Minnesota Orienteering Club: Bylaws of the Minnesota Orienteering Club

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Bylaws of the Minnesota Orienteering Club

ARTICLE I: NAME AND LOCATION

The name of the organization is Minnesota Orienteering Club, hereafter referred to as the Club. The Club is a nonprofit corporation organized pursuant to the laws of the State of Minnesota, Chapter 317A. The principal address of the Club shall be located within the metropolitan area of Minneapolis and St. Paul of the State of Minnesota, as determined by the Club’s Board of Directors.

ARTICLE II: PURPOSE

A. The purpose of the Club is to operate exclusively for the educational and charitable purposes within the meaning of Section 501(3)(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as amended, and, to the extent not inconsistent therewith,

promote participation in orienteering through organized orienteering events and activities that teach map reading and land navigation;
assist other organizations which teach skills used in orienteering;
educate Club members and the general public about the sport of orienteering and increase enjoyment of natural resources and respect for wildlife and the environment;
and encourage and assist Club members to participate in regional, national, and international orienteering events.

B. The Club shall maintain its affiliation with the United States Orienteering Federation and abide by the rules of the United States Orienteering Federation and International Orienteering Federation. The Club will not, as a substantial part of its activities, attempt to influence legislation or participate to any extent in a political campaign for or against any candidate for public office.

ARTICLE III: MEMBERSHIP

SECTION A: Membership Types

Each membership is entitled to one copy of each issue of the Club newsletter.

Individual Membership
1. An Individual membership has one vote.
2. An Individual membership is entitled to a membership discount at local (*) meets.
Family Membership
1. A Family membership has two votes. See Article V.
2. A Family membership entitles each family member to a discount at local (*) meets.
Team Membership
1. A team membership has one vote.
2. A team membership shall be in the name of the coach or leader of a team, group, or troop sponsored by a school or youth organization.
3. The team’s coach is entitled to a discount at local (*) meets and the members of the group are entitled to the junior fee at local (*) meets.

Fees for each membership category shall be set by the board of directors. The fees should cover, at a minimum, the cost to print and mail the newsletter and USOF fees.

(*) Does not necessarily include Club-sponsored "Special" meets.

SECTION B: Length of Membership

Membership becomes effective upon receipt of the application and fees by the Club Secretary and is effective for 12 months. Renewal at any time extends membership an additional 12 months.

SECTION C: Delinquency and Suspension

The Club Secretary shall notify each member in writing at least 30 days before the member’s expiration date that his/her membership is about to expire.
A member shall be considered delinquent if s/he has not paid the annual fee within sixty (60) days after the anniversary date each year. When s/he becomes delinquent, s/he will be dropped from the Club roll and mailing list, and will no longer be entitled to any of the membership privileges. S/he may be reinstated by paying the required fees.

ARTICLE IV: BOARD OF DIRECTORS

SECTION A: Definition

The Board of Directors, hereafter referred to as the Board, consists of five elected officers of the Club and committee chairs of the Club. Officers, committee chairs, and other club members, shall not receive salaries or payments for services performed in executing duties for the Club but they may be reimbursed for expenses paid to carry out the duties.

SECTION B: Term of Office

Officers serve one year terms and are elected by a general annual election.
Committee chairs serve a variable term. They are appointed by the president.

SECTION C: Nominations

Any member in good standing of the Club may nominate or be nominated for an officer position. Any member in good standing of the Club may be appointed as a committee chair. All nominations for elected offices are to be forwarded to the secretary for publication on the ballot in the Club newsletter.
To be nominated to an elected office, a nominee must:
1. Be a member in good standing of the Club at the day duties of the new office begin.
2. Be informed of this nomination and express a willingness to assume the responsibilities of the office.

SECTION D: General Duties

The Board, in addition to the duties of each specific member, assume the following responsibilities:

Supervise Club operation.
Solicit support for the Club by means of activities that are consistent with the objectives and purposes of the Club and within the laws and regulations of local, state, and national government.
Formulate Club policy.
Plan and follow a yearly operating budget. The fiscal year is defined as January 1 to December 31.

The Board shall meet at least four times a year, and the meetings shall be open to all members. A quorum for a meeting is five Board members and a majority vote of the Board members present is required for action on any matter.

SECTION E: Specific Duties

Each chair (this does not include elected officers) is recognized as possibly needing assistance and aid from Club members. To that end, each chair may solicit Club members to be members of that committee.

President:
1. Presides at all general and special meetings.
2. May call general and special meetings as needed.
3. Presides as the chair of the Board.
4. May preside as chair of any or all committees, or may appoint the chair of such committees.
5. Shall exercise supervision over both the Board and the general membership as a body, to insure that both are functioning in accordance with these Bylaws.
6. Shall communicate with the general membership via the newsletter. This consists of a regular column or special articles.
7. Shall supervise the finalizing of a meet schedule for each season.
8. Shall have ultimate responsibility for the total organization and success of each local meet. This is normally a supervisory job with duties delegated, unless there is a problem.
Vice President - Competition
1. In case of disability or absence of president, shall perform duties of the president.
2. Appoints organizer, and with help from the course setting chair appoints a setter and a vetter for each meet.
3. Provide a written description to the meet workers of their responsibilities. Supervise meet organizer, and setter/vetter via course setting chair.
4. Presides over the competition committee which shall include chairs for course setting, mapping and training.
5. Helps coordinate mapping and training activities.
Vice President - Promotion
1. In case of disability or absence of president, shall perform duties of the president.
2. Presides over the promotion committee, which shall include chairs for publicity, education, membership and social. Shall define promotion committee goals and help coordinate promotion activities.
3. Organize external club communications - promotion, publicity, education, etc.
4. Organize internal club communication - via newsletter, at meets, club meetings, social events, etc.
Secretary
1. Shall keep an up-to-date membership roll and mailing list, and shall publish the membership roll each July and updates to the membership roll each Club newsletter.
2. Shall take notes at Board and general meetings.
3. Shall answer requests for orienteering information and other correspondence.
4. Shall publish a nomination for election form and a voting ballot in the newsletter for the annual general election.
5. Shall keep an up-to-date copy of the Bylaws.
Treasurer
1. Shall pay bills, and collect and deposit income of the Club.
2. Shall pay state and federal tax as owed by the Club.
3. Shall keep accurate records and report the standing of the treasury to the Board.
4. Shall make a budget, as agreed upon by the Board, and direct the Club’s finances within that budget.
5. Shall request that the records be audited annually by two (2) members of the Board other than the treasurer.
Newsletter Chair
1. Produce a quality newsletter containing timely and informative information related to or of interest to Club members.
2. Shall include in every newsletter, a list of Board members, Club policies relevant to novice orienteers, meet schedules, and results from previous meets.
3. Shall include special interest, educational, and out-of-state meet schedule, and articles in each issue.
Course Setting Chair
1. Shall work with the organization chair to set up a course setter and course controller for each meet.
2. Shall supervise and critique the course setter and course controller to assure their responsibilities are carried out and are carried out on schedule.
3. Shall be responsible for the training and development of new course setters and course controllers.
Map Chair
1. Shall maintain an inventory of all maps the Club owns, and related materials.
2. Shall make recommendations to the Board as to the mapping efforts in both time and money to maintain an agreed-upon number of meets each season.
3. Shall supervise actual mapping efforts.
Publicity Chair
1. Is responsible for making local and "Special" meets known (after obtaining the finalized schedules of such meets from the president) by:
  1. Sending releases to radio and newspapers.
  2. Calling television stations.
  3. Making and posting flyers at sporting goods stores, college campuses, etc.
  4. Sending schedules and registration materials to the USOF and to USOF-member clubs for "Special" meets (to be coordinated with meet organizer).
2. Shall report winning statistics of meets to television, newspapers, and radio in a timely manner.
3. Shall solicit publicity avenues and ideas from Club members, and initiate the ideas as appropriate.

ARTICLE V: VOTING AND ELECTIONS

SECTION A: General and Special Meetings

The annual meeting of the members shall be held during the months of September, October or November for the purpose of electing officers and any other business that may arise. A quorum shall be 10% of the current number of memberships (counting a family membership as one), and a majority of those voting is necessary to pass any measure.
Voting may be done by a show of hands or secret ballot.
Family membership is entitled to two (2) votes, if at least two family members are present. If only one is present, family membership has one (1) vote.

SECTION B: Election of Officers

A three member nominating committee, appointed by the President shall prepare a slate of nominees for each of the offices. The committee should include at least two members who are not officers.
Additional candidates may be nominated at the meeting.
The President shall vote only in the case of a tie.
In case of vacancy, the President may choose to go through normal procedures, or to call a special meeting to both nominate and elect, or to appoint someone to fill the vacated office. The office is subject to the next regular election. The President may not appoint a new President.
New officers shall take office immediately following election.

ARTICLE VI: CLUB SPONSORED MEETS

SECTION A: Fees Charged

Fees shall be determined by the board of directors. They should be consistent with the goals of promotion, while designed to cover costs of holding events. As a guideline, entry fees should be lower for students than adults, and lower for club members than for non-members. Whistle and compass rental fees may be the same for all participants.

SECTION B: Parental Signature

All orienteers under 18 years of age must have parental or guardian or advisor permission in writing on the day of the meet.

SECTION C: Whistle Use

Each orienteer or group of orienteers going out together must carry a whistle. If the orienteer becomes lost or injured, the whistle is to be blown three (3) times every minute. Any orienteer hearing such a distress call is to stop orienteering and assist in the search (either by going to Registration to report the distress call or looking for the caller). Individual action depends on the orienteering ability of the person hearing such a call.

SECTION D: State Championship and "Special" Meets

The fees charged for the State Championship meet and other "Special" meets may vary. Parental/guardian permission may then be received through the mail on a form provided by the Club.

ARTICLE VII: FINANCES

The Club is a non-profit corporation. Dues, entry fees, and other monies received by the Club will be spent entirely to carry out the stated purpose of the Club.
The Club will submit a portion of the annual member dues to USOF as membership within that body shall require. The treasurer shall calculate the USOF dues and report the amount submitted in regular business meeting reports and annual budget reports.
The treasurer shall be authorized to approve for payment any regular expenses which maintain the normal operations of the Club. All such payments must be documented with receipts or invoices. Authorization for payments for amounts in excess of $2,000 to any individual or entity or for irregular expenses must be approved by a majority vote of the Board.
All checks or other orders for payment issued in the name of the Club shall be signed by either the treasurer or the president. All funds of the Club shall be deposited in a bank or other financial institution approved by the Board.
A majority of the Board may authorize any member of the Club to enter into a contract in the name of and on behalf of the Club. Such authority may be general or confined to a specific instance.
The Club shall be empowered to participate in fund raising activities. The Club may establish funds consistent with the stated purpose of the Club, receive contributions, and distribute those contributions for the limited purposes of the funds.
None of the net earnings of the Club shall inure to the benefit of individual members. No loans shall be made by the Club to any individual or entity.

ARTICLE VIII: DISSOLUTION

In the event that the Club is dissolved, all remaining assets shall be given to another 501(c)(3) organization or organizations with the same purposes stated in Article II pursuant to a plan adopted by the Board.

ARTICLE IX: ADOPTION AND AMENDMENT OF BYLAWS

Adoption of these Bylaws requires a simple majority of those voting at a general or special meeting, or a by-mail vote.

Amendments to these Bylaws require a simple majority of those voting at a general or special meeting which has been advertised in the newsletter.

Adopted:	March, 1980
Amended:	June, 1980 August, 1981 May, 1986 1988 September, 2001 September, 2002