Arkansas Administrative Code
Agency 013 - Department of Parks and Tourism
Division 09 - Keep Arkansas Beautiful Office (Commission)
Rule 013.09.02-002 - Membership Criteria for Keep Arkansas Beautiful Affiliates - Rule outlines the requirements and obligations that a community must satisfy to become and remain an Affiliate of KArB (Keep Arkansas Beautiful??)
Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 2, February 2024
Membership Criteria for Keep Arkansas Beautiful Affiliates:
The Keep Arkansas Beautiful Affiliate Network is a grassroots system of community organizations adopting the KArB mission goals of preserving the natural beauty and quality environment of our state. They accept responsibility for enhancing their local community's physical surroundings through effective actions to promote scenic beautification and to improve solid waste practices toward preventing litter and encouraging recycling.
To assist Affiliate communities in establishing and maintaining successful volunteer-based programs, KArB has adopted new membership requirements. Also adopted is standardized criteria for earning and complying with Certified status.
The new KArB Affiliate Program is modeled after proven, practical methods for training community leaders to properly define environmental problems, to devise solutions, to set benchmarks for determining success and to set priorities for organizational development and community involvement. This program can increase economic development, improve visitors' perceptions of a community and change attitudes that perpetuate litter and solid waste problems. It can clean and beautify communities, contributing to greater civic pride and quality of life.
Overview:
Keep Arkansas Beautiful designates the title of Affiliate to qualifying organizations that fulfill particular requirements. Affiliates earn Certified recognition through adherence to expanded, more comprehensive requirements. Certified Affiliates qualify for the provision of retaining litter enforcement revenue for offenses within their jurisdiction, as set forth in Act 145 of 2001. Member communities constitute the KArB Statewide Affiliate Network, consisting of community-based grassroots litter prevention, recycling and beautification programs. It is the primary method for community involvement with KArB.
Mission:
The mission of the Keep Arkansas Beautiful Affiliate Network is to establish a standard for annual review, approval and recognition of local communities who have accepted responsibility for enhancing their local environments through effective actions which are represented by ongoing litter prevention and community beautification efforts in support of the general mission of Keep Arkansas Beautiful.
Goals:
The Keep Arkansas Beautiful Affiliate Program has three major goals:
To increase a community's interest in improved solid waste practices and beautification programs. To enable communities involved in the Affiliate program to fulfill their goals and commitment. To encourage and help communities to attain certification in the Keep America Beautiful System.
Membership Requirements:
The KARB Affiliate criteria focuses on organizational components of a successful volunteer-led program involving development, implementation and accountability.
1. To become an Affiliate, a completed application must be submitted with payment of an annual membership service fee. This written application serves as a pledge of commitment to demonstrate community interest in establishing and maintaining a continuing program. The membership service fee, $50.00 per year, is to help offset the expense of providing materials and services to the program. This fee must be paid each year to maintain Affiliate good-standing status.
2. A staff member or volunteer must receive annual training from KArB, either locally, regionally or at the annual Statewide Affiliate Conference.
3. An Affiliate must complete an Annual Report provided by KArB stating annual program activities and accomplishments. This report must be submitted by the 15th of August each year and detail program activity and results for the Affiliate year July through June. KAB certified communities may submit the KAB Annual Report and Litter Index Report in lieu of this requirement.
4. An Affiliate must conduct local programs or participate in KArB or KAB Statewide programs toward preventing or removing litter, encouraging improved waste handling and recycling or promoting scenic beauty and community improvement. This requirement varies for standard Affiliate recognition and the qualification to be designated a Certified Affiliate as follows:
Keep Arkansas Beautiful Affiliate Responsibilities:
Organizational Phase:
Within the first six months of membership, the organization should enact bylaws to establish operational authority and at least one member of the affiliate group should attend a KArB Affiliate Training session. Additionally, one "local goal" project in any of the three mission areas should be completed.
Beginning Phase:
Within the first 12 months, or nearest Affiliate reporting year, the Affiliate should additionally complete a second project in a different mission area and participate in one KArB Statewide Program. Participation in a statewide litter cleanup, the spring Great American Cleanup or the fall Great Arkansas Cleanup, or in events and/or activities produced in conjunction with Keep Arkansas Beautiful Month each April, may be credited toward a "local goal" or statewide project.
Sustaining Phase:
An Affiliate should demonstrate the KArB Mission and vision through compliance with the membership requirements and participation in KArB Programs. An Affiliate should take part in two KArB Statewide Program events, with at least two representatives attending annual training during the KArB Statewide Affiliate Conference. The Annual Report of Affiliate activities must be submitted in a timely manner with evidence of membership service fee payment.
Keep Arkansas Beautiful Certified Affiliate:
To become and remain certified, an Affiliate must comply with the following policy standards:
1. An Affiliate must demonstrate adherence to KArB Mission goals through compliance with the membership criteria of submitting an Annual Report of affiliate activities and be current in payment of the membership service fee.
2. An Affiliate must have an organizational structure that meets regularly to ensure the relevance of the organization's mission and engage in programs and activities that follow that mission.
3. An Affiliate representative must attend affiliate training annually, with at lest two members attending the KArB Statewide Affiliate Conference yearly.
4. An Affiliate must complete one local project in each of the three mission areas and participate in at least two of the KArB Statewide Program activities or events. Participation in the fall Great Arkansas Cleanup, the spring Great American Cleanup, April's Keep Arkansas Beautiful Month events and/or the KArB Statewide Awards Program may be considered "local goal" projects for this requirement.
5. Affiliates who are unable to meet one or more of the above requirements after achieving certification will have a one year grace period to comply with the standards before decertification is initiated.
Organizational Requirements:
A KArB Affiliate should strive for an organizational structure that will involve a wide range of community members. Representatives from government, business and local citizenry have proven to be the best composition for successful, sustaining programs. An Affiliate may be formed to represent a county, a municipality, or a community within either of these governmental units. Designation as a County Affiliate does not confer Affiliate status to every community within its jurisdiction. Local Affiliate membership is individually applied for and granted in the name of the municipality. In densely populated areas there may exist the need for more than one affiliate group.
Affiliates may be organized as a commission, a committee or an independent non-profit organization. An Affiliate that is not organized as a governmental agency or sub-group should have bylaws in place to govern the organization and operation of the Affiliate. We offer a sample set of bylaws for this purpose.
The determining factor governing the organizational structure and likely effectiveness of an Affiliate is to decide on how large an area it can realistically serve. The size of a community, the available resources and the presence of other surrounding Affiliates should be considered. Every community has its own unique set of needs and the organization's structure should be based on the ability to meet them.
It is more important that people are able to come together to personally address issues that relate to those physical and visual aspects of a community that individuals can personally and directly impact through their actions rather than attempt to incorporate too large an area or widely dispersed population. The general guideline is to have a group of people small enough to be bound by the common desire to personally address local environmental concerns, yet broad-based enough to adequately attract specific-interest groups to contribute to accomplishing diverse Mission goals.
Benefits To A Community:
Becoming a KArB Affiliate, and maintaining good standing status, offers a community the opportunity to realize tangible, measurable results in dealing with local scenic and environmental challenges:
1. increased environmental improvement and greater community pride
2. a certificate of recognition as an official KArB Affiliate Community
3. KArB statewide and local program support and resources
4. continuing education and training to help increase program success
5. access to a network of other communities working to solve similar concerns
6. certification permitting local retention and use of litter law fine revenue
7. annual Statewide Conference discounts
8. annual Statewide Conference grants
9. local program grants
10. The Keepsake newsletter
