# § 140503. Membership
**(a)** **Active Members.—** An individual is eligible for active membership in the corporation if the individual—
**(1)** is of good moral character; and
**(2)** has received the Purple Heart for wounds received as a member, of any rank, of the Armed Forces of the United States or any foreign country during military or naval combat against an armed enemy of the United States.
**(b)** **Associate Members.—** The corporation may extend eligibility for membership as associate members to the parents, spouse, siblings, and lineal descendants of an individual described in subsection (a) of this section on terms provided in its constitution and bylaws.
**(c)** **Voting.—** Each member described in subsection (a) of this section has one vote on each matter submitted to a vote at a meeting of the members.
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**Source Credit**: (Pub. L. 105–225, Aug. 12, 1998, 112 Stat. 1382; Pub. L. 110–207, § 2, Apr. 30, 2008, 122 Stat. 719.)
| RevisedSection | Source (U.S. Code) | Source (Statutes at Large) |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 140503 | 36:826. | Aug. 26, 1958, Pub. L. 85–761, § 6, 72 Stat. 857. |
In this section, the text of 36:826(d) is omitted as obsolete.
In subsection (a), the words “has received” are substituted for “who have received or who may hereafter receive”, and the words “as a member” are substituted for “are, have been, or may become members”, for clarity and to eliminate unnecessary words.
In subsection (b), the word “may” is substituted for “shall have the power, moreover, to” for consistency and to eliminate unnecessary words.
## Editorial Notes
### Amendments
2008—Subsec. (b). substituted “the parents, spouse, siblings, and lineal descendants” for “parents and lineal descendants”.