SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA RABBIT ASSOCIATION CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS

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1 SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA RABBIT ASSOCIATION CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS. CONSTITUTION ARTICLE I NAME This organization shall be known as the Southwest Virginia Rabbit Association. ARTICLE II OBJECTIVES To promote all aspects of the breeds of rabbits sanctioned by the ARBA and to support and encourage owners, breeders, meat breeders, fiber enthusiasts, exhibitors, and youth interested in rabbits through information, education, activities and awards, chiefly in the region of Southwest Virginia and the surrounding states. ARTICLE III AFFILIATION This organization shall be affiliated with the American Rabbit Breeders Association, Incorporated. ARTICLE IV MEMBERSHIP Section 1: Eligibility A. Any owner or breeder of rabbits, or a person interested in the promotion of the rabbit breeds may apply to become a member of this club upon payment of membership dues, and by agreeing to comply with all rules, regulations and mandates of this Club. B. The Board of Directors reserves the right to accept or reject for any cause any application for membership or membership renewal. Section 2: Classification The types of memberships and associated privileges shall be as follows: A. Single Adult Membership Individual adult members age 19 and over.. Member is entitled to one (1) nontransferable vote in all matters to be voted on by the club membership. Eligible to serve on committees and, in accordance with other requirements for officeholders, to serve as an officer of the club.

2 Eligible to compete for Sweepstakes points. B. Youth Membership. Individual members through the age of 18 years.. Not eligible to vote or to serve as an officer of the club.. May serve on committees, as designated by the President and the Board of Supervisors.. Eligible to compete for Youth Sweepstakes points. Family Membership. Up to two (2) adult members and all persons under the age of 19 residing at the same address.. All members names and birth dates of Youth members must be specified at the time of the application.. Each adult member is entitled to one (1) nontransferable vote in all matters to be voted on by the membership.. Each adult member is eligible to compete for Sweepstakes points.. Youth Membership rules apply to all youth in a Family Membership. ARTICLE V OFFICERS Section 1: The officers of this organization shall consist of a President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and three (3) Directors. These shall comprise the Board of Directors. (The offices of Secretary and Treasure may be combined in to a single Secretary/Treasurer position at the discretion of the Board of Directors.) Section 2: The general supervision and conduct of the affairs of the Club shall be vested in the Board of Directors, which shall have legislative powers. Section 3: To be eligible to be an officer of this club, an individual must meet the following criteria:

3 a. Must be a member in good standing of the American Rabbit Breeders Association (ARBA). ARBA membership must be paid through the entire term of office prior to assuming a position on the Board of Directors. b. Must be a Charter Member of the club or, after January 1, 2015, must have been a member in good standing for at least two (2) years, and must be over the age of 18. c. Must own and be actively engaged in breeding and/or showing one or more of the sanctioned breeds of the rabbits recognized by ARBA. d. Must not serve as an Officer or member of the Board of Directors in any other rabbit club while serving as an officer for this club. An exception to this rule may be made on a case-by-case basis upon unanimous approval by the Board of Directors. Section 4: The term of office for all Officers shall be one year, with no limitation to the number of terms an Officer may serve. After an initial start-up period, terms of office will commence on January 1, with the positions of Vice-President, Treasurer, and one (1) Director commencing on that date, and in every even-numbered year thereafter, and the positions of President, Secretary, and two (2) Directors commencing on January 1, and in every odd-numbered year thereafter. Section 5: Any vacancies on the Board of Directors shall be filled by appointment by the President, subject to approval by the Board of Directors. ARTICLE VI MEETINGS Section 1: No annual meetings of the club or the Board of Directors are mandated. Most business will be conducted online via , group, any electronic means and online polling methods. Section 2: Meetings may be called by the President and announced to the membership via , club newsletter, any electronic means and/or club web site. Official business will be conducted at such meetings only if at least 5 members of the Board of Directors are present. ARTICLE VII AUTHORITY The interpretation of the Constitution and Bylaws, all rules and regulations, and other matters affecting the club is vested in the Board of Directors. ARTICLE VIII AMENDMENTS Section 1: Amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws may be suggested by any club member by submitting the amendment to any member of the Board of Directors via or in writing by regular mail. Section 2: The Board of Directors must approve any amendments by a 2/3 vote.

4 BY-LAWS SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA RABBIT ASSOCIATION ARTICLE I DUES AND FEES Section 1: Membership dues will be determined by the Board of Directors, and may be revised as needed by a simple majority vote. The Board of Directors is authorized to set up alternate dues amounts for short-term promotional periods without revision to these Bylaws, at their discretion. Current dues are: New Members Single Adult Members: $ Family Membership: $ Youth Membership: $ ($10.00 if active 4-H member.) Renewals Single Adult Membership: $20.00 Family Membership: $ Youth Membership: $ ($10.00 if active 4-H member.) Section 2: Term of Membership The term of membership shall be for one (1) year, commencing on the date an application for membership is approved by the Board of Directors and expiring on the last day of the same month a year thereafter. Renewal dues must be paid on or before the expiration date. Memberships not renewed within 30 days following the expiration date will result in loss of membership and sweepstakes points for the lapsed period. Section 3: All membership dues and fees must be paid in U.S. Funds. Section 4: Membership dues are non-refundable.

5 ARTICLE II DUTIES OF OFFICERS Section 1: It shall be the duty of all officers of this club to ensure that the Constitution and By- Laws, and any duly adopted procedures and rules are upheld by their fellow officers and by the member of this club. Section 2: The Board of Directors shall carry out the decisions of this club and transact all necessary business for the welfare of this club, shall have charge of the business affairs and transactions of the club, and shall interpret any rules, regulations or Bylaws in question. Section 3: The BOD as a body shall be solely responsible for making or changing policy within the club. No individual Officer or Director may make a policy change; any and all policy changes must be brought before the Board and approved by a simple majority vote.. Section 4: The President shall preside at all meetings, appoint, with approval of the Board of Directors, all committee members and committee chairpersons, and serve as an ex-officio member of all committees. The President shall fill any vacancies in office, subject to approval by the Board of Directors through simple majority vote, and have such other authority as may be conferred upon him/her by the Board of Directors. Section 5: The Vice-President shall perform all the duties of the President if the President is unable to carry out the duties of office for any reason. In the event that the Presidency become vacant, the Vice-President shall automatically succeed the former President in that office. Section 6: The Secretary shall keep all records of the club, keep the minutes of all meetings, keep a record of all members, and collect such funds as directed by the Board of Directors, accounting for and delivering to the Treasurer, receive all applications for membership and post polls so the Board of Directors can vote to approve or disapprove applicants, and shall notify all applicants of the results. The Secretary shall maintain the Policies and Procedures Manual. Section 7: The Treasurer shall be custodian of all funds of the club; shall make all purchases, pay all debts and transact all business authorized by the Board of Directors; shall maintain a bank account in the name of the club; shall maintain a set of books and records suitable to the Board of Directors and shall make a quarterly report to the membership showing the current financial standing and a summary of all transactions for the year to date by submitting a report to the Newsletter editor and/or the web site administrator for publication. The Treasurer shall send a copy of the monthly bank statement to the President to keep on record. ARTICLE III COMMITTEES Section 1: Any special committees authorized by the Board of Directors may be appointed by the President and given a specific assignment. At the completion of their assignment, they will be discharged. Section 2: The Ballot Committee shall consist of two (2) persons, the Chairperson and an assistant, who live in close enough proximity to each other that they can meet at the required time

6 to make an official count of ballots for elections or amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws, or any other issue that may require the membership to cast paper ballots. The Chairperson must be a member of ARBA. No member of the Ballot Committee shall be eligible for election to office during their term on this committee. The Chairperson of the committee shall receive all ballots. The committee will convene to count the ballots received at the designated time, will tabulate the results, and will certify the results to the President and the Secretary within one day of the counting date. No member may serve on this committee without demonstrating familiarity with any and all club procedures related to voting. The Chairperson of this committee is expected to be readily available to respond to questions from the Board of Directors and/or the membership throughout the time that voting is taking place, from the issuance of ballots through the certification of the results. Section 3: The Sweepstakes Committee shall consist of one Chairperson and one assistant to provide backup for the Chairperson. The Chairperson shall: a. Keep an accurate account of points, and of all Best in Show, Reserve in Show, Best of Breed and Best Opposite Sex of Breed wins for each member, adult and youth, based upon reports submitted by members and by secretaries of club Specialty shows. b. Provide a quarterly report of current standings for all Sweepstakes categories to the Newsletter editor by the deadline for each issue. c. Communicate with the membership on a regular basis to remind them to submit show reports and to encourage participation. d. Provide a final report at the end of each Sweepstakes year reflecting winners of each Sweepstakes category for publication and/or for use in a presentation, as determined in coordination with the Board of Directors. e. Purchase/arrange for (expenditures to be approved by the Board of Directors) awards for Sweepstakes winners and assume responsibility for ensuring winners receive their awards, whether by presenting them at a club function or by other means. ARTICLE IV COMMUNICATIONS Section 1: It shall be the goal of this club to encourage communication between the Board of Directors, any Committees, and all members. In particular, the Board of Directors is to operate in such a way that the membership is informed in a timely way of all significant changes in policy, procedure, and personnel. Section 2: Any change in the membership of the Board of Directors will be announced to the membership by to the members' group no later than 3 days after the change is approved by the Board of Directors. Any such change will also be posted to the web site promptly as an announcement, in addition to posting the change in the roster of officers.

7 Section 3: Any change to the Constitution and Bylaws will be announced to the membership by to the members' group no later than 3 days after the change is approved. Any such change will also be posted to the web site promptly as an announcement, in addition to posting the revised Constitution and Bylaws. Section 4: Any significant changes in club policy or to the Operations Manual for the club will be announced at least quarterly in the club Newsletter. Section 5: All votes by the Board of Directors, except those related to approval or denial of membership or membership renewal, will be reported at least quarterly in the club Newsletter and/or by posting to the club web site, at the discretion of the Board of Directors.