BY-­‐LAWS

 OF  THE  
Karuk  Language  Restoration  Committee  

 
 
 

ARTICLE  I  -­  PURPOSE  

 

Section  1.     The  purpose  of  the  Karuk  Language  Restoration  Committee  (KLRC)  is  to  
work  in  conjunction  with  Karuk  Tribal  members,  and  the  Karuk  Tribal  
Council,  to  assist  in  the  renovation  of  the  Karuk  language.    This  committee  
will  provide  direction  in  the  development  of  curriculum,  policy  and  teaching  
strategies  to  ensure  that  the  Karuk  language  is  taught  to  all  tribal  members  
interested  in  preserving  this  part  of  their  heritage.  
 
Section  2.   The  KLRC  shall  act  in  accordance  with  these  by-­‐laws  and  the  policies,  
procedures  and  constitution  of  the  Karuk  Tribe.  
 
ARTICLE  II  -­  Officers  
 

Section  1.   The  Karuk  Language  Restoration  Committee  shall  have  the  following  officers:  
Chair,  Co-­‐Vice  Chairs  and  Secretary.  
 
Section  2.   All  committee  members  present  shall  select  these  officers  from  interested  
tribal  members  and  descendants  at  that  meeting  when  the  election  shall  be  
held.    Elections  shall  customarily  take  place  in  April  each  year  at  the  regular  
meeting  of  the  KLRC  unless  a  change  is  necessitated.    The  election  results  
shall  be  presented  by  the  KLRC  Chair  (or  their  designee)  to  the  Tribal  Council  
for  their  review  and  approval.  
 
Section  3.     The  term  of  office  for  these  officers  shall  be  for  the  period  of  two  years  from  
the  date  of  the  election,  or  until  the  next  meeting  after  that  anniversary  date;  
the  terms  are  to  be  staggered  with  only  two  of  the  positions  being  subject  to  
election  at  a  time.  
 
Section  4.   All  nominations  from  the  floor  must  be  seconded  in  order  to  qualify  the  
nominee’s  name  to  be  entered  in  the  election.  
 
Section  5.   All  elections  shall  be  by  secret  ballot  unless  there  are  only  two  nominations  
(or  less)  in  which  case  those  nominees  will  be  declared  the  new  officers.  
 
Section  6.   The  votes  shall  be  counted  and  tallied  by  three  committee  members  present  
and  none  of  these  shall  be  outgoing  officers  or  nominees.  
 
Section  7.    The  duties  of  the  Officers  of  the  KLRC  are  as  follows:    

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Chairperson:    To  conduct  and  mediate  meetings  according  to  Roberts’s  Rules  
of  Order,  act  as  spokesperson  for  the  committee,  and  coordinate  activities  
subject  to  authorization  by  the  committee  to  designate  or  establish  sub-­‐
committees  or  task  groups  as  required  to  carry  out  the  activities  of  the  group.  
 
Co-­‐Vice  Chairs:    To  carry  out  the  duties  of  the  Chair  in  the  event  of  his/her  
absence  or  inability  to  carry  out  his/her  responsibilities.  
 
Secretary:    To  record  the  minutes  of  each  meeting  and  to  compose  
correspondence  as  necessary  to  the  committee.  
 
 

Section  8.   Removal:  The  committee  shall  have  the  option  to  remove  any  Officer  who  is  
absent  from  three  consecutive  meetings  or  five  meetings  in  one  year’s  term.    
Notification  of  removal  shall  be  in  written  form  and  be  confirmed  by  the  
Tribal  Council.  
 
Section  9.   Resignation:  All  resignations  shall  be  in  the  form  of  a  written  notice  to  the  
committee.  
 
Section  10.   Vacancies  shall  be  filled  in  the  following  manner:  Nominations  from  the  floor  
at  the  earliest  possible  time  after  a  vacancy  is  announced.  
 
ARTICLE  III  -­  MEMBERSHIP  
 

Section  1.     The  KLRC  The  Committee  shall  consist  of  Karuk  Tribal  members,  Karuk  
Tribal  descendants,  and  community  members  present  at  each  meeting.    
Members  eligible  to  vote  shall  be  any  enrolled  tribal  member  or  tribal  
descendants  in  attendance.  
 
Section  2.     A  quorum  shall  consist  of  no  less  than  5  members  of  the  KLRC,  of  which  at  
least  one  shall  be  Chairperson  or  Vice  Chairperson,  and  once  established  
shall  continue  to  be  recognized  for  the  entire  meeting  whether  or  not  
individual  members  remain  until  the  meeting  is  officially  adjourned.  
 
Section  3.     A  quorum  shall  be  required  in  order  to  have  a  legal  and  recognized  meeting,  
and  any  action  taken  shall  be  considered  an  act  of  the  entire  committee.  
 
Section  4.     Each  voting  committee  member  shall  have  one  vote.  
 
Section  5.     Regular  meetings  shall  be  held  at  least  quarterly.  All  meetings  shall  be  held  
given  advance  notice  of  at  least  one  week  through  all  available  sources.  
 
Section  6.     Special  meetings  may  be  called  by  the  Committee  Chairperson  or  Tribal  

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 Chairperson  with  at  least  a  forty-­‐eight  hours  notice.  
 
ARTICLE  IV  –  EMERGENCY  ENDORSEMENTS  
 

Emergency  endorsements  may  be  made  by  agreement  of  the  Chairperson  and  the  Tribal  
Chairman.    This  action  must  be  reported  at  the  very  next  KLRC  meeting.  
 
 
ARTICLE  V  -­  PROGRAM  MANAGEMENT  
 

Section  1.     To  ensure  that  needs  of  the  Tribe  are  being  served,  all  Tribal  members  shall  
have  an  adequate  opportunity  to  be  involved  in  the  planning  and  
development  of  the  activities  of  the  KLRC.    The  regular  winter  meeting  of  the  
Committee  shall  be  a  public  hearing  for  input  on  the  coming  years  project.  
 
Section  2.   The  Tribal  Chairman  shall  be  responsible  for  conducting  a  timely  evaluation  
each  year  to  be  reviewed  by  the  KLRC.      
 
ARTICLE  VI  -­  ADOPTION  AND  AMENDMENTS  OF  BY-­LAWS  
 

Section  1.   These  By-­‐laws  may  be  rewritten  or  amended  by  an  affirmative  vote  of  at  
least  8  voting  members  of  the  KLRC.  
 
Section  2.     These  by-­‐laws  and  any  future  amendments  must  be  approved  by  the  vote  of  
the  Karuk  Tribal  Council.  
 
Section  3.     These  By-­‐Laws  are  hereby  approved  on  this  16th  day  of  April  1993,  and  shall  
become  effective  immediately.    
 
Section  4.     These  By-­‐Laws  are  hereby  amended  on  this  20th  day  of  February  2010.  
 

 
 
 

Rev.  2/20/2010