1490 Turner v. IEB

The membership’s determination that the full-time editor was a necessary expense did not preclude a determination by the International President, acting on behalf of the IEB, that such a provision was inappropriate in the Local Union’s bylaws. Although the membership is entitled to determine what is a necessary expense for the Local within the meaning of Article 46, §1, in the absence of a published International Union policy on the issue, it is not the final arbiter of what is appropriate in its bylaws. The Constitution requires the membership to obtain ratification of its bylaws from the IEB. The IEB’s authority and responsibility for ratifying bylaws necessarily includes the authority to require changes to bylaws for clarity or consistency based on the particular circumstances of the Local Union. The existence of other instances of fiscal extravagance on the part of the Local is not evidence of bad faith on the part of the International President. An executive body does not act improperly by addressing one existing problem without addressing all existing problems.