Please submit to the Membership Committee Chair at the next scheduled meeting or use the contact form to request email information.
Categories of Membership
Partner – Organizations that meet all of the following criteria are eligible for the Partner category of membership in the Southeast Texas VOAD:
- Organizations with voluntary memberships and constituencies, which are notfor-profit organizations or associations, duly qualified under the IRS Code Section 501(c)(3).
- Organizations that have a disaster response program and policies for commitment of resources to meet the needs of people affected by disaster without discrimination.
- Organizations that operate substantially throughout the region or nationwide, or have the ability, through affiliations with related entities, to provide such regional or national coverage.
Associate – Associate members are all member agencies that are not partners.
- The Associate category of membership in Southeast Texas VOAD may be granted to local, state or federal government agencies, departments or organizations that have disaster planning and/or operations capabilities.
- Associate members shall be ex-officio members of Southeast Texas VOAD (with a voice, but no vote), and may serve as Chairs of Standing Committees.
Responsibilities of Membership
- The leadership of a Southeast Texas VOAD member organization shall designate the primary representative and one alternate representative in their initial application for membership in Southeast Texas VOAD, and advise the Membership & Growth Committee (by no later than January 15th of each year) of any changes to its representative designations. Routine changes to the primary and alternate representatives should be made no later than ten (10) days prior to the next regular Southeast Texas VOAD meeting.
- The representative has voice for, and (if a Partner organization representative) shall vote for, his or her organization at all meetings. Other representatives from the same organization have voice, when recognized by, and, at the discretion of the Chairperson. The intent is that there be a reasonable exchange of ideas in a timely fashion without monopoly by multiple representatives of a single member organization.
- A representative who misses fifty percent (50%) of the regular and special meetings in a twelve-month period shall receive a reminder letter from the Secretary/Treasurer that his or her organization’s failure to attend such meetings has been duly noted. A copy of the reminder letter shall be sent simultaneously to the leadership of the representative’s organization.
- The reminder letter shall state the importance of each organization’s participation in the activities of Southeast Texas VOAD, and shall request a statement as to the intentions of the representative, as well as that of his or her organization, to actively participate in future Southeast Texas VOAD meetings and activities.
- If the organization or a representative fails to respond to the reminder letter within thirty (30) days from its date, or if such representative accumulates two (2) additional unexcused absences in the next twelve-month period, the Secretary/Treasurer shall certify the same to the Membership & Growth Standing Committee, which, in turn, may recommend termination of a member organization’s membership in Southeast Texas VOAD to become effective upon a vote of the Executive Committee. Written notice of the outcome of such vote shall be provided to the representative and the leadership of the representatives’ member organization, and the termination shall be effective immediately upon such a vote having been taken.