ARTICLE I – Name
ARTICLE II – Preamble
In the following pages will be found the Constitution and Bylaws, and the Rules of Procedure of the Michigan Skeet Association. These documents define the purpose, objectives and procedures whereby the Association shall be governed by its Members. A society whose affiliates are numerous and whose membership is widespread must have rules and regulations which are workable and consistent. Democracy and membership control cannot be instituted or maintained by verbal promises or good intentions. The basic law of the organization must be clearly stated and defined. Rules must provide for government in an orderly manner while, at the same time, guaranteeing continued membership control. To this end we, the Membership, have compiled this Constitution and Bylaws as adopted effective August 1965 and amended effective April 1976, March 1990, December 1996, November 2000, November 2002, May 2005, April 2015, April 2017 and November 2019.
ARTICLE III – Definitions
In this document:
1) The Michigan Skeet Association shall be referred to as the MSA.
2) The words “Constitution” and “Bylaws” shall be more or less synonymous. The word “Bylaws” refers to the detailed articles, while the word “Constitution” embraces the entire document.
3) The parent organization, the National Skeet Shooting Association shall be referred to as the NSSA.
4) Throughout this document, the masculine gender shall be deemed to include the feminine gender, and the singular may include the plural, unless the context clearly indicates the contrary.
ARTICLE IV – Objectives
The objectives of the MSA shall be to join together the Skeet Shooters of Michigan and thereby:
1) Promote closer acquaintances.
2) Foster friendly competition.
3) Increase knowledge among sportsmen regarding shotguns, and their proper and safe handling.
4) Engender and maintain in all MSA activities the highest possible degree of sportsmanship.
ARTICLE V – Constitution
This Constitution shall be the supreme law of the MSA and can be amended only by a 3⁄4 vote of the full Board of Directors.
ARTICLE VI – Headquarters
The headquarters of the MSA shall be located in a place designated by the Board.
ARTICLE VII – Membership
1) Any person residing in the State of Michigan is eligible for either annual or life membership. Likewise, any Gun Club located in the state devoted to skeet shooting is eligible for membership.
2) Any person residing in the State of Michigan over the age of 60 is eligible for senior life membership.
3) Membership shall not be transferable.
4) The annual dues shall accompany the application for Membership as provided in Article VIII.
5) A person whose membership is terminated for any reason shall have no right or interest in any property of the MSA, real or personal.
6) A Member may be suspended or expelled from the MSA for just cause; e.g. violation of the MSA Constitution and Bylaws, violation of the MSA Rules of Procedure, or engagement in activities detrimental of the MSA. Notice of Change shall be mailed by the MSA Secretary, by certified mail, return receipt requested.
7) Any Member so charged shall have the right to be heard. He shall have the right to be represented by counsel. Said Member may appeal the decision of the Board to the next Annual Meeting, which shall be first order of business at that meeting. (For trial procedure, see Article XVI).
8) Upon being accepted for membership in the MSA, a full dues paying Member shall be entitled to one vote at all Membership and Annual Meetings, to hold office and to otherwise enjoy the privileges of Membership as provided herein.
9) Any new member joining after October 1st shall be recognized as a member in good standing and not subject to dues for the subsequent shooting year.
ARTICLE VIII – Dues
1) The Board shall determine the amount of annual and senior life membership dues and payment shall accompany each individuals and/or club application for membership. Annual dues shall be due on January 1st of each year.
2) Honorary Membership may be awarded by action of a 2/3 vote of the Board, who shall determine the terms and conditions of such membership.
3) Any Member or Affiliated Club whose dues are delinquent shall be denied participation in any registered shoot until such dues are paid.
ARTICLE IX – Powers of Administration
The MSA shall be governed by its Members in the following manner:
1) The highest authority shall be the MSA Membership at any Membership meeting.
2) Between Membership meetings, the highest authority shall be the Board.
3) Between Board meetings, the highest authority shall be the MSA President. He shall be responsible to the Board and to the Membership for his actions.
4) In case of absence or incapacity of the President, his powers and duties shall be assumed by the Vice President.
ARTICLE X – Election of the Board
1) To qualify for office, a candidate must be a Member in good standing.
2) There shall be twelve (12) Board Members elected by secret ballot at the first Meeting in 1965; the six (6) having the largest plurality shall serve for 2-year terms, the next (6) shall serve for 1-year terms. Each year thereafter, six (6) Board Members shall be elected for 2-year terms. Effective with the election of the 2018 Board, the number of Board Members elected each year will be five (5) for a total of ten (10) Board Members after the election of the 2019 Board Members. Each year thereafter, five (5) Board Members will be elected for 2-year terms.
3) A nominating committee appointed by the President shall make nomination of candidates for Board Members.
4) No candidate shall be nominated for more than one office.
5) Voting shall be by secret ballot, in either of two manners:
a. by absentee mail or electronically, or
b. by direct casting of the ballot at the State Shoot.
For Election Procedure, see Rules of Procedure: Nominations, Credentials and Election Committee.
6) The Secretary-Treasurer shall insure that all Members are notified through the MSA website, mailing or electronic mailing, such as the ballots, of the time and place of the Election. A ballot listing nominated candidates and proposal shall be published on the MSA website at least 30-days prior to Election. Ample space shall be provided for write-in candidates.
7) Election ballots will be sent to members 30 days in advance of the State Shoot.
ARTICLE XI – Regular, Special and Annual Meetings
1) A meeting of the Board shall be held annually as the first meeting after the election of the new Board (see Rules of Procedure-Board of Directors) at such time and place as the Board determines. There shall be a minimum of at least one additional meeting during the year.
2) A Special Membership meeting may be called by not less than 40% of the Membership. Thus assembled, the Membership shall decide upon issues as may come before it.
3) A Special Meeting of the MSA may be called at any time by the President, or in the event of his failure to act, by such other Officer or Member as the Board shall designate.
4) An Annual Membership Meeting, including Officers and Affiliated Club representatives, will be held prior to the first Regular meeting of the new Board.
5) The order of business for the Annual Membership Meeting shall be as defined in the Rules of Procedure-Board of Directors.
6) The Membership present at a Regular Meeting shall constitute a quorum, provided notice was published via mail, email or the MSA website. Note: No less than 10% of the Membership shall constitute a quorum at a Special Meeting.
ARTICLE XII – Officers
1) The Officers of the MSA shall consist of a President, Vice President and Secretary-Treasurer.
2) The President, Vice President, and Secretary-Treasurer shall be elected by the Board at their first meeting subsequent to the State Shoot and shall hold office for one year or until their successors are elected and qualified.
3) Any individual Member of the MSA in good standing shall be eligible for election to the office of Secretary-Treasurer by the Board.
4) No one person may hold any combination of offices.
5) Only Board Members elected by the Membership shall be eligible for the offices of President or Vice President.
ARTICLE XIII – Past President
The most recent Past President shall, by Constitutional authority and privilege, be a member of the Board and shall enjoy both voice and vote in the functioning of that Body.
ARTICLE XIV – Board of Directors
1) The Board shall have general supervision and control over the activities of the MSA.
2) A majority of the Board shall constitute a quorum. Approval by the Board will require a simple majority, a greater if so stated, of those members present unless otherwise stated.
3) Resignation of any Officer or Board Members may be accepted by a majority vote of the remaining Members of the Board at the next scheduled Board Meeting.
4) The Board, by 2/3 vote, may suspend any Officer pending trial and hearing, on charges of misfeasance, malfeasance, neglect of duty or activities detrimental to the best interest of the MSA
5) The Board shall have the power to discharge any appointed representative of the MSA.
6) The Board may, if it sees fit, order that the MSA property and interests be protected by insurance.
7) The Board shall approve the financial institution where the MSA funds are deposited.
8) A Board Member who ceases to be a Member of the MSA in good standing shall cease to be a Board Member.
9) A vacancy on the Board shall be filled by the Member having the next highest plurality at the last election of the Board of Directors.
10)Should any Board Member be absent from two (2) consecutive meetings, without notification to the President, the Office may be declared vacant and such Office may be filled as herein provided.
11) Any Board Member who is unable to attend a meeting may be allowed to vote by proxy.
12) Only Board Members elected by the Membership shall have a vote in Board decisions.
ARTICLE XV – Duties of Officers
President
1) The President shall preside at the Annual Meeting and at all other meetings of the Board. He shall be member ex-officio of all regular and special committees, and shall perform such other duties as usually pertain to his office.
2) The President shall, with the approval of the Board assign or withdraw the assignment of any Member or Officer to represent the MSA, and he shall further appoint representatives and/or legal, technical or professional help as authorized by the Board, except the Office of Secretary-Treasurer.
3) He shall settle disputes and questions of controversy, subject to appeal as covered in Article XVII.
4) He shall be bonded when so instructed by the Board, in an amount that shall be determined by the Board, and paid for by the MSA to insure faithful discharge of his duties.
5) The President shall select the following Standing Committees:
a. Constitution and Bylaws
b. Finance
c. Shoot
d. Nominations, Credentials and Elections
e. Michigan Skeet Shooting Hall of Fame (MSSHoF)
f. All State and State Gauge Teams
g. Awards
h. MSA Website
The president may designate such other committees, as deemed appropriate by the Board, and may appoint members of the Board, or other members of the Association to serve on such committee. The President may, at his discretion, combine one or more of these Committees. The President shall appoint the Chairperson of each Committee
Vice President – The Vice President shall assist the President and shall carry out the duties of the President during the absence of that Officer.
Secretary-Treasurer
1) The Secretary-Treasurer shall be the custodian of the funds of the MSA. He shall account for all money received and pay all expenses incurred by the MSA unless directed otherwise by the Board. The Secretary-Treasurer shall submit detailed statements of income and disbursements to the Board and to the Membership at their meetings. A copy of the financial statement shall be published yearly on the MSA Website.
2) The Secretary-Treasurer shall be bonded, in an amount determined by the Board, which shall be paid by the MSA, to insure faithful discharge of his duties.
3) The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep accurate minutes of meetings; keep a complete record of committees appointed by the President, including names, addresses, and phone numbers of such committee members; keep a file of Committee Rules of Procedure; aid the President in compiling an agenda for every meeting; and do such other and further duties as may be directed by the President or the Board. The Secretary-Treasurer shall have custody of the Minute Book and the General Ledger.
4) The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep a current membership roll alphabetically and numerically by MSA membership number; conduct official correspondence; and keep the membership informed on Registered Shoots and other important events. The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep records and scores of all MSA Shoots.
5) The Secretary-Treasurer shall be allocated a fee for services, the amount of which shall be determined by the Board.
ARTICLE XVI – Charges and Trials of Members
1) Charges against MSA officials shall be filed in one of two manners:
a. Upon written affidavit assigned by two or more Board Members and filed with the Secretary-Treasurer.
b. Upon written affidavit signed by at least five (5) Members and filed with the Secretary-Treasurer.
2) In the event the charges are against the Secretary-Treasurer, they shall be filed with the President, who shall alone perform the duties with reference to the trial procedure.
3) The Secretary-Treasurer shall notify the accused of the charges by mail with copies to all Board Members. The Secretary-Treasurer shall notify the accused that he has fifteen (15) days to prepare a defense and shall notify the Board Members of a Special Board meeting to be called within ten (10) days for the purpose of establishing trial proceedings. The accuser(s) shall likewise be notified. The accused shall have the right to be represented by counsel.
4) Pending trial, the accused shall continue to function in his capacity unless a Special Board Meeting is convened and the Board votes, by 2/3 majority, for his suspension.
5) The accused shall have the right to face his accuser(s). Should the accuser(s) fail to appear, the case against the accused shall be dismissed. The trial committee however, shall have the right to try the accuser(s) as provided in Section 7.
6) Upon completion of the hearing, the Board shall go into closed session to determine the verdict and penalty. A 2/3 vote shall be required to find the accused guilty. In the event that he is found guilty, the Board may, by a majority vote, reprimand the accused or, by 2/3 vote, may suspend or remove the accused from office and/or expel him from Membership.
7) In the event the Board finds the accused innocent, they may then make a determination as to the honesty and/or intent of the accuser(s). If they find the accuser(s) guilty of obvious malice, they may assess a penalty against him in accordance with the preceding sections of this article.
ARTICLE XVII – Appeals
1) All Members and Officers shall be entitled to appeal.
2) Such an individual shall first appeal to the Board and, if he desires to appeal the Board’s decision, he may appeal to the Membership. The decision of the Membership shall be final. In all cases, these specific steps must be followed before the right of appeal can be accepted by the next higher authority.
3) Any member wishing to appeal must file a written notice within thirty (30) days of the date of the decision being appealed. The appeal shall be filed with the Secretary-Treasurer in writing
In no case shall a Member or Officer appeal to a civil court for redress until he has exhausted his rights of appeal under these Bylaws. Violation of this provision is cause for summary expulsion from the MSA by a 2/3 vote of the Board or, should they fail to act, by 2/3 vote of the assembled Membership.
ARTICLE XVIII – National Skeet Shooting Association (NSSA)
For appeals to the NSSA concerning decisions relating to shooting rules or other NSSA provisions binding on the MSA, see Shoot Committee Rules of Procedure, Section IV-j.
ARTICLE XIX – Shooter’s Responsibility
1) In accordance with NSSA rules, it shall be the responsibility of the Shooter to see that his Classification Card is up to date, displaying all scores from previous shoots.
2) The Shooter shall be responsible for seeing that he is entered in the correct Class, which by NSSA rules, his average demands.
3) Any shooter who knowingly enters a shoot in a lower Class, or knowingly allows a Club Classifier to enter him in a lower Class may, upon proven evidence of such wrongdoing, be summarily expelled from the MSA and denied further participation in any Registered Shoots.
ARTICLE XX – Dissolution
In the event of liquidation, dissolution, or termination of the Corporation, whether voluntary or otherwise, the assets, less accrued liabilities, shall be donated in their entirety to the NSSA by the Board of Directors, subject to the provisions of Law.
Michigan Skeet Association 