CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS
OF
THE
ILLINOIS DEER FARMERS ASSOCIATION
Article
1 Name
and Mission
Section 1
This association shall
be known as the Illinois Deer Farmers Association (ILDFA)
Section 2
The Mission of ILDFA
shall be:
A.
To
promote the Illinois cervid industry.
B.
Provide
educational opportunities for others and ourselves through the sharing of
information.
C.
To
be a collective voice in governmental issues that effect Illinois cervidae. To provide a forum for discussion of
problems of deer farming and to keep members fully informed on all matters of
interest to deer farmers and potential deer farmers.
D.
To
promote high ethical standards in the care, handling and harvesting of Illinois
cervidae.
E.
Insist
that our membership operate in a legal, honest and forthright manner with
fellow members, other cervidae producers and the general public.
Article
2 Officers
Section 1
Officers of this association shall be
President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer who are elected by majority vote
of the membership present at the annual meeting and shall serve a 4 year
term. These officers shall perform
the duties prescribed by the parliamentary authority adopted by the association
and those prescribed bylaws.
Section 2
There shall be 10
members of the Board.
Section 3
Board members will serve a 3-year term with no
limit to the number of terms they may hold.
Section 4
A rotation shall be established with the
present board and its officers as needed.
Should any active association member be willing to serve on the Board,
the individual must notify a member of the Board at least three weeks prior to
the annual meeting of their desire to serve. All nominations shall be considered at the next available
annual meeting.
Section
5
The President and Vice President shall remain a
member of the Board for one year immediately following his or her last term of
the office.
Article
3 Officers’
Responsibilities
Section 1
A.
Preside
over all meetings of the association.
B.
Sign
or give authority to the treasurer to sign all notes, deeds or other
instruments on behalf of the association
C.
Call
all regular meetings and special meetings of the association.
D.
Appoint
the chairperson and members of all other committees of the association.
E.
He
or she shall also, at the annual meeting of the association and at other such
times, as he or she deems proper, communicate to the Association such matters
and make suggestions as may, in his or her opinion, tend to promote the welfare
and increase the usefulness of the association and shall perform such other
duties as are necessary incident to the office of President of the Association.
Section 2
The Vice President shall:
A.
The
Vice President shall assume the responsibility of President in the absence of
the President.
B.
Oversee
and facilitate the work of all committees of the Association.
C.
Perform
other such duties or special projects as may be assigned.
D.
Prepare
him or herself for the succession of Presidency.
Section 3
The Vice president
shall:
A.
In
the absence, resignation, inability or refusal to serve of the Vice President,
perform all duties of that office.
B.
The
Secretary will record and maintain minutes of all meetings. He/she will maintain and disseminate
all correspondence and tally votes.
C.
Receive
association member or non-member complaints.
D.
Perform
other such duties or special projects as may be assigned.
E.
Prepare
him or herself to become Vice President.
Section 4
The Treasurer shall:
A.
The
Treasurer shall deposit all funds of the association in an accredited bank or
banks, and keep accurate records of collections and withdraws. The funds shall be deposited in the
name of the association and the records will be passed along to the successor
in office when elected.
B.
The
Treasurer may approve all withdraws up to $500.00 with the approval of the
President.
C.
Any
expenditures exceeding $500.00 will require prior approval of the majority of
the Board.
D.
The
Treasurer shall refuse to pay any expenditure incurred by any person or
committee until all the required expense documentation has been properly
presented.
E.
In
case of disbandment of the association any and all monies remaining in the
treasury, after all debts are paid, will be distributed to one or more (Industry
Related) nonprofit charities at the discretion of the board.
Article
4 Vacancies
Section 1
Board Members shall:
A.
Vacancies
created by an incomplete term shall be filled as required by the Board by
majority vote.
Article
5 Committees
Section 1
A.
The
Board shall decide which standing committees are deemed necessary and proper to
fulfill the objectives and purposes of the association.
B.
Standing
committee or special committee chairperson will be members of the Board.
C.
The
President shall appoint the committee chairperson, vice chairperson, and
members. All appointments of the
President shall be subject to the approval of the Board.
Article
6 Conduct
of Meetings
Section 1
A. Robert’s
Rules of Order shall generally govern meetings
Article
7 Meetings
Section
1
A.
There
shall be one meeting of the full membership at least once a year.
B.
The
President shall only vote on matters which result in a tie vote of the Board
members present.
C.
The
Board shall hold regularly scheduled business meetings as needed. The President as needed can call for
special meetings of the Board.
D.
A
quorum of the Board members must be present to hold an official meeting.
E. All
Board meeting agendas and minutes shall be made available to the general
membership upon written request to the Secretary of the Board.
Article
8 Membership
Section 1
A.
Full
membership shall require a minimum of a $50.00 registration fee paid
annually. Every paid membership
has one vote.
B.
A
lifetime membership shall require a minimum of a $500.00 registration fee.
C.
The
Board reserves the right to deny or suspend membership for proven unethical
practices.
Section 2
Denial
of Membership
A.
Any
individual may be denied membership in the association if in the opinion of the
Board that individual’s past or present conduct has been undesirable. All complaints will be reviewed on a
case by case basis. The Board must
notify in writing by certified mail of its intent to deny membership in the
association. The applicant shall
have 30 days from the postmark date of the notification letter in which to
respond in writing by certified mail to the office of the Secretary of the
Association requesting a formal hearing in front of the Board. Such formal hearing to be held in a
time and place designated by the President of the Association not more than 61
days after the postmark date of the member’s reply letter. If the applicant fails to respond as
specified above, the membership shall be immediately denied. If a formal hearing is held, the Board
shall recommend action and notify the applicant in writing within 10 days of
the action taken.
Section 3
Suspension of
Membership
Any
member of this Association who in past or present:
A.
Violates
the by-laws or the rules and regulations of the Association.
B.
Felony
convictions shall be considered by the Board on an individual basis but shall
not constitute as an absolute bar to membership of the Association.
C.
Shall
conduct themselves in a manner as to make their membership undesirable.
D.
Practices
in the sale of cervidae are such as to impair the reliability of the records.
E.
Engages
in any illegal practices related to our industry.
F.
Has
been expelled or suspended by the ILDFA shall be subject to censure,
suspension, or expulsion by the Board after notice and formal hearing.
Section 4
A.
All
Board members shall pay dues.
B.
No
Board member or Officer shall receive salaries related to ILDFA.
Article
9 Membership
Dues
Section 1
A.
The
Board shall set membership dues.
B. All
membership dues are due on January 1 of each year.
C. Dues,
once accepted are non-refundable.
Article
10 Non-Liability
Section 1
The Board, Officers or agents of the
Association shall not be held personally liable of the obligation of the ILDFA
unless it is found proven the individual has personally received some ill
gotten gains through their actions.
The Association shall hold corporation registration through the Illinois
Secretary of State for among other things, liability purposes.
Article
11 Code
of Ethics
Section 1
This code shall serve as a guide to members of
the Association in conducting their affairs. The code is not intended to cover to cover all possible
undesirable activities and in no way, shall restrict the right of the Board to
expel any member whose conduct or activities, in the opinion of the Board, is
detrimental to the Association as provided in these by-laws. Because the expulsion of a member is a
serious event, the Board will require that any alleged violation be given in
full written detail to the Association’s President. If, in the opinion of a majority of the Board, a violation
has taken place, the Board will schedule a meeting to allow the member in
question to respond to the allegation.
If then it is the opinion of a majority of the Board that a violation(s)
of the Associations code of ethics has taken place, one or more of the
following actions may be taken:
A.
Send
the violating member(s) a letter of reprimand
B.
Suspend
the violating member for a period of time as determined by the Board.
C.
Expel
the violating member from the Association.
In cases of an alleged violation, all
information and discussions, recommendation and decisions will be kept strictly
confidential among the Board. The
only information that may be released publicly is that a specified member has
been suspended or expelled. The
letter sent to the violating member would plainly state that, “The Board
regrets that it must suspend or expel your membership in the ILDFA”. The Board will not publicly elaborate
on any decision regarding its decision to suspend/expel a member. If, after a proper review or hearing,
the Board finds a violation has not occurred, the Board will duly note its
findings and will provide the member in question a statement of its findings. If a member of the Board is alleged to
have violated the code of ethics, this member must abstain from all meetings,
discussions and votes regarding the alleged violation or any released issues in
question.
Section 1
Code
1
Members will always keep the welfare and safety
of domesticated animals foremost in mind during their day-to-day activities.
Code 2
Members will abide by all federal, state and
local laws, which affect their activities as cervidae farmers.
Code 3
Members will always provide adequate food,
facilities and health care to insure the well being of their farmed cervidae.
Code 4
Members will always take precautions (often
beyond the requirements of governmental regulations) to prevent the spread of
parasites and disease.
Code 5
Members who offer cervidae for sale will give a
complete description and provide documentation (if available) as to age, health
condition and genetic background.
All available records must be provided to the buyer at the time of sale.
This code of ethics becomes effective and
enforceable immediately upon association with the Association. The Board reserves the power to modify,
delete, and add to this code at any time with or without full notification to
the membership. Non-members will
be considered in violation of a code, if the alleged offence occurred before
the formal adoption of a new code, or modification of an existing code.
