PRAIRIELAND VISITING ANIMALS ASSOCIATION
Constitution and Bylaws
Prairieland Visiting Animals Association
Constitution and Bylaws
ARTICLE I NAME AND OBJECTIVES
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Section I Name. The name of the Association shall be Prairieland Visiting Animals Association.
Section II Mission. The mission of the Association shall be to promote the human-animal bond by:
(a) Promoting the benefits of animal visitation
(b) Sponsoring events for evaluating the suitability of potential human/animal visitation teams
(c) Supporting the volunteer activities of members through mentoring and education
Section III Finances.
(a) The Association shall not be conducted or operated for profit.
(b) No part of any profits or remainder or residue from dues, fees, or donations to the Association shall accrue to the benefit of any member or individual.
ARTICLE II MEMBERSHIP
Section I Eligibility. Open to all persons interested in animal visitation.
Section II Assessment of Dues. The assessment of dues and the amount of such dues shall be made by a majority vote of Association members present.
Section III Voting Privileges. Voting privileges will be given to all members in good standing age 14 and older. Each member in good standing will have one vote.
Section IV Expulsion of a Member. The Association reserves the right to expel any member who does not uphold the standards of the Association or the Bylaws. This will be done by a majority vote of the Association members.
Section V Association or affiliation with recognized pet-therapy or pet-visitation organizations. The Association, through a majority vote of members present, may elect to affiliate or otherwise associate itself with any recognized pet-therapy or pet-visitation organization that sets appropriate certification or registration standards and offers liability insurance as a benefit. The decision to affiliate or otherwise associate itself with any such organization shall be at the sole discretion of the membership and may, by majority vote of the members present, be initiated, continued, modified, or revoked at any time.
Section VI Members as Association representatives. Certification or registration through any of the organizations described in Section V shall not be a requirement for Association membership. However, any member, certified or not, who chooses to engage in animal visitation with a noncertified animal, shall not do so as a representative of Prairieland Visiting Animals Association.
ARTICLE III MEETINGS
Section I Annual Association Meeting. The Annual Association Meeting shall be held in the months of October or November, at which time officers for the coming year shall be elected by written ballot from among those nominated in accordance with Article V. Newly elected officers take office immediately upon the conclusion of the election, and each retiring officer shall turn over to his/her successor all properties and records relating to the office within thirty days after election.
Section II Regular/Special Meetings. Regular meetings of the Association shall be held as designated by the majority of those present at the regular meeting. Special meetings shall be held upon call of any member of the Executive Committee.
Section III Executive Committee Meetings. Meetings of the Association’s Executive Committee shall be for the purpose of preparing for regular, business, or special meetings of the Association membership, or for such other reasons as the Executive Committee may deem appropriate. All such meetings shall be open to all Association membership.
ARTICLE IV OFFICERS
Section I Officers of the Association shall be a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary, and Treasurer. All officers shall be elected to serve one-year terms.
(a) Chairperson: The Chairperson shall preside at all meetings of the Association and shall have the duties and powers normally associated with the office. He/she may vote on all questions submitted to the Association. He/she may appoint various committees to perform certain duties and cancel such appointments.
(b) Vice-Chairperson: The Vice-Chairperson shall, in the absence or disability of the Chairperson, perform the duties of the Chairperson. He/she will work jointly with the Chairperson in performing the necessary duties required for the operation of the Association.
(c) Secretary: He/she shall provide appropriate information to new Association members, notify members of meetings and other Association business, and shall keep a roll of Association members and their addresses. The Secretary shall keep a complete record of all meetings of the Association and of any matters which shall be ordered by the Association.
(e) Treasurer: The Treasurer shall collect and receive all monies due or belonging to the Association and make receipts and records of all transactions. He/she shall pay all bills and expenses of the Association from its funds, keeping all receipts or other appropriate documentation. The Treasurer and Chairperson are the only Association members allowed to sign checks. The Treasurer will balance the checkbook and maintain correspondence with the bank holding the checking account. A current Treasurer’s report shall be given at each Association meeting. Upon request the Treasurer’s books shall be open for inspection by all members of the Association.
Section II Vacancies. Any vacancies in any office during that officer’s term of office shall be filled for the unexpired term by a majority vote of the members of the next Association meeting following the creation of such vacancy.
Section III Executive Committee. An Executive Committee comprising the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary, and Treasurer, may meet upon call of any officer to conduct Association business.
ARTICLE V THE FISCAL YEAR, ABSENTEE BALLOTS, ELECTIONS, NOMINATIONS
Section I The Fiscal Year. The Association’s fiscal year shall begin on the first day of January and end on the 31st day of December.
Section II Absentee Ballots. Absentee voting shall be allowed providing the ballot is submitted to the Secretary in writing prior to the meeting when the vote is taken. A ballot may be requested from the Secretary.
Section III Elections. The nominated candidate receiving the greatest number of votes for each office shall be declared elected for a one-year term.
Section IV Nominations. No person may be a candidate in the Association election who has not been nominated. Only active members in good standing shall be eligible to be nominated.
(a) No later than 60 days before the scheduled date of the annual meeting, the Chairperson shall appoint a nominating committee consisting of three members. The appointment need not take place during a meeting of the Association or Executive Committee. The nominating committee shall name a Chairperson whose duty shall be to convene one or more meetings of the three members. Any member of the Association interested in holding an office may request consideration by the nominating committee. The Committee shall nominate at least one candidate who will accept the nomination for each office and report its nominations to the Secretary no later than 30 days before the scheduled date of the annual meeting. The Secretary shall notify all members of the nominations no later than 15 days before the scheduled date of the annual meeting.
(b) Additional nominations may be made by any member until 30 days before the scheduled date of the annual meeting, provided that the nominee has agreed to serve if elected.
ARTICLE VI COMMITTEES
Section I Organization and Dissolution. Committees may be organized and dissolved by a majority vote of the members present as deemed necessary for the functioning of the Association.
ARTICLE VII AMENDMENTS
Section I Procedure. These Constitution and Bylaws may be amended by a simple majority vote of members present and voting at any regular meeting or special meeting called for any such purpose. The proposed amendments must be embodied in the call for any such special meeting. Each member shall be notified two weeks prior to such meeting.
Section II History. These Constitution and Bylaws have been amended as follows:
Approved: September 6, 1997
Amended: March 3, 2007
Amended: December 4, 2010
Amended: August 11, 2012
ARTICLE VIII DISSOLUTION
Section I Procedure. The Association may be dissolved at any time by the written consent of not less than 2/3 of all members. After payment of all debts of the Association, its property and assets shall be distributed to such charitable organizations as may be designated by the majority of the members.
ARTICLE IX PUBLICATIONS
Section I Newsletter. The Association may circulate a newsletter which shall be paid for by the Treasury. The Chairperson may appoint an editor who shall be responsible for the newsletter’s content.
ARTICLE X ORDER OF BUSINESS
Section I Agenda. At meetings of the Association, the Order of Business shall be as follows: Call to Order, Roll Call, Guests Welcomed, Minutes of the Last Meeting, Treasurer’s Report, Chairperson’s Report, Committee’s Reports, Unfinished Business, New Business, and Adjournment. For any meeting, this Order of Business may be modified as deemed necessary by the Chair or Vice-Chair. Parliamentary procedure shall follow Robert’s Rules of Order.
We hereby certify that the foregoing Constitution and Bylaws consisting of four pages, including this page,
constitute the Bylaws of Prairieland Visiting Animals Association.
Chairperson
Vice-Chairperson
Secretary
Treasurer