Resolution 48-06: Before Text

Written by Will Highsmith. Posted in Uncategorised

Resolution 48-06: Before Text
Proposed by: Proposed by: Charles A. McCollum, PGIM ME, Stephen A. Balke, PGIM NM, Dustin T. Verity, PGIM HI

As it reads:

SECTION 501 FUNDS OF THE GENERAL GRAND COUNCIL

The Funds of the General Grand Council shall be:

GENERAL FUND – The General Fund shall be maintained for the operation and maintenance of the General Grand Council, and shall consist of its Assets and Liabilities. This Fund shall receive all moneys thereafter paid to the General Grand Council, except those specifically designated for other funds.
GENERAL GRAND COUNCIL CORPORATE FOUNDATION – The General Grand Council Corporate Foundation is established as a permanent endowment fund to assist the General Grand Council in meeting its operational expenses in perpetuity.
1. The Members of the Corporate Foundation Board shall consist of the three (3) principal elected officers of the General Grand Council and consist of five (5) members in total plus appointed advisory members as follows:
  1. General Grand Master
  2. Deputy General Grand Master
  3. General Grand P.C.W.
  4. General Grand Treasurer
  5. General Grand Recorder
  6. Chairman of the Finance Committee advisory Board Member
  7. Up to Three (3) PGIM to be selected advisory Board Members by the Trustees for each Triennium. (Modified September 30, 2014)
2. The Corporate Foundation Board shall hold Board meetings twice a year at such time and place as determined by the Corporate Foundation Board.
3. The Corporate Foundation Board shall ensure that the Corporate Foundation funds are invested in accordance with established policy, and procedures to assure that the proper investment and use of the Corporate Foundation Funds are followed.
4. Promotional funds identified as such shall be placed in the Corporate Foundation Fund and are to remain there as part of the permanent fund. (Modified September 30, 2014).
5. The General Grand Treasurer will invest the Corporate Foundation funds in accordance with the approved Investment Policy with the approval of the Corporate Foundation Board.
6. The Corporate Foundation Board shall file an annual report of finances and the actions of the Corporate Foundation Board which will be forwarded as a part of the General Grand Treasurers Triennial report.

SECTION 502 FEES, DUES, ASSESSMENTS, etc.

All Fees, Per Capita, Dues, Assessments, etc. shall be calculated and paid in U.S. Currency.

Dispensation to Form–
1. Councils – The sum of fifty dollars ($50.00) for each Dispensation to create a subordinate Council
2. Grand Councils -The sum of one hundred dollars ($100.00) for each Dispensation to create a Grand Council
Charter –
1. Councils - A Fee of seventy fifty dollars ($75.00) for issuance of an original Charter to a Subordinate Council
2. Grand Councils - A Fee of one hundred fifty dollars ($150.00) for issuance of an original Charter to Grand Council
3. Duplicate Charters – A fee of fifty dollars ($50.00) to reissue a Charter lost, destroyed or unusable
Per Capita and Fees–
1. Effective October 1, 2015 - The annual per capita dues assessed each Constituent Grand Council of the General Grand Council shall two dollars ($2.00) US for each Cryptic Mason or Royal and Select Master in good standing on their rolls as of the date of their Annual Grand Assembly, excepting those holding General Grand Council Life Memberships as defined in subsection D (below). (Modified September 30, 2014)
  
  Effective October 1, 2016 - The annual per capita dues assessed each Constituent Grand Council of the General Grand Council shall two dollars and fifty cents ($2.50) US for each Cryptic Mason or Royal and Select Master in good standing on their rolls as of the date of their Annual Grand Assembly, excepting those holding General Grand Council Life Memberships as defined in subsection D (below). (Modified September 30, 2014)
2. Subordinate Council per capita - Each subordinate Council shall pay into the treasury of the General Grand Council five dollars ($5.00) US for each companion greeted therein, and two dollars and fifty cents ($2.50) US annually for each member, until such time as a Grand Council shall be regularly established in that State, District, Territory, or Country in which such Council is located. (Modified September 30, 2014)
3. Subordinate Council Degree Fees - The fees in Councils under immediate jurisdiction of this General Grand Council, for the Degrees of Royal Master, Select Master and the Super Excellent Master, shall not be less than twenty-five ($25.00) each. (Modified September 30, 2014)
General Grand Council Life Memberships
1. Any Cryptic Mason/Royal and Select Master, in good standing of a Constituent Grand Council, may become exempt from paying General Grand Council per capita by purchasing a non-voting Life Membership in the General Grand Council for each Council to which he belongs.
2. Life Membership Fee - A Companion may submit an application for GGC Life Membership to the General Grand Recorder, or to his Grand Recorder, who in turn will forward the application to the General Grand Recorder, the sum of twenty-five times (x 25) the General Grand Council Per Capita applicable for their States, Districts, Territories or Countries at the time of purchase. (Reference Subsection C1, C2 - above) GGC Life Memberships do not carry any special preferences or voting privileges at the General Grand Assembly. New Life Membership Fees will become effective October 1, 2014, October 1, 2015, or one year before the effective date of any subsequently approved per capita increase. (Modified September 30, 2014)
  1. Additions to Life Memberships: Voluntary additions of funds to this Life Membership may be added at any time.
  2. Dispatch of Funds: All funds received by the General Grand Recorder shall be deposited in the General Grand Council Corporate Foundation.
  3. Funds Ownership: All funds deposited with the General Grand Council are the property of the General Grand Council and will be used to offset the Per Capita of the constituent Grand Councils.
  4. Not Refundable: The total purchase amount of this Life Membership, or the revenue derived from its investment, is non-refundable to the purchaser.
3. The General Grand Recorder shall keep a permanent record of Cryptic Masons/ Royal and Select Masters with GGC Life Memberships.
4. The General Grand Council will design and provide each life member with a one-time special membership certificate (receipt) designating his status with the General Grand Council.
5. A Permanent Memorial Fund (PMF) shall be established for the investment of the funds from those life members who have lost good standing or died. The earnings of these funds shall be distributed according to the Investment and Distribution Policies of the General Grand Council.
6. The purchase of a GGC Life Membership will take effect after the annual per capita is paid in full.
7. Each constituent Grand Council may or may not adopt this Life Membership proposal.
8. If a GGC Life Member transfers to another Council within his Grand Council or to another Grand Council’s Jurisdiction, he may take his Life Membership with him and the Grand Recorder(s) will inform the General Grand Recorder of his change in status.
9. If a GGC Life Member is a Plural Member in his Jurisdiction, or Dual Member in another Grand Council Jurisdiction, his Life Membership is only good in each Council where he was a member when it was purchased. He may purchase GGC Life Memberships in all Councils where he is a member. However, Grand Councils to which he belongs will pay the per capita to the General Grand Recorder for each council where he doesn’t hold a Life Membership.
10. Holders of GGC Life Membership certificate are subject to all the laws, rules and regulations as provided in the code of any Grand Council Cryptic Masons or Royal and Select Masters and loss of membership by suspension or expulsion shall automatically abrogate his life membership and any claim to any portion of any such fees paid for such life membership.
11. Any Council or individual may purchase a Memorial Life membership in the name of a deceased Companion for the sum of Twenty-five times (x 25) the General Grand Council per capita at the time of purchase provided that the Companion, in whose name the certificate is to be issued, was in good standing in a legally constituted Council at the time of his demise. A special membership certificate designating the Memorial Life membership for the deceased and the purchaser may be sent to the purchaser or the family of the deceased at the request of the purchaser.
12. Upon the demise of the General Grand Council, all funds in the Life Membership Fund and the Permanent Memorial Fund will be returned to the various Affiliated Grand Councils or individuals of unaffiliated Grand Councils according to their contributions.

SECTION 503 REVENUES OF THE GENERAL GRAND COUNCIL

The revenues of the General Grand Council shall be:

Fee, dues, and assessments as set forth in Subsection 502
Any money or property given, devised, bequeathed or belonging to the General Grand Council and any income derived there from.
Any and all monies or property whatsoever of which the General Grand Council has or may come into its possession.

SECTION 504 DISBURSEMENTS OF THE GENERAL GRAND COUNCIL

Disbursement of funds of the General Grand Council shall be made only by order of the General Grand Council or the Trustees of the General Grand Council.
Forms of Claims – Each claim against the General Grand Council shall show each item included therein, and by whose authority the indebtedness was incurred.
Form of Disbursements – Each check drawn by the General Grand Treasurer shall show,
1. Date of issue
2. To whom drawn
3. For what amount issued
4. By what authority issued
5. Upon which fund drawn

SECTION 505 SALARIES AND EXPENSES OF OFFICERS, MEMBERS AND COMMITTEES

All salaries of staff hired by the General Grand Council shall be determined by the Trustees of the General Grand Council and paid monthly.
Officers and Committee Reimbursement – General Grand Officers, Committee members, and Regional Deputies shall be reimbursed for necessary expenses in accordance with the policy and procedures as established by the General Grand Trustees, in a timely manner, subject to the budget and approval of the Trustees of General Grand Council, provided that expenses are not paid by any other Masonic General or Grand Body for the same Period and/or event.