MAFA Standing Rules

 Standing Rules may be adopted by a majority vote at any meeting. After adoption, at any future session, they can be suspended, modified or rescinded by a majority vote (per Robert’s Rules of Order.) All previously existing MAFA Standing Rules were rescinded by the Board of Directors on 9/22/16.

Board Membership (approved 10/3/17)

  • Each member of the Board should serve no more than two consecutive terms in a given office.
  • Some continuity of board composition should be sought when a new board is nominated and elected.

Removal from office (approved 10/3/17)

  • If the MAFA Board determines a volunteer in charge of a MAFA event or any part of that event is not fulfilling his or her responsibility as outlined in a contract, job description or the Operations Manual, then the MAFA Board may, by majority vote, intervene and relieve that volunteer of those responsibilities.
  • Any resignation or removal from a position on the MAFA Board of Directors or Appointed Positions is effective immediately for responsibility and voting rights. A MAFA Director, committee appointment or volunteer who has resigned shall, in a period not to exceed 30 days, turn over all records, receipts, documents and other MAFA-related materials to a member of the MAFA Board of Directors.

 Membership (approved 10/3/17)

  • Per the bylaws, the Board sets (and reps approve) the membership fee for the two-year membership. Membership dues are due on October 1 of the non-conference year.
  • If a guild or associate joins early in an odd year, i.e., at any time before the conference, they pay the full 2 years dues and their membership expires on Sept 30 of the following year.
  • If a guild joins or renews at any time after the conference, but before the two-year dues are due, they pay the regular (two-year) dues, and they are then considered paid-up when next the dues are due. In other words, they might get more than two years for their first two-year dues.

Documentation (approved 7/25/19)

  • Basecamp shall contain our day-to-day working documents and drafts, our conversations as messages, important emails forwarded in, etc.
  • Google Drive shall contain the final versions of documents of historical record – minutes of meetings; treasurer reports; conference brochures, budgets and evaluation reports; and other major committee reports and recommendations. (Approved 7/25/19)
  • Board members are responsible for updating the permanent files in Google Drive for their area of responsibility. (Approved 7/25/19)

Conference Rules (approved 10/3/17)

  • MAFA shall provide funds for Conference fellowships. The amount of the fellowships shall be determined by the MAFA Board. Fellowships may cover part (or all) of workshop fees, but not room and board. The Grants Committee shall evaluate the applications and make award recommendations to the Board for final approval.
  • MAFA shall provide the Conference Committee with scholarships for all beginning weaving and spinning students. All beginning students shall receive the same amount.
  • If necessary, MAFA shall provide the Conference Committee with advance funds for conference-related expenses.
  • The Conference Committee shall create a budget aiming for a transfer to MAFA operating funds of approximately $20K at the end of the conference.
  • If the Conference Budget allows discounts for Conference Planning Committee members, Board members shall receive them as well.

External and Internal Communications (approved 8/6/2024)
It is MAFA policy to use MAFA email accounts for all external communications, not personal email accounts. If you do not have a MAFA email, are communicating with outside parties, and need one, please contact your committee chair, or the MAFA President.

  • For internal communications, use Basecamp where possible, and use discoverable methods unless it is minor coordination between parties, or private messages.
  • Make To Dos and discuss things there instead of in Pings and emails. Include links to documents on Drive or in Docs and Files.
  • Post in the message board and tag the people who need to see it.
  • Use native Google Docs and Sheets instead of uploading Word and Excel files, to avoid software compatibility issues between Macs and PCs. PDFs are OK. 
  • In Basecamp, link to Google documents if they require review and comments, rather than uploading local documents.

MAFA Finances

 Processing (approved, 10/31/16)

  • Fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30. Expenses for each fiscal year must be submitted no later than August 15. This includes conference expenses. For exceptions, written rationales must be provided to Treasurer and President no later than August 15.
  • Expenses will be reimbursed within 30 days of receipt by the Treasurer.
  • The MAFA Treasurer may not dispense cash.
  • Invoices should be paid by the Treasurer, not by individual Board members.
    • A copy of the actual invoice needs to be submitted for payment.
    •  Discussions about the bill may occur anywhere on Basecamp or via email but final submission of invoice and approval by other Board officers needs to happen in a designated To-Do topic in Basecamp.
  •  Reimbursement forms and requests for payment of invoices may be submitted as printed or electronic documents. If electronic, approvals maybe in the form of scanned or digital signatures or Basecamp comments attached to the request for payment in the To-Do area.
  •  A second elected officer other than the Treasurer should be a signatory on the bank account. It would be better if this is not the President, since that officer is responsible for signing contracts.

Expense Approvals (approved 2/28/18)

  • Per the bylaws, all expenditures require written approval of two members of the Board.
  • Approvers should generally be the President and First Vice-President, or the President and Conference Coordinator, as appropriate.
  • No one may approve reimbursement of his or her own expenses.
  • Before anyone uses a MAFA credit card, he or she should obtain prior approval for the expenditure, following the rules outlined above. The Treasurer should also be notified of the expense soon after it has been made and approved.
  • Grant and Fellowship disbursements are approved by the Board and not expenditures subject to this policy.

Reimbursement Policy (approved 2/28/18)

  • Board, Conference Committee, and other Committee members should be reimbursed for all out-of-pocket expenses related to the support of MAFA. This includes expenses such as mileage and tolls for required travel, payment for necessary software and tools, photocopying or printing documents for meetings.
  • Expenses for other volunteers will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.
  • Volunteers are encouraged to submit claims for these expenses, so that MAFA gains a full appreciation of the cost of its activities.
  • Claims should be submitted as soon as possible after the expense has been incurred, but in any case, within 60 days.
  • Mileage will be reimbursed, at the discretion of the requestor, at either the IRS charitable mileage rate (currently $.14/mile) or at 50% of the current IRS business standard rate (currently $.54 1/2 per mile.) (Approved 3/28/18)
    • Any reimbursement over the IRS charitable rate is taxable to the individual, and MAFA bears no responsibility for reporting that.
  • The volunteer is responsible for maintaining a written record of each trip, its purpose, and the mileage and other costs incurred, as required by IRS.
  • Printing claims will be paid at actual cost or at the rate of $.05/page for B&W printing done on one’s local printer, and $.10 per envelope used.
  • Preferred method of submission is via a requested action in Basecamp. The request must include a description of and rationale for the expense, the date of the expense, and a copy of the receipt, if appropriate. Alternatively, a paper Reimbursement Request Form may be mailed to the Treasurer.
  • MAFA does not permit advance payments.

Bequests/Donations (approved 1/15/23)

  • MAFA cannot in any way direct or influence a donor on how to make their donation.
  • MAFA can only tell a potential donor their options which currently are:
    • MAFA Recovery Fund (Restricted) – The fund will be available to individuals and non-profit organizations in the mid-Atlantic region that have experienced loss of ability to continue a fiber art/craft or to contribute to the fiber community due to a disaster.
    • Allen Fannin Scholarship Fund (Restricted) – The fund provides scholarships to support beginner spinners in MAFA Conference Workshops.
    • MAFA Fiber Fund (Unrestricted) – The MAFA board will determine the best use of the funds based on the area of greatest need.
    • Donor stipulates how the donation is to be used and the name for the donation, if any. (Restricted or Unrestricted as the donor directs.)
  • If a Donor stipulates a purpose or restriction and it doesn’t comply with MAFA’s mission, we can reject the donation.