SIGBioMed constitution

Statement of Purpose

The purpose of the Association for Computational Linguistics (ACL) Special Interest Group on Biomedical Natural Language Processing (SIGBioMed) shall be:

• to promote interest in Computational Linguistics and Natural Language Processing approaches to biomedical and clinical languages;
• to provide means of exchanging news of recent research developments, commercial applications and other matters of interest in computational approaches to the study of biomedical and clinical languages;
• to supervise the organization of meetings and workshops in Biomedical NLP, such as BioNLP, guaranteeing at least one meeting in two years;
• and to provide and facilitate access to resources relevant to biomedical NLP, including workshop proceedings, registries of available tools, and collections.

The SIG will operate within the framework of the ACL's general guidelines for SIGs.

Membership

Membership in the SIG will be open to anyone with an interest in computational approaches to biomedical language processing.
There are no dues involved in becoming a member of the SIG.

It will not require ACL membership. The membership can be obtained through provided electronic means.

Membership will be terminated on request, or automatically if no reply is received within 2 months of a timely membership renewal request. Such requests are to be communicated by the medium, and to the address, last notified to the Secretary. Automatically terminated memberships will be reinstated on request.

Elected Officers

The elected officers of the SIG shall consist of a Chair and a Secretary.
The Chair and Secretary shall be members in good standing of the ACL.

The duties of the Chair shall be:

• To have primary executive authority over actions and activities of the SIG.
• To prepare a written report on the activities of the SIG for the Executive Committee of the ACL, for presentation to the ACL at its Annual Business Meeting.
• To be a Liaison Representative for the SIG and communicate with the Executive Committee of the ACL.

The duties of the Secretary shall be:

• To maintain a membership roster of the SIG;
• To communicate with members of the SIG;
• To answer inquiries about the SIG;
• To conduct elections as mandated below;
• To be responsible for any moneys awarded to the SIG by the ACL and to present an annual report on the SIG finances to the Executive Committee of the ACL.

Election of Officers

All officers of the SIG shall be elected by an anonymous vote of the Membership.
The vote shall take place electronically at least two months before the expiration of the terms of the officers to be elected, with at least 4 weeks' notice of nominations to SIG members.
Candidates will present their nomination following a Call issued by the Chair at least two months before the election. They must be members in good standing of the SIG.
The Chair and Secretary will be elected every three years. The candidate with the maximum number of votes will be elected Chair, the next runner-up will be elected Secretary. Votes arriving by the notified closing date will be counted by a SIG member appointed by the Chair and agreed to by all candidates. Results of the election shall be notified to the members within four weeks after the close of voting.

Changes to the constitution

Changes to the SIGBioMed constitution may be proposed by at least 10 members. The changes will be posted on the SIGBioMed Web page, with the members invited to comment on the changes. Afterwards, a ratification vote will be held. The amendment will be adopted if a majority of those voting approve it.
The ACL Executive Committee may veto proposed constitution changes if they are incompatible with the ACL Constitution or SIG guidelines.

2023 Amendment to SIGBioMed Constitution

1. This amendment (the "Amendment") to the SIG Constitution ratified in 2009 is proposed by the SIG Officers, Organizing Committee, and founding members.
2. The Amendment:

Elected Officers

The elected officers of the SIG shall consist of a Chair, Vice Chair, and a Secretary.

The Chair, Vice Chair, and Secretary shall be members in good standing of the ACL.

If an elected officer resigns during the term, the Officers and the Nominating Committee may appoint a replacement as an interim officer to serve until the official elections. The duties of the Chair shall be:

* To have primary executive authority over actions and activities of the SIG.
* To prepare a written report on the activities of the SIG for the Executive Committee of the ACL, for presentation to the ACL at its Annual Business Meeting.
* To be a Liaison Representative for the SIG and communicate with the Executive Committee of the ACL.

The duties of the Secretary shall be:

* To maintain a membership roster of the SIG;
* To communicate with members of the SIG;
* To answer inquiries about the SIG;
* To conduct elections as mandated;
* To be responsible for any moneys awarded to the SIG by the ACL and to present an annual report on the SIG finances to the Executive Committee of the ACL.

The duties of the Vice Chair shall be:

* Should the Chair become unavailable and unable to delegate their authority, then the Vice Chair will automatically assume this position until such time as the Chair returns and is able to resume their responsibilities.
* The Vice Chair will work closely with the Chair and the Secretary and assist in facilitating the SIG functions. 
* The Vice Chair shall advise and counsel with the other Officers, and each shall do and perform such other duties as may from time to time be assigned to them.

Election of Officers All officers of the SIG shall be elected by an anonymous vote of the Membership. The vote shall take place electronically at least two months before the expiration of the terms of the officers to be elected, with at least 4 weeks' notice of nominations to SIG members. Candidates will present their nomination following a Call issued by the Chair at least two months before the election. They must be members in good standing of the SIG.

The Chair, Vice Chair, and Secretary will be elected every three years. The candidate with the maximum number of votes will be elected Chair, the next runner-up will be elected Secretary, the third candidate will be elected Vice Chair. Votes arriving by the notified closing date will be counted by a SIG member appointed by the Chair and agreed to by all candidates. Results of the election shall be notified to the members within four weeks after the close of voting. 3. Except as set forth in this Amendment, the Constitution is unaffected and shall continue in full force and effect in accordance with its terms. If there is conflict between this amendment and the Constitution or any earlier amendment, the terms of this amendment will prevail.

Dina Demner-Fushman, Chair Kevin Cohen, Secretary Sophia Ananiadou, Organizing Committee Junichi Tsujii, Organizing Committee Larry Hunter, Member Makoto Miwa, Member Aurelie Neveol, Member Kirk Roberts, Member Timothy Miller, Member Pierre Zweigenbaum, Member