BYLAWS CMU GUN CLUB ARTICLE I NAME AND OBJECTIVES Section 1. The name of the organization shall be CMU GUN CLUB. Section 2. The objectives of the organization shall be: a. To discuss and participate in shooting sports, reloading and other recreational activities involving firearms. b. To promote the shooting sports and stimulate firearms interest among the campus community c. To promote the safe and responsible use of firearms and educate the campus community on firearms and firearms related issues. Section 3. The organization shall not be conducted or operated for profit and no part of any profits or remainder or residue from dues, donations, or other sources of income to the organization shall inure to the personal benefit of any member or individual. ARTICLE II DEFINITIONS Section 1. Standing Definitions. The terms defined as follows shall be considered standing definitions: a. Majority. A majority shall be defined as a number greater than one-half (1/2), or fifty percent (50%), of the total. b. Member in good standing. A member is in good standing who is registered with the Vice-President and whose dues are current and whose other monetary obligations to the organization are not over sixty (60) days in arrears. c. Voting member. A voting member is a member in good standing who has attended at least one (1) previous meeting. d. Experienced Member. A member in good standing who has been approved by the Education and Safety Officer as knowledgeable in firearm safety and use. e. Officers. The President, Vice-President, Treasurer, and Education and Safety Officer, all of which must be experienced members. f. Steering Committee. All Officers are automatically members of the steering committee. Additionally, any other Experienced Members who wish to serve on the Steering Committee may do so with 2/3 approval of the voting members present and voting at the meeting where such a motion is made. g. Affiliated firing range. A privately run facility for the sporting discharge of firearms that has been approved by the club as per ARTICLE VII SECTION 2. h. Mailing. A mailing may be by physical or electronic means. Section 2. Provisional Definitions. All terms not previously defined as standing Definitions shall be defined according to the current edition of WEBSTER'S NEW COLLEGIATE DICTIONARY. ARTICLE III MEMBERSHIP Section 1. Membership. Each individual voting member shall have one (1) vote. Each member shall receive one (1) copy of any notices, publications or other distributed documents of the organization. Section 2. Becoming a Member. Anyone who is CMU affiliated, or sponsored by a CMU affiliated person, whose dues have been paid to the Treasurer shall be considered a member. Section 3. Becoming an Experienced Member. Any member in good standing may request consideration for Experienced Membership to the Education and Safety Officer. The applicant member will be tested for firearms knowledge and safety via a written exam and field exam administered by the Education and Safety Officer. a. The written exam must be administered at or before the third meeting following the request to be tested unless Education and Safety Officer obtains an exception from the President and provides full detail of the reasons for this exception to the applicant member. b. The field exam shall be conducted at an Affiliated Firing Range under the supervision of the Education and Safety Officer or a Safety Deputy and at least one other Experienced Member. The field exam must be administered within 1(one) month following the request to be tested unless Education and Safety Officer obtains an exception from the President and provides full detail of the reasons for this exception to the applicant member. c. The contents of the both exams must be standardized and approved by the Steering Committee. d. Experienced Member privileges may be removed from any Experienced Member who acts in an unsafe, hazardous, or otherwise dangerous manner with a firearm or who causes to happen by action or negligence a firearms related accident. Such acts will be brought before the Steering Committee who will decide via majority vote whether such act requires removal of Experienced Member privileges. If the Committee decides to remove Experienced Member privileges a written explanation will be prepared by the Education and Safety Officer and submitted to the affected member and the Vice President. Any member who has his or her Experienced Membership privileges removed by such process will not be eligible for re-instatement of such privileges until one (1) year has passed since the members loss if privileges. Experienced member status may be re-applied for, with the approval of the Education and Safety Officer, after a time period of one (1) year has passed. The member must then meet re- submit to the testing set forth in this section parts a and b. Section 4. Dues. Membership dues for the next year shall be suggested annually by the Steering Committee in March, and approved or changed by the voting membership at the April meeting. Dues shall be payable on or before the thirtieth day of September each year. Section 5. Termination. a. by resignation. Any member may resign from the organization upon written notice to the Vice President b. by lapsing. A membership will be considered as lapsed and automatically terminated if such member's dues remain unpaid thirty (30) days after the deadline for payment of dues. However, the Steering Committee may grant an additional thirty (30) days grace period to such delinquent members in exceptional cases. In no case may a person be entitled to vote at any organization meeting whose dues are unpaid as of the date of that meeting, or who are sixty (60) days in arrears of other monetary obligations to the organization. Section 5. Refund of Dues. Membership dues will not be refunded either wholly or in part for any reason save extreme circumstances as determined by the membership. Section 6. Benefits of Membership. All members in good standing shall receive all benefits of membership except as stipulated in the bylaws. Section 7. By payment of a nominal fee, as determined by the steering committee, a person may become a member for the duration of one (1) field trip to an affiliated firing range. This membership does not confer voting, or other, privileges, except for the ability to participate in a field trip to an affiliated firing range. ARTICLE IV MEETINGS AND VOTING Section 1. Regular organization Meetings. Regular meetings of the organization shall be held as directed by the Steering Committee. Written notice of such meetings shall be mailed to the membership at least six (6) days prior to the date of the first such meeting of each semester by the President through the official organization newsletter or by other mailing. Section 2. Special organization Meetings. Special meetings of the organization may be called by the President, or by a majority vote of the members of the Steering Committee who are present and voting at any regular or special meeting of the Committee, or by the Vice President upon receipt of a written petition. Written notice of such meetings shall be mailed by the President at least three (3) and not more than fifteen (15) days prior to the date of the meeting. Such notice shall state the purpose(s) of the meeting, and no other organization business may be transacted thereat. Section 3. Regular Steering Committee Meetings. Regular meetings of the Steering Committee shall be held as directed by the Committee, with a minimum of two (2) such meetings per semester. Notice of each such meeting shall be given to the membership by the President at least five (5) days prior to the date of the meeting. Such meetings shall be closed to non-members of the organization unless the individual(s) should be specifically invited by the Committee, in which case the cause for the non-member presence shall be the first order of business, and after which the non-member may be asked to leave the meeting. Section 4. Special Steering Committee Meetings. Special meetings of the Steering Committee may be called by the President, or by the Vice President upon the receipt of a written petition signed by at least three (3) members of the Steering Committee. Notice of such meetings shall be given to the membership at least five (5) days prior to the meeting. Such notice shall state the purpose of the meeting and no other business may be transacted thereat. In addition, all restrictions in Section 3 of this article shall apply to special meetings of the Steering Committee. Section 5. Emergency Steering Committee Meetings. Emergency meetings of the Steering Committee may be called by the President or Vice-President and may be held by phone. Notice of such meetings shall be given to the Steering Committee at least one (1) day prior to the meeting. Any majority decision reached will be entered into the minutes of the next regular Steering Committee meeting. Section 6. Voting. Each voting member shall be entitled to one (1) vote at any regular meeting of the organization at which the member is present. Proxy voting will not be permitted at any organization meeting or election excepting extenuating circumstances, in which case the proxy must be counter-signed by either the President or the Vice- President. ARTICLE V OFFICERS AND REPRESENTATIVES Section 1. Steering Committee. The membership of the Committee is set forth in ARTICLE II SECTION 1f. The power necessary for the general management of the organization's affairs shall be entrusted to the Steering Committee, except as follows. a. The Committee shall be subject to the orders of the organization, and none of its acts shall conflict with action taken by the organization, and the organization may countermand any decision of the Committee by a majority vote, thus opening up the question for consideration by the organization. b. The Committee shall not distribute the organization's funds except as directed by the organization. Section 2. Officers. The organization officers, consisting of the following, shall serve in their respective capacities both with regard to the organization and its meetings and the Steering Committee and its meetings. a. The President shall preside at all meetings of the organization and of the Steering Committee. The President shall have charge of all correspondence pertinent to the organization other than the correspondence reserved for the Vice President and shall have the duties and powers normally applicable to the office of President in addition to these Bylaws. 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 shall keep a record of all meetings of the organization and of the Steering Committee and of all matters of which a record shall be ordered by the organization. The Vice President shall keep a roll of the members of the organization with applicable information, and carry out such other duties as are prescribed in these Bylaws. c. The Education and Safety Officer shall set forth the standards of knowledge and safety of firearms necessary for status as an Experienced Member by producing a written exam and field exam and submitting these exams to the Steering Committee for approval. The Education and Safety Officer shall incorporate the direction of the Steering Committee into these exams. The Education and Safety Officer shall test members in good standing for suitability as Experienced Members. The Education and Safety Officer shall keep record of all matters relating to education and safety issues except were such duties are reserved by the Vice President. The Education and Safety Officer shall assist members in good standing in their preparation for the Experienced Member exams. The Education and Safety Officer shall be responsible for organizing events designed to educate the membership on firearm safety, shooting techniques, and other firearms related issues. d. The Treasurer shall collect and receive all moneys due or belonging to the organization, and shall deposit the same in a bank satisfactory to the Steering Committee, in the name of the organization. The Treasurer's books shall be open at all times to the inspection of the Committee, and the Treasurer shall report to the Committee and the general membership at every meeting the condition of the organization's finances. At the annual meeting, the Treasurer shall render an account of all moneys received and expended during the previous fiscal year. During the month of September the Treasurer shall send to each member a statement of dues for the ensuing year. The Treasurer shall disperse funds as directed by the Steering Committee and all checks must be signed by two (2) members of the Steering Committee, one of which must be an Officer. The Treasurer shall also be responsible for filing all financial forms applicable to the organization. Section 3. Officer Requirements. a. All Officers of the organization shall be organization voting members in good standing and members of the Steering Committee. b. The Education and Safety Officer must be at least 21 years of age and have qualification equal to or better than that of an NRA Certified Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun, Home Firearm Safety instructor. Section 4. Vacancies. Any vacancy of an officer position occurring during the year shall be filled for the unexpired term of office by a majority vote of all the voting members by the second regular organizational meeting of the following the creation of such vacancy. Section 5. Recall of Officers. Any officer may be recalled for misconduct or dereliction of duty. A written petition, stating the reason(s) for recall, shall be filed with any Officer. Written notice of such petition shall be included in the notice of the next regular meeting of the organization. A hearing on the matter will be held at that meeting, and a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the voting members present and voting will be required to sustain the recall. Section 6. Seniority. Seniority of offices is: President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Education and Safety Officer Section 7. Safety Deputies. Experienced members, upon approval of the Steering Committee, may be appointed by the Education and Safety Officer to be Safety Deputies. Safety Deputies, upon the recommendation of the Education and Safety Officer and the approval of the Steering Committee may be recalled and revert back to Experienced Members. Former Safety Officers who leave their post honorably, are automatically Safety Deputies. The duties of the Safety Deputy are: a. Ensure that all the rules for safe firearms handling are strictly adhered to at Field Trips to Affiliated Firing Ranges. b. Administer the field exam and report to the Safety Officer as to the applicant member's qualifications for Experienced Membership. The Education and Safety Officer will have the final decision as to the member's qualification ARTICLE VI ORGANIZATION YEAR, ANNUAL MEETING, ELECTIONS Section 1. Organization Year. The organization's fiscal year shall begin on the first day of September and end on the thirty-first day of August. The organization's official year shall begin immediately at the conclusion of the election at the annual meeting and shall continue through the election at the next annual meeting. Section 2. Annual Meeting. No later than the last meeting in the month of December the Steering Committee shall set the date for the Annual Meeting. The annual meeting shall be held in the month of April of each year. At the Annual Meeting the Officers for the ensuing year shall be elected by secret, written ballot from among those nominated in accordance with Section 4 of this article. They shall take office immediately upon the conclusion of the election and each retiring officer shall relinquish all properties and records relating to that office within fifteen (15) days after the election. Section 3. Elections. The nominated candidate receiving a majority of the votes cast for each office shall be declared elected. If there are three (3) or more candidates for any single office, and no candidate receives a majority of the vote, the candidate receiving the fewest votes will be deleted from the ballot and the voting membership will vote again on the remaining candidates until a majority has been declared. Section 4. Nominations. No person may be a candidate in an organization election who has not been nominated or who is not a voting organization member in good standing and an Experienced Member. During the last quarter of the official year the Steering Committee shall solicit nominations for each office from amongst the voting membership. a. For each office the Steering Committee will call upon the voting membership for nominations. Any Experienced Member may be nominated. Nominations must be seconded by another voting member other than the nominating member or the nominee. After securing the consent of each person so nominated, the committee shall immediately report the nominations to the Vice President. b. If no nominations are secured for an office via the method described in SECTION 4a of this article, then the Steering Committee will choose a nominee for that office. c. The President shall on or before April 1, notify each member in writing of the candidates so nominated. d. Additional nominations may be made at any meeting after the report of the President and before the annual meeting by any member in attendance provided that the person so nominated does not decline when his or her name is proposed, and provided further that if the proposed candidate is not in attendance at this meeting, the proposer shall present to the Vice President a written statement of the candidate's willingness to be so nominated. A voting member may be nominated and run for more than one (1) office, but shall only be allowed to hold one (1) office. e. Nominations cannot be made at the annual meeting or in any manner other than as provided for in this section. ARTICLE VII USE OF FIREARMS AND RELATED EQUIPMENT Section 1. In the use and handling of firearms the club will strictly adhere to all Federal, State, Local, and Campus regulations concerning or related to such firearms. a. Club members under the age of 18 years old may not under any circumstance use or handle firearms during the course of a club activity. Section 2. The discharge of firearms as a club activity is only allowed at Affiliated Firing Ranges. The terms of affiliation with the club shall be arranged by the steering committee and presented to the membership for a vote. A majority of the members present and voting is necessary for approval. Section 3. On occasion, as arranged by an Experienced Member, a group of members in good standing may embark on a field trip to an Affiliated Firing Range for the purpose of learning or practicing shooting technique via the discharge of firearms. a. At such Field trips there must be present at least a number of Experienced Members equal to the number of members who have not been designated as experienced plus one (1). One Experienced member will assign himself/herself to one non-experienced member, with the remaining experienced members generally supervising all members present. b. All members will follow the rules of gun safety and will handle the firearms safely and responsibly. c. All members will follow the rules of the Affiliated Firing Range at which they are present d. The maximum number of members allowed on any particular field trip will be set for each Affiliated Firing Range by the Steering Committee. In the absence of a ruling by the committee, this number will be limited to seven (7) of which a maximum of three (3) not-experienced members are allowed and maximum of three (3) shooting stations may be utilized. e. The experienced members present on a field trip have the power to disallow the use of any firearm, ammunition, or related equipment or supplies that they deem unsafe. This power must be approved by a majority of the experienced members present to be exercised. ARTICLE VIII COMMITTEES Section 1. The Steering Committee may each year appoint standing committees to advance the work of the organization. Special committees may also be appointed by the Steering Committee to aid it on particular projects. Such committees shall always be subject to the final authority of the Steering Committee Section 2. Any committee appointment may be terminated by the Steering Committee upon written notice to the appointee, and the Steering Committee may appoint successors to those persons whose services have been terminated. ARTICLE IX REPRIMAND & SUSPENSION Section 1. Any member of the organization shall be held accountable for any conduct considered injurious to the organization or its purposes and objectives. The gravity of such conduct shall first be considered at a hearing before the Steering Committee. Considering said charges of conduct, the Steering Committee may, at its discretion, enforce any of the following punitive actions: a. Reprimand. The Steering Committee may reprimand the member for minor offenses, which can include, but shall not be limited to, written reprimand, verbal warning, restitution, or organization service. b. Suspension. For offenses of a more serious nature, the Steering Committee may suspend membership privileges of the member for any length of time, up to the next Annual Meeting of the organization. c. Special Suspension. For an offense involving acting in an unsafe, hazardous, or otherwise dangerous manner with a firearm or causing to happen by action or negligence a firearms related accident the Steering Committee may permanently suspend the offending member from any organization activity involving the presence of loaded firearms or any other equipment with the potential to cause grave harm. This suspension automatically involves the loss of Experienced Member status. In the case of such a special suspension a written explanation will be prepared by the Education and Safety Officer and submitted to the offending member and to the Vice President. The offending member may apply for re-instatement of such suspended privileges one (1) year from the date of the special suspension. A two-thirds (2/3) majority of members present and voting are necessary to re-instate such suspended privileges. Section 2. Any member so charged shall be given written notice of said hearing at least ten (10) days prior to that hearing, and such member shall have the right to be present at said hearing for the purposes of defense. Section 3. Any member affected by Section 1, Parts (a) and (b), of this Article, shall have thirty (30) days to appeal said proceedings. Written notice of appeal shall be presented to the Vice President. The Steering Committee shall then, in turn, present the matter to the voting membership at the next Regular organization meeting. An affirmative vote of two-thirds (2/3) majority of the voting members present and voting at said meeting shall be required to sustain the actions of the Steering Committee. Section 4. Any person whose membership is terminated according to Section 1 of this article must present his or her application for reinstatement to the Steering Committee for approval prior to being voted upon by the general membership. ARTICLE X PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY The rules contained in the current edition of ROBERT'S RULES OF ORDER NEWLY REVISED shall govern the organization in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these Bylaws and any special rules of order the organization may adopt. ARTICLE XI AMENDMENTS Section 1. Amendments to the Bylaws may be proposed by the Steering Committee or by written petition addressed to the Vice President. Amendments proposed by such petition shall be promptly considered by the Steering Committee and must be submitted to the members with the recommendations of the Committee by the Vice President for a vote within thirty (30) days of the date when the petition was received by the Vice President. Section 2. The Bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the voting members present and voting at any regular or special meeting called for the purpose, provided the proposed amendments have been included in the notice of the meeting and mailed to each member at least six (6) days prior to the date of the meeting. ARTICLE XII DONATIONS The organization may accept donations in the form of money, equipment or other property to be used for the exclusive benefit of the membership, provided however, that all contributions and donations to the organization shall be subject to approval by the Steering Committee. ARTICLE XIII DISSOLUTION The organization may be dissolved at any time by the written consent of not less than two-thirds (2/3) of the voting members in good standing. In the event of the dissolution of the organization, whether voluntary or involuntary or by operation of law, none of the property of the organization nor any proceeds thereof nor any assets of the organization shall be distributed to any members of the organization. After payment of the debts of the organization, its property and assets shall be given to a similar organization or sold and the money donated to a charitable organization selected by the Steering Committee. ARTICLE XIV ORDER OF BUSINESS Section 1. At meetings of the organization, the order of business, so far as the character and nature of the meeting may permit, shall be as follows: a. Calling the roll b. Reading and correction of the minutes of the last regular organization meeting and any special meetings or Steering Committee meetings held in the interim c. Reports of officers d. Reports of committees e. Unfinished business f. New business g. Elections (at annual meeting) h. Announcements Section 2. At meetings of the Steering Committee, the order of business, unless otherwise directed by majority vote of those present, shall be as follows: a. Reading and correction of the minutes of the last regular Steering Committee meeting and any special meetings or organization meetings held in the interim b. Report of the Vice President c. Report of the President d. Report of the Treasurer e. Report of Education and Safety Officer f. Reports of Committees g. Old business h. New business SAE 2/23/94 Amendemnts as approved in committee 4/13/94: Art Sec Par . t. t III 3 b change to include Safety Deputies V 7 a,b add to include Safety Deputies III 2 add to include sponsored non-CMU members III 7 add to include $1 field trip membership SAE 4/18/94