Approved April 9, 1999
Revised April 9, 2000

ARTICLE I - NAME

The name of the organization is the California State University (CSU) Financial Officers Association, hereinafter referred to as the FOA.

ARTICLE II - PURPOSE

The primary purposes of the FOA are:

A. Assist the CSU, under the direction of the Chief Administrative/Business Officers (CABO), in planning, developing and communicating new and improved policies and procedures related to accounting and budgeting issues. Advise the Chancellor's Office on the implementation of these policies and procedures.

B. Provide a means to collaborate with the Chancellor's Office staff to review and comment upon proposed legislation and regulations and to help shape the CSU responses.

C. Plan and facilitate continued personal and professional development and training of financial officers and their staff in the CSU.

D. Provide collective, proactive leadership in support of the CSU and/or individual campuses in the development of creative and innovative programs through optimum use of technology designed to deliver cost effective, value added, financial services to campus customers.

E. Provide a forum in which the collective professional concerns of the Financial Officers of the CSU can be shared and explored with the Chancellor's Office.

F. Establish a consortium for the discussion, development and interchange of knowledge, information, skills and methods for solving accounting, budgeting, and related problems encountered by its membership.

G. Identify and establish standards to facilitate communications and reporting among membership.

ARTICLE III - MEMBERSHIP/DUES

A. Primary membership shall consist of one campus delegated (by their respective CABO member) Associate (Assistant) Vice President, Accounting, or Budgeting Officer of each of the campuses of the CSU and the Directors of the Accounting and Budget Offices in the Chancellor's Office. Only primary members shall have voting authority. Primary Delegates are appointed indefinitely. Changes in the campus delegates should be coordinated through the FOA-CABO liaison and done during the period after the Annual conference and before the next quarterly meeting.

B. Associate membership shall consist of all other managers and staff involved in and/or associated with accounting and budgeting related functions on the campuses and at the Chancellor's Office.

C. There are no annual dues payable for membership. The treasury of the FOA shall rely on fees pertaining to workshops and the annual business meeting.

ARTICLE IV - MEETINGS

A. The FOA shall conduct at least one annual business meeting for its entire membership. The time and place of the annual meeting shall be set by the Chair of the FOA and may not take place earlier than February or later than April of the calendar year following election. The location of the annual meeting shall alternate annually between Northern and Southern locations. Notice of the annual meeting should be sent to the members sixty (60) days in advance of the meeting. The purpose of the meeting shall be to elect officers, receive reports of officers and committees, provide training and professional development workshops, and for any other business that may arise.

B. Periodic meetings of the primary membership (or designee) should occur no less frequently than quarterly during the course of the year. The time and place should be sent to the membership thirty (30) days prior to the meeting. The purpose of the meetings shall be to conduct business of the FOA which has systemwide implications.

C. Special meetings of the primary membership may be called at any time during the course of the year by the Chair to address special issues, topics or projects.

D. A quorum shall consist of at least a majority of the primary membership.

E. Each primary member shall have one vote in the affairs of the FOA, which may be cast by the member or the member's designated representative.

ARTICLE V - EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

A. The Executive Committee of the FOA shall consist of the Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, and 2 At-Large members, who shall be elected from the primary membership. The Past Chair will serve as the final member of this committee.

B. The election shall be held as the final item of business at the annual meeting. All members of the Primary Delegates are eligible for any vacant elected Executive Committee position. Nominations for the election will be taken starting after the 3rd Quarterly meeting and voted upon at the Annual Business meeting prior to the commencement of the Annual conference.

C. The term of office shall be one (1) year commencing at the close of the annual meeting and shall terminate at the close of the next annual meeting unless otherwise noted below.

D. Duties of the various committee members shall be as follows:

1. Chair (2 years, one as Past Chair)

a. Serve as the chief administrative officer of the FOA.
b. Formulate the agenda and chair all meetings
c. Act as the liaison with appointed CABO member and other administrative associations of the CSU
d. Chair the Executive Committee
e. Assist the Directors of the Accounting and Budget Offices, Chancellor's Office, on accounting and budgeting related issues, as requested.
f. Appoint committees as necessary
g. Plan and conduct annual meeting

2. Vice Chair

a. In the absence of the Chair, assume all the duties listed above.
b. Chair the Education and Training Committee.
c. Assist the Chair as requested.
d. Serve on the Annual Conference Planning Committee

3. Secretary

a. Record and distribute the minutes of all meetings of the FOA.
b. Maintain and update the FOA website, membership list, and e-mail directory.
c. Serve on the Annual Conference Planning Committee.

4. Treasurer

a. Prepare a financial statement covering the finances of the FOA within sixty (60) days of completion of the annual meeting.
b. Assist the Vice Chair on the Education and Training Committee
c. Serve on the Annual Conference Planning Committee

5. At-Large Members (2 year, alternating terms)

a. Assist other Committee members as needed
b. Serve on the Annual Conference Planning Committee

6. Past Chair (1 year)

a. Assist incoming Chair as needed.
b. Develop a slate of candidates for the next annual election, including at-large representatives for the Executive Committee
c. Serve on the Annual Conference Planning Committee.

E. In the event one of the Executive Committee members of the Association is unable to complete the term of office, a representative from the primary membership shall fill the vacancy in a special election at the next periodic meeting of the FOA primary membership.

F. The Executive Committee shall meet as needed for the Annual Conference or as requested by the Chair of the FOA or the Directors of Accounting or Budget, Chancellor's Office through the Chair of the FOA.

ARTICLE VII - OTHER COMMITTEES

A. Education and Training shall be the only standing committee.

The chair shall be the Vice Chair who shall act as the liaison between the FOA and the Directors of Accounting or Budget, Chancellor's Office. The charge shall be to coordinate with them to identify needs and to cooperatively develop education and training opportunities for the FOA membership. Additional committee members may be identified from either primary or associate members as needed.

B. Ad Hoc Committees/Special Projects Task Forces

1. Ad Hoc Committees and/or special projects task force groups shall generally be drawn from primary membership with representatives from associate members or non-members for expert support. The primary charge shall be to respond to special issues and topics of concern to the FOA, whether identified by the FOA, CABO, or Chancellor's Office.

ARTICLE VIII - PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY

The rules contained in the current edition of Robert's Rules of Order as informally applied shall govern the Association insofar as they are not inconsistent with these Bylaws and any special rules of order the Association may adopt.

ARTICLE IX - AMENDMENTS

Proposed amendments to these Bylaws must be submitted in writing, along with an explanation of the purpose of the change, to the primary membership for consideration. Members will have at least sixty (60) days to consider at which time the proposed amendment will be placed on the agenda for the next periodic meeting of the primary members. Amendments will be implemented upon a majority vote of the primary membership present at the meeting at which the Bylaw amendment is presented.

Institutions of higher education are entrusted by society with great resources and commensurately great responsibilities for creation, dissemination, and preservation of knowledge. College and university financial officers play a key role in assuring that high standards of ethical practice attend to the custody and use of these resources. The financial officer's personal and professional conduct reflects on his or her institution, the collective profession, and the higher education enterprise at large. To guide financial officers in setting and practicing high standards of ethical conduct, the California State University Financial Officers Association has adopted the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) code of ethics. FOA embraces the values expressed in this code and advocates their observance by its members.

The financial officer's conduct should be characterized by integrity and dignity, and he or she should expect and encourage such conduct by others.

The financial officer should adopt and be faithful to personal values that:

• accord respect to self and others;


• preserve honesty in actions and utterances;


• give fair and just treatment to all;


• accept intellectual and moral responsibility;


• aspire to achieve quality;


• refuse conflict, or the appearance of conflict, between personal and institutional interests; and


• engender forthright expression of one's own views and tolerance for the views of others.


• The financial officer should act with competence and should strive to advance competence, both in self and in others.


• The financial officer should understand and support his or her institution's objectives and policies, should be capable of interpreting them within and beyond the institution, and should contribute constructively to their ongoing evaluation and reformulation.


• The financial officer should communicate to institutional colleagues the content of this code of ethics and should strive to ensure that the standards of professional conduct contained therein are met.


• In discharging his or her duties in accordance with this Code of Ethics, the financial officer should enjoy the following rights:

  the right to work in a professional and supportive environment;
  
  the right to have a clear, written statement of the conditions of his or her employment, procedures for professional review, and a job description outlining duties and responsibilities;
  
  within the scope of his or her authority and policy, the right to exercise judgment and perform duties without disruption or harassment; and
  
  freedom of conscience and the right to refuse to engage in actions that violate the ethical principles contained in this code or provisions of law.