Concerns of Police Survivors Inc

“Changes to Organizational Documents in BriefConcerns of Police Survivors' National Board of 2012-2013 discussed restructuring the election process to give representatives in C.O.P.S.' 50+ chapters a vote in the elections for Regional Trustees and the National President. It was discovered that in order to make this change, the Articles of Incorporation would need to be amended since they outlined the elections process of "the Board electing the Board". In order to begin the process of restructuring the election process, the first organizational paper that needed to be amended was the Articles of Incorporation. Following a unanimous vote of the Board, that amendment was filed and accepted by the State of Maryland, where C.O.P.S. is incorporated. With that process underway, the Bylaws Committee set about revising the Bylaws with the help of a professional parliamentarian who recommended that much of the material included in the Bylaws could and should be removed and transferred over to the Standard Operating Procedures for the organization. Dedicating numerous hours to this process and after a final review by the professional parliamentarian, both the Bylaws and the Standard Operating Procedures were presented to the Board as outlined in the Bylaws and both documents were adopted unanimously. Major changes in the Bylaws included the removal of the Director of National Outreach from the Board, increasing the President's term to a maximum of three one-year terms, providing a voice to the chapters in the election of both their specific regional trustee and the national president positions, and included a new section on the Executive Director Emeritus serving as a non-voting member of the Board. Wording that the professional parliamentarian recommended to be removed from the Bylaws and added to the Standard Operating Procedures moved.”

“A draft of the audit and 990 will be presented to the Audit Committee for their review and possible edits prior to submission to the full Board for acceptance of these documents.Following the Board approval of the audit and 990, signed documents will be submitted to Federal and state regulatory agencies as required by announced deadline dates.”

“The process for determining compensation of the organization's Executive Officer is done annually through an Evaluation Committee appointed at the National Board of Directors Meeting on May 17 of each year. The committee meets and reviews the organization's Five-Year Development Plan and discusses the accomplishments made during the prior year. Through the findings of comparability data and discussion, a decision on compensation is made and reported to the National Board of Directors.”

“The process for determining compensation of the organization's Financial Manager is done annually in July by the Executive Officer. An Employee Self Assessment Form is completed by the Financial Manager and an Employee Performance Appraisal is completed by the Executive Officer. The Executive Director compares the two and discusses accomplishments and performance with the employee and makes a decision directly to the employee.”

“Paper copies upon request”

“OTHER PROGRAM SERVICES 4: Peer support and survivor benefits and outreach is provided through the 54 C.O.P.S. Chapters in operation across the country. These Chapters are comprised completely of volunteers who provide an immediate response to survivors when an officer dies in the line of duty. Support meetings and events are offered throughout the year.C.O.P.S. also publishes a printed quarterly newsletter that is mailed to approximately 42,000 survivors and law enforcement personnel each quarter. This newsletter provides important information on upcoming C.O.P.S. events, highlights chapter and survivor accomplishments, and shares information important to law enforcement survivors. A monthly email newsletter is also sent from our office covering events, hands-on program registration and scholarship information and deadlines, and other information relevant to the lives of law enforcement survivors. OTHER PROGRAM SERVICES 5: Public education and awareness is accomplished in part each year during National Police Week, the calendar week that includes May 15, when C.O.P.S. promotes blue ribbons tied on car antennas as a reminder to the public that many law enforcement officers have paid the ultimate price and given their lives in the line of duty. It is also to honor those officers who serve and protect our communities every day, putting their lives on the line for us. The national C.O.P.S. office receives requests for these ribbons from across the country and mails out approximately 600,000 ribbons each year. C.O.P.S. also works to educate the public on law enforcement trauma issues through the use of bill boards and PSAs during the year. OTHER PROGRAM SERVICES 6: In addition to the C.O.P.S. Kids/Teens program during the National Police Survivors' Conference, the C.O.P.S. Kids Camp, and the Outward Bound programs in July each year, C.O.P.S. also offers financial assistance to dependent-aged children who need psychological counseling to help them cope with the trauma inflicted on them through the sudden, often violent, loss of their parent to the law enforcement profession. OTHER PROGRAM SERVICES 7: Concerns of Police Survivors provides financial assistance to survivors of law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty who wish to pursue a course of study beyond high school. Surviving children and spouses of law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty are eligible for C.O.P.S. scholarships if the survivor is not entitled to a tuition-free education as a state death benefit.”