The NESFA Code
The NESFA Standing Rules
with Historical Annotations

Preface

The purpose of the NESFA Code (also called the Standing Rules) is to provide a convenient single compilation for reference to the following things:

• 1) Rules of general and continuing effect adopted by the Membership that can be changed only by the Membership. These are indicated in the Code by an "M" after the rule number.

• 2) Regulations of general and continuing effect adopted by the Executive Board (which consists of the four constitutional Officers: President, Vice-President, Treasurer, and Clerk). Most of these rules relate to the financial management of NESFA or custody of its property. Executive Board regulations can be changed either by the Executive Board or by the Membership. They are indicated in the Code by an "E" after the rule number.

• 3) Policies and rules adopted by Officers, committees, and appointed officials. These are referred to in the Code as fiats. They can be changed at the whim of their originator, or by the Executive Board or the Membership. (A few fiats by government agencies are also included.) Fiats are allowed in the Code at the discretion of the Rules Committee, which should filter out things that are not semi-permanent or of possible interest to most members. Fiats are indicated in the Code by an "F" after the rule number.

If you find any errors or changes in fiats, or want a new fiat put in, contact a member of the Rules Committee.

There are also two appendices printed with the Code. Certain humorous motions that have been passed from time to time have been compiled into Appendix A for your amusement. Appendix B lists everyone who was ever elected to Office or confirmed in a position requiring approval by the Membership.

Most rules in the Code are followed by annotations in square brackets and italics [like this] giving their date of passage or other pertinent historical information. These annotations, along with any other text in square brackets, are not themselves part of the rules. [The historical annotations and other comments through 5/94 are by George Flynn, who takes sole responsibility for their accuracy. Thereafter they are by the Rules Committee.] The original edition of the NESFA Code was adopted in July 1971; it was a compilation of earlier rules, some passed by the Membership or the Executive Board, others based on "Tradition" or "Custom." Rules which first appeared in the 1971 Code are annotated as "7/71*". Fiats were first added to the Code in 1972.

The last printed edition of the NESFA Code was published in June 1992; updates were published in January 1993, June 1993, December 1993, and May 1994. An unpublished revision, including all rules passed by the Membership and Executive Board through the May 1994 business meeting plus a few more (to about August 1994), was added to the NESFA website in December 1998 and declared to be the official version. As of November 2002, work is in progress to bring the Code fully up-to-date.