Text of the 2015 Amendments
There were 5 Amendments to the bylaws made in the 2015 Election. This is the wording of the Motions as they were presented in the election, along with the results of the election for each.
Bylaws Amendment 1:
The Governing Board of the PSA proposes that the Executive Director be made an ex officio, nonvoting member of the Governing Board. The Executive Director (and those serving in the post of Executive Secretary) have been playing this role for many years. In addition, full and retired members are able to participate in elections. While this is reflected in other parts of the Bylaws, it is not reflected in this section. Therefore, it is proposed that the following changes be made to Article III, Section 2. (Changes are noted in bold and underlined deletions are also noted with strikethrough.)Current Version:
Article III, Section 2
There shall be a Governing Board consisting of the President, the President-elect, the most recent past President, and eight other persons elected by the full members of the Association. The terms of office of the elected members of the Governing Board, excluding the President, President-Elect, and most recent past president, shall be four years each, so staggered that the terms of two of these members shall expire each year. There shall be no limit on the number of terms an individual may serve on the Governing Board, but an individual may not serve two consecutive terms. Terms shall begin on January 1 and expire on December 31.
To be replaced with:
Article III, Section 2
There shall be a Governing Board consisting of the President, the President-elect, the most recent past President,
In Favor: 270 (99.3%)
Opposed: 2 (0.7%)
Amendment 1 passed.
Bylaws Amendment 2:
PSA is an international association, and our current Bylaws erroneously identify our central office as a national office. Therefore, the Governing Board of the PSA proposes that the following change be made to Article III, Section 5. (Changes are noted in bold and underlined deletions are also noted with strikethrough.)Current Version:
Article III, Section 5
The Governing Board shall appoint an Executive Director, who shall serve as Secretary, Treasurer, and Managing Officer of the corporation, to supervise the business affairs of the Association. The Executive Director shall maintain the national office of the Association, shall make annual financial reports to the Governing Board, shall oversee elections, oversee preparations for the biennial meeting, and oversee communications with the membership and allied organizations. The Executive Director shall be appointed for a four-year term, but serves at the pleasure of the Governing Board. There shall be no limit on the number of terms the Executive Director may serve.
To be replaced with:
Article III, Section 5
The Governing Board shall appoint an Executive Director, who shall serve as Secretary, Treasurer, and Managing Officer of the corporation, to supervise the business affairs of the Association. The Executive Director shall maintain the
In Favor: 281 (98.9%)
Opposed: 3 (1.1%)
Amendment 2 passed.
Bylaws Amendment 3:
Currently, elections are held just after our annual board meetings, which are held in November. We propose having the elections held earlier in the year so that memberselect can attend the board meeting (as visitors) prior to taking office on January 1st. This is intended to facilitate operations of the Governing Board. In addition, full and retired members are able to participate in elections. This is reflected in other parts of the Bylaws, but not in this section. Therefore, the Governing Board of the PSA proposes that the following changes be made to Article IV, Section 4. (Changes are noted in bold and underlined deletions are also noted with strikethrough.)Current Version:
Article IV, Section 4
Elections shall be held annually during November and December. Ballots shall be mailed to all full members on or before November 15 and to be counted, must be returned to the Executive Director on or before December 31. Those elected shall assume office on the January 1 immediately following the election.
To be replaced with:
Article IV, Section 4
Elections shall be held annually during
In Favor: 281 (98.9%)
Opposed: 3 (1.1%)
Amendment 3 passed.
Bylaws Amendment 4
The operation of PSA’s journal and conference has changed considerably over the years, but the Bylaws have not been brought up to date. The current practices, described in the revised wording have been working well, and the Governing Board would like to have them licensed by the Bylaws. Therefore, the Governing Board of the PSA proposes that the following changes be made to Article V, Section 3. (Changes are noted in bold and underlined.)Current Version:
Article V, Section 3
The Governing Board shall appoint an editor-in-chief for each of the publications of the Association. Editors-in-chief of all continuing publications except the Proceedings shall be appointed for five year terms. The editor-in-chief of the Proceedings of the Biennial Meetings shall be appointed to a six year term. All editors-in-chief serve at the pleasure of the Governing Board. All editors-in-chief shall submit an annual report to the Executive Director for transmittal to the Governing Board.
To be replaced with:
Article V, Section 3
The Governing Board shall appoint an Editor-in-Chief for its journal, Philosophy of Science. The Editor-in-Chief shall be appointed for a five-year term. The President shall appoint the Program Chair for each biennial meeting, who also will serve as the Editor of the special issues of Philosophy of Science containing proceedings from the meeting, and who will be appointed for a four-year term. The Editor-in-Chief of Philosophy of Science shall serve at the pleasure of the Governing Board. The Program Chair shall serve at the pleasure of the President. The journal Editor-in-Chief and the Program Chair shall submit an annual report to the Executive Director for transmittal to the Governing Board.
In Favor 275 (98.6%)
Opposed 4 (1.4%)
Amendment 4 passed.
Bylaws Amendment 5
This motion is also aimed at bringing the Bylaws into line with current journal practices. The Governing Board of the PSA proposes that the following changes be made to Article V, Section 4. (Changes are noted in bold and underlined deletions are also noted with strikethrough.)Current Version:
Article V, Section 4
The Governing Board shall establish policies and guidelines governing the operation of the Association publications. The Governing Board shall determine whether an editorial board shall be appointed for each of the Association publications. Members of editorial boards shall be appointed by the Governing Board upon nomination by the editor-in-chief of the relevant publication.
To be replaced with:
Article V, Section 4
The Governing Board shall establish policies and guidelines governing the operation of the Association publications. The Governing Board shall determine whether an editorial board shall be appointed for each of the Association publications. The
In Favor 264 (98.5%)
Opposed 4 (1.5%)
Amendment 5 passed.