By Laws - LSAC

CONSTITUTION

ARTICLE I - NAME AND OBJECTIVES

Section 1. The name of the club shall be the Lone Star Akita Club of Houston.

Section 2. The objectives of the Club shall be:

(A) To encourage and promote the selective breeding of purebred Akitas and to do all possible to bring their natural qualities to perfection;

(B) To urge members and breeders to accept the Standard of the breed as approved by The American Kennel Club as the only Standard of excellence by which the Akita shall be judged;

(C) To do all in its power to protect and advance the interest of the breed and to encourage sportsmanlike competition at dog shows and obedience trials;

(D) To conduct sanctioned matches, Specialty shows and obedience trials under the rules of The American Kennel Club.

(E) To disseminate accurate information about the Akita breed specifically and dog care in general and to educate the general public.

Section 3. The Club shall not be conducted or operated for profit and no part of any profit or remainder or residue from dues or donations to the Club shall inure to the benefit of any member or individual.

Section 4. The members of the Club shall adopt and may from time to time revise such By-Laws as may be required to carry out these objectives.

BY-LAWS

ARTICLE I - MEMBERSHIP

Section 1. ELIGIBILITY. There shall be five (5) types of membership open to persons who are in good standing with the American Kennel Club and who subscribe to the purposes of this club.

(a) Single Membership - open to persons 18 years of age and older who enjoy all the privileges of the club including the right to vote and hold office.

(b) Family Membership - Open to two persons 18 years of age and older who reside at the same address. Each member will have 1 vote, but only one copy of any club publications will be sent to this address. Each member will enjoy all the privileges of the club including the right to vote and hold office.

(c) Associate Membership - Open to persons 18 years of age and older. Associate members can not vote or hold office and do not count towards a quorum. Associate members will receive one copy of any club publications.

(d) Honorary Membership - open to persons 18 years of age and older. Honorary membership may be bestowed by the Board of Directors and ratified by a majority vote of the members present at a general meeting. Honorary members may not vote or hold office unless the Honorary member maintains their active status by paying the required dues.

(e) Junior Membership - Open to persons 10-17 years of age. Junior members can not vote or hold office. A junior member may convert to a single or family membership upon reaching their 18th birthday.

Membership is to be unrestricted as to residence, but the Club's primary purpose is to be representative of the breeders and exhibitors in its immediate area.

Section 2. DUES. Membership dues shall be reviewed by the Board of Directors at the September meeting each year. Dues may be increased, decreased, or left the same, at that time. Any changes will become effective beginning with the November membership renewal date.

(a) Membership dues shall not exceed $30.00 per person or $45.00 per family, payable on or before November 1st of each year.

(b) No member may vote whose dues are not paid for the current year.

(c) After the dues have been reviewed in September, the Treasurer shall send to each member a statement of his dues for the ensuing year. Dues must be paid to the Treasurer by November 1st. Unpaid memberships will be considered lapsed and terminated at that time. In the event of unusual circumstances, the Board may approve an extension of the November deadline, but no extension may be granted past January 1st.

(d) Dues for applications received between May 1st and November 1st will be at half the yearly rate.

Section 3. ELECTION TO MEMBERSHIP. Each applicant for membership shall apply on a form as approved by the Board of Directors and which shall provide that the applicant agrees to abide by these Constitution, By?Laws, Code of Ethics and the rules of The American Kennel Club. The application shall, at a minimum, state the name, address, telephone, and occupation of the applicant. Accompanying the application, the prospective member shall submit dues payment for the current year.

All applications are to be sent to the Vice President. The Applicant must attend one general meeting prior to the application being read, unless the attendance requirement is waived by the general membership at a regularly scheduled meeting. Each application will be read at two regular general meetings. The Applicant must be in attendance at the meetings for the application to be read, unless the attendance requirement is waived by the general membership at a regularly scheduled meeting. The application will be read at the first general meeting of the Club after the attendance requirements are met. Once an application has been read, sponsors will be requested to sign the application and will be asked to speak about the person(s) applying for membership.

At the second reading, the application will be voted upon by secret ballot and affirmative votes of 3/4 of the members present and voting at that meeting shall be required to elect applicant. The Vice President and two volunteers will count the votes. The Vice President will notify the Club and the Applicant, by mail, of the results of the vote. The application will be filed by the Secretary and the dues will be deposited by the Treasurer.

Applicants for membership who have been rejected by the Club may re?apply after six months.

Section 4. TERMINATION OF MEMBERSHIP. Memberships may be terminated for the following reasons:

(a) By Resignation. Any member in good standing may resign from the club upon written notice to the Secretary.

(b) By Lapsing. A membership will be considered as lapsed and automatically terminated if such member's dues remain unpaid after the first day of the fiscal year: however, the Board may grant an additional 60 days of grace to such delinquent members in meritorious cases. In no case may a person be entitled to vote at any Club meeting whose dues are unpaid as of the date of that meeting.

(c) By Expulsion. A membership may be terminated by expulsion as provided in ARTICLE VI of these By?Laws.

ARTICLE II - MEETINGS AND VOTING

Section 1. CLUB MEETINGS. Meetings of the Club shall be held in (or within 50 miles of) the City of Houston on a regular day, time, and place as may be designated by the Board of Directors. Notice shall be mailed not less than 10 days prior to the date of the meeting. The quorum for such meetings shall be 20% of the members in good standing.

Section 2. SPECIAL CLUB MEETINGS. Special Club meetings may be called by the President, or by a majority vote of the members of the Board who are present and voting at any regular or special meeting of the Board, or shall be called by the Secretary upon receipt of a petition signed by five members of the Club who are in good standing. Such special meetings shall be held in (or within 50 miles of) the City of Houston, at such place, date, and hour as may be designated by the person or persons authorized herein to call such meetings. Written notice of such a meeting shall be mailed by the Secretary at least 5 days and not more than 15 days prior to the date of the meeting, and said notice shall state the purpose of the meeting and no other Club business may be transacted at that meeting. The quorum for such a meeting shall be 20% of the members in good standing.

Section 3. BOARD MEETINGS. Meetings of the Board of Directors shall be held in (or within 50 miles of) the City of Houston prior to and on the same day as the regular meetings at such hour and place as may be designated by the Board. Notice of each meeting shall be mailed not less than 10 days prior to the date of the meeting. The quorum for such a meeting shall be a majority of the Board. There shall be a minimum of 6 such meetings a year.

Section 4. SPECIAL BOARD MEETINGS. Special meetings of the Board may be called by the President, or shall be called by the Secretary upon receipt of written request signed by at least three members of the Board. Such a special meeting shall be held in (or within 50 miles of) the City of Houston, at such place, date, and hour as may be designated by the person or persons authorized herein to call such meetings. Written notice of such a meeting shall be mailed by the Secretary at least 5 days and not more than 10 days prior to the date of the meeting, telegraphic notice shall be filed at least 3 days and not more then 5 days prior to the date of the meeting. Any such notice shall state the purpose of the meeting and no other business may be transacted at that meeting. A quorum of such a meeting shall be a majority of the Board.

Section 5. VOTING. Each member in good standing whose dues are paid for the current year shall be entitled to one vote at any meeting of the Club at which he is present. Proxy voting will not be permitted at any club meeting or election.

ARTICLE III - DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS

Section 1. BOARD OF DIRECTORS. The Board shall be comprised of the President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and one other person, all whom shall be members in good standing, and all of whom shall be elected for one?year terms at the Club’s annual meeting as provided in ARTICLE IV and shall serve until their successors are elected. General management of the Club's affairs shall be entrusted to the Board of Directors.

Section 2. OFFICERS. The Club's officers, consisting of the President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer shall serve in their respective capacities both with regard to the Club and its meetings and the Board and its meetings. No one person may hold more than one office at a time.

(a) The President shall preside at all meetings of the Club and of the Board, and shall have the duties and powers normally appurtenant to the Office of President in addition to those particularly specified in these By?Laws.

(b) The Vice President shall have the duties and exercise the powers of the President in case of the President's death, absence or incapacity. The Vice President is also the Membership chairman.

(c) The Secretary shall keep a record of all meetings of the Club and the Board and of all matters of which a record shall be ordered by the Club. He or she shall have charge of the correspondence, notify members of meetings, provide the names and addresses of new members to the officers and directors of the Board and carry out such other duties as are prescribed in these By?Laws.

(d) The Treasurer shall collect and receive all moneys due or belonging to the Club. He or she shall deposit the same in a bank, in the name of the Club. His or her books shall be at all times open to inspection of the Board and he or she shall report to them at every meeting the condition of the Club's finances and every item of receipt or payment not before reported; and at the annual meeting he/she shall render an account of all moneys received and expended during the previous fiscal year. The Treasurer shall be bonded in such amount as the Board of Directors shall determine.

(e) The Parliamentarian shall be well versed in the rules of parliamentary procedure (i.e. Robert's Rules of Order) so that he/she can be called upon to give a final ruling on any point of parliamentary procedure. The Parliamentarian shall be appointed by the Board of Directors.

(f) The Sergeant at Arms shall assist the President in maintaining order at all Club meetings and events. The Sergeant at Arms shall be appointed by the Board of Directors.

Section 3. VACANCIES. Any vacancies occurring on the Board or among the officers during the year shall be filled until the next annual election by a majority vote of all the current members of the Board at its first regular meeting following the creation of such vacancy, or at a Special Board Meeting called for that purpose; except that a vacancy in the office of President shall be filled automatically by the Vice President and resulting vacancy in the office of Vice President shall be filled by the Board.

(a) An office will be considered automatically vacant upon the fourth unexcused absence from a regularly scheduled general or board meeting during any single Club year. A Board meeting and general meeting occurring on the same day will count as 1 absence.

ARTICLE IV - THE CLUB YEAR, ANNUAL MEETING, ELECTIONS

Section 1. CLUB YEAR. The Club's fiscal year shall begin on the 1st day of November and ends on the last day of October. The Club's official year (Club Year) shall begin immediately at the conclusion of the election at the annual meeting in March and continue through the election at the next Annual Meeting.

Section 2. ANNUAL MEETING. The annual meeting shall be held in the month of March at which Officers and Directors for the ensuing year shall be elected by secret, written ballot from among those nominated in accordance with Section 3 of this Article. They shall take office immediately upon conclusion of the election and each retiring Officer shall turn over to his successor in office all properties and records relating to that office within 30 days after the election.

Section 3. NOMINATIONS. No person may be a candidate in a club election who has not been nominated. During the month of December the Board shall select a nominating Committee consisting of three members and two alternates, not more than two of whom may be a member of the Board. The Secretary shall immediately notify the committee members and alternates of their selection. The Board shall name a Chairman for the Committee and it shall be his/her duty to call a committee meeting which shall be held on or before the 1st day of January.

(a) The Committee shall nominate one candidate for each office and one candidate for each of the other positions on the Board, and after securing the consent of each person so nominated, shall immediately report their nominations to the Secretary in writing.

(b) The Secretary shall, at least two weeks before the January meeting, notify each member in writing of the candidates nominated.

(c) Additional nominations may be made at the February meeting by any member in attendance provided that the person so nominated does not decline when his name is proposed, and provided further that if the proposed candidate is not in attendance at this meeting, his proposer shall present to the Secretary a written statement from the proposed candidate signifying his willingness to be a candidate. No person may be a candidate for more than one position.

(d) Nominations cannot be made at the annual meeting or in any manner other than is provided in this Section.

Section 4. ELECTIONS. The nominated candidate receiving the greatest number of votes for each office shall be declared elected.

Section 5. REMOVAL FROM OFFICE. A Board member may be removed from office by a ¾ vote of the Club members present and voting.

ARTICLE V - COMMITTEES

Section 1. The Board may each year appoint standing committees to advance the work of the Club in such matters as show, obedience trials, trophies, annual awards, membership and other fields which may well be served by committees. Such committees shall always be subject to the final authority of the Board. Special committees may also be appointed by the Board to aid it on particular projects.

Section 2. Any committee appointment may be terminated by a majority vote of the Board upon written notice to the appointee, and the Board may appoint successors to those persons whose services have been so terminated.

ARTICLE VI - DISCIPLINE

Section 1. AMERICAN KENNEL CLUB SUSPENSION. Any member who is suspended from the privileges of The American Kennel Club automatically shall be suspended from the privileges of this Club for a like period.

Section 2. CHARGES. Any member may prefer charges against a member for alleged misconduct prejudicial to the best interests of the Club or the breed. Written charges with specifications must be filed in duplicate with the Secretary together with a deposit of $25.00 which shall be forfeited if such charges are not sustained by the Board following a hearing. The Secretary shall promptly send a copy of the charges to each member of the Board or present them at a Board meeting, and the Board shall first consider whether the actions alleged in the charges, if proven, might constitute conduct prejudicial to the best interests of the Club. If the Board considers that the charges do not allege conduct which would be prejudicial to the best interests of the Club, it may refuse to entertain jurisdiction. If the Board entertains jurisdiction of the charges, it shall fix a date of a hearing by the Board not less than 3 weeks nor more than 6 weeks thereafter. The Secretary shall promptly send one copy of the charges to the accused and an assurance that the accused may personally appear in his/her own defense and bring witnesses if he/she wishes.

Section 3. BOARD HEARING. The Board shall have complete authority to decide whether counsel shall attend the hearing, but both complainant and defendant shall be treated uniformly in that regard. Should the charges be sustained, after hearing all the evidence and testimony presented by the complainant and defendant, the Board may, by majority vote of those present, suspend the defendant from all privileges of the Club for not more than six months from the date of the hearing. And, if it deems that punishment insufficient, it may also recommend to the membership that the penalty be expulsion. In such case, the suspension shall not restrict the defendant's right to appear before his fellow members at the ensuing Club meeting which considers the Board's recommendation. Immediately after the Board has reached a decision, its findings shall be put in written form and filed with the Secretary; the Secretary shall, in turn, notify each of the parties of the Board's decision and penalty, if any.

Section 4. EXPULSION. Expulsion of a member from the Club may be accomplished only at a meeting of the Club following a Board hearing and upon the Board's recommendation as provided in Section 3 of this Article. Such proceedings may occur at a regular or special meeting of the Club to be held within 60 days but not earlier than 30 days after the date of the Board's recommendations, and shall invite the defendant, if present, to speak in his own behalf if he wishes. The members shall then vote by secret ballot on the proposed expulsion. A 2/3 vote of those present and voting at the meeting shall be necessary for expulsion. If Expulsion is not so voted, the Board's suspension shall stand.

ARTICLE VII - AMENDMENTS

Section 1. Amendments to the Constitution and By?Laws may be proposed by the Board of Directors or by written petition addressed to the Secretary and signed by twenty percent of the membership in good standing. Amendments proposed by such petition shall be promptly considered by the Board of Directors and must be submitted to the members with recommendations of the Board by the Secretary for a vote within three months of the date when the petition was received by the Secretary.

Section 2. The Constitution and By?Laws may be amended by a 2/3rds vote of the members present and voting at any regular or special meeting called for that purpose, provided the proposed amendments have been included in the notice of the meeting and mailed to each member at least two weeks prior to the date of the meeting.

ARTICLE VIII - DISSOLUTION

Section 1. DISSOLUTION. The Club may be dissolved at any time by the written consent of not less than 2/3rds of the members. In the event of the dissolution of the Club other than for purposes of reorganization, whether voluntary or involuntary or by operation of law, none of the property of the Club nor any proceeds thereof, nor any assets of the Club shall be distributed to any members of the Club but after payment of debts of the Club, its property and assets shall be given to a charitable organization for the benefit of dogs selected by the Board of Directors.

ARTICLE IX - ORDER OF BUSINESS

Section 1. At meetings of the Club, the order of business, so far as the character and nature of the meeting shall be as follows:

                                           Roll Call
                                           Minutes of Last Meeting
                                           Report of President
                                           Report of Secretary
                                           Report of Treasurer
                                           Reports of Committees
                                           Election of Officers and Board ( at annual meeting)
                                           Election of New Members
                                           Unfinished Business
                                           New Business
                                           Brags or Complaints
                                           Adjournment

Section 2. At meetings of the Board, the order of business, unless otherwise directed by majority vote of those present, shall be as follows:

                                           Reading of minutes of last meeting
                                           Report of Secretary
                                           Report of Treasurer
                                           Report of Committees
                                           Unfinished Business
                                           New Business
                                           Adjournment

STANDING RULES

1. Upon receipt of a completed membership application, the Vice?President shall provide a copy of the Constitution and By?Laws to the prospective member (one copy per family residing at the same residence).

2. The Club shall publish an official bi?monthly publication known as the "Tell Star" by an Editor under the guidelines established by the Board.

a) Direct publication and mailing expense will be borne by the Club.

b) The Editor will be appointed by the Board.

c) Non-members may subscribe to the Tell Star for $10.00 per year. Members will receive a copy as part of their yearly dues.

d) The advertising rates shall be set by the Board.

3. Existing committees are as follows :

a) Show/Match committee - determines date, time, and location for all Shows, matches, and Sweepstakes. The Chairman or his/her appointee will file all required paperwork with the AKC. The committee will also present a selection of judges for each scheduled event to the general membership.

b) Newsletter - shall prepare and publish the “Tell Star” on a bi-monthly basis or as directed by the Board. Minutes of the Board and General meetings will be published in the Tell Star. Meeting notices can also be published in the Tell Star.

c) Concessions - responsible for any concessions stands the Club volunteers to run.

d) Hospitality - responsible for the Awards Banquet, Astrohall party, Christmas party, monthly meeting hospitality, and other similar activities voted on.

e) Education - responsible for acquiring speakers for the meetings, any other educational materials or activities.

f) Trophy - responsible for contacting other Breed clubs to donate trophies. Also responsible for locating trophies for LSAC shows, matches, etc. and for acquiring trophy donees.

g) Regional committee - responsible for date, time, location for any Regionals planned.

4. Dues shall be assessed as follows:

                   Active Single         ? $20.00 per year
                   Active Family         ? $30.00* per year
                   Associate Single      ? $15.00 per year
                   Associate Family      ? $15.00 per year
                   Junior                ? Free

*Family shall consist of two voting adults and children living at the same address.

5. Dues shall be assessed as follows (for March 1994 and following)

                        Active Single    -           $10.00 per year            $15.00 per year (1998 and following)
                        Active Family* -           $20.00 per year            $25.00 per year (1998 and following)
                        Junior               -           free

*Family shall consist of two voting adults and children living at the same address.