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Acts Index Manual Contents1. The purpose of the Internal Organizations of the National Speleological Society shall be to promote interest in and to advance in any and all ways the study of Speleology and to promote fellowship among those interested in it.
2. Internal Organizations may be chartered upon submitting the following documents to the Internal Organizations Committee:
A. An acceptable Constitution and Bylaws showing the date of adoption and signed by an officer of the new organization.
B. An application in duplicate bearing the signatures of the charter members indicating which are members of the NSS. In the case of regions and surveys this will include the names of charter member organizations.
C. A brief history of the organization.
D. Other information requested by the Internal Organizations Committee.
3. Every Internal Organization shall have complete freedom of action in its organization and fiscal policies, except that no Internal Organization shall engage in any activity which is detrimental to speleology, conservation, safety, or the best interests of the National Speleological Society. Such activity is sufficient cause for revocation of the organization's charter by the Board of Governors.
4. The membership of Internal Organizations should conform to the following requirements:
A. Membership in grottos or chapters shall consist of at least five members of the Society. Membership in regions shall consist of at least two active Internal Organizations. Membership in sections shall consist of at least ten members of the Society. To maintain active status a grotto must include at least five active NSS members with primary affiliation with that grotto.
B. Full membership in Internal Organizations shall be open only to members of the National Speleological Society.
C. Internal Organizations may, at their option, have members who are not members of the Society and who are limited to a year or less on this status. Non-NSS members of Internal Organizations may not hold office or serve on a governing body in the organization or count toward representation in the Congress of Grottos.
D. "Student Grottos" and "College Outing Clubs", exempt from requirement B above, may be chartered at a recognized college or university. In addition to all other requirements and benefits in this policy, the following special requirements shall apply to Student Grottos and College Outing Clubs:
1. Membership in either shall be open to Society members and non-Society members provided the latter are students, faculty, or staff members at the college or university with which the Student Grotto or College Outing Club is affiliated.
2. At least five members of a Student Grotto or College Outing Club must be members of the Society. In the Student Grotto, all officers or members of a governing body of the Student Grotto must be members of the Society. In a College Outing Club, the caving chairman must be a member of the Society and will be responsible for communication with the Society.
3. The formal name of a Student Grotto shall indicate that such organization is a Student Grotto (or Chapter).
4. The formal name of a College Outing Club meeting the requirements set forth herein may indicate that such organization is an Internal Organization of the National Speleological Society.
5. Regions and Surveys shall accept and retain as member organizations only Internal Organizations of the National Speleological Society or groups which intend to become Internal Organizations within a reasonable length of time. Regions and Surveys may include "cooperating organizations," organizations not associated with the Society, which are not full members of the Region or Survey but which may take part in all its acitvities.
6. Each Internal Organization shall have the following responsibilities to the Society:
A. They shall submit an annual report to the Internal Organizations Committee, containing the mailing address of the organization, a list of the organization's officers with their respective NSS numbers, the names of two organization members (with e-mail addresses or telephone numbers) who are to be listed in the NSS Members Manual as contacts, the URL of the organization's Web site (if any), if the organization has changed its constitution or bylaws since the last report, and whether copies of the organization's publications are being submitted per Section C of this paragraph. If the constitution or bylaws have been changed, copies of the new documents must be provided to the committee. The committee may request additional information, but the completion of it must be labeled as optional. Reports must be submitted prior to a date set by the Committee.
B. In formal usage and in the event of incorporation, append to its name the words "... a Chapter (Regional Association, Speleological Survey, Special Section) of the National Speleological Society." In the event that one of the above terms is used in the name, only the words ".... of the National Speleological Society" need be used.
C. Two copies of each publication (if any) shall be submitted to the Society Library. At least one copy and preferably two copies shall be furnished to the Society Cave Files Committee, and it is recommended that one copy be furnished to the U.S. Geological Survey, Washington, D.C.
D. Each Internal Organization shall cooperate with the Society in establishing sound conservation and safety practices, and assist in or carry out other activities which further the purposes of the Society.
7. All Internal Organizations which comply with the provisions of this policy shall have the following privileges accorded to them:
A. Each Internal Organization shall, upon request, receive one copy of each issue of the NSS NEWS and the JOURNAL.
B. Internal Organizations shall be entitled to representation at the Congress of Grottos in accordance with established rules of that organization.
C. Any Internal Organization will be permitted a non-voting representative at any meeting of the Board of Governors for the propose of presenting or discussing matters relating to the organization.
D. Each Internal Organization shall receive the monthly administrative mailing.
E. Each Internal Organization may receive assistance from the Society such as cave location data, slide shows, library materials, and exhibition materials to aid in the activities of the organization.
8. Each Internal Organization shall be classified by the Internal Organizations Committee as being active or inactive. Active organizations will be those organizations which have fulfilled the requirements of paragraph 6. Only active organizations may receive the benefits listed in paragraph 7.
9. Occasionally a group may request a grotto or chapter charter in an area where a chapter already exists. The Society does not encourage the formation of additional chapters in an area where one already exists, so these applications will be handled according to the following guidelines:
Unless it is obvious that the new group has been in contact with the existing grotto(s), they will be referred to the existing grotto(s), and the existing grotto(s) will be informed of the inquiry from the new group. The new group will be informed of our reluctance to charter another grotto in the same area, and the existing grotto(s) will be asked to contact the new group and invite them to participate in their activities. If, after a reasonable time, the Internal Organizations Committee feels that the grotto chartering is justified, the chartering may proceed.
Footnote to 4-D: A College Outing Club is defined as any organization which regularly engages in more than one outdoor activity and which is recognized as a student activity by a college or university.
4-7-05
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