Constitution
of Iron Mountain Yacht Club
Constitution of Iron Mountain Yacht Club
Article I NAME
The name of this club shall be IRON MOUNTAIN YACHT CLUB, hereinafter
referred to as the Club.
Article II OBJECTIVES
The objectives of this Club shall be to promote the sport of sailing,
including friendship and camaraderie among yachtsmen, pleasure sailing,
competitive sailing, and water safety.
Article III OFFICERS
A. Commodore
1. Whenever possible, the Commodore
shall preside at all Board and membership meetings and enforce the rules
and regulations of the Club.
2. The Commodore shall appoint the
members and duties of all committees considered necessary for the proper
management of the Club.
3. The Commodore or the Secretary/Treasurer
shall sign all checks or other obligations of the Club.
B. Vice Commodore
1. The Vice Commodore shall be the
Commodore-elect.
2. The Vice Commodore shall assume the
duties of the Commodore in the Commodore's absence.
3. The Vice Commodore shall assist the
Commodore in the performance of his duties, and shall help formulate
plans that will not come into being until the Vice Commodore's term as
Commodore.
C. Secretary/Treasurer
1. The Secretary/Treasurer shall keep a true
record of the proceedings of all general meetings and Board meetings and
a correct roll of the members of the Club and shall send a corrected
roll to the officers and members of the Club as updates are necessary.
2. The Secretary/Treasurer shall notify the
membership of all such meetings.
3. The Secretary/Treasurer shall be the
Agent for Service.
4. The Secretary/Treasurer shall receive all
monies collected for the Club and pay all debts approved by the
Commodore or by the Board, keeping a true and correct account of the
same.
5. The Secretary/Treasurer shall make a
complete and comprehensive report to the Officers and membership
annually and shall make other reports, as requested.
6. The Secretary/Treasurer shall deposit the
Club funds in a bank insured by the FDIC to the credit and in the name
of the Club. All bills of the Club will be paid by check and receipts
kept by the Secretary/Treasurer.
D. Communications Officer
1. A Communications Officer may be appointed
by the Commodore and, if appointed, shall attend all meetings of the
membership and Board and shall make information available to the
membership as provided by the officers of the Club and/or by other
members providing current information.
2. Such information shall be made available
through website announcements and/or email to the membership sent not
less frequently than quarterly and more frequently as needed if current
events dictate.
E. General Provisions
1. The officers of the Club, at the time of
their nomination, shall be the owners in whole or in part of a sailboat
kept or used at Lake DeGray.
2. All officers shall be elected by the
general membership via an election to be held in the month of January
and shall serve one two-year term. At least two weeks notice of the
annual election shall be given to the membership. Officers may serve
longer if unopposed and the membership requests the continuance.
3. The Commodore shall appoint a Nominating
Committee of not less than three members, one of whom must be the Vice
Commodore, who shall nominate at least one person for each office and
shall report to the general membership at least two weeks prior to the
annual election. Other nominations may be accepted from the members at
the annual meeting.
4. The Commodore shall appoint a Race
Committee Chairman to be responsible for the racing program for the
year.
Article IV BOARD OF DIRECTORS
A. The affairs of the Club shall be conducted by a Board of
Directors, hereinafter referred to as the Board, consisting of the
following persons.
1. Commodore, who shall be the Chairman
2. Immediate Past Commodore
3. Vice Commodore
4. Secretary/Treasurer
B. A quorum shall be over one-half of the Board Membership.
C. Any expenditure by the Board which would necessitate the borrowing
of any sum or otherwise expend funds not held by the Club, must be
approved by two thirds vote of the general membership.
Article V MEMBERSHIP
A. Membership requirements are as follows:
1. Each prospective member must be
interested in or involved in the sport of sailing.
2. Each prospective member shall complete,
sign, and submit a written application provided for by the Board. An
initial fee, the amount to be determined by the Board, shall be
assessed.
3. The Board shall have the power to approve
or disapprove an application, and may call for a special meeting or
election if necessary.
4. A member is an individual, and/or
dependents of that individual's family less than 21 years of age and
unmarried, for whom the membership has been paid and who has been
approved by the Board.
5. Membership fees are due by February
15th for the current year. Members not having paid dues by February 15th
will be considered delinquent and delinquent members will be notified. A
$10 late fee will then be assessed and must be paid before membership
status is re-established.
6. New members who join the Club after the
July 4th Club event, having paid the current year’s dues and initiation
fee, will have those dues also be considered paid for the next calendar
year.
7. Members may raise issues to the Board via
a written request. The Board, at its discretion, and where appropriate,
will attempt to resolve the issue and may call for a special vote of the
members, if necessary.
Article VI VOTING AND AMENDMENTS
A. All matters that shall come up for consideration of the membership
at any time except as specifically provided for herein, shall be
determined by a majority of the membership.
1. Members may vote in person, or by proxy
or by email vote. An email vote shall include the option to vote for the
motion, vote against the motion or vote that the motion should be
brought before the membership at a general meeting. The majority vote in
an email vote shall determine the outcome of that vote.
2. A quorum of the membership shall be over
one half of the membership at that time.
3. A proxy must be signed and in writing to
be valid and is void if the signing member is present.
4. One vote per membership is allowed.
B. Any of these Articles may be amended in whole or in part by the
following procedure:
1. A proposed amendment may be brought to
the general membership for vote in any of the following ways: a. By the
presentation to the Commodore of a petition proposing an amendment which
is signed by one-third of the membership or, b. By recommendation at a
membership meeting with clear membership support or, c. By approval of a
proposed amendment by a majority of a quorum of the Board.
2. If an amendment is proposed by any method
above, the Secretary shall communicate by written notice or e-mail to
all members announcing the proposed amendment and the time and method
said amendment will be considered by the general membership. Such notice
must be given at least two weeks prior to voting.
3. Approval of any amendment shall require
for passage the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the membership using
the announced method of voting. The Commodore shall vote only in the
case of a tie vote.
Article VII MEETINGS
1. Regular Meetings. There shall be one
regular meeting of the general membership each year. The date of this
meeting will be made known to the membership by website announcement or
e-mail at least two weeks prior to the meeting.
2. Special Meetings. These meetings may be
called at anytime by the Commodore when, in whose judgment, such
meetings shall be in the best interest of the Club. Likewise, these
meetings may be called upon the petition of not less than 20% of the
membership in good standing. Such petition should state the purpose of
the special meeting and should include the signature of those desiring
such a meeting. Such petition should be filed with the Secretary who
shall forward a copy to the Commodore. The Commodore and
Secretary/Treasurer shall then provide for such meeting and notify all
Club members giving at least two weeks’ notice.
Revised 04-14-2017
Following is the original Constitution
Article I NAME
The name of this club shall be IRON
MOUNTAIN YACHT CLUB, hereinafter referred to as the Club.
Article II OBJECTIVES
The objectives of this Club shall be to
promote competitive sailing, pleasure sailing, friendship among
yachtsmen, and water safety. Competitive sailing will be promoted
by a coordinated club racing schedule each year.
Article III OFFICERS
A. Commodore
1.
Whenever
possible, the Commodore shall preside at all Board and membership
meetings and enforce all by-laws, rules and regulations of the Club.
2.
The Commodore
shall appoint the members and duties of all committees, which shall be
considered necessary for the proper management of the Club.
3.
The Commodore
or the Treasurer shall sign all checks or other obligations of the Club.
B. Vice Commodore
1.
The Vice
Commodore shall be the Commodore-elect.
2.
The Vice
Commodore shall assume the duties of the Commodore in the Commodore's
absence.
3.
The Vice
Commodore shall assist the Commodore in the performance of his duties
and shall help formulate plans that will not come into being until the
Vice Commodore's term as Commodore.
C.
Secretary/Treasurer
1.
The
Secretary/Treasurer shall keep a true record of the proceedings of all
general meetings and Board meetings and a correct roll of the members of
the Club and shall send a corrected roll to the officers of the Club as
updates are necessary.
2.
The
Secretary/Treasurer shall notify the membership of all such meetings.
3.
The
Secretary/Treasurer shall be the Agent for Service.
4.
The
Secretary/Treasurer shall receive all monies collected for the Club and
pay all debts approved by the Commodore, or by the Board, keeping a true
and correct account of the same.
5.
The
Secretary/Treasurer shall make a complete and comprehensive report
annually and shall make quarterly reports to the Board, and shall make
other reports from time to time as required by the Commodore.
6.
The
Secretary/Treasurer shall deposit the Club funds in a bank insured by
the FDIC to the credit and in the name of the Club. All bills of
the Club will be paid by check and receipts kept by the
Secretary/Treasurer.
D.
Communications Officer
1.
A
Communications Officer may be appointed by the Commodore and, if
appointed, shall attend all meetings of the membership and Board and
shall make information available to the membership as provided by the
officers of the Club and/or by other members providing current
information.
2.
Such
information shall be made available through newsletters, website
announcements and/or email to the membership sent not less frequently
than quarterly and more frequently as needed if current events dictate.
E. General
Provisions
1.
The officers of
the Club, at the time of their nomination, shall be the owners in whole
or in part of a sailboat kept or used at Lake DeGray.
2.
The offices of
Secretary and Treasurer may be combined with the approval of the Club's
voting membership present at the time of their election of officers.
3.
All officers
shall be elected by the general membership via an election to be held in
the month of December and shall serve until December 31of the following
year or until the election of new officers if earlier. At least
two weeks notice of the election shall be given to the membership.
4.
The Commodore
shall appoint a Nominating Committee of not less than three members, one
of whom must be the Vice Commodore, who shall nominate at least one
person for each office and shall report to the general membership at
least two weeks prior to the annual election.
Article IV BOARD OF DIRECTORS
A.
The affairs of the Club shall be conducted by a Board of Directors,
hereinafter referred to as the Board, consisting of the following
persons.
1.
Commodore, who
shall be the Chairman
2.
Immediate Past
Commodore
3.
Vice Commodore
4.
Secretary/Treasurer
B.
A quorum shall be over one-half of the Board Membership.
C.
Any expenditure by the Board which would necessitate the borrowing of
any sum of otherwise expend funds not held by the Club, must be approved
by two thirds vote of the general membership.
Article V MEMBERSHIP
A.
Membership requirements are as follows:
1.
Each prospective member should be interested in
or involved in the sport of sailing.
2.
Each prospective member shall complete, sign,
and submit a
written application provided for by the Board. An
initial fee, the amount to be determined by the Board, shall be
assessed.
3.
Two active members shall endorse the
application.
4.
The Board shall have the power to approve or
disapprove an application, and may call for a special meeting or
election if necessary.
5.
A member is an individual, and/or dependents of
that individual's family less than 21 years of age and unmarried, for
whom the membership has been paid and who has been approved by the
Board.
6.
Membership fees
are due by January 31st for the current year. Members not
having paid dues by February 15th will be considered delinquent and
delinquent members will be notified. A $10 late fee will then be
assessed and must be paid before membership status is re-established.
7.
New members
will be assessed prorated fees for their initial year of membership
based on the number of months remaining in the calendar year.
8.
Members may
raise issues to the Board via a written request. The Board, at its
discretion, and where appropriate, will attempt to resolve the issue and
may call for a special vote of the members, if necessary.
Article VI VOTING AND AMENDMENTS
A.
All matters that shall come up for consideration of the membership at
any time except as specifically provided for herein, shall be determined
by a majority of the membership.
1.
Members may
vote in person, or by proxy or by email vote. An email vote shall
include the option to vote for the motion, vote against the motion or
vote that the motion should be brought before the membership at a
general meeting. The majority vote in an email vote shall
determine the outcome of that vote.
2.
A quorum of the
membership shall be over one half of the membership.
3.
A proxy must be
signed and in writing to be valid and is void if the signing member is
present.
4.
One vote per
membership is allowed.
B.
Any of these
Articles may be amended in whole or in part by the following procedure:
1.
A proposed amendment may be brought to the
general membership for vote in either of the following ways:
i.
By the presentation to the Commodore of a
petition proposing an amendment which is signed by one-third of the Club
membership; or
ii.
By approval of a proposed amendment by a
majority of a quorum of the Board.
2.
If an amendment is proposed by either method
above, the Secretary shall publish in the next issue of the Club
newsletter (or any mail or email) written notice to all members
announcing the proposed amendment and the time and place when said
amendment will be considered by the general membership. At least
two weeks notice must be given to the general membership of the Club.
3.
Approval of any
amendment shall require for passage the affirmative vote of two-thirds
of the membership present in person or by proxy or by email at the
announced meeting. The
Commodore shall vote only in the case of a tie vote.
Article VII MEETINGS
1.
Regular
Meetings. There shall be
one regular meeting of the general membership each year. The date
of this meeting will be made known to the membership by newsletter,
website announcement or e-mail at least two weeks prior to the meeting.
2.
Special
Meetings.
These meetings may be called at anytime by the Commodore when, in their
judgment, such meetings shall be in the best interest of the Club.
Likewise, these meetings may be called upon the petition of not less
than 20 % of the membership in good standing. Such petition should
state the purpose of the special meeting and should include the
signature of those desiring such a meeting. Such petition should
be filed with the Secretary who shall forward a copy to the Commodore.
The Commodore and Secretary/Treasurer shall then provide for such
meeting and notify all Club members giving at least two weeks’ notice.
Revised 01-28-2012
