Note: The latest bylaws (as of February 12, 2010) can be downloaded here. The on-site bylaws will be updated shortly.

Last Revision: Oct 18, 2007

ARTICLE I – MEMBERSHIP

SECTION 1. FULL MEMBERSHIP

A full member shall be defined as an undergraduate student, either registered or on temporary leave, of the California institute of Technology and a current dues paying member of Page House. Full membership is a result of:

• An incoming student being chosen by the House at the close of rotation.
• A two-thirds majority house vote by secret ballot at a house meeting.

SECTION 2. SOCIAL MEMBERSHIP

A social member shall be defined as a current, social dues paying member of Page House. Candidates for social membership are sponsored by a full member and receive social membership by majority house vote at a house meeting or dinner. In the case of a dinner, the house must be informed prior to the dinner, and there must be a quorum as described in Article II, Section 1.

SECTION 3. MEMBER PRIVILEGES

All members of Page House shall be entitled to:

• One vote in each house election.
• Participation in any house function.

In addition full members are afforded these additional privileges:

• The right to hold a house office, in accordance with the provisions of these bylaws.
• Room pick privileges as described in Article X.

ARTICLE II – HOUSE MEETINGS

SECTION 1. OCCURRENCE

House meetings may be called at any time by the President or three members of the Executive Council. A minimum of one house meeting should be held per term. The Secretary shall announce or otherwise post notice of the meeting. One third of the house membership shall constitute a quorum.

SECTION 2. INTERPRETATION

The House may exercise all powers consistent with these bylaws. In all questions of procedure, the Executive Committee shall interpret the bylaws as they see fit. Further, the Executive Committee shall have the power to make decisions on all questions for which provisions are not made in the bylaws.

ARTICLE III – THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

The Executive Committee shall consist of the five major officers of Page House, these being the President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Athletic Manager. No person shall at one time hold more than one office that will entitle him¹ to a seat on the Executive Committee.

SECTION 1. QUALIFICATIONS

Only Page House full members, who either live on campus or agree, if elected, to move on campus as soon as can be arranged, shall be appointed or elected to a major house office. At the time of balloting for a major house office, the Secretary shall announce the off campus status of any off campus candidates. If elected, they shall be placed at the top of the Secretary’s waiting list to return to on campus housing in the order of the rank of their new office. In the even that a major officer ceases to be a full member of Page House or moves off campus he shall retire from that office.

SECTION 2. DUTIES

The Executive Committee shall require all officers of the house to comply with its provisions. It shall exercise all other powers in connections with the affairs of the House not delegated to other persons or reserved for the house itself. The Executive Committee shall have the responsibility to recognize, investigate, and discuss the long-range and immediate problems of the House, and to make use of qualified people both within and outside the Executive Committee.

• It shall have the power to interpret the bylaws and to create or amend resolutions to these bylaws.
• It shall have the sole power to authorize expenditures.
• It shall adopt a budget at the beginning of each term to control all expenditures for the term.

SECTION 3. MEETINGS

Meetings of the Executive Committee shall be held at least once a week (except during final examinations and vacations) at the call of the President, or of any two members of the Executive Committee. Ordinarily, four members shall constitute a quorum. However, if at any time one or more of the major offices are vacant, unanimous attendance is necessary.

SECTION 4. SUBCOMMITTEES

The Executive Committee shall have the power to authorize subcommittees responsible to itself, for the investigation and discussion of House problems.

SECTION 5. VACANCY OF OFFICE

In the event of a vacancy of the office of the President, the Vice-President will assume the responsibilities of that office until such time that new President is elected. The election will occur at a special house meeting, in accordance with Article VII, to be held within one week of the vacancy. In the event of a vacancy in a house office other than that of the President, the President shall appoint an individual to fill the office for its duration and to perform its duties, subject to approval of the incumbent Executive Committee.

SECTION 6. OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

The President shall be the official representative of Page House, and shall preside at its meetings. The President is a voting member of the Executive Committee and is authorized to draw on House funds. He shall have ultimate responsibility for proper observance of all responsibilities delegated to member of the Executive Committee. The President may not be a freshman.

• He has the sole power of appointment subject to approval of the Executive Committee.
• He shall be the official liaison between the House and the Interhouse Committee.
• He shall be responsible for the safekeeping of all appurtenances to the office of the President.

SECTION 7. OFFICE OF THE VICE PRESIDENT

The Vice President shall, during the absences of the President, assume the duties of that office. He shall assist the President in coordinating the policies and activities of Page House. The Vice President is a voting member of the Executive Committee and is authorized to draw on House funds. His primary responsibility shall be as chairman of the Social Committee.

• He shall be responsible for the house’s social activities and shall coordinate them with the activities of other houses.
• He shall maintain, or delegate a member of the Social Committee to maintain, the house projector.

SECTION 8. OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

The Secretary shall, during the absence of the President and Vice President, assume the duties of the President. The Secretary is a voting member of the Executive Committee and is authorized to draw on House funds.

• He shall keep the official copy of the bylaws and resolutions and shall cause all amendments to the bylaws and resolutions to be included in the final copy.
• He shall keep a bound record of the proceedings of the meetings of the House and Executive Committee.
• He shall post, or otherwise make public, copies of the record of each meeting within three days subsequent to that meeting. He shall post notice of all meetings of the House in which legislation is to be acted upon or discussed, prior to the meetings.
• He shall be ultimately responsible for the production, publication, and distribution of the House List, to be published by the 5^th week of the 1^st term and the 1^st week of the 3^rd term.
• He shall be responsible for the conduction of room assignments and must maintain a current listing of all member addresses, their card picks, and status.
• He shall be responsible for keeping the bulletin boards up to date.

SECTION 9. OFFICE OF THE TREASURER

The Treasurer shall receive all monies belonging to the house and shall deposit them to the credit of Page House in such a bank or banks as the Executive Committee shall determine. The Treasurer is also a voting member of the Executive Committee and is authorized to draw on House funds. The Treasurer may not be a freshman.

• He shall keep a full account of monies expended and received and shall make a report of such account once a term at a regular meeting of the Executive Committee, and at such time as the Executive Committee may desire.
• He shall collect and deposit quarterly dues.
• He shall provide the bank(s) with the signatures of the persons authorized to draw on House funds.

SECTION 10. OFFICE OF THE ATHLETIC MANAGER

The Athletic Manager is the chairman of the Athletic Committee and is ultimately responsible for the athletic representation of Page House. The Athletic Manager is a voting member of the Executive Committee and is authorized to draw on House funds. The Athletic Manager may not be a freshman.

• He shall coordinate house athletics (i.e. Interhouse, Discobolus, and Alley Challenges.)
• He shall be responsible for the storage and procurement of house equipment.
• He shall provide the Athletic Department with the current term’s athletic list.
• He shall maintain house athletic records.
• He shall award or receive trophies as the case may be.
• He shall chair the Athletic Committee and have the authority to delegate his responsibilities to members of the Athletic Committee.

ARTICLE IV – THE MINOR OFFICES

The minor elected officers of the house shall be the Board of Control Representative, Academic Review Committee Representative, Conduct Review Committee Representative, Social Committee, and Athletic Committee.

SECTION 1. QUALIFICATIONS

Only Page House full members shall be appointed or elected to a minor house office. In the event that a minor officer ceases to be a full member of Page House he shall retire from that office.

SECTION 2. OFFICE OF THE BOARD OF CONTROL REPRESENTATIVE

The specific duties of the Board of Control Representative shall be determined by the Board of Control.

SECTION 3: OFFICE OF THE ACADEMIC REVIEW COMMITTEE REPRESENTATIVE

The specific duties of the Academic Review Committee Representative shall be determined by the Academic Review Committee.

SECTION 3: OFFICE OF THE CONDUCT REVIEW COMMITTEE REPRESENTATIVE

The specific duties of the Conduct Review Committee Representative shall be determined by the Conduct Review Committee.

ARTICLE V – THE FRESHMAN OFFICES

The offices reserved for freshmen shall be the Bell Frosh, Birthday Frosh, Change Frosh, Hot Tub Frosh, and Frosh Work Chairman.

SECTION 1. BELL FROSH

The Bell Frosh shall be responsible for the safekeeping and maintenance of the House Bell. The Bell Frosh must bring the Bell to the Head Table prior to waited dinners and house meetings and return the Bell to his room at their conclusion.

SECTION 2. BIRTHDAY FROSH

The Birthday Frosh shall be responsible for knowing the birthdates of all members and, on a member’s birthday, to state this colorfully during dinner announcements.

SECTION 3. PAPER FROSH

The Paper Frosh shall be responsible for the replacement of printer paper such that any and every house printer shall be able to use at all times.

• In addition to these duties, the Paper Frosh shall be responsible for providing exact change to members at any time.

SECTION 4. HOT TUB FROSH

The Hot Tub Frosh will assist the Hot Tub Czar in the maintenance of the hot tub and the pool. He will be a Hot Tub Czar-in-Training.

SECTION 5. FROSH WORK CHAIRMAN

The Frosh Work Chairman coordinates all activities of the freshmen.

• He shall be responsible for notifying members of the occurrence of a house meeting.
• He shall coordinate the freshman in any necessary construction (e.g. Interhouse and other parties.)

SECTION 6. FRESHMAN ELECTIONS

Freshman elections are conducted during the house meeting on the first week after rotation. Nominations are opened and are closed by the President who then calls for a vote. The President judges the backing of each candidate and determines the winner. The Executive Council has the right to appoint new freshman officers if they decide that the current officer is doing an inadequate job.

ARTICLE VI – APPOINTED OFFICES

The appointed offices of the house shall be Librarian, Damage Representative, Food Service Representative, Campus Computing Organization Representative, House Tool, Webmaster, Hot Tub Czar, Historian, Photographer, and JR’s Master.

SECTION 1. APPOINTMENT

The appointed officers for a given year shall be chosen by the President after the completion of room picks for that year among those members living on campus in the following year. If during his term an officer moves off campus, the President should appoint someone else to fill the position. The President may also appoint a new person to an office if the Executive Committee decides that the officer is doing an inadequate job.

SECTION 2. LIBRARIAN

It is the responsibility of the Librarian to maintain all written material.

• He shall be responsible for the maintenance of all comic book and magazine subscriptions.
• He shall maintain records of all library purchases and present a budget to the Executive Committee once a year.
• The Librarian shall act as liaison in all matters concerning the Matthew Couch Library. ²

SECTION 3. DAMAGE REPRESENTATIVE

The Damage Representative shall be responsible for the dealing with matters involving damage done to the house. Specifically, he shall act as liaison between the house and the Office of Student Housing.

• He shall be present for all damage inspections.
• He shall maintain all records pertaining to damage costs and report such costs at Executive Committee meetings.
• He shall be present for all fire drills when the RA’s are not able to be there.

SECTION 4. FOOD SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

The Food Service Representative shall be responsible for all matters between Page House and the current food service. Specifically, he shall attend Food Service Committee meetings as the official representative of Page House.

SECTION 5. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SERVICES REPRESENTATIVE

The Information Technology Services Representative shall act as liaison in matters between the house and the Campus Computing Organization.

SECTION 6. HOUSE TOOL

The House Tool shall be responsible for the storage and upkeep of the house tool kit.

SECTION 7. HISTORIAN

The Historian shall be responsible for recording all important events of the House, and taking photographs of all important events of the house. The Historian shall also prepare the Page House entry in the Big T.

SECTION 8. WEBMASTER

The Webmaster is responsible for the design and maintenance of the Page House Web Page.

SECTION 9. HOT TUB CZAR

The Hot Tub Czar is responsible for the maintenance of the hot tub and the pool. He will train and be assisted by the Hot Tub Frosh.

SECTION 10. JR’S BREWMASTER

The JR’s Brewmaster is responsible for the maintenance of JR’s. He shall be responsible for its accounts, finances, and inventory.

SECTION 11. FU CZAR

The FU Czar is responsible for the maintenance, cleaning, and upkeep of the FU Room. He shall hold any and all house videos.

SECTION 12. GRILLMASTER

The grillmaster will be responsible for any grilling required for house dinners or social events, and will have a key to the courtyard shed and the house grill.

SECTION 13. SOCIAL COMMITTEE

It is the responsibility of the Social Committee, under the directions of the Vice President, to plan and conduct social events for the house. The committee shall consist of no less than two and no more than five full members of the house.

SECTION 14. ATHLETIC COMMITTEE

It is the responsibility of the Athletic Committee, under the direction of the Athletic Manager, to coordinate the athletic activities of the house. The committee shall consist of no less than two and no more than five full members of the house.

ARTICLE VII – ELECTIONS & PROCEDURES

SECTION 1. NOMINATIONS

Nominations for all major and minor offices shall open the first Thursday of midterm week second term, and shall remain open until actual voting following the evening meal of the first Thursday following midterm week of second term. The Secretary shall post notice immediately preceding the opening of these nominations. For a nomination to be valid, the nominee(s) must have full membership.

SECTION 2. BALLOTING

Balloting shall take place during the course of announcements after the evening meal. All ballots shall be cast secretly. There shall be no campaigning or campaign materials present in a room where voting takes place during any election.

SECTION 3. ABSENTEE BALLOTS

Absentee ballots shall be allowed in the case of a voter who expects to be absent on the day of an election. Absentee ballots must be filed with the Election Chairman no later than the midnight prior to election.

SECTION 4. VOTING

All members may cast one vote for each office. In the first election, a correctly cast vote for the election of an officer shall be one of the following.

• A vote for a nominee;
• Writing the name of any other legally qualified person;
• Writing the word “no”.

SECTION 5. RUNOFFS

In order to be elected in the initial election, a candidate must receive an absolute majority of all correctly cast non-“no” votes. If, in any election, no candidate receives more than the number of “no” votes, than there shall be a vacancy in that office. A final election shall be held if no candidate is elected in the initial election. At least the two candidates with the first and second largest number of votes in the first election will become candidates I the final election. The single candidate receiving the third largest number of votes in the initial elections shall be a candidate in the final election only if he receives at least 80% as many votes in the initial election as the second place candidate. If two or more candidates tie for third place in the initial elections, they shall not be candidates in the final election. Write-in candidates and “no” votes are not permitted in any elections following the initial one.

• In the case of absentee ballots, votes presented from these shall be applicable in runoff elections if the candidate indicated has not been eliminated.

SECTION 6. FINAL ELECTION

The voting procedure in the final election is as follows:

• A voter writes the name of the preferred candidate.
• If a candidate has a majority of votes, that candidate wins.
• In the even of a tie in the final election, the candidate in the tie who received the most votes in the first election is the winner.

SECTION 7. ELECTION CHAIRMAN

The Election Chairman must release the results of each ballot to the President immediately after the results are compiled. However, numerical results shall not be made public until all officers have been elected. The Election Chairman must release the report of the Election Committee prior to midnight on the day of each election. All protests must be given in writing either to the President, or the Election Chairman. If no protests are received prior to the noon following an election, the report of the Election Committee will be considered valid. The Election Chairman is a special officer appointed by the President, with the approval of the Excomm, expressly for the duties mentioned above. This person may not be a candidate for major office.

SECTION 8. PROTESTS

Upon receipt of a valid protest, all scheduled run-off elections must be postponed for one week, pending resolution of the difficulty. The Executive Committee shall have the sole power to consider the validity of protests and to reschedule invalidated elections.

SECTION 9. INSTALLATION

All officers shall be installed as results become known. All previous officers shall retire immediately upon the installation of their respective successors. The new officers shall satisfy all qualifications and perform all duties as specified in Articles III and IV.

ARTICLE VIII – INITIATIVE & REFERENDUM

SECTION 1. PETITION

Upon presentation to the Executive Committee by any member of the House of a petition bearing the signatures of twenty percent of the member of the House requesting certain legislation upon any matter within the authority of the Executive Committee, the Executive Committee shall pass such legislation or, if not, shall submit the same to vote by secret ballot of the house within fifteen days from the date of presentation of such petition. The petition must be signed not more than fifteen days before it is submitted to the Executive Committee.

SECTION 2. REFERENDUM

The Executive Committee, upon fifteen days notice, may submit any proposed legislation to a secret ballot of the house.

SECTION 3. VOTING

Legislation resulting from any of the procedures outlined above may be brought to a vote of the House at a house meeting as specified in Article II. Unless otherwise provided in these bylaws, a majority of votes cast shall suffice to pass acts of legislation not relating to the expenditure of funds. A two-thirds majority of votes cast shall be necessary to adopt or repeal an act of legislation relating to the expenditure of funds.

ARTICLE IX – RECALL

SECTION 1. INITIATING A RECALL

Upon presentation of a petition for recall of any elected officer, bearing the signatures of twenty percent of those eligible to vote for the office, a special election shall be held. Signatures will be valid only if the petition was signed not more than seven days before it was submitted to the Executive Committee.

SECTION 2. VOTING

On the question of whether or not the officer shall be recalled, an affirmative vote from two-thirds of the voters shall suffice to remove him from office; otherwise he shall continue.

SECTION 3. SUCCESSOR

Nominations for the election of a successor, in the event of a successful recall, will open and close, and the recall election will be held, in accordance with the provisions of Article VIII, except that the officer in question may not be a nominee and nominations will open the Wednesday immediately following the removal of the elected officer. The successor will take office immediately upon election.

ARTICLE X – ROOM PICKS

SECTION 1. SECRETARY’S ROLE

The Secretary of Page House shall be responsible for its room picks, and shall be the final arbiter of all disputes regarding room picks. He shall be responsible for any and all facets of the room selection process, including the running of any meeting regarding room picks, liaison with the Housing Office or the MOSH, or the resolution of any questions regarding singles. The Secretary is responsible for keeping all records pertaining to the living arrangements in the house, including room lists, singles lists, phone lists, etc.

SECTION 2. CARD PICKS

At times and places to be determined by the Secretary, each member of the house who wishes to lie on campus will pick two cards. One will determine the member’s ranking in the doubles pick list, while the second will determine the member’s ranking in the singles list. No member will be allowed to draw cards until he has declared a roommate. No member shall be allowed to change roommates after his/her cards have been drawn. When the appointed time period for drawing cards has expired, the Secretary must make public the ordered lists.

SECTION 3. CARD ORDER

The card picks shall be ordered in the normal manner (i.e. aces high). If two cards are numerically the same, then the high card order shall be spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs. If two people pick identical cards, then there will be a draw between the two people to determine which person is higher. All seniors that draw shall be higher than all juniors that draw, and juniors are above sophomores. In other words, the best sophomore pick is still lower than the worst junior pick. If an off campus member who was not kicked off the previous year decides to move back on campus in the year following room picks, he will automatically go to the bottom of his class on both lists. However, if such an individual moves back on campus before room picks, he will only go to the bottom of his class on the doubles list.

SECTION 4. BONUSES

Certain officers of Page House are entitled to bonuses on their singles or doubles picks.

Those bonuses are as follows:

All of the doubles bonuses become effective at the room picks after elections. Singles bonuses apply for the year following elections. ³ The only officer bonus that becomes effective immediately is the President’s single bonus. Immediately upon his election, the President goes to the top of the singles list. None of these bonuses may be applied to obtaining an off campus Page room. Bonuses are not cumulative. That is, if a person is a member of the social team and the athletic team, he does not receive a +6 doubles pick. However, if a person is a member of the social team and is also historian, they do receive both bonuses, as they are in separate columns. For room pick purposes, if there is more than one officer in any one class, the order shall go as follows: President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Athletic Manager.

SECTION 5. PICKING ROOMS

At the room pick meeting, the Secretary will call for each member to make his room selection, in the order dictated by the doubles list. The suggested time limit for each person to make their room selection is five minutes, although certain factors might lengthen the time limit. After a person has selected a room, the Secretary simply call the next person o the ordered doubles list. When roommates are picking a room, they simply use the highest pick between the two of them.

SECTION 6. ROOMMATES

At the beginning of every school year, each member living in Page House will have a roommate.⁴ Roommates must live together for at least one term, or until one or both of the roommates obtains a single, moves off campus, or leaves the House or the Institute. As with all concerns regarding Page House room picks, it will be the Secretary’s job to deal in good faith with all members of the House.

SECTION 7. SINGLES

The singles list will be utilized when a member moves off campus, or whenever a space becomes available in an on campus alley. There is a set of rules that the Secretary must follow whenever a space or spaces become available.

• All available rooms must be offered to every member, in the order established by the singles list.
• If one of two roommates decides to take a single, the person taking the single has to move. If the person not taking a single is agreeable to moving, however, the person taking a single could conceivably keep his room as a single, while his roommate moves. However, if no such agreement can be reached, the person taking the single room will have to move.
• The one exception to the above rule is that neither corner double nor the triple may be taken as a single.
• Once a person has taken a single, their name is scratched off of the singles list for the remainder of the school year, and they may not pick another single. However, in passing up a particular room as a single, a person does not relinquish his rights to pick a later single that might become available.
• Only seniors are permitted to have an irrevocable single. All other singles can be taken away in the order they were granted if a member of the house wishes to move on campus.
• Talking and dealing between the various members involved in taking and relinquishing singles is certainly encouraged. The Secretary shall assist in these negotiations and shall oversee the entire process by proposing solutions starting at the time that the new single becomes available. It is the Secretary’s job to make sure that an equitable living arrangement is produced as a result of these dealings. As long as the above three rules are followed, and the Secretary and parties involved deal in good faith, any other living arrangement that can be reached is acceptable.
• All members must be moved within one week of the time that a new single becomes available. If no agreement can be reached by the members themselves, the Secretary shall suggest a reasonable arrangement and moving shall commence so as to be completed by the one-week time limit.

SECTION 8. INCOMING FRESHMEN

Whenever the number of incoming freshman is greater than the number of available spaces, certain upperclassmen will be asked to move off campus to make room for them.

• The bottom picks from the sophomore and junior classes will have to move off campus in equal proportion to their on campus numbers to satisfy the guarantee that all freshmen have housing their first year.
• One is considered to be forced or involuntarily moved off campus if one is denied a room I the house during room picks and if one does not move into the house by the end of the fifth week of first term.
• If a person is involuntarily moved off campus, and if they wish to move back on campus, they do not go to the bottom of their class in the doubles rankings. They pick normally, with whatever bonuses they might have.
• In any case, no person may be involuntarily moved off campus more than once.
• The following officers shall not be forced off campus: members of the Executive Committee and the Page House Board of Control Representative. Also, the top three picks for each of the Social Team and the Athletic Team shall not be forced off campus.

SECTION 9. LOSERS

Any member who refuses to abide by the rules for room picks and room changes as set forth in this Article shall lose his right to participate in room picks for the following year. This action shall be confirmed by the Executive Committee, and may only be rescinded by a valid petition for an initiative.

ARTICLE XI – RATIFICATION & AMENDMENT

SECTION 1. RATIFICATION

These Bylaws shall be considered ratified and valid when a two-thirds majority of the membership present at a house meeting called for this purpose vote for the ratification. At said time, all articles contained herein become official and changeable only by the means outlined below.

SECTION 2. AMENDMENT

Amendments to these Bylaws must be ratified by a two-thirds majority of the votes cast at a house meeting, as described in Article II. Amendments may be proposed through referenda by the Executive Committee or through petitions for initiative by the House membership, both as specified in Article IX.