Article I
Name
The name of the corporation is Florida Morgan Horse Association, Inc.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Article II
Object
The object of this corporation is to encourage and promote interest in, and the breeding and use of, Morgan horses in the State of Florida as versatile horses, in cooperation with the American Morgan Horse Association, a New York Corporation
______________________________________________________________________________________
Article III
Membership
3.1. Any person interested in furthering the object of the Association may become a member of the Association by making application to the Membership Committee and payment of the annual membership dues.
3.2 The categories of membership shall include:
3.2.1. Individual: Individual person regardless of age.
3.2.2: Family: Immediate family, including children up to 18 years of age living at the same address.
3.2.3: Farm or Business Partnership: To include membership privileges for two adults associated with the same farm, boarding or training facility. (NOTE: This category will pay the same dues as a family membership.)
3.3. The dues structure shall be established upon recommendation of the Board of Directors, and approval by the majority of the voting members at the annual meeting. Proposals to modify dues structure shall be mailed to the general membership with the Notice of Annual Meeting.
3.4. Membership dues shall be due and payable January 1st of each year.
3.4.1. Failure to pay membership dues by March 31 shall automatically terminate membership.
3.4.2. Membership may be reinstated upon payment of all dues in arrears.
3.5. Conduct which the Board of Directors deems incompatible with the best interests of the Association shall constitute grounds for termination of membership by recommendation of the Board of Directors and a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the membership present at a meeting.
3.5.1. Decisions to terminate membership may be appealed to the Board of Directors. Reinstatement requires recommendation of the Board and an affirmative vote by two-thirds (2/3) of the voting membership present at a regular meeting.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Article IV
Board of Directors and Officers
4.1. There shall be a Board of Directors, sixteen (16) in number, whose membership is described in Article IV.
4.2. There shall be ten (10) Directors who shall serve staggered terms of two (2) years each. One half of the Directors shall be elected by vote at the annual meeting each year.
4.2.1. To establish the staggered term principle, for the 2004 election, one-half of the directors will be elected for a 2-year term and one-half for a 1-year term.
4.3. The officers of the Association shall be President, three (3) Regional Vice Presidents and a Secretary/Treasurer. They shall serve on the Board of Directors and shall also be the Executive Committee of the Board.
4.4. At each annual meeting of the membership held in even-numbered years, there shall be elected officers of the Association, to hold office for two (2) years.
4.5. The President and Regional Vice Presidents shall hold office for a maximum of two (2) consecutive terms. Each Regional Vice President shall be a resident of the designated regions described in paragraph 4.7.2.
4.6. Vacancies on the Board of Directors shall be filled by an appointment by the remaining members of the Board of Directors to serve the remainder of the unexpired term.
4.7. Duties of the Officers include:
4.7.1. President: The President shall preside at all meetings, sign all documents, appoint all committees and shall call any special meetings of the Association and of its Board of Directors. The President shall be the general executive officer of the Association and shall see that the policies and programs of the Association are carried out. The President is an ex-officio member of all committees other than the Nominating Committee. The President shall appoint a Vice President to preside over any meeting he/she is unable to attend. Should the President be unable to make such an appointment, the Vice Presidents shall elect which of them shall preside.
4.7.1.1 The immediate Past President shall automatically become a member of the Board of Directors for the ensuing two (2) years upon completion of his/her term of office and his/her membership shall count as one (1) of the total number of the Board.
4.7.2. Regional Vice Presidents: Three (3) Regional Vice Presidents shall exercise any power or duty of the President in his/her absence. The three (3) regions consist of the following Florida counties: Northern Region: Alachua, Baker, Bay, Bradford, Calhoun, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Escambia, Flagler, Franklin, Gadsen, Gilchrist, Gulf, Hamilton, Holmes, Jackson, Jefferson, Lafayette, Leon, Levy, Liberty, Madison, Marion, Nassau, Okaloosa, Putnam, St. Johns, Santa Rosa, Suwannee, Taylor, Union, Wakulla, Walton and Washington; Central Region: Brevard, Citrus, DeSoto, Hardee, Hernando, Highlands, Hillsborough, Indian River, Lake, Manatee, Okeechobee, Orange, Osceola, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, St. Lucie, Sarasota, Seminole, Sumter and Volusia; Southern Region: Broward, Charlotte, Collier, Dade, Glades, Hendry, Lee, Martin, Monroe and Palm Beach.
4.7.3. Secretary/Treasurer: The Secretary shall keep the minutes of all meetings, post all notices to members and carry on all correspondence for the Associaiton. The Treasurer shall collect monies, arrange for payment of bills and keep accurate records of the financial affairs.
4.8 All officers and directors will be members age 18 or older.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Article V
Committees
5.1. Nominating Committee: The Nominating Committee shall be a Standing Committee consisting of five (5) members, one of whom shall reside in each of the three (3) regions described in paragraph 4.7.2 and two at-large.
5.2. The other Standing Committees of the Association shall be: Membership, Youth, Futurity, Citrus Cup, Newsletter and Summer”s End.
5.3. Special Committees shall be created from time to time by the President with approval of the Board of Directors. Special Committees shall terminate after one year from their date of appointment unless extended by the President.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Article VI
Elections
6.1 The Notice of the annual meeting shall include the report of the Nominating Committee. The notice shall be sent to the membership by the Secretary/Treasurer at least thrity (30) days prior to the annual meeting.
6.1.2 Prior to voting at the Annual Meeting, nominations from the floor will be accepted.
6.2. Elections shall be by secret ballot. The ballot shall be counted by an ad hoc committee, appointed by the President. Election to any office requires a majority of the votes cast. In case of any tie for the lead, a second ballot shall be cast, eliminating the candidate(s) who did not tie. If a second tie results, the selection shall be made by a lot draw.
6.3. A voting member is an individual, family, or farm/business member age 18 or over.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Article VII
Meetings
7.1. This Association shall meet at least two (2) times a year. The annual meeting shall be called during the month of January at such place (within the State of Florida) and time as the Board of Directors shall determine.
7.2. At all meetings of the membership, a quorum shall be deemed present when at least fifteen percent (15%) of the voting members are present.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Article VIII
Amendment of By-Laws
8.1. The By-Laws of the FMHA may be amended by a three-fourths (3/4) vote of the members present at an annual meeting. Before being presented for a vote, all amendments to the By-Laws must be published in the FMHA Newsletter and/or distributed to the membership with the Notice of Annual Meeting at least thirty (30) days prior to the annual meeting.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Article IX
Dissolution
9.1. In the event of dissolution of the Florida Morgan Horse Association, Inc., for any reason, all existing funds in the treasury and all property at the time shall go to the American Morgan Horse Institute, Inc., a Massachusetts Corporation.
As approved by a majority vote of the general membership at the annual meeting held January 28, 2006, and as amended at the annual meeting held January 23, 2010.