Guild By-Laws

PURPOSE:
The Custer Piecemakers Quilt Guild is established to stimulate interest in quilting; to encourage and develop the necessary knowledge and skills of its members in all aspects of quilting; and to provide community support through donations of quilts or related items to guild-sponsored programs. It shall be a non-profit group.

MEETINGS:
The membership meetings shall be held the first Tuesday of each month. The Guild meets during at least ten (10) months of each year. Upcoming events, activities, and expenditures are discussed and approved or denied by majority vote of the members present.

MEMBERSHIP:
This group is open to anyone with an interest in quilting upon payment of dues.

DUES:
Annual membership dues shall be $10.00 per year and are due by the end of January of each calendar year. Membership shall be forfeited on March 1 if dues are not paid.

ELECTION OF OFFICERS: All Officers are elected for a two-year term by the general membership by a simple majority of members present at the November meeting. All nominations shall be taken from the floor. If a candidate is running uncontested, a simple voice or hand vote is sufficient. If two or more candidates are running for a position, then a secret balloting process is required. Officers shall be elected on alternate years to maintain continuity of Guild knowledge. This rotation shall consist of electing a Vice-President and Secretary, followed the next year by electing a President and Treasurer. New Officers are installed at the January meeting, or when it becomes necessary to elect a new Officer when a position is vacated. All necessary paper work pertaining to an office shall be turned over at the December meeting so the new Officer can become familiar with the documents before the next meeting. Vacancies in elected offices will be temporarily filled through appointment by the Board of Directors. Such appointment will terminate at the next meeting when an election is held to fill the vacant office.
OFFICERS AND DUTIES:
Guild Officers are President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer.
PRESIDENT:
The President shall have general and active management of the business of the group. The President presides at all club meetings, appoints committee chairs as needed, serves as a member of all committees, and appoints a committee to annually review club financial accounts.
VICE-PRESIDENT:
The Vice-President shall perform the duties of the president, secretary, or treasurer in his/her absence at a meeting. If more than one officer is absent for a meeting, the meeting may be rescheduled to a more appropriate time. The Vice-President shall perform any open Committee Chair positions until that position can be filled from the general membership.
SECRETARY:
The Secretary records the minutes of the Guild meetings, maintains Guild records, and is responsible for preparing and distributing communications to the Guild members as necessary.
TREASURER:
The Treasurer receives and deposits all funds paid to or donated to the Guild, maintains an accurate and itemized account of all receipts and disbursements, pays all approved bills, makes regular reports to the membership, and maintains and verifies bank statements. In case of his/her resignation, retirement, death, or removal from office, all records, monies, vouchers and property of Piecemaker's Quilt Guild shall be turned over to the President. An audit shall be done of the bank account before a new treasurer takes office.
All income is used to accomplish Guild objectives by paying for goods or services provided to the Guild. No member or Officer shall be paid by the Guild except as reimbursement for goods or services he/she obtained or provided on behalf of the Guild.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS: The Board of Directors consists of all current Officers and the immediate past President. The Board considers questions on policy and makes recommendations to the general membership for approval. The Board can terminate an Officer or Committee Chair for not performing his/her duties adequately by a simple majority vote. Special meetings of the Board of Directors may be called at any time by the President, providing the Board members are notified at least two (2) days prior to the date. If all officers cannot be reached, the special meeting may be held as planned as long as four board members can be present plus one of the membership as an alternate.
COMMITTEE CHAIRS: Committees shall be established as necessary to conduct Guild business, and the Committee Chair positions are volunteer appointments. Committee Chairs shall present budgetary proposals for membership approval for the upcoming calendar year each January or as soon thereafter as is possible. Reasonable disbursement amounts exceeding a Chair's budgetary amount will be paid at the discretion of the Treasurer and shall not require additional membership involvement. Excessive expenditures over budget must be approved by the Board of Directors. Each Committee Chair shall maintain an up-to-date handbook that details the procedures for his/her area for continuity of duties when relinquishing the Chair position. The Guild Secretary shall maintain a permanent file of each Chair's handbook.

QUORUM:
A quorum shall be a majority vote of the membership present at the regular monthly business meeting.

ORDER OF BUSINESS:
1. Call to order
2. Report of the President
3. Report of the Secretary
4. Report of the Treasurer
5. Reports of Committee Chairs
6. Old business and comments from the membership
7. New business and comments from the membership
8. Motion of Adjournment and second
The presiding officer may vary the order of business at his/her discretion.

MOTIONS:
After a motion has been submitted, seconded, and voted on, it cannot be changed unless it is made into a NEW motion.

BENEFITS OF MEMBERSHIP:
Paid-up members shall have priority to participate in any classes, tours, trips, and events organized by the Guild. Members can sell items at Guild events if so organized. The Guild retains 20% of the profits of the sale of these items UNLESS the member works during the event. The Guild collects, reports, and pays any sales tax to the State of South Dakota.

AMENDMENT OF BY-LAWS:
To amend the By-Laws, a committee of no less than three (3) members as appointed by the President shall submit amendment changes in writing or electronic submission to the general membership at least one week prior to the next regularly scheduled meeting. By-Laws as amended may be adopted by a two-thirds vote of the attending members at the next regularly scheduled meeting.

DISBANDMENT:
If the Piecemakers Quilt Guild should disband, all monies or other assets remaining after outstanding debts are paid shall be donated to a 501c3 organization, or distributed according to state and federal guidelines in effect at time of disbandment.