What Are Bylaws?
Bylaw - a law of local application adopted by an organization or assembly.
Every level of PTA has bylaws - the local units, the councils, districts, the state and even the National PTA operate within the guidelines of a bylaw document.
Bylaws represent the most important legal document of an association, establishing and protecting the rights of the membership. A unit's bylaws link the association to the Virginia PTA and National PTA by which they are chartered. Bylaws represent the written contract between the general membership and their elected officials, specifying what duties and responsibilities are assigned to each respective group.
Bylaws are the key to:
- understanding the organization;
- answering questions about nominations, elections, board vacancies, duties of officers, auditing the books, etc.
- settling disputes and assisting with conflict resolution.
When your unit is having problems, remember to ask "What do our bylaws say?"
For these reasons, it is extremely important that all bylaws be current, clear in content, and accurately represent the way a local unit conducts the business of the association.