of its next meeting after the report. The above mechanism for maintaining the
text of the NESFA Code does not alter the fact that a new rule or change in the
rules goes into effect when adopted or as provided when it is adopted.
[7/71*. The original text required that rules processed by the
Rules Committee be submitted again to the originating body for
"ratification." Amended in 8/83 to eliminate the ratification
requirement but require quarterly reports; reporting requirement eased 5/92.
See also Section 5.1 on the format of the
Code.]
1.6(2)M The Rules Committee
shall maintain an up-to-date
edition of the NESFA Code on the NESFA website. Any Member for whom web access is
impractical will be provided with a paper copy on request. Every new Member
shall be informed of this upon admission to membership.
[7/71*, requiring copies for Regular and Affiliate Members.
General Members added in 8/74, Inactive in 9/83; then all except Regular deleted
in 7/91. 7/05: Distribute the Code via the website
(at <http://www.nesfa.org/rules/>), in conformance with
long-standing practice. See also BL 10.3].
1.6(3)M [7/71*, for Regular and General Members; General deleted 7/91. Deleted 7/05, since distribution is now via the NESFA website. Formerly required that new members of certain classes be provided a copy of the Code."]
1.6(4)F Rules Committee: In updating the NESFA Code, the Rules Committee interprets "continuing effect" to include things still likely to be in effect one year after the updating as well as rules which by their own terms are of indefinite duration. [pre-1974]
1.6(5)F Rules Committee: To protect members from frivolous complaints and to protect the Rules Committee from exhaustive labor, we wish to announce that the Rules Committee may refuse to consider any complaint involving apa contributions unless the complaint contains a specific citation of the material complained of and specifies why the material is deemed objectionable. [9/75]
1.6(6)F Rules Committee: The official source documents for the ByLaws and Standing Rules are the files at <http://www.nesfa.org/rules/>. [12/98]
1.7 The Membership Committee
[See By-Laws: Sections 1.3, 1.5, 1.8, 1.9 (new Members, changes of Membership class), 6.4 (appointment of). In the Standing Rules, see also
Sections 1.9(7) and 1.9(7A) on honorary members.]
1.7(1)M The Membership Committee shall annually, after the Boskone and before the Annual Meeting, review the classification of each Member in the light of his or her activity and interest. This rule does not prevent or restrict the Committee from making such a review or acting on applications received at any other time. [7/71*]
1.7(2)M Before the Membership Committee denies the request of any applicant or transfers (except between Regular and Inactive Membership) any Member without his or her own consent, and at any other time when any one Committee member so demands, the Committee shall hold a full meeting at which the Member or applicant under consideration may be heard. [7/71*. Exception added 4/81.]
1.7(3)M All votes on changes of status to or from Regular Membership shall be by secret ballot, counted by the Rules Committee, with the results announced only as "Pass" or "Fail" and no count of votes announced. The ballots shall be open for inspection by anyone interested. [3/75]
1.7(4)M The Membership Committee's recommendations on transfer of Members from one class of membership to another may be debated. [8/82]
1.7(5)M Guidelines To Membership
Policy
[See By-Laws: Section 1.1
(definition of Membership classes). The original version of these guidelines
was a Membership Committee fiat, first reported in 3/71. They do not seem to
have ever been explicitly voted on as a whole by the Membership. However, the
Membership have on a number of occasions amended them (including complete
revisions of the Regular and General sections in 1975), and thus they are now
considered to be Membership rules.]
These guidelines are not intended to be final and definitive; they are intended to convey the general sense of the criteria used. Moreover, there are a variety of exceptions to these criteria which have been made in the past and which can be expected to be made in the future. In some cases the Member in question has special qualifications which outweigh other considerations. In others the meaning of the requirements are met even if the formal criteria are not. On the whole, though, these guidelines may be taken as applying in most cases.
Whenever the Membership Committee makes an exception to the guidelines in any recommendation, it shall state that it is and what the exception is. [added 11/75]
I. Subscribing Members: essentially automatic for anyone who applies for it and pays the dues. Subscribing Members who regularly attend meetings are expected to change their class of membership to General unless special circumstances prevail. Except in certain unusual cases, candidates for Subscribing Membership may be recommended by the Chairman of the Committee alone, without having to call a meeting for what would ordinarily be a routine matter. [Last sentence added 7/71, now semi-obsolete. "Corresponding" changed to "Subscribing" in 11/75.]
II. Affiliate Members: Membership for dues-paying Affiliates is essentially automatic. Exchange Affiliates will usually be approved without question.
Affiliate Membership shall be offered free of dues to all fan organizations in New England. In lieu of dues, all such organizations that do not exchange publications will be asked annually to verify their continued existence and interest. [added 9/77]
III. Family-Dependency Members: Essentially automatic for anyone who qualifies. [See By-Laws, Section 1.1 (f).]
IV. General Membership: A General Member has no particular obligations, and all of the privileges of membership except voting and holding constitutional Offices. The qualifications are fairly loose. They are:
["Associate" changed to "General" in 9/75.]
V. Inactive Membership: Essentially automatic for anyone who qualifies. [See By-Laws: Section 1.1 (b).] Under By-Laws Section 1.2A, the Membership may also waive the requirement of Section 1.1 (b) that an Inactive Member be a former Regular Member. [Inactive Membership introduced in 9/75, this paragraph added in 4/81. The second sentence is based on a precedent set in 10/82.]
VI. Regular Membership: A Regular Member has all of the privileges of membership including voting and holding office. A Regular Member also has distinct obligations to the club. The qualifications are much tighter than those for General Member. The following guidelines are rather general but they do summarize the criteria applied:
1.7(6)F Membership Committee: The Membership Committee would like to dispel a number of misconceptions about Regular Membership that may be confusing people, and requests that this statement be published in IM every 6 months:
The status of Regular Member is not conferred as a reward for work done or anticipated to be done. The status of Regular Member is not a stamp of approval, an honor, or a passport to the respect of other NESFAns. The status of Regular Member not only confers the privileges of voting and holding office, but also confers the responsibility to be concerned with and to work for the continuance and betterment of NESFA as an SF organization.
The conferral of the status of Regular Member is a recognition of a Member's responsible commitment to NESFA; it is not a demand for work or a reward for work. The Membership Committee looks at the work a member has done for evidence of real interest in NESFA. This evidence is a necessary, but not a sufficient, condition for recommendation. Some minimal demonstration of a responsible, constructive disposition towards NESFA is also required. Managerial/organizational skills are not necessary for the demonstration of responsibility. This can be achieved by:
delivering on promises, even trivial ones;
being careful not to promise unrealistically;
warning one's co-workers as soon as possible when promises can not be
delivered;
and pitching in when one didn't promise to, if and when one can.
[7/75; the requirement of publication every six months has seldom been observed. Also of interest are the simpler criteria for Regular Membership approved by the Membership Committee in 2/75: "1) Be in the area a sufficient amount of time, whether or not they live here, and be willing to help and have sufficient time to help. 2) They should be asked what they are going to do for NESFA and why. 3) They should be available and trustworthy. 4) They might even be mature."]
1.7(7)F Membership Committee: Involuntary Transfers
The Membership Committee will consider the involuntary transfer of a Member from Regular Membership to another class only on receipt of a written complaint citing continuing or grave misfeasance or irresponsibility of the cited Member as a Member of NESFA.
If similar complaints are filed with both the Membership Committee and the Rules Committee, then the Membership Committee will defer action, until either (a) the Rules Committee reports on the complaint before it to the Membership, and either the Rules Committee or the Membership determine that there are not grounds for expulsion; or (b) three months elapse from the submission of the complaint to the Membership Committee.
In such a case, with the Rules Committee's consent, the Rules Committee's determinations of the facts of the matter may be used to aid the Membership Committee in its deliberations, though it may make its own inquiries.
The Membership Committee recognizes that there is a class of maleferous [sic] conduct which would not necessitate expulsion but would invalidate the previous judgment of a Membership Committee in recommending someone for Regular Membership. This is not to be taken to preclude the Rules Committee from recommending such transfers of Membership.
[9/75. Note the restrictions placed on involuntary transfers by Section 1.7 of the By-Laws, the present text of which was passed at the same time.]
1.7(8)M Two or more persons in the same household may jointly hold a Subscribing Membership upon request, or a membership of another class by vote of the Membership. [Based on a precedent set in 10/82 and previous tradition.]
1.7(9)M [Allowed two members of a household to receive only one copy of IM. Passed 1/86, subsumed into Section 1.10 of the By-Laws in 1/87.]
1.7(10)F Membership Committee: As part of the Membership Committee report at the Business Meetings of February and August, the names of those Regular Members who stand in jeopardy of being transferred to Inactive status will be reported to the Membership, as a courtesy to those Members. Final responsibility for meeting attendance still resides in the individual Member. [10/86]
1.7A The Finance
Committee
[See By-Laws: Sections 5.8 (bonding
Officers or agents), 5.9 (examining records), 5.10 (auditing), 6.5A
(appointment of). In the Standing Rules, see particularly Section 2.6 on auditing.]
1.7A(1)M The Finance Committee shall
provide advice on financial matters to the Corporate Treasurer,
the Boskone Treasurer, or the
Membership, and shall conduct audits in
accordance with Section 5.10 of the By-Laws.
[4/92. The Finance Committee was originally established in 3/91
as an ad hoc advisory committee; in 4/92 it was made a standing
committee and given the responsibility for auditing (previously assigned to the
Rules Committee).]
1.8 The Nominating
Committee
[See By-Laws: Sections 3.3
(appointment and duties), 3.8 (none in special
elections).]
1.8(1)M The Nominating Committee, in performing its function under Article III of the By-Laws, shall assure that there is at least one qualified candidate for each Office. It shall not function to screen candidates so as to impede any Member from running for office. [7/71*]
1.9 The Boskone
Committee
[See By-Laws: Article XI (Boskone);
Section 5.10 (auditing). Most of Article XI was part of the Standing Rules until 11/79. The
Boskone (originally "Convention") Committee is as old as NESFA and in
fact Boskones are older than NESFA (cf. Appendix B).
In 4/75 the rules first specified that each Boskone was run by a separate
committee, and required that the Chairman be confirmed by the Membership;
confirmation of the Boskone Treasurer was added in 8/79. The Skylark Award
rules go back to the 7/71 Code, and were based on earlier tradition (the Skylark
also being older than NESFA). See also Section 2.7 of the Standing Rules on Boskone
finances.]
1.9(1)M Boskone Life Memberships are not transferable, but usable for life or 300 years (whichever comes first) at all Boskones run by NESFA. They shall be treated as preregistrations for each Boskone. [4/77]
1.9(2)M One natural sentient being shall be permanently designated for each Boskone Life Membership. [11/79]
1.9(3)M The price of a Boskone Life
Membership shall be fourteen times the lowest generally-available advance
membership rate for the then-current Boskone; during a given
Boskone, if memberships for the subsequent Boskone are being sold, Life
Memberships shall be available at fourteen times the lower of the two advance
rates; provided that at no time shall the price of a Life Membership be less
than $350.
[2/84, clarified 4/84 by adding clause on at-Boskone sales (then
based only on the next year's rate). The two multipliers were changed from 20
to 14 in 10/87, when the lower-of-two-rates clause was also added. Life
Memberships were originally sold in 4/77, for $50; the price rose to $100 by
1979, and sales were terminated in 8/80. Sales were resumed in 2/84 at $300;
minimum price increased to $350 in 10/87. 8/03: changed basis from "most recent
by-mail rate" to "lowest generally-available rate" to conform to
long-standing practice. Quoted in /Treasury/BoskoneLifeMemberships.htm.]
1.9(4)M Boskone Life Membership fees
shall be held in a separate account called the Life Membership Account,
and shall be invested in a money market fund, from which they may be removed at
the Treasurer's discretion.
[4/79. 7/05: name the account (it's been referred to by name for
years, but the name was never defined).]
1.9(5)M Every year there shall be
transferred from the Life Membership fund to the Boskone fund the Boskone
preregistration fee times the approximate number of Life Members attending the
con who are not receiving a free membership, except that the transfer shall not
exceed the interest accrued during the year on the Life Membership fund.
[5/79; "approximate" and "except" clause
added 5/92, to correspond to actual practice. Quoted in /Treasury/BoskoneLifeMemberships.htm.]
1.9(6)M The internal transfer cost of
a Boskone Life Membership shall be the same as the price specified
in SR 1.9(3). Each Boskone Committee shall purchase
a Boskone Life Membership at this rate for each of its
Guests of Honor.
[11/81, originally "twenty times"; in practice the
multiplier was changed to 14 at some time after the same change was made in
Section 1.9(3) in 10/87, but this was not recognized in
the text until 5/92. 7/05: Make the internal cost of a Boskone
Life Membership the same as the external price and state that all Guests of Honor of a
Boskone will be given Boskone Life Memberships; both changes are to conform to
long-standing practice. Quoted in
/Treasury/BoskoneLifeMemberships.htm.]
1.9(7)M Each Boskone Committee shall
purchase for each of its Guests
of Honor a lifetime honorary membership in NESFA at a cost of fourteen times the
current annual dues for Subscribing Membership. Such
honorary memberships shall entitle their holders to all the rights and privileges of
Subscribing Membership without payment of dues.
[8/82; multiplier changed from 20 to 14
as in Section 1.9(6). 7/05: State that all Guests of Honor of a
Boskone will be given NESFA Honorary memberships; this change is to conform to
long-standing practice. Quoted in
/Treasury/BoskoneLifeMemberships.htm.]
[By implication and actual practice, honorary memberships as defined here may be granted to persons other than Boskone Guests of Honor, with the approval of the Membership Committee and/or the Membership. See also Section 4.3(4B) on the listing of honorary members in the roster.]
1.9(7A)M When an honorary member dies, the Membership Committee in its discretion may designate the survivor as an honorary member with the same privileges. [12/85]
1.9(8)M Boskone Life Memberships shall be given, free if they wish, to the Guests of Honor of all Boskones back to Boskone I of the current series. [4/77]
1.9(9)M [Special provision for ATom, who has since died.]
1.9(10)M Any Boskone Committee is
authorized to schedule its Boskone on Friday through Sunday of Washington's
Birthday/Presidents' Day weekend.
[4/85. This satisfies the requirement of Section 11.2 of the By-Laws that the Membership approve the
date of Boskone; it was passed after the date had become so automatic that the
committee published a flyer without bothering to have the date
ratified.]
1.9(11)F U.S. Patent and Trademark Office: [5/85]
| Int. Cl.: 41 | Reg. No. 1,337,242 |
| Prior U.S. Cl.:#107 | Registered May 21, 1985 |
SERVICE MARK
PRINCIPAL REGISTER
BOSKONE
NEW ENGLAND SCIENCE FICTION ASSOCIATION, INC. (MASSACHUSETTS CORPORATION)
"PUSSYWILLOWS" OFF WHEELER LA.
NATICK, MA 01760
FOR: ORGANIZING, PROMOTING AND CONDUCTING CONVENTIONS IN THE FIELD OF SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY, IN CLASS 41 (U.S. CL. 107).
FIRST USE 0-0-1967; IN COMMERCE 0-0-1967.
SER. NO. 494,270, FILED 8-10-1984.
NANCY O. HEBERT, EXAMINING ATTORNEY
1.9(12)F President: Since the By-Laws provide that Boskone Chairmen serve until the end of their Committees or until their successors are appointed and approved, and such approval requires a 2/3 vote of the Membership, it also requires a 2/3 vote to remove a Boskone Chair. [8/86]
1.9(13)F Boskone Committee: While persons appearing on the Boskone program ordinarily have their membership fees reimbursed, no such reimbursements shall be made to
[long-standing policy, called to the Rules Committee's attention in 1/88]
1.9(14)M Gopher T-shirts may be sold to
NESFA Members who were on the staff of a Boskone (and not eligible to get one)
at cost or such rate as the Executive Board may set, starting two months after
the Boskone. The Boskone Chair shall have first choice, and all others
approximately equal opportunity to get one.
[1/89. The intent was to allow sale of existing T-shirts, with
the Chair to have discretion to reprint the shirt.]
1.9(15)M Section 11.3 of the By-Laws ("Each Boskone Committee
shall have a separate Treasurer . . ." shall not be interpreted to prevent
simultaneously existing Boskone Committees from having the same Treasurer: the
phrase "separate Treasurer" means only "separate from the NESFA
Treasurer".
[4/93, by approving the appointment in question; note also that
consecutive Boskones had the same Treasurer on two previous occasions since the
passage of Section 11.3 in 8/79.]
1.9(16)F Rules Committee: The Chair expressed the opinion that the responsibility for running Boskone would default on the President in the event of the death or disability of the Boskone Chairman. [2/94]
1.9(17)M Unpaid Boskone memberships are permitted only
[9/04. Memberships for Life Members are not unpaid; NESFA pays for them from a special fund (see section 1.9(5)).]
1.9(18)M To encourage volunteering at Boskone, anyone (including Committee, Staff, people with non-paid memberships, and non-members) who works on the convention for a sufficient amount of time will be given a free non-transferable membership in the following Boskone. [11/04.]
(a) For each Boskone, the definition of a sufficient amount of time will be proposed by the Boskone Chair and approved by the Membership. It may include multipliers for time worked during periods when it is especially difficult to attract volunteers.
(b) Notwithstanding that these memberships are generally not transferrable, a Life Member who earns a volunteer membership may give it to someone who would not otherwise have attended that Boskone. [Both of the phrases "someone who would not otherwise have attended that Boskone" and "someone who has not normally attended Boskone" were used in the making of this motion; resolution of this issue has been deferred as per 1.9(19).]
(c) Each Boskone shall budget for these memberships by multiplying the number of such memberships actually used at the previous Boskone by the lowest generally-available pre-registration rate for the current Boskone. (Boskone 43 shall use the number of volunteer memberships given out at Boskone 42, since there were not yet any available to be used there.)
1.9(19)M Each Boskone Pre-Registration head should use his or her judgement in deciding who should be allowed to receive volunteer memberships from Life Members under SR 1.9(18)(b). They are directed to construe the rules liberally and to keep track of their decisions. The club will reconsider this policy after it has more data. [5/05. See also the annotation to 1.9(18)(b).]
1.9(20)M The Guests of Honor for a Boskone are those few people whom the convention gives special recognition for their activities related to SF and/or fandom, usually an author, an artist, and a "Special Guest". The Featured Filker(s), Hal Clement Science Speaker, NESFA Press Guest(s), ordinary program participants, etc. are not Guests of Honor. [7/05: Documents long-standing practice. If more than one person is designated as one Guest of Honor, each of those people receives all of the benefits.]
1.9(21)M Boskones shall be named using Arabic numerals except when the Roman numerals are too good to pass up. [4/97. An example of a Roman numeral which may be too good to pass up is "Boskone L".]
1.10 Lexicon and Codclave
1.10(1)E Lexicon and Codclave are the two
NESFA relaxacons, usually held respectively in the summer and winter of each
year. Each Lexicon or Codclave shall be administered by a separate ad
hoc committee.
[8/83. Lexicon was first held in 8/72, and Codclave (originally
Wintercon: cf. Section A.1(4)) in
1/75.]
1.11 The Hotel Committee
1.11(1)M The Hotel Committee shall
actively seek out information on all hotels within a reasonable area and make
that information widely available. The chairman may assist a convention
chairman or the Executive Board in hotel negotiations,
if so requested.
[Established 5/81, limited to information-gathering; second
sentence added 11/83.]
1.12 The Sales Committee
1.12(1)M The Sales Committee shall be
responsible for the sales and business management of the Index and of all books,
records, posters, and other materials produced by NESFA or acquired by NESFA for
resale.
[7/71*. The "Index Committee" was first established in
11/67 to produce and sell the NESFA Index. Index Production
was made a separate committee in 5/69, and the name was changed to "Sales
Committee" in 3/73. Records and posters were added to the rule in 8/74,
and "other materials" in 9/83.]
1.12(2)E When appropriate, the Sales
Committee shall produce and distribute an updated sales flyer reflecting new
items offered for sale by NESFA. This shall be done at least once a year, so
that an up-to-date flyer is available at Boskone.
[11/83. Cf. Section 4.2 for the
prices of sales items, and Section 5.4(4) for
ISBN's.]
1.12(3)M After dealer-table prices for the upcoming Worldcon are announced, the Sales Committee shall inquire of the Membership whether it desires to purchase one or more such tables. [12/83]
1.12(4)M When supplies of the NESFA T-shirt or the "Book Fan of NESFA" T-shirt run low, the Sales Committee shall inform the T-Shirt Committee that a reprint is needed, so as to keep the shirts continually in stock. [E 11/83; "Book Fan" shirt added, made M rule in 5/92.]
1.12(5)M The Sales Committee is authorized to keep the "Eripmav" T-shirt continually in stock, by reprinting a two-year supply when necessary. [7/85]
1.12(6)F Sales Committee (Shipping Department): If you leave packages at the clubhouse on the assumption that they will magically be mailed, your assumption is less likely to prove false if each item is (1) well packaged, (2) properly marked for the class of mail you want, and (3) legibly addressed (including a return address), and if there is a clear indication of what account should be charged for the postage. [3/01]
1.13 The Index Production Committee
1.13(1)M The Index Production Committee
shall be responsible for all aspects of the compilation and production of new
editions of the Index, except that the printing shall be handled by NESFA Press.
[7/71*. Split in 5/69 from the Index (now Sales) Committee,
which existed since 11/67; the first index produced by NESFA was the 1967 Index,
published in 8/68. Reference to NESFA Press added 12/83 (as the Book Production
Committee, renamed 3/95).]
1.13(2)F Index Production Committee: The
title of the Index is The NESFA Index, with appropriate subtitles used to
indicate the content of each edition.
[2/73. The usual title was "The NESFA Index to the Science
Fiction Magazines and Original Anthologies" for 1971-86, and "The
NESFA Index to Short Science Fiction" for 1987-89, with the year(s) indexed
appended. See the "NESFA Index" table
in section 4.2(7) for a list of Indexes.]
1.13(3)M The NESFA Index will
include listings for the contents of SF magazines, original and reprint
anthologies, and collections.
[7/72. The decision to index original anthologies was first made
in 9/69, and the 1971-72 Index was the first to include such listings. (A
commitment to index pre-1970 anthologies was deleted in 12/83.) The inclusion
of reprint anthologies and single-author collections was approved in
10/88.]
1.13(4)M The Perry Rhodan Index will be
published separately, due to the almost entire non-overlap of its users and the
users of the NESFA Index.
[3/76. It was voted in 8/73 to index the Perry Rhodans, but only
#'s 1-50 were ever done.]
1.14 NESFA Press
1.14(1)M NESFA Press
shall be responsible for all aspects of the production of NESFA Press books,
including typesetting and paste-up, relationships with the authors, artists, and
printers, and copyright and ISBN arrangements.
[5/81. Replaced the "Boskone Book Committee"
established in 4/76. Earlier books were published by ad hoc
committees; in particular, the Noreascon Proceedings had
separate committees called "Phase I" (compilation of material),
"Phase II" (production), and "Phase III" (sales). Mention
of "authors, artists" added 12/83. 3/95: renamed from the Book
Production Committee to NESFA Press]
1.14(2)M NESFA's mailing address shall be printed in all future NESFA publications. [2/76]
1.14(3)M NESFA Press is directed to send out review copies of new books, including Boskone books, as soon as they arrive. [3/98]
1.14(4)M NESFA Press is directed to send to the LASFS library, in memory of Gary Louie, one copy of each new Boskone Guest of Honor book. [3/00]
1.14(5)M An additional printing of a book may be authorized by posting notice of the proposed reprint on the NESFA Regular Members mailing list for comment, with final approval by the Executive Board except that if legitimate issues are raised on the mailing list the decision will be made by the Membership at the next Business Meeting. [1/02]
1.14(6)M NESFA Press is directed to, upon request, replace any already-sold copy of the defective first printing of Powers of Two with a corrected copy at no charge beyond shipping and handling for as long as the book remains in print and to, except for a small number of file copies which must not be sold, destroy any copy of that first printing which comes into its possession. [3/04]
1.15 The NESFA Hymnal Committee
1.15(1)E The Hymnal Committee shall
maintain and expand the NESFA Hymnal.
[5/76; the Chairman was originally called "Songmaster,"
but this fell out of use. Publication of a "NESFA Hymnal" was first
proposed in 12/72. The first publication by this name was a songbook
distributed at the 1974 Boskone; the first Hymnal produced as a sales item was
in 1976. The Hymnal Committee usually also winds up running NESFA's filksong
contests, first authorized in 8/76 and held irregularly since
then.]
1.16 The T-Shirt Committee
1.16(1)M The T-Shirt Committee shall be responsible for producing T-shirts to be sold by NESFA. [12/83]
1.16(2)M Each year the T-Shirt Committee shall explore the possibility of producing a Boskone T-shirt, by contacting the Boskone Artist about producing artwork and contacting a "printer" to secure a cost estimate for its production. If production seems feasible, the committee shall then request a budget to produce the shirt. [12/83]
1.16(3)M When informed by the Sales Committee of the need for more NESFA or "Book Fan of NESFA" T-shirts, the T-Shirt Committee shall seek a reprint budget to keep the shirts continually in stock. [12/83; "Book Fan" shirt added 5/92.]
1.16(4)M The T-Shirt Committee shall look into producing cloisonné pins for Boskone in preference to (though not to the exclusion of) T-shirts. [6/93]
1.17 The Clubhouse Committee
1.17(1)M The Clubhouse Committee shall be
responsible for the planning and execution of renovation and maintenance to the
Corporation Clubhouse building, and for making plans for and recommendations to
the Membership concerning the uses and usage
of the Clubhouse.
[Published 7/91 in its current form, but the text simply combines
the duties assigned in 10/85 to the Building Physical and Building Policies
Committees. The Clubhouse Committee was established in 1/86, at which time it
absorbed the Building Policies Committee, with which Section 1.17(1) originally
dealt. See the historical note at the end of Section 1.17 for more
details.]
1.17(2)M [Dealt with the Building Physical Committee (see above), which was abolished in 6/88.]
1.17(3)M The Clubhouse Committee shall be
appointed by the President subject to ratification by the
Membership, in the same manner as the
Rules and Membership Committees.
[12/85; for "the same manner," cf. By-Laws, Section 6.4(b). Unlike the other committees, the Clubhouse
Committee may include Officers (or members of the Rules and Membership
Committees); in fact, for several years it was customary to name the
Vice-President as its chairman.]
1.17(4)M Clubhouse policies:
1.17(5)M Paul Jacobs is allowed to park his truck nights and weekends in back of the Clubhouse in return for the use of his truck. [9/86]
[The original Section 1.17 dealt with "The Building Fund and Related Matters." The NESFA Building Fund was established in 12/81 for "establishing a long-term meeting and storage site" -- i.e., a clubhouse -- and initially included only donations; in 12/83 $10,000 was transferred to the Fund, with $1000 more transferred each subsequent month. In 4/82 a "Building Committee" was established, split in 6/84 into the Building Search and Building Planning Committees, which respectively searched for a clubhouse and planned what to do with it. In 6/83 a rule was approved defining the conditions under which the Executive Board might initiate the purchase of real estate for a clubhouse (including initial approval by the Building Search Committee and final approval by a 2/3 vote of the Membership). After a long search, the Building Fund's object was attained when the current NESFA Clubhouse was purchased on November 4, 1985. The Building Search Committee was formally dissolved in 6/86; the Building Planning Committee was replaced in 10/85 by the Building Physical Committee and the Building Policies Committee, for which see above. In 11/87 the "Building Fund" Section 1.17 was replaced by a new section on "Income Stabilization Fund and Related Matters"; in 5/92 this section was moved to the more logical position of Section 2.8, and the former Section 1.17A, "The Clubhouse Committee," became the current Section 1.17.]
1.18 The Insurance Committee
1.18(1)M The Insurance Committee shall obtain information on the insurance needs of NESFA and of all NESFA functions; shall investigate and report on insurance rates and terms; and shall obtain insurance when authorized. The Insurance Committee shall also be responsible for keeping track of that insurance which is in force, and shall renew the insurance as authorized. [11/83]
1.19 The Archivist
1.19(1)M The Archivist shall keep track
of all property of the Corporation; shall obtain, subject to the approval of the
Executive Board, storage space for all of the Corporation's
property not in immediate and regular use; and shall be responsible for maintaining
such storage space and inventorying its contents.
[7/71*. Archivist established 5/70, originally just had
"custody of all property not otherwise assigned." It was voted in 6/81
to acquire storage space, which we obtained by 9/81; the present text was passed
in 10/83 to define the responsibility for the storage. The provision for
"obtaining" storage space has been essentially obsolete since the
acquisition of the Clubhouse, but the Archivist continues to manage storage
within the Clubhouse.]
1.19(2)E The Archivist shall, from time to time, publish a list of the Corporation's property. [5/74; never done]
1.19(3)E Everybody having custody of NESFA capital equipment valued over $5.00, or any inventory for sale, at the beginning of May shall report the same to the Archivist during the month of May. [3/75]
1.20 The Library Committee
1.20(1)M The Library Committee shall
administer and have custody of the NESFA Library and shall, from time to time,
publish a catalogue of the materials in the Library.
[7/71*. Committee established 10/68. A catalogue has never been
produced yet, but there remains a pious hope of doing one Real Soon
Now.]
1.20(2)M The Librarian will at least once annually collect all books and magazines then borrowed from the Library and shall update the catalogue. [8/75]
1.20(3)M The Librarian shall subscribe for NESFA to all English-language SF magazines with original material, and the SF Book Club. [4/72; Book Club added 8/75.]
1.20(4)M The Librarian shall subscribe to the ASFA newsletter. [8/77]
1.20(5)E The Library Committee will acquire, at the least possible expense, all books requested by the Index Production Committee, to be paid for out of the Index Production Budget. [5/74]
1.20(6)E The Clerk, Collator, and Editor are directed to give copies of Instant Message, Apa:NESFA, and Proper Boskonian respectively to the Librarian from time to time for binding. [6/74]
1.20(7)M The Library Committee is
authorized to dispose of duplicates as it sees fit.
[7/86. Replaced a confusing rule, changed five times from 2/73
to 11/79, that defined how many copies of which class of book might be disposed
of: among other things, anything not SF or related, more than 2 copies (1 copy
for "crud") of the same edition of anything, other duplicates unless
they had "special value." See also Section 1.20(18).]
1.20(8)F Library Committee: The books and magazines in the Library shall be defined in the following manner:
1.20(9)M The Librarian shall usually dispose of books or magazines in the following manner:
1.20(10)M Any Member may use any Reserve Book in the Library. No Reserve Book shall leave the Library unless it is in the personal custody of the Librarian or a person designated by the Librarian. [Originally a fiat, ratified by Membership 8/75; "or a person" clause added 7/87.]
1.20(11)F Library Committee: Any Member may borrow up to five Regular Books from the Library. These books will be due either within three weeks of the borrowing date or at the next Business or Other Meeting following the three weeks date. [Ratified by Membership 8/75; partially superseded by Section 1.20(17).]
1.20(12)M Regular Books may be borrowed by mail by any Member at the Librarian's discretion, provided that a written request has been received by the Librarian and that the Member pays postage both ways. [Originally a fiat, ratified by Membership 8/75; redrafted 7/87.]
1.20(13)M [This was an elaborate schedule of fines for overdue books, from 10 cents for 4-7 days to $1.00 for 43-59 days; over 60 days, the fine was "twice the price listed in the catalogue." This was all repealed in 11/87, the intent being "to trust that people would do the right things."]
1.20(14)F [Librarian expected to attend meetings; ratified by Membership 8/75, repealed 7/87.]
1.20(15)M Monies produced by the sale of Library books go to the Library Committee, except as provided in SR 1.20(24). [3/87. 7/05, exception added.]
1.20(16)M All Library books and magazines circulate except books worth over $50 and books in fragile condition that can not be readily replaced. [3/87]
1.20(17)M Time limits for the borrowing of books may be imposed by the Library Committee. They may be shorter for new material or reference books. [3/87]
1.20(18)M The Library Committee is requested to announce its policies concerning which books are kept and which disposed of BEFORE putting them into effect. [3/87]
1.20(19)F Library Committee: To check out a book, put your name on a page in the Circulation Book (a black binder) and record your borrowings in it. [4/87, after the Library had become accessible in the Clubhouse.]
1.20(20)M One copy of each edition (e.g., boxed and unboxed) of all NESFA publications shall be given to the Library and charged against the appropriate committee's budget. [7/87]
1.20(21)M The current issues of all magazines and fanzines are non-circulating. [7/87]
1.20(22)M When feasible, the Library should each year obtain copies of all Hugo-nominated professional publications. [7/87]
1.20(23)M The NESFA Library shall be named the Andrew Adams Whyte Memorial Library. A plaque honoring Drew Whyte shall be mounted in the Clubhouse. [8/93, after Drew Whyte's death]
1.20(24)M Valuable books in the collection shall be identified and sold at fair market value (provided that we can replace them with reading copies); the proceeds, minus the cost of acquiring reading copies, shall go to the Clubhouse Kitty. The E-Board shall establish the mechanism to accomplish this. [7/05.]
1.21 The Procurement Committee
1.21(1)M The Procurement Committee shall
investigate and report on the best means of obtaining items that are expressly
referred to it by the Membership, and shall
obtain such items as the Membership or its
delegates authorize.
[7/72. Name changed from "Equipment Procural
Committee" in 8/74. Second clause added 10/83.]
1.21(2)M The Procurement Committee is directed to maintain a stock of generally-available soda at the clubhouse. [5/97]
1.22 [Repealed]
[This section was called "The NESFA Realty Trust."
Originally (9/83) it established the "Bondage Committee," which was to
develop a plan for financing a clubhouse by borrowing from the Members, and
authorized it to draft the documents for setting up a Massachusetts Realty
Trust. By 5/84 the only one of the committee's goals left undone was to
"Develop a long-range financial plan for NESFA," which was assigned to
an ad hoc Financial Planning Committee. Meanwhile, NESFA Lunar
Realty Trust No. 1 had been established; in 1/84 the Membership accepted the
Declaration of Trust, and the Executive Board was authorized to implement the
Trust and sign agreements with the Trustees. After the purchase of the
Clubhouse, NESFA made a succession of payments to the Trust for the buyback of
notes. In 5/88 it was announced that the Trustees would recall all notes and
dissolve the Trust; an amendment to the Declaration of Trust to accomplish this
was passed in 7/88.]
1.23 The Program Committee
1.23(1)M The Program Committee shall be responsible for arranging programs for meetings and other gatherings. [7/71*. Committee established 3/70.]
1.23(2)E [Made Program Committee responsible for NESFA's audio-visual equipment; originally passed 5/70 (referring just to a movie projector), made more general 5/74, repealed 5/92.]
1.23(3)E [Made Program chair "Technical Director," in charge of "certifying competence" in use of audio-visual equipment; split off from Section 1.23(2) in 5/74, repealed 5/92.]
1.23(4)M [Made Program Committee responsible for doing tape recording for the blind; passed 5/81, replacing earlier Recording Committee (established 5/73), repealed 5/92.]
1.24 [Repealed]
[This section dealt with the Benefits Committee (established
5/82, abolished 6/85), which investigated holding "special events, shows,
and other activities to raise money."]
1.25 The Fellowship of
NESFA
[See By-Laws: Article VII (Fellowship).
The Fellowship rules were passed as standing rules in 9/76, and converted to
By-Laws in 12/79. They took the place of the original Article VII (repealed
12/75), which dealt with "Trustees"; all Trustees were retroactively
converted to Fellows before the first Fellowship banquet (11/76). The
Fellowship election and the banquet are often, but not always, administered by
the same ad hoc committee.]
1.25(1)M A certificate under seal of a form specified by the Rules Committee shall be given to every person elected a Fellow of NESFA. [1/75, with reference to Trustees and Directors.]
1.25(2)M All persons newly elected Fellows of NESFA shall be given a free meal at the banquet where their election is announced. [10/77]
1.26 The Press Gang
1.26(1)M The Press Gang shall be responsible for administering the reproduction services of the Corporation. [4/75; previously (E 7/71*) part of the Editor's duties. Name changed from "Publications Committee" in 6/83.]
1.26(2)M The Press Gang shall be responsible for the acquisition and upkeep of NESFA's mimeo, offset, and copier equipment. [12/83]
1.27 The Journal Committee
[Most of this section was originally passed in 4/75; over the
years practice diverged considerably from the rules, and a complete update was
done in 5/92. The Journal Committee's duties combine those earlier exercised by
the Editor (originally an Officer, and thus in the By-Laws until 3/75) and the
Publications Committee (which the Editor chaired).]
1.27(1)M The Journal Committee, in
coordination with the Press Gang, shall be responsible for the production,
distribution, and content of Proper Boskonian, NESFA's
erratically-appearing clubzine. The chairman of the Journal Committee shall be
the Editor.
[Mostly from pre-1975 By-Laws, in which the Publications
Committee had these functions. In 5/92 the above description of
PB replaced "the official Journal of the
Corporation," and mention of the Press Gang was added.]
1.27(2)M All
members of NESFA are entitled to receive
Proper Boskonian.
[See the entry in section
4.2(7) for the price to others.]
1.27(3)M [Journal Committee to report to Membership Committee on zines received from Affiliate Members; 7/71*, fell into desuetude, repealed 5/92.]
1.27(4)M Books and magazines sent to
Proper Boskonian as review copies should be given to the Library, except
that those actually reviewed in PB may be kept by the reviewer.
[5/92, replacing the (mostly obsolete) earlier Sections 1.27(4)
and (5): A 7/71* E rule stated that the Journal Committee was in charge of
fanzines and review books received; M 8/71, unwanted fanzines to be brought to
meetings "so that Members may have first pick," otherwise given to
MITSFS; E 5/74, Index Production Committee to get books needed for Index.
Reviewers were authorized to keep review books in 11/79, told to return them to
the Library in 11/85 (apparently never implemented), again authorized to keep
them in 5/92.]
1.28 The Collator
1.28(1)M Apa:NESFA (Ed's Apa)
shall be the official apa, with participation open to all
Members. It shall be managed
by the Collator (Official Ed).
[7/71*. The apa was founded in 5/70, the original motion
referring to "An apa for NESFA or Ed's apa"; however, Collator Ed
Meyer always called it "Apa:NESFA."]
1.28(2)E The Collator is responsible for the management of the apa, overseeing collations, mailing out copies of the apa, maintaining apa accounts, preparing tables of contents, and making cover assignments. The Collator may appoint an Assistant Collator, who shall be a member of the Corporation, to serve at the Collator's discretion. [First sentence added 7/83; the rest pre-1977.]
1.28(3)M Anyone who contributes at least
one page to the current issue of the apa shall receive that issue and the
following two free of charge. This entitlement may be increased at the
Collator's discretion, but whatever rules are currently in effect shall be
printed in each issue of the apa. Persons who are not NESFA
Members may contribute to the apa at the
Collator's discretion; when such contributions are accepted, their authors
shall be entitled to free copies on the same terms as
Members.
[12/81. Earlier minac rules were set by the Collator, and varied
considerably over the years. The complicated "Meyer's equations" were
in effect through 6/76; the first sentence above has been the basic rule most of
the time since then. Until a few years ago only Members were allowed to
contribute to the apa. See the entry in section
4.2(7) for the price to non-contributors.]
1.28(4)M All persons receiving free
copies of the apa as a result of having contributed material, or ex
officio as NESFA officials, shall be sent all such copies by first-class
mail, if other arrangements have not been made for expeditious delivery;
non-Members of NESFA must pay for postage. Non-contributors (other than NESFA
officials) who are entitled to the apa shall be sent their copies by the
cheapest means that will reach them within a reasonable period of time, unless
they have arranged to pay extra for postage.
[12/81; minor revisions in 4/82 and 8/83. Also replaced earlier
policies set by the Collator.]
1.28(4A)E NESFA Members subscribing to
the apa need not pay for postage.
[8/92: Apparently a long-standing Collator's policy, but not
previously documented.]
1.28(5)E The Collator has the authority to appoint people who have performed valuable service to the apa to be "Friends of the Apa." Friends of the Apa may receive free copies at the Collator's discretion. [7/83, codifying a long-standing tradition.]
1.28(6)M Ed Meyer is designated a permanent Friend of the Apa. [2/73]
1.28(7)E The Collator is directed to give copies of the apa to the members of the Executive Board, the Chairman of the Rules Committee, and the Editor of the Journal if they are not otherwise entitled to them. Copies shall also be given to the NESFA and MITSFS libraries. In addition, the Collator must keep a file copy of each issue. [First sentence 6/74, with Editor added 5/85; rest added 7/83.]
1.28(8)M The Collator is directed to give copies of the apa to the Chairmen of all currently existing Boskone Committees if they are not otherwise entitled to them. [10/81]
1.28(9)F Collator: RULES FOR THE APA
[Thoroughly revised 7/83, but mostly going back at least to 1974.
See also Section 4.1 for repro policies and
prices.]
(a) Apa:NESFA is collated monthly. Any eligible person may contribute by bringing the required number of copies, on 8 1/2" x 11" paper, to the collation, or by mailing it to arrive at the NESFA box before the collation. (The deadline for material to be printed by NESFA is up to the person doing the work.) The copy count and collation date will always appear in the table of contents of the previous issue, and in the Instant Message before the collation. However, a decrease in the copy count may be announced at the Business Meeting before the collation, with postcards sent to regular contributors whose contribution is not printed by NESFA or who don't receive Instant Message. [last sentence added 7/88]
(b) Information on the prices for material to be printed by NESFA (cf. Section 4.1) will be published in the apa as it is updated.
(c) Persons who help collate the apa may receive a copy of that issue at the Collator's discretion.
(d) Contributors desiring return of excess copies of their apazines should pick them up at the collations or ask the Collator in advance to return them. All other excess copies will be disposed of.
(e) Cover assignments are made by the Collator or the Collator's designee. All front covers should contain the title (Apa:NESFA), the number of the issue, and the section number if applicable. ["section number" added 2/74]
(f) The first page of each contribution should have the contributor's name and address. Each page should be properly numbered to facilitate correct collating. [first required 9/74]
(g) Whenever too few copies have been submitted of any page of any contribution, the Collator may exclude either the deficient page or the entire contribution from that collation.
(h) Contributors are encouraged to single-space and back-to-back their apazines when possible, to save on mailing costs.
(i) Substantial use of copyrighted material, without permission of the copyright holder, is not permitted in the apa.
(j) NESFA exercises no prior editorial control over the contents of the apa, each contributor being solely responsible for his/her contribution. The sole function of NESFA regarding the apa is limited to collation and distribution. [This disclaimer (approximately) has appeared in all issues of the apa since 12/74.]
(k) A brief summary of apa policy, including all of subsection (j), shall appear at the top of each issue's table of contents.
1.29 The Story Contest Committee
1.29(1)M The Story Contest Committee will
administer the NESFA Story Contest.
[The Story Contest was originally established in 12/73. It was
voted to abolish it in 5/81; however, an ad hoc contest was
held in 1982, and the Story Contest rules were reinstated (with
"annual" omitted) in 4/83.]
1.29(2)M BASIC RULES
[The original rules were passed in 1/74. Listed here are the
provisions that are the same from year to year; the full rules appear on each
year's flyer.]
(a) The contest will be open to all amateur writers. An amateur is defined as someone who has never sold a work of fiction. [Requirement of New England residence repealed in 12/75.]
(b) Stories must be the original work of the person entering them, must be less than 7,500 words long, and must fall into the category of Science Fiction or Fantasy.
(c) Results of the contest will be announced at the Boskone.
(d) All rights to the stories remain with the authors.
(e) In all cases the decision of the judges appointed by the Story Contest Committee will be final.
1.30 [Repealed]
[This section dealt with the Data Committee (established 5/81,
abolished 6/84), which was responsible for maintaining NESFA and Boskone mailing
lists. This function still exists, of course, but is no longer assigned to an
explicit committee. An expanded task of "coordinating NESFA's data
resources" never came off. There earlier existed a "Cataloguing
Committee" (4/73-6/76) which was supposed to computerize the Library,
Archives, and mailing-list data bases.]
1.31 The Worldcon Liaison
1.31(1)M The Worldcon Liaison shall be
responsible for obtaining NESFA's Worldcon memberships and keeping track of
other Worldcon matters of concern to NESFA.
[Originally 7/83 E rule, defining a position that developed
informally over the previous few years, and including casting of NESFA's Hugo
ballots. The latter deleted in 9/92, after WSFS Constitution was amended to
restrict Hugo voting to natural persons.]
1.31(2)M NESFA shall obtain a supporting
membership in each World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon); if possible,
this should be done by casting a "No Preference" site-selection
ballot.
[8/83, codifying earlier practice. The casting of "No
Preference" site-selection ballots by clubs is now explicitly authorized by
the WSFS Constitution (ratified 1991), and no other vote is
allowed.]
1.31(3)M There shall be a poll of the
Membership's preferences for the Hugo nomination and final ballots, with the
results to be published as NESFA's recommendations.
[9/92, replacing a 5/90 M rule that NESFA's Hugo nomination
ballot should contain no nominees with fewer than 5 votes.]
1.32 The Gaughan Award
1.32(1)M The Jack Gaughan Memorial Award shall be presented annually at the Boskone by NESFA to the most promising emerging artist in the SF or Fantasy field in order to commemorate Jack Gaughan's interest in and encouragement of new SF and Fantasy artists. The Award and the choice of recipient shall be administered according to the following procedures:
(a) The recipient shall be selected by a jury, based upon the jury's knowledge of the performance and potential of artists working in the SF and Fantasy genre.
(b) The jury shall be composed of three members serving overlapping three-year terms. Each year a jury member shall be appointed by the President in July, subject to ratification by the Membership. The President should take into consideration the person's knowledge of the field and interest in actively serving. There are no special constraints upon reappointing a jury member.
(c) If a position becomes vacant for any reason, the President shall appoint a replacement, subject to the ratification of the Membership. The replacement's term of office shall expire upon the date that the replaced person's term would have expired.
(d) The Award will be in part a physical object.
(e) An annual budget shall be maintained to pay for the construction of the Award and to reimburse the jury for such reasonable expenses as they may incur in administering the Award process.
[10/85, with initial jury appointments beginning in 11/85.]
1.33 The Computer Committee
1.33(1)M The Computer Committee is charged with organizing NESFA's computers and making recommendations about future acquisitions. [Established 11/90]
1.33(2)M/E The Computer Committee is directed to maintain 24x7 high-speed Internet connectivity at the clubhouse at an initial cost not to exceed about $120 per month. [M 8/00: to establish using a specific vendor; E 12/00: to replace a bankrupt vendor.]
1.33(3)M The Computer Committee is authorized to spend up to $100 (total cost, including one year's registration) to buy any of our standard domain names (e.g., Boskone or NESFA) if they become available in any of .com, .org, .net, .edu, .gov, .mil, .int, or .aero. [4/04]
1.33(4)M The Computer Committee may dispose of any surplus software (license permitting) or hardware subject to the following guidelines. A majority of the committee members must agree that each item is surplus. The list of items, and when they will be allocated, will be announced at a meeting and on the active-members mailing list, with each item described in sufficient detail to allow members to make informed decisions about whether they want it. All items will be available at the clubhouse for examination and testing until the next meeting and thereafter until they are allocated, with each item clearly and uniquely marked for identification. For each item, there will be provision for active members to express their interest in acquiring it. If more than one list of items is to be allocated at the same time, those lists will be combined into a single list. When the time for allocation arrives the list of which people want which items will be frozen, items which no one wants will be thrown out or otherwise disposed of, items which exactly one person wants will be given to that person, and the remaining items will be allocated by repeatedly choosing one person and giving them one item. The person will be chosen randomly from among those who want one or more of the remaining items, excluding anyone who has already received more contested items from this list than some other person in that group. The item will be chosen by the selected person from among those in which he has expressed interest. [7/05. Provide permanent authorization on much the same terms as previous one-off events, and document those terms.]
1.34 The Web Committee
1.34(1)F President: The Web Committee shall be responsible for maintaining NESFA's web site. [Established 5/97]
1.35 The Monty Wells Project
1.35(1)M "The Monty Wells Project" is a one-day seminar for teachers of language arts and science to show how science fiction can be used in teaching. It is held on the Friday before a Boskone, and provides "professional development credits." [Established 9/98.]
1.35(2)F The Monty Wells Project: The official title of the seminar is "When Words Collide: A Symposium on Learning and Science Fiction." [11/98]
1.36 The E-Commerce Committee
1.36(1)M The E-Commerce Committee shall be responsible for setting up and maintaining an electronic sales site on the web. [Established 7/01]
1.37 NESFA Press Guests at Boskone
1.37(1)M By tradition, NESFA Press brings to each Boskone one or more of the contributors to the books it has recently published, sometimes holding a book launch party. The guests are selected by the Membership. [First mentioned in IM 675, 11/00.]
1.37(2)M Each guest will be given a Boskone membership (unless they are already a life member), and will be reimbursed for their travel, lodging, and incidental costs. [6/05.]
1.38 The Hal Clement Memorial Science Speaker
1.38(1)M The Hal Clement Memorial Science Speaker will give a talk at Boskone on a suitable scientific subject and will participate in other aspects of the convention as appropriate. The speaker will be selected by the membership of NESFA, will be given a Boskone membership (unless they are already a life member), and will be reimbursed for their travel, lodging, and incidental costs. [Established 11/03.]
1.39 The Clubhouse Kitty
1.39(1)M The Clubhouse Kitty holds monies which are dedicated to the purchase of a new clubhouse. [Established 10/04.]
[Former standing committees which are now defunct include "Phase I," etc. (cf. 1.14); Building, Building Search, Building Planning, Building Physical, and Building Policies (cf. 1.17); Bondage (cf. 1.22); Recording (cf. 1.23(4)); Benefits (cf. 1.24); Data (cf. 1.30); Cataloguing (ibid.); and Historian (cf. A.14(3)). Committees which have changed their names include Index (now Sales, 1.12, and Index Production, 1.13); Boskone Book (which became Book Production and is now NESFA Press, 1.14); Equipment Procural (now Procurement, 1.21); and Publications (now Press Gang, 1.26, and Journal, 1.27). Note that a number of additional "committees" can be found in Appendix A.]
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