1.7.27 Non-payment of dues and assessments
On September 1st, the Secretary of the lodge shall serve a written notice signed by him upon any member whose dues and/or assessments to the lodge are unpaid for the current year as of August 31st, to the effect that unless his dues and/or assessments are paid to the lodge or are remitted by it by November 30th, the lodge after thorough investigation, shall on the 31st day of December of the current year strike from the roll such member indefinitely. Any member whose name shall be so stricken from the roll may be re-admitted to membership by a vote of two-thirds of the members present at any stated communication, and upon payment of all dues and assessments owing at the time his name was stricken from the roll.
Any member of a subordinate lodge whose name may have been or shall be stricken from the roll for non-payment of dues or assessments, and who subsequently petitions for reinstatement within five years of the date of his being stricken from the roll, and said petition of reinstatement being approved by the subordinate lodge, shall be declared a member in good standing from the date of his original signing of the by-laws of said subordinate lodge; provided, however, that no member shall be declared eligible to receive the Fifty-year Veteran's Medal if said member has been dropped from membership and subsequently reinstated more than once.
Life members shall be liable for special assessments and shall not be exempt from the provisions and penalties of this section.
It shall be the duty of the Secretary of each subordinate lodge, on or before the first day of September in each year, to notify at the last known address, all members who may be liable to imposition of the penalty of this section, on a form to be provided by Grand Lodge for the purpose; but failure to receive such notice shall not invalidate the penalty of this section.
Adopted May 15, 1939. Jan. 1, 1940.
Amended November 17, 1952; November 19, 1983.
See Decision Nos. 31, 34, 44, 55, 72, 74, 80; Standing Order Nos. 23, 23.1, 62.1.
Related Decisions
No. 31. Determining The Masonic Year
Decision: The Acting Master of a lodge decided that members assessed for dues on the 22nd of April, 1880, were a year in arrears on the 14th of April, 1881, on the ground that it was a "Masonic year." He also decided that a notice issued on the 14th of April, requiring the delinquent to appear for trial on the 9th of June, was two months' notice as required by the by-laws of the lodge, on the ground that it covered two regular communications, which was what was intended by the by-laws.
I decided both these questions in the negative, on the ground that we know no such thing as "Masonic" years or months. That a year in the by-laws meant what it said, and in the case under consideration extended from April 22nd, 1880, to April 22nd, 1881. Likewise, that the two months, referred to in the by-laws, must be taken to be two full months, and not the time from one regular communication to the next but one succeeding.
Constitution, Article VII, Sec. 1.7.27. May 15, 1882. (Freeman, GM)
No. 34. Written Application For Re-Admission
Decision: It is unnecessary for a Mason, stricken from the roll for non-payment of dues, and desiring re-admission, to make a written application.
If a written petition is presented it need not be recommended, referred or lie over. At any regular communication of the lodge, if a brother whose name has been struck from the roll for non-payment of dues shall have paid all dues as required by Article VII, Section 1.7.27 of the Constitution of the Grand Lodge, it would be proper for any member of the lodge to move that he be re-admitted to membership, or it would be proper for the Master to put the question without a motion.
Constitution, Article VII, Sec. 1.7.27. November 29, 1882. (Vincent, GM)
No. 44. Suspension For Unmasonic Conduct
Decision: A member cannot be stricken from the roll of membership for non-payment of dues, while under suspension for unmasonic conduct.
Constitution, Article VII, Sec. 1.7.27. November 21, 1898. (Crowley, GM)
No. 55. Requests To Be Dropped
Decision: Upon the request of a member to be dropped a lodge cannot take immediate action, but must conform to Article VII, Section 1.7.27 of the Constitution.
Constitution, Article VII, Sec. 1.7.27. November 20, 1899. (Livsey, GM)
No. 72. Reinstatement Of Deceased Members
Decision: I ruled that the arrears of dues of a deceased member, who had been dropped for nonpayment of dues, had paid the arrears in dues, and asked for reinstatement, can be accepted as of the date of payment, providing the acceptance is the result of a vote of the lodge.
Constitution, Article VII, Sec. 1.7.27. May 17, 1937. (Knight, GM)
No. 74. Ballot Versus Vote
Decision: That inasmuch as a vote taken in regard to the reinstatement of a member who had been dropped for nonpayment of dues did not comply with Section 1.7.25 of Article VII of the Constitution, which obliges every member present to vote unless excused by the Master, I ruled that the vote was null and void and gave instructions that the vote be so declared and a new ballot taken.
That inasmuch as there appears to be an inconsistency between the wording of "ballot" as it is written in Section 1.7.25 of Article VII of the Grand Lodge Constitution, and the wording of "vote" as it is written in Section 1.7.25 of Article VII of the Grand Lodge Constitution, and the wording of "vote" as it is written in Section 1.7.27 of Article VII of said Constitution, I ruled that the wording "ballot" and "vote" were of the same meaning.
Constitution, Article VII, Sec. 1.7.25. 1.7.27. May 19, 1952. (Ruerat, GM)
No. 80. Fifty-Year Medal Eligibility
Decision: I ruled that a brother raised in a lodge of another Grand Jurisdiction: but who now holds membership in this Grand Jurisdiction: and has been a Mason in good standing for fifty years, shall be eligible to receive a "Grand Lodge of Rhode Island Veteran's Medal."
Constitution, Article VII, Sec. 1.7.27. April 15, 1962. (Allen, GM)
Related Standing Orders
No. 23. Reporting Those Stricken From Roll
Resolved: That whenever any subordinate lodge shall strike from the roll the name of a member for non-payment of dues, the Secretary of such lodge shall, within ten days thereafter, send notice of such action to the Grand Secretary.
Constitution, Art. VII, Sec. 1.7.27. May 17, 1880.
No. 23.1. Recording Those Stricken From Roll
Resolved: That the Secretary of each subordinate lodge shall enter in a book prepared for that purpose the name of every Mason stricken from the roll for non-payment of dues by the lodge, and the name of every brother so stricken from the rolls by other lodges of the jurisdiction, of which notice has been received from the Grand Secretary.
Constitution, Art. VII, Sec. 1.7.27. May 17, 1880.
Re-designated from No. 24 November 16, 1996.
No. 62.1. Non-Refund Of Dues
Ordered: No subordinate lodge shall return any member thereof the amount of dues which said member shall have paid into the treasury of said lodge; provided, however, that this regulation shall not prevent a lodge from relieving the necessities of a member of said lodge by dispensing charity to said member.
Constitution, Art. VII, Sec. 1.7.27. November 19, 1883.
Re-designated from No. 31 November 16, 1996.