3.1.1: Board size
3.1.1.1: The board shall consist of five (5) members elected to rotating terms
3.1.2: Board structure
3.1.2.1: The five (5) members shall have equal voting rights regarding all bylaws, rules, projects, or actions undertaken inside the Rain City community
3.1.2.2: Among those five members, there shall be two (2) members with short-term decision-making authority, known variously in this document as “executives,” “slammasters,” or “co-slammasters”
3.1.2.3: Effective when this document is approved, Rain City shall have five (5) board members named below, including two (2) executives, named below
3.2.1: General voting rules
3.2.1.1: No permanent, longstanding or materially binding bylaw, rule, project, or action shall be approved without a board vote. Temporary or time-sensitive decision-making authority shall be vested in individual board members as described below (3.2.1.5); voting on PSI rules that may impact Rain City is also delegated to the executives as outlined below (3.3.1.1)
3.2.1.2: A quorum of at least three (3) members in attendance is required for any board vote to be binding
3.2.1.2.1: It is the sense of the Rain City board that attendance via electronic meeting technology is a valid condition for “attendance” for quorum purposes or written approval of abstention
3.2.1.3: Any board member may call for a meeting
3.2.1.4: Any board member may motion for a vote within any meeting
3.2.1.4.1:The motion present must be clearly stated and submitted in a “yea or nay” format
3.2.1.4.2: All motions to vote must be seconded to end discussion. Once a motion is seconded, the board shall vote on the motion presented
3.2.1.4.3: It is the sense of this body that member may request further discussion before a motion is seconded, and that the seconder should grant the request. No seconder is required to honor the request, however
3.2.1.5: In such times that decisions are required and a board vote is not possible, all board members are empowered to make temporary decisions on behalf of the board. Present executives shall have final say in such scenarios, followed by board members in order of seniority. All such ad hoc decisions shall be voted on by the full board at the next possible opportunity.
3.3.1: Executive Function
3.3.1.1: The Executive(s) shall be the liaison between Rain City Poetry Slam and Poetry Slam Incorporated (PSI) for the purposes of all national competitions and for maintaining Rain City’s standing with PSI.
3.3.1.1.1: The executive(s) shall be empowered to vote in all PSI slammasters meetings, including on matters material to Rain City.
3.3.1.1.2: This authority shall exist independent of any vote or guidance from the Rain City board.
3.3.1.1.3: It is the sense of the board that the voting executive(s) shall consult the board in advance of all binding PSI votes to the best of their ability
3.3.1.2: The Executive(s) shall adopt decision-making authority over day-of-show decisions on show days and whenever they deem a board vote is impractical or impossible due to time constraints. All bylaws, rules, projects and actions shall be undertaken with this understanding. This authority shall pass to board members in order of seniority
3.3.1.2.1: The board or the executive(s) themselves shall abstain from such responsibilities when they are performers or competitors in important day-of-show activities such as series finals. If all board members are competitors that authority shall pass to the bout manager and host in that order
3.3.1.3: The executive(s), who will frequently be called “slammasters” or “co-slammasters,” may be given any title the board approves, dividing the executive responsibilities in any way the board approves
3.3.1.4: It is the sense of this body that precise titles and responsibilities of the executive(s) may change from time to time, and the board may enact those changes with a simple majority vote
3.3.2: Prohibitions
3.3.2.1: The executive(s) may not spend or authorize expenditures over $250 without the approval of the board or a designated board finance officer; the designee may not be an executive
3.3.2.2: The executive(s) may not approve or create any permanent slam rule outside of the confines of the PSI voting process
3.4.1: Electing board members
3.4.1.1: No board member may be elected with more than one nay vote
3.4.1.1.1: When five (5) members vote, this requires 4-1 or 5-0 in favor
3.4.1.1.2: When four (4) members vote, this requires 4-0 or 3-1 in favor
3.4.1.1.3: When three (3) members vote, this requires 3-0 or 2-1 in favor
3.4.1.2: Board members shall be eligible for further terms subject to their own consent and the approval of a simple majority of the other board members. The board member under consideration shall be abstained from the vote to re-elect
3.4.2: Board Term Length
3.4.2.1: Board members shall serve terms of two (2) years
3.4.2.1.1: Board members shall be eligible for further terms, subject to a majority vote from the board from which they shall abstain
3.4.2.1.2: Board terms shall be served on a rotating basis with four (4) month intervals between terms
3.4.2.2: Effective upon the ratification of this document, the inaugural board terms shall be of various term lengths such that Rain City shall have a sustainable four (4) month rotation in place for future boards.
3.4.2.2.1: Katrina Santos shall begin their term on April 15th, 2016 and shall end their term on April 14th, 2018. They shall be eligible for a second term, subject to a majority vote from the board from which they shall abstain
3.4.2.2.2: Dalin Costello II shall begin their term on April 15th, 2016 and shall end their term on December 14, 2017. They shall be eligible for a second term, subject to a majority vote from the board from which they shall abstain
3.4.2.2.3: Maya Hersh shall begin their term on April 15th, 2016 and shall end their term on August 14, 2017. They shall be eligible for a second term, subject to a majority vote from the board from which they shall abstain
3.4.2.2.4: Ian Martinez shall begin their term on April 15th, 2016 and shall end their term on April 14, 2017. They shall be eligible for a second term, subject to a majority vote from the board from which they shall abstain
3.4.2.2.5: Shanna Alden shall begin their term on April 15th, 2016 and shall end their term on December 14, 2016. They shall be eligible for a second term, subject to a majority vote from the board from which they shall abstain
3.4.2.2.6: Rain City shall keep an accurate and current document stating the term-end dates for each of its board members
3.4.2.3: New board members are considered probationary for four (4) full months after their election and will either approved or rejected as permanent members by simple majority vote at the first full board meeting more than four months after their term begins. The probationary board member must abstain from this vote
3.4.2.4: The board may by simple majority vote appoint an emergency appointee to finish the term of any member having departed, resigned or otherwise vacated their board seat for any reason. That appointment shall last only through the designated end of the vacating member’s term
3.4.2.4.1: Emergency members may stand for permanent board membership upon reaching the end of their emergency term, subject to the same rules as all permanent board members (3.4.3)
3.4.2.4.2: If the emergency service time served by such a member exceeds one (1) calendar year, that term shall be counted as the first of the board member’s two-term limit (3.4.3.1). If it does not, the emergency member may serve two (2) additional terms, subject to the same votes and restrictions as the other members
3.4.3: Board Term Limits
3.4.3.1: Board members may serve up to two (2) consecutive terms, totalling four (4) years of service
3.4.3.2: Should the board perceive no viable replacement for a board member having served their two (2) terms, the other four members of the board may extend the service time of said board member by an additional two (2) year term
3.4.3.2.1: The vote to approve such an extension must be unanimous
3.4.3.2.2: The board member in question must be abstained from this vote; its results can be reported to them but they may not witness the discussion or vote
3.4.3.3: It is the sense of this body that board members should serve no more than two consecutive two-year terms and that board members should only serve longer by exception
3.4.4: Board Eligibility Rules
3.4.4.1: Board members must be 18 years of age or older
3.4.4.2: Board members must be registered PSI members in good standing
3.4.4.3: It is the sense of the current body that at least six months of volunteering shall be preferred in board candidates but is not a formal requirement
3.4.4.4: It is the sense of the current body that community membership tenure shall be considered for board membership but is not a formal requirement
3.4.4.5: It is the sense of the current body that active community membership tenure, extended volunteer service, or prior board membership in other slam communities shall be considered in cases where candidates have come from other cities
3.4.5: Board impeachment
3.4.5.1: It is the sense of this body that from time to time, impeachment of board members may be required
3.4.5.2: Theft or other fraud, violence, or other criminality of any kind aimed at Rain City, CascadiaNow! or its members shall be grounds for impeachment
3.4.5.3: Repeated violation of the safety statement shall be grounds for impeachment
3.4.5.4: Gross negligence, gross indifference, or other dereliction of board responsibilities shall be grounds for impeachment
3.4.5.5: Blacklisting or other formal exclusion from PSI events or membership shall be grounds for impeachment
3.4.5.6: No other infractions shall be grounds for impeachment unless the board shall amend the bylaws to add additional kinds
3.4.5.7: Impeachment must be a unanimous vote by the full board minus the member under consideration
3.4.5.8: Members under an impeachment vote may not be present during the vote to impeach, though the board shall give them an opportunity to address all accusations against them
3.4.5.9: Impeached members shall be replaced under the emergency board member rules detailed above (3.4.2.4)