Rev. 2008.
Amended 4-19-08
Section 1: The name of the organization is the
Vermont Hang Gliding Association, Inc., hereafter referred to as the
VHGA. The terms “the organization” and “the club” are also used
interchangeably for the VHGA.
Section 2: The primary purposes of the VHGA are to
promote safe flying in Vermont and the Northeast United States through self
control and regulation of the flying areas; to show organized support for and
concern to property owners; to provide a Board for the airing of flight
associated grievances; to engage in the development, study, and use of
fuel-less flight systems and aircraft capable of being launched by human power
alone; and to make knowledge related to these subjects available.
Section 1:
The membership of the VHGA shall consist of the charter members and the
active members.
1a) Charter members
consist of individuals who founded the organization, along with others upon
which the membership has bestowed an honorary membership. Charter members are not required to pay
annual dues, but active charter members must complete a membership form and any
applicable waivers.
1b) Active members
consist of individuals whose membership forms, all applicable waivers, and
annual dues have been received and accepted by the VHGA. These items are
required annually.
1c) For the purpose of these Bylaws the words, Current, member, members, membership, standing members and general membership shall stand to mean active members.
Section 2:
A minor must have the written consents of his/her parents or guardians
on his/her application form.
Section 3:
Each active member shall be entitled to one vote in the affairs of the
VHGA.
Section 4: The VHGA shall not discriminate against any individual on any basis; race, color, creed, religion, sexual orientation, or wing-type. However, the Board of Directors reserves the right to deny any applicant membership for due cause, such as a violation of these by-laws, flight regulations, rules of the VHGA or conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the VHGA.
4a) Membership denials
must be delivered in writing, and must be presented to the membership body at
the next scheduled meeting. The Secretary is required to keep all denials
on file.
4b) Any person whose
application has been denied membership has the right to appeal to the
membership. A special meeting of the members will be scheduled within 30
days upon the written request of the denied applicant.
Section
5: To fly a VHGA site you must be a VHGA
member.
Section 1:
Payment of annual dues shall be required at the time of application, and
each fiscal year, in order to maintain membership in the VHGA. Dues may vary from year to year by vote of a
simple majority present at a properly noticed meeting.
Section 2:
The annual dues and related membership fees shall be established at the
fall meeting.
Section 3: The annual dues and associated fees shall be clearly defined on the
membership application form, and posted on the VHGA website, on or before
January 1st. This is the responsibility of the Board of
Directors.
Section 1:
The VHGA will conduct two regularly scheduled meetings per year; one
during the spring, and one during the fall.
·
The spring meeting
shall be conducted in April, and shall be for the purpose of presenting and
approving the annual budget and all additional agenda items. This shall
be accomplished by a simple majority of voting members present at that meeting.
·
The fall meeting shall
be conducted in October and shall be for the purpose of electing officers and
all additional agenda items. The election shall be accomplished by a simple
majority of voting members present at that meeting.
Section 2:
Other meetings shall be called as deemed necessary by the Board of
Directors for the purpose of conducting any business as may properly come
before such a meeting.
Section 3: Notice of a membership or special meeting shall be issued by the President or Secretary and mailed to the last recorded address of each active member at least fifteen (15) days prior to the meeting. Electronic notification is acceptable for those members who designate this as the preferred method of communication on their application form.
Section 4: Special meetings may be called by petition of six percent of the membership communicated to any officer. Special meetings must be scheduled within 30 days of receipt of such petition..
Section
1: The Board of Directors shall be
composed of five members: President,
Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer and Flight Director. All members of
the Board must be active members of the VHGA
before conducting any club business.
Section 2:
The duties and powers of the Board shall be to deal with all routine
business that comes before the VHGA, to draft an annual budget, to evaluate and
present to the members all matters of special concern, and to report all
actions of the Board to the members.
Section 3:
Regular and special meetings of the Board shall be called at a time and
place agreed upon by the Board of Directors.
Section 4: Four
members of the Board shall constitute a quorum for the conduct of business at
all meetings. When ever two current officers question that a decision
made by the board is in violation of the bylaws, the subject will be tabled
till it can be presented to the members for a decision on the subject during a
regular or special meeting. The meeting notification that is mailed out to the
active members must state that the membership will be asked to discuss and
decide an issue that might be in violation of the bylaws.
Section 5:
Any vacancy on the Board of Directors shall be filled by a special
election by the members at the next scheduled meeting or special meeting if
called. Duties associated with any interim vacancies will be filled by
the Vice President until the special election is held.
Section 6:
Each member of the Board of Directors shall serve without compensation
or reward, except as otherwise provided for by these bylaws.
Section 1: The officers shall be elected by the voting members at the annual fall meeting and shall hold office for twelve (12) months or until their successor is elected.
Section 2:
The President shall preside at all meetings, appoint all committee
chairpersons, with the approval of the Board of Directors, sign and execute all
contracts in the name of the VHGA when authorized to do so by the Board of
Directors, and shall consult with the Board of Directors and represent their
decisions when supervising over the management of all the affairs of the VHGA.
Section 3:
The Vice President shall ensure that any decision made by the Board of
Directors and appointed committees adheres with the bylaws and official general
membership votes, shall be vested with all the powers and shall assume all the
duties of any Board member in the event of his/her absence, disability, or
inability to perform the duties of the office, and shall perform other such
duties as delegated to him/her by the Board of Directors.
Section 4:
The Secretary shall keep the minutes of all the meetings, be responsible
for all meeting notices and the keeping of the historical records of the VHGA,
and may perform other such duties as may be incident to the office of
Secretary.
Section 5:
The Treasurer shall keep the membership records, receive and deposit all
funds, execute all checks as authorized by the Board of Directors, account for
all receipts, disbursements and balances each month, and shall perform other
such duties as may be incident to the office of Treasurer.
Section 6:
The Flight Director shall oversee all safety and flight activity at VHGA
regulated flying sites and facilities, and shall perform such other duties as
may be incident to the office of Flight Director.
Section 1:
The Flight Committee shall consist of the Flight Director, any Site
Directors, and any appointed assistants.
Section 2:
The Flight Director shall be chairperson of the Flight Committee and may
appoint an assistant as necessary to aid him/her in the duties described above.
Section 3:
Site Directors are not officers, but are members who agree to represent
the VHGA and perform liaison duties for the club’s regulated flying
sites. Each site shall have at least one site director.
Section 4: The Flight Committee, working through
the Site Directors, shall be responsible for the following:
·
Opening new sites
(when agreed upon and deemed appropriate by the BOD)
·
Coordinating
maintenance for existing sites
·
Building/maintaining
relationships with surrounding landowners, townships, and other interested
parties
·
Periodically renewing
formal and informal agreements with above said parties
·
Publishing and effectively
communicating the rules for each site to the membership
·
Informing the Board of
Directors of any violations of those published rules
Section
1: The President may form special
committees at any time as deemed necessary, with the approval of the Board of
Directors. All committee members must be
active members of the VHGA before conducting any club
business.
Section 1:
Any member of the VHGA may be suspended or expelled for a due cause,
such as a violation of any part of these bylaws, a violation of flight
regulations, a violation of the rules of the VHGA, or conduct prejudicial to
the best interest of the VHGA.
Section 2:
Call for action. For action to be
taken against a member/members, a petition outlining the allegations shall be
signed by 4% of the VHGA’s members and presented to the Board of
Directors. The BOD shall conduct an
investigation of the facts regarding the allegations within 30 days of the
signed petition. All the members shall
cooperate fully and honestly with any investigations performed by the BOD.
Section 3:
After a finding of the facts, the BOD shall call a meeting within 60
days of the general membership. All the
members shall be notified of the meeting in writing. The members shall
decide on the level of action to be taken. Any action shall require 25%
of the general membership to be present and a 2/3 vote for action. Any accused member shall be allowed to
present his or her defense at this meeting.
Section 4: Any suspended or expelled member shall lose all privileges at VHGA regulated flying sites until membership is reinstated.
Section 1:
The fiscal year shall run from January 1 to December 31.
Section 2:
This association is a non-profit organization; incorporated as such in
the State of
Section 3:
Bonding. Persons entrusted with the handling of association funds
may be required, at the discretion of the Board of Directors and at VHGA
expense, to secure a suitable fidelity bond.
Section 4: Annual Budget. The Board of
Directors is required to create a budget each fiscal year, which shall be
presented to the membership for approval at the annual spring meeting.
Discretionary expenditures, not accounted for in the budget and outside of
mandatory expenses, shall require an authorization through a membership meeting
if they exceed $200 for any individual line item or $600 annually.
Section 5: Expenditures. The Vice
President may also make payments on the VHGA’s behalf in the treasurer’s
absence.
Section 6: Open books. The finances of the
VHGA shall be open to any member, at any mutually (member and VHGA Treasurer)
agreed upon time, without hesitation or question. Officers shall review
the books prior to the spring meeting.
Section 7: Status Reports. The
Treasurer shall be required to provide quarterly reports to the President and
the Board showing the balances of assets, liabilities, and revenues, along with
an itemized list of all expenses incurred during the quarter.
Section 8: Any unspent funds for budget items
shall not be reallocated to another line item, nor
spent on any items not budgeted or
approved by membership.
Section 1: Dissolution of the VHGA shall occur upon a 3/4 vote of the membership or the loss of non-profit corporate status with the Vermont Secretary of State, which has not been corrected for a period of five years.
Section 2: In the event of dissolution, the assets of the VHGA shall be turned over to the any local non profit group willing to take responsibilities to manage existing VHGA flying sites. If there are no local groups available, then the assets shall be turned over to the Foundation for Hang Gliding and Paragliding, Inc., its successor in interest, or in the event that the Foundation has been dissolved, to a non profit entity, hopefully with a commitment to foot launched human flight.