2025 Proposed rule changes

The Association General Committee proposes the following changes to the Association rules to be considered at the 2025 AGM:

Rule 4a - unpaid subscriptions

Currently, if a member’s subscription is 12 months in arrears we assume that they have resigned. It is essential for membership secretaries and treasurers that this period is reduced to 6 months, so that one renewal year would be fully complete before the next one starts. 

While making this change we can also simplify the language used.

The proposed change, to take effect from January 2026 would change rule 4a from:

4 a) Subscriptions are due on 1st January. Members whose subscriptions are more than twelve months in arrears shall be deemed to have resigned their membership

to:

4 a) Subscriptions are due on 1st January. Members whose subscriptions are more than six months in arrears cease to be members of the Association.

Rule 4b - first year subscription payments

Currently, members elected after their district’s ADM only pay a subscription from the following 1st of January. This rule was added in 2023 to address the unfairness of charging a full subscription to members elected late in the year. This is problematic for membermojo (requiring manual intervention in January and February) and creates a perverse incentive NOT to join at an ADM.

An alternative arrangement is for members joining late in the year to pay the normal subscription on joining, but not renew until after their first anniversary (so someone joining in October 2025 would pay immediately but not be required to renew until 1 January 2027). 

The proposed change, to take effect from January 2026, would change the current rule 4b from:

4 b) Members elected after the Annual District Meeting will become liable for a subscription from the following 1st of January

to:

4 b) Subscriptions for new members are due on election and are normally due for renewal on the following 1st of January. However, subscriptions for members elected in October, November and December are not due for renewal until the 1st January following the first anniversary of the member’s election.

Association General Committee
March 2025