Bylaws

Hispanic Organization of Toxicologists Special Interest Group Bylaws

Revisions Approved November 14, 2018, and November 15, 2021

ARTICLE I—NAME AND DEFINITIONS

The name of this organization shall be the “Hispanic Organization of Toxicologists,” or HOT for short, which is a Special Interest Group (SIG) of the Society of Toxicology (SOT).

For the purposes of this document, “Hispanic” is defined as a person that self identifies as Hispanic, Latino, Latina, Ibero‐American, Brazilian, Spanish or Portuguese.

ARTICLE II—OBJECTIVES AND PURPOSE

The purpose of HOT is to enhance and advance the professional development of Hispanic toxicologists worldwide. In order to further that purpose, the objectives of HOT are as follows:

1. To serve as the focal point for interaction of members of the Society of Toxicology interested in the development of toxicology in the Americas and worldwide.
2. To develop, propose to the Society of Toxicology, and conduct outreach programs and educational activities, with emphasis on the latest developments in toxicology, and by using HOT scientific resources.
3. To enhance and advance the professional development of Hispanic toxicologists and Society of Toxicology members. To communicate to the SOT Council issues regarding national and global toxicology, in particular those of concern in the Americas.
4. To provide a forum for Hispanic researchers to share concerns and discuss issues regarding their professional development and contributions to the field of toxicology.
5. To provide information about sources of funding available to Hispanic researchers.
6. To provide international outreach and facilitate the collaboration between the international community of scientists and the HOT and Society of Toxicology members. To propose and/or stimulate new scientific developments directed to toxicological issues affecting the Hispanic community inside and outside the United States.
7. To relate HOT developments to the activities of the Society of Toxicology.
8. To act as a resource to the Society of Toxicology in the area of toxicology as it relates to the interests of HOT.

No part of the net earnings of HOT shall inure to the benefit of or be distributable to its members, trustees, officers, or other private persons, except that the Special Interest Group shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes herein‐‐above set forth.

No substantial part of the activities of HOT shall be the carrying on of propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation and HOT shall not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distribution of statements) any political campaign on behalf of any candidate for public office.

ARTICLE III—MEMBERSHIP

Section 1. Any member of the Society of Toxicology in good standing, who shares the vision, goals and interests of the HOT Special Interest Group shall become a member of the HOT upon payment of Special Interest Group dues. HOT members who are Society of Toxicology members shall receive all privileges conferred by their Society of Toxicology membership.

Section 2. Any person having a professional interest in toxicology may become a member of the HOT upon payment of the required dues. HOT members who are not Society of Toxicology members shall receive limited Society of Toxicology privileges, as approved by the Society of Toxicology Council.

Section 3. Membership may be extended to full-time undergraduate students attending colleges or universities and having an interest in toxicology upon completion of the non-SOT member HOT membership form.

 

ARTICLE IV—OFFICERS, COUNCILORS, REPRESENTATIVES, AND ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Section 1. The Officers of the HOT shall be the President, Vice President, Vice President‐Elect, Secretary, Treasurer, Immediate Past President, and four Councilors, one of them from a sister organization. Only Full, Associate, Retired, or Emeritus members in good standing of the Society of Toxicology and the HOT shall be eligible to serve as Officers in the Presidential Chain or as Treasurer. They shall serve until their successors are installed. Officers shall take office on May 1.

Section 2. There shall be one Graduate Student Representative and one Postdoctoral Representative with voting rights. These representatives should be active student or postdoctoral members of the SOT, as appropriate. The functions of the Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Representatives include: 1) To attend all HOT Officers’ meetings providing relevant trainee information and perspectives in regards to the HOT issues and activities; 2) To represent the HOT trainee members at the Society of Toxicology Postdoctoral Assembly, Graduate Student Leadership Committee (GSLC), and other trainee groups and activities sponsored by the Society of Toxicology and/or HOT; 3) To observe, learn and seek mentorship opportunities for their own scientific and leadership development, and for the HOT trainees they represent.

Section 3. There shall be an Advisory Committee with no voting rights composed of Past Presidents of HOT with the exception of the Immediate Past President. The functions of the Advisory Committee include attendance at HOT Officers’ meetings to provide relevant information, guidance and perspectives in regards to HOT issues and activities. Each Past President will serve ad hoc in the Advisory Committee for a term of 5 years unless they are elected as an officer before the ad hoc term expires.

 

ARTICLE V—ELECTION OF OFFICERS, COUNCILORS, AND REPRESENTATIVES

Section 1. The office of the Presidency shall be for a term of one year. The President, after serving one year, shall serve as immediate Past‐President for one year. The President shall preside at all meetings.

Section 2. The Vice President shall become the President after serving one year as the Vice President. The Vice President shall serve in the absence of the President.

Section 3. The Vice President‐Elect shall be elected by a majority vote of the ballots cast by the HOT membership and shall become the Vice President after serving one year as Vice President‐Elect. The Vice President‐Elect shall serve in the absence of the President and Vice President.

Section 4. The Secretary shall be chosen by vote of the HOT membership for a term of two years.

Section 5. The Treasurer shall be chosen by vote of the HOT membership for a term of two years.

Section 6. Two Councilors shall be elected each year and serve for a term of two years. At all times, one Councilor, who is a member in good standing of both the SOT and HOT, shall come from a Sister Organization (Sister Organizations as defined by the Executive Committee).

Section 7. The Graduate Student Representative and Postdoctoral Representative shall be elected by a vote of the membership. The Graduate Student Representative and Postdoctoral Representative shall each serve a one‐year term.

Section 8. A Nominating Committee consisting of not less than five members, including the last two Past‐Presidents, shall be appointed by the HOT Officers within two months following installation of Officers. The Nominating Committee shall provide a slate of candidates for each election.

Section 9. The Nominating Committee shall submit the slate of candidates to Society of Toxicology Headquarters at least four weeks prior to the Annual Meeting; elections shall be held by electronic ballot prior to the Annual Meeting.

Section 10. In the event of a vacancy in the Presidency, the Vice President accedes to that office until the unexpired term of the Presidency is completed and shall serve as President the following year. Similarly, the Vice President-Elect accedes to the office of the Vice President should that office become vacant until the unexpired term of the Vice Presidency is completed and shall serve as Vice President the following year. A special election must be held to fill the Vice President‐Elect vacancy, and the Executive Committee may make an appointment to fill the vacancy until such time that an election can be conducted.

Section 11. Officers and representatives shall begin their terms of office on May 1 following the Annual Meeting at which their election is announced, or one month after the Annual Meeting if it is held after April 1.

Section 12. The Executive Committee should appoint one member of HOT to serve as the Toxenlaces Editor-in-chief and one member to serve as Toxenlaces Editor Assistant. Both positions should serve for a term of two years. Active HOT members from any membership category can be appointed to these positions.

 

ARTICLE VI—ADMINISTRATION

Section 1. The HOT shall be governed by the Executive Committee, except as otherwise herein expressly provided.

Section 2. The Executive Committee (EC) with voting rights shall consist of the 12 elected members (President, Vice President, Vice President-Elect, Secretary, Treasurer, Past President, four Councilors, Postdoctoral Representative, and Graduate Student Representative). The HOT President shall be the chairperson of the EC. Seven voting members (simple majority) present at a meeting of the EC shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.

Section 3. The President will preside at all meetings of the HOT and of the Executive Committee and shall perform such other duties as may be directed by the Executive Committee. In the President’s absence, the succeeding order of Officers shall preside.

Section 4. The HOT shall comply with the following provisions in order to retain its status as an authorized body within the Society of Toxicology:  
The Special Interest Group shall provide annual reports of its activities and finances for the current year as well as plans of programs, activities, and finances for the following year. Annual reports shall be submitted to the Society of Toxicology by the required date of each year.

1.  Annual reports and plans shall be reviewed by the Society of Toxicology Council, which shall consult with the Special Interest Group as necessary.
2. The Council Contact shall consult with the HOT as necessary and report to Council with recommendations concerning continued authorization of the HOT.
3.  Society of Toxicology authorization shall be withdrawn from the HOT if it fails to comply with the provisions for continuing authorization.
4.  HOT policy statements must be reviewed and approved by the Society of Toxicology Council in advance and prior to release.

Section 5. The Treasurer shall have fiduciary responsibilities for all monies of the HOT. The disbursement of all funds for the HOT shall be made upon authorization by the Executive Committee. The Treasurer of the Society of Toxicology shall be authorized to draw against the HOT funds. The Treasurer shall submit the accounts for audit by members designated by the Executive Committee at the last meeting of the Executive Committee prior to the Annual meeting of the Special Interest Group and shall transmit to the successor in office all funds and property of the HOT in his or her possession. An annual report shall be submitted to the HOT in such form as may be determined by the Executive Committee. No funds shall be expended by or in the name of the HOT to the extent that the expenditure, if made by the Society of Toxicology, would represent use of funds for a purpose or purposes not within the Society's exempt purposes under 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Section 6. The Secretary shall keep an accurate record of all transactions of all meetings. The Secretary (or in her/his absence, the President or the President’s designee) shall record all transactions of all HOT and all Executive Committee meetings, shall be responsible for the correspondence of HOT, shall keep current a list of HOT members and their status, and shall give notice of all meetings. As applicable, the meeting minutes, Executive Committee correspondences, and records of Executive Committee transactions shall be made accessible to HOT members in a hard copy or electronic form within a reasonable time frame.

Section 7. The Councilors shall choose, at the beginning of their tenure, a leadership position overseeing one of the current areas of high importance to the HOT, as well as new areas of importance that may arise in the future: Awards, Education, and Global Outreach. If there is a corresponding committee, the councilor may be the chairperson, co‐chairperson, or liaison for that particular committee.

Section 8. Any HOT funds or other property remaining at the time of termination or abandonment or dissolution of the Special Interest Group shall be turned over to the Society of Toxicology and shall become a part of the Society's general funds.

 

ARTICLE VII—MEETINGS

Section 1. Meetings shall be held at least annually and as dictated by the scientific and educational programs of the HOT. The time and place of each meeting shall be established by the Executive Committee and communicated to the membership at least two weeks before each meeting.

Section 2. Special meetings may be called by the President at any time, with the approval of the Executive Committee or by presentation to the President of a petition signed by at least 20% of the membership in good standing.

Section 3. A quorum shall consist of 20% of the HOT members in good standing.

Section 4. Executive Committee meetings shall be held at the discretion of the President provided that each of the members of the Committee is notified at least seven (7) days prior to the meeting.

 

ARTICLE VIII—DUES

Dues are established by the Society of Toxicology Council and are the same for all Special Interest Groups. A request for variance from the established rate shall be directed to the Society of Toxicology Council through the Special Interest Group Council Contact. Special fees outside of the dues structure (i.e., funds for an off‐site reception) can also be collected if pre‐arranged through the Special Interest Group liaison.

 

ARTICLE IX—COMMITTEES

Section 1. The Vice President shall become the Chairperson of the Program Committee. The members of the Program Committee shall be appointed by the Chairperson. The Program Committee shall develop scientific and educational programs consistent with the objectives of the HOT Special Interest Group and provide copies of the material to the Secretary who will, in turn, notify the membership. The Program Committee shall coordinate its activities with the SOT Program Committee and with other appropriate Special Interest Groups.

Section 2. The Secretary shall be the Chairperson of the Communications Committee. The Communications Committee is responsible for coordinating all communications issued by the Executive Committee to the HOT membership.

Section 3. The President shall appoint other committees as required and shall automatically act as an ex‐officio member of such committees. Members of such committees shall serve at the discretion of the President.

 

ARTICLE X—AMENDMENTS

Section 1. Amendments to these Bylaws may be presented by any member of the HOT in good standing at any regular meeting of the HOT or at any special meeting called for that specific purpose. They shall be presented in writing and shall be offered to the membership present at that meeting on motion for consideration and circulation to the membership. A simple majority shall be necessary to pass the motion.

Section 2. Amendments accepted for future consideration and circulation shall be forwarded to the Special Interest Group Staff Liaison to be circulated with a ballot to all HOT members in good standing. A two‐thirds affirmation vote of the ballots returned within the specified time frame shall be necessary for adoption of any amendment.

Section 3. Amendments to these Bylaws must be approved by the Council of the Society of Toxicology before they become effective. This is done to ensure that future changes in these Bylaws will have the same force as the original, which was so approved.