ACM SIGecom Bylaws

BYLAWS of SIGecom the Special Interest Group on Electronic Commerce  of the Association for Computing Machinery, Inc.

  • Adopted 1/11/99

Article 1. Name and Scope

  1. This organization will be called the Special Interest Group on Electronic Commerce (“SIGecom”) of the Association for Computing Machinery, Inc. ("the ACM").   
  2. The scope of SIGecom’s specialty is to encourage research and advanced applications relating to electronic commerce and the sharing of new ideas and experience.  Attention will be paid to foundational issues and to demonstrated applications.

Article 2. Purpose

SIGecom is organized and will be operated exclusively for educational, scientific and technical purposes in its specialty. Its services will include:

  1. Collecting and disseminating information in the specialty, through a newsletter and other publications approved by the Publications Board of the ACM;
  2. Organizing sessions at conferences of the ACM;
  3. Sponsoring conferences, symposia, and workshops;
  4. Organizing working groups for education, research and development;
  5. Serving as a source of technical information for the Council and other units of the ACM;
  6. Serving as an external technical representative of the ACM when authorized by the Council or the Executive Committee of the ACM; and
  7. Working with other units of the ACM on technical activities such as lectureships or professional development seminars.

Article 3. Charter

Sigecom will exist until dissolved as provided in Bylaw 6 of the ACM.

Article 4. Officers

  1. SIGecom's officers are the Chair, Vice-Chair and Secretary-Treasurer. The officers are elected for two-year terms beginning July 1 of odd-numbered years.
  2. The Chair is the principal officer and is responsible for leading SIGecom and managing its activities. The duties of the Chair are:
    1. Calling and presiding at SIGecom's Executive Committee and Business meetings;
    2. Conducting SIGecom's activities in accordance with the policies of the ACM; and
    3. Making all appointments and filling vacancies as authorized herein.
  3. The duties of the Vice-Chair are:
    1. Assisting the Chair in leading and managing the Group; and
    2. Presiding at meetings when the Chair is absent.
  4. The duties of the Secretary-Treasurer are:
    1. Maintaining the records and correspondence of the Group;
    2. Keeping and distributing the minutes of Business and Executive Committee meetings of the Group; and
    3. Managing the Group's finances according to the Financial Accountability Policy of the ACM. This includes preparing the annual budget, monitoring the Group's disbursements for adherence to the annual budget, and preparing financial reports as required.

Article 5. The Executive Committee

  1. The SIGecom Executive Committee comprises the officers, the Past Chair, and the Editor of the SIGecom newsletter. No person may hold two positions on the SIGecom Executive Committee
  2. The general duties of the SIGecom Executive Committee will be to advise the Chair on all matters of interest to the Group. Specific duties or responsibilities may be specified in these Bylaws or assigned by the Chair. All the major management policy decisions of the Group must be approved by the SIGecom Executive Committee.
  3. All members of, or candidates for, the Executive Committee must be voting members of the ACM and of SIGecom.

Article 6. Vacancies and Appointments

  1. Should the Chair leave office before his/her term expires, a member of the Advisory Board will assume the duties of Chairman.  Should any other office or the position on the SIGecom Executive Committee reserved for the Past Chairman become vacant, the Chairman of the SIG Governing Board (SGB) may, on nomination of the SIGecom Chairman, fill the vacancy.  Vacan­cies in positions appointed by the SIGecom Chairman may be filled according to the procedures for making the original appointments as provided herein.    
  2. Should a vacancy be unfilled, either because of inadequacy of these bylaws or because of a dispute for any other reason, the SIG Governing Board Chairman may fill it.      
  3. All appointments expire automatically when the Chairs's term of office expires. Appointees, however, will continue to serve until a successor is appointed by the new Chairman.

Article 7. The Newsletter

  1. SIGecom will publish a newsletter at regular intervals as determined by its Executive Committee. .  The newsletter will be available to all SIGecom members electronically or distributed via print.  Newsletter sub­scriptions may be sold to non-members.      
  2. With the advice of the other officers, the Chairman will appoint the Editor of the newsletter, who will become a member of the SIGecom Executive Committee.

Article 8. Membership, Dues, and Voting Privileges.   

 
   (a)  SIGecom is an Open SIG as defined in Section 6 of Bylaw 6.  Anyone may join the SIG. 
 
   (b)  A person becomes a member only after enrolling and paying the  required dues.  The dues for SIGecom are determined by the SIGecom Executive Committee with the approval of the Chairman of the SIG Governing Board.  In addition to the SIG dues, the non-ACM members of the SIG will be assessed annually a surcharge equal to 1/3 the dues set for member­ship in the ACM, rounded to the next highest dollar.  Any fees for activities and services must be lower for members of the ACM.
 
   (c)  All members of SIGecom may vote in any ballot conducted with SIGecom.  On any ballot, the votes cast by non-ACM members of SIGecom will, if necessary, be prorated downward so that their effective total cannot exceed 50% of the eligible vote.   
 

Article 9. Reports and Records.   

 
The SIGecom Chairman is responsible for filing reports about SIGecom as required by the SIG Governing Board.  These include:
 
        i.   An annual report, due as specified by the SIG Governing Board, on the  activities of SIGecom during the previous year;     
 
        ii.  All reports required by the Financial Accountability Policy of the ACM; and       
 
        iii. Closing reports on conferences and symposia (co)sponsored by SIGecom as required by the ACM.   
 
 The membership records of SIGecom will be maintained by ACM Headquarters.        
 

Article 10. Elections.    

 
   (a)  By September 30 of each even-numbered year, if the SIG Governing Board has not exercised its option to extend the term of the SIG's current officers for an additional two years, the Chairman will appoint a  nominating committee which will propose at least two con­senting candidates for the office of SIGecom Chair and at least four consenting candidates for the Advisory Board.  The slate of candidates selected by the nominating committee must be presented to all the SIGecom members by the fol­lowing January 31.  
 
   (b)  A petition from 1% of the voting members of SIGecom will place other consenting candidates on the ballot.  Petitions must be received  by the Chair of SIGecom no later than March 15.     
 
   (c)  The election will be conducted among eligible voters by ACM Headquarters by June 1, following the election procedures of the ACM, unless different procedures have been approved by the SIG Governing Board.  Of all the ballots returned in an election, the candidates receiving the largest numbers of effective votes win.  The SIG Governing Board will resolve ties.     

Article 11. Amendments

  1. These bylaws may be amended by a majority vote of the ACM Executive Committee, or by a vote of the SIGecom members as provided below. With the approval of the SIGecom Executive Committee and of the Executive Committee of the ACM, 2/3 of all members of the SIG Governing Board may amend Article 1 of these bylaws without a referendum of the members.       
  2. Amendments to these bylaws may be proposed by the SIGecom Executive Committee, the SIG Governing Board, or a petition from 1% of the voting members of the Group. All proposed amendments must be approved, prior to being submitted for a vote of the membership, by the Chairman of the SIG Governing Board and by the Constitution & Bylaws Committee of ACM, after the Executive Director of ACM has provided advice.   
  3. The ballot on the proposed amendment(s) will be conducted among the eligible voters by ACM Headquarters following the procedures of the ACM for voting bylaw amend­ments, unless a different procedure has been approved by the SIG Governing Board.  The proposal is adopted only if at least 2/3 of the effective votes of returned ballots approve it, and only if at least 10% of the ballots are returned.  The Secretary-Treasurer will send a clean copy of the amended bylaws to the Executive Director of the ACM and to the Chairman of the SIG Governing Board.  

Article 12. Dissolution

Should SIGecom be dissolved, control of its assets will revert to the ACM.

Article 13. Meetings

SIGecom will conduct at least one business meeting each year. All meetings sponsored by SIGecom must be open to all members of the ACM. SIGecom may hold meetings only in places that are open to all classes of members of the ACM.    

Article 11. Consistency

The Constitution, Bylaws and policies of the ACM and of the SIG Board take precedence over any conflicting provisions of these bylaws or internal policies of SIGecom.