Make your voice matter for animals! The BC SPCA has recently updated their membership to a new one-member, one vote governance structure that gives animal lovers a stronger voice in guiding the BC SPCA’s mission to help end animal suffering in B.C.
Guided by a sense of compassion, community and commitment, BC SPCA members play a critical role in supporting the governance of our organization and in so doing, have a unique opportunity to help direct the mission, vision and strategic direction of the Society.
Questions concerning membership in the BC SPCA can be directed to membership@spca.bc.ca.
Rights and privileges of membership
The Society recognizes two classes of membership: voting member and non-voting member. Rights and privileges include:
Voting member:
- To receive notice of, and attend, general meetings and Regional Council meetings in their region;
- To make motions at general meetings and Regional Council meetings and to speak in debate on motions under consideration;
- To exercise a vote for the election of Directors within their region; and
- To stand for election or appointment as a Director, if qualified, in accordance with the Society’s bylaws;
Non-voting member:
- To receive notice of, and attend, general meetings and Regional Council meetings in their region;
- To speak in debate on motions under consideration.
Apply or Renew
Membership eligibility
Voting Member: to be eligible as a voting member individual must meet all of the following criteria:
- They must be 19 years of age or older;
- They must be ordinarily resident in British Columbia;
- They must agree to abide by the Member Code of Ethics;
- They must not be an employee or an immediate family member of an employee; and
- They must meet any additional criteria as determined by the Board of Directors (currently no additional requirements).
Non-Voting Member: to be eligible as a non-voting member individual would need to meet the following criteria:
- They must agree to abide by the Member Code of Ethics;
- They must meet any additional criteria as determined by the Board of Directors.
*Non-voting members are generally those individuals who live out of province, are under 19 years of age or are employees or immediate family members of employees
Types of membership
- Annual members pay a renewable annual fee (currently $30) which is due on January 1st of each year and expires on December 31st of each year.
- Lifetime members pay a one-time fee (currently $350), which provides ongoing membership in the Society, subject to the member continuing to meet the terms and conditions of membership.
Membership costs
- Regular Voting Member: $30.00 annually
- Lifetime Member: $350.00 one-time
Application and acceptance
- Individuals applying as either a voting or non-voting member submit an application for membership to the Board of Directors.
- You can apply for membership online.
- As a condition of membership, all members are required to uphold the Constitution and Bylaws of the BC SPCA (PDF) and comply with the Member Code of Ethics (PDF).
- The Board will meet to review membership applications and upon acceptance, the Board will assign each member to a governance region and to the Branch in the area nearest to the Member’s address
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Membership policies
Please see below for more information and key membership policies.
- Membership Policy
- Policy on Application and Acceptance of Membership
- Policy on Access to Membership Register by Members
- Policy on Member Proposals
- Policy on Requisitioning Extraordinary General Meetings by Members
- Policy for Receiving and Addressing Member Input
