Shire Charter

Section I: Procedures

  1. All Shire policies are superseded by Civil, Society, and East Kingdom Law.
  2. “Shire members” refers to those who reside within the Old Stonebridges boundaries as defined by the ZIP code list maintained by the East Kingdom.
  3. Policies will be posted publicly posted to the Shire’s website, and a hard copy will be filed with the Seneschal’s Shire documents.
  4. All amendments to these policies must be put to formal vote, as outlined below.

Section II: Meetings

  1. Business meetings are to be held quarterly, at a minimum.
    1. One current officer and a minimum of four additional Shire members are to be present for the meeting to be considered official.
    2. Business meetings will be announced by a Shire officer on the Shire website no less than one week before the scheduled meeting.

Section III: Voting

  1. Formal Voting: Officer elections, event proposals, status changes, policy amendments.
    1. Subject of vote/motion to be published on the Shire website a minimum of ten (10) days prior to Business Meeting for member review.
    2. Voting to take place at Shire business meetings.
    3. Voters must be Shire members of fourteen (14) years of age or older, and current paid members of the SCA.
    4. A simple majority of votes passes the motion.
    5. Absentee and proxy voting are not allowed, but call-ins at time of voting are accepted.
  2. Informal Voting: Are not defined as being controlled by Society, Kingdom or these policies.
    1. Votes tallied by show of hands.
    2. Subject of vote not required to be published beforehand.
    3. Informal voting does not require paid membership.
  3. Election of Officers
    1. Nominations
      1. Contested nominations are subject to a formal vote.
      2. Uncontested nominations are subject to an informal vote.
    2. A call for letters of intent for any officer opening will be published on the website a minimum of three months prior to the vote.  Election reminders will be published on the website a minimum of one month before the vote.
    3. Letters of intent must be submitted in writing to the Seneschal no later than two months prior to the business meeting wherein the vote is to occur, and are to include:
      1. Statement of interest in particular office
      2. Candidate’s legal and SCA names
      3. SCA valid proof of membership
    4. Elections for Seneschal and Exchequer
      1. Will occur at the September business meeting of every odd calendar year for Seneschal and every even calendar year for Exchequer.
      2. New Seneschals and Exchequers will assume office beginning on the 1st of October immediately following election.
    5. Election procedure for relinquished offices
      1. If any officer required by Society or Kingdom Law relinquishes their office prior to the expiration of their office term, a call for letters of intent will be published on the website and email list within one week or the notification of relinquishment.  Letters of intent must be submitted to the Seneschal (or Deputy Seneschal if the vote is for Seneschal) within two weeks of the publication of notice for letters of intent.  The vote will occur at the next business meeting which is to occur no later than one month following the closing date for the receipt of the letters of intent.  The new officer will take office immediately following the vote and upon their superior Kingdom officer’s approval.  The newly elected officer shall complete the term of the relinquished officer, and in the event their term of office begins within 3 months of when the relinquished officer’s term would have expired, the new officer will maintain the office through the next regular officer period.
      2. If an officer other than a required officer under Society or Kingdom Law relinquishes their office prior to the expiration of their office term, a vote for their replacement will be conducted according to Section III.C.1, 2 and 3 above.

Section IV: Officer Requirements and Responsibilities

  1. Requirements
    1. All officers must be current SCA members
    2. Meet the specific requirements for the office per East Kingdom Law
    3. Be warranted by the appropriate Kingdom Officer, if applicable
    4. Must be a Shire member for a minimum of six months prior to the election
  2. Officer terms are two (2) years, with an optional two (2) year renewal, unless otherwise specified by Kingdom Law.
  3. Relinquishing offices prior to expiration of office
    1. Any officer wishing to relinquish their office will notify the Shire Seneschal, who will announce their intent at the next business meeting.  The officer must notify their Kingdom level superior as well.
    2. If the Shire Seneschal is relinquishing the office, they must notify their deputy, who will make the announcement at the next business meeting, on the Shire website and email list, and notify the Regional and Kingdom Seneschals.
    3. If the Seneschal or Exchequer relinquishes their office prior to the expiration their office term, their deputy will assume the responsibilities of the respective office until a vote may occur.
  4. Officer reports are to be filed per East Kingdom deadlines
  5. Deputies
    1. All deputies are appointed by the individual officer, no vote is required
    2. The Seneschal and Exchequer must have a deputy.  All other officers are encouraged to have a deputy, but are not required to do so.
    3. The deputy position does not guarantee any succession to the respective office.

Section V: Financial Policy

  1. The Shire must hold a formal vote on expenditures of $200 or more.
  2. All monetary instruments shall be deposited into the group’s account within one week from which they are received.
  3. SCA event attendees who reside outside of the USA (foreign attendees are citizens of another country) shall not be required to send in advance paid reservations, nor will they be monetarily penalized for not pre-registering via paid reservations.  Foreign citizens will be required to send in advance notice of intent to attend, if required by the event announcement.