Founding Bylaws for DOGPAWS (2004)

BYLAWS OF DOG OWNERS GROUP FOR PARK ACCESS IN WASHINGTON (DOGPAW)

ARTICLE 1 - NAME, MISSION STATEMENT

Section 1: The name of the organization shall be Dog Owners Group for Park Access in Washington (DOGPAW). DOGPAW is a non-profit organization registered in the State of Washington

Section 2: DOGPAW was formed to work with dog owners and the community at large to promote awareness and acceptance and to increase the availability for safe off leash areas for dogs in Clark County.

ARTICLE II - MEMBERSHIP

Section 1: Membership shall be open to any resident of Clark County or neighboring community that supports the mission statement in Article 1, Section 2, and continuing membership is contingent upon being up-to-date on membership dues and signing a DOGPAW membership form. A member shall be in good standing 30 to 60 days prior to any vote in order to participate in the vote.

Section 2: Each member qualified by Section 1 shall have the right to vote on issues before the general membership.

Section 3: Each voting member of DOGPAW may attend the annual meeting.

Section 4: The Board shall have the authority to establish and define nonvoting categories of membership.

ARTICLE III - MEETINGS OF MEMBERS

Section 1: Annual Meeting. The date, time and place of the regular annual meeting shall be set by the Board of Directors.

Section 2: Special Meetings of the Board or Entire Membership. Special meetings may be called by the Chairperson, Executive Committee, or a simple majority of the Board of Directors.

Section 3: Notice. Notice of each general membership business meeting shall be given to each member, in writing, not less than fourteen days before the meeting. Notice may be by US mail or by electronic means, and shall include an agenda for the meeting. The date of the notice shall be determined by the date posted for US mail or electronic time/date mark for electronic means.

ARTICLE IV - BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Section 1: Board Role, Size, Composition. The Board is responsible for overall policy and direction of DOGPAW, and conducts routine operations. The Board shall have up to fifteen, and no fewer than six, members. The board receives no compensation other than reasonable expenses, and will not be covered for unemployment insurance.

Section 2: Meetings. The Board shall meet at least quarterly, at an agreed upon time and place.

Section 3: Board Elections. Up to fifteen Board members shall be elected by the voting members.

Section 4: Board Executive Committee. A Board Executive Committee shall represent the interests of DOGPAW, its members, and the dog owning community in matters related to off leash park areas in Clark County. An Executive Board member or the Chairperson of the Publicity and Promotion Committee has the right to authorize communications on behalf of DOGPAW.

Section 5: Election Procedures. DOGPAW members will be eligible to vote and shall receive one ballot for individuals and two ballots for family memberships. Individual members shall have one vote equal to the number of openings to be filled in the particular class of the ballot. Family memberships will have two votes equal to the number of openings to be filled in the particular class of the ballot. These votes may be cast cumulatively within a class, where there is more than one vacancy. The nominees receiving the largest number of votes in each class of the ballot in the annual election shall be elected to those full term vacancies that exist.

Section 6: Terms. All Board members shall serve three-year terms, but are eligible for re-election. The first Board will include members with one and two-year terms to begin staggered terms.

Section 7: Quorum. A quorum must be attended by at least fifty percent of the Board members in office at the time before business can be transacted or motions made or passed.

Section 8: Notice. An official Board meeting requires that each Board member have written notice two weeks in advance.

Section 9: Officers and Duties. There shall be three officers of the Board consisting of a Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer. The officers shall be elected by the Board at the November Board Meeting after the at-large members are seated. These three elected officers will make up the executive committee. Their duties are as follows:

The Chair shall convene regularly scheduled Board meetings, shall preside or arrange for other members of the executive committee to preside at each meeting in the following order: Secretary and Treasurer.

The Secretary shall be responsible for keeping records of Board actions, including overseeing the taking of minutes at all board meetings, sending out meeting announcements, distributing copies of minutes and the agenda to each Board member, and assuring that corporate records are maintained.

The Treasurer shall make a report at each Board meeting. Treasurer shall chair the finance committee, assist in the preparation of the budget, help develop fundraising plans, and make financial information available to Board members and the public.

Section 10: Vacancies. When a vacancy on the Board exists, nominations for new members may be received from present Board members and members at large by the Secretary two weeks in advance of the annual meeting. These nominations shall be sent out to Board members with the regular Board meeting announcement, to be voted upon at the next Board meeting. If the vacancy is an Executive Board Member, the board shall elect the new Executive member when there are at least six general Board Members to participate. All vacancies will be filled only to the end of the particular Board member's term.

Section 11: Resignation, Termination and Absences. Resignation from the Board must be in writing and received by the Secretary. A Board member may be dropped for excess absences from the Board if he or she has three unexcused absences from Board meetings in a year. A Board member may be removed for other reasons by a three-fourths vote of the remaining Board members.

Section 12: Special Meetings. Special meetings of the Board shall be called upon the request of the Chair or one-third of the Board. Notices of special meetings shall be sent out by the Secretary to each Board member postmarked two weeks in advance.

Section 13. The Board shall set dues for memberships.

ARTICLE V - COMMITTEES

Section 1: The Board may create committees as needed, including ad hoc committees that are ended as soon as the activity ceases. There shall be five standing committees: (l) Executive, (2) Finance, (3) Fundraising, (4) Parks and Site Development, (5)Publicity, Promotion and Membership Committee. The Board Chair appoints all committee chairs. Committee chairs must be members of the Board. All Board Members must be a member or Chair Person of at least one standing committee and not more than two. A majority vote by the Board is required to make an Ad Hoc Committee a Standing Committee.

Section 2: Finance Committee. The Treasurer is chair of the Finance Committee, which includes at least one other Board member. The Finance Committee is responsible for the annual budget and specific off leash area site budgets. The Board must approve the budget, and all expenditures must be within the budget. There will be a budget developed for each off leash area site/location. The Finance Committee will advise the individual Site Operation Managers about the budget for their site. The Finance Committee and Operations managers will be responsible for operating within the budget. Any major change in the budget must be approved by the Board or the Executive Committee. The fiscal year shall be the calendar year. Quarterly reports are required to be submitted to the Board showing income, expenditures and pending income. The financial records of DOGPAW are public information and shall be made available to the membership, Board members and the public. The Finance committee will review and approve the reports sent in by the Treasurer for all government/IRS reporting.

Section 3: Fundraising Committee and Policy. The Fundraising Committee will be responsible for creating diverse revenue streams, arrange donations from corporate and commercial and private donors, arrange for grants to be written, and outline organizations that DOGPAW might partner with to raise funds for mutual benefit. The Fundraising Committee oversees development and implementation of the Fundraising Plan, identifies and solicits funds from external sources. Partnerships can be created for the purpose of sharing resources such as money, labor, office space or other agreed upon resource. All partnerships must be approved by the Board. All fundraising activities must be coordinated with the fundraising committee and approved by the Board.

Section 4: Parks and Site Development Committee: The Parks and Site Development Committee will be responsible for developing and maintaining off leash area locations. This committee will work with the Parks Department and any partners to design, construct, and coordinate the site development. They will work with the Finance committee to develop a budget for the site and coordinate the work at the site once it commences. This committee will also coordinate with the Publicity/Promotion committee to solicit volunteers, alert the community of the location, plan, progress and opening of the Park site. An Operations Manager will be chosen by this committee for each site and will report directly to this committee Chair. This Committee will be responsible for designing and implementing rules and procedures for the maintenance of off leash park sites.

Section 5: Publicity/Promotion and Membership Committee: This committee will be responsible for creating and distributing a newsletter to members, creating publicity to promote new off leash park sites, and enhances the image of DOGPAW, including coordinating communication with the press. The Committee Chair will appoint someone to be in charge of updating the DOGPAW Web Site. The Membership component of this Committee will act as the nominating committee for new board members and will orient new members, both board members and members at large. This committee will be responsible for promoting, recruiting, and maintaining membership to DOGPAW.

Section 6: Ad Hoc Committees. Any Ad Hoc Committee will be chaired by the Chairperson or their designee. Ad Hoc Committees can be, but are not limited to, an audit committee or an events committee. Ad Hoc Committees are disbanded when the task is completed. In the event an Ad Hoc Committee becomes a Standing Committee, the Board will determine if a new Board member is to be added to manage the new Standing Committee, or if an existing board member will manage it.

ARTICLE VI - STAFF

Section 1: To start, all staff will be on a volunteer basis and receive no compensation other than reasonable expenses, and will not be covered for unemployment insurance. DOGPAW staff positions will consist of Operations Managers and volunteers. Each off-leash site will have an Operations manager approved by the Board, and serve a term of at least one year. Operations managers have the responsibility to recruit and manage any volunteers needed to assist them in their duties. They will be responsible to the Chair of then Site/Park Development Committee. Operations managers duties include:

• Posting and upkeep of any signs or communications at their site.

• Be available to survey their designated site for potential problems and to solve problems as they arise.

• Ensure their site has adequate supplies and procure supplies as needed.

• Work with the Park/Site Development Committee to oversee the design and development of their site.

• Write and present an annual report updating the Board and membership about their site at the annual meeting. (A copy of the report should be submitted to the Board prior to the annual meeting.)

• Other Duties as assigned.

Section 2: Volunteers. Volunteers will be recruited from the members at large and will function as a member of a specific committee. The number of volunteers needed to support a committee will be determined by the Board Committee Chair. Tasks completed by volunteers will be defined by the mission of their committee. Volunteers will understand, support and agree to:

• The number of hours required of them.

• How long the job will be performed, when, and where. e Who directs their tasks.

• The tasks they are asked to perform.

• The goals and objectives of DOGPAW.

ARTICLE VII - AMENDMENTS

Section 1: These Bylaws may be amended when necessary by a two-thirds majority of the Board of Directors. Proposed amendments must be submitted to the Secretary to be sent out with regular Board announcements. These Bylaws will be reviewed in one year, at which time the Board will resubmit them as is or submit the amended Bylaws.