CONSTITUTION OF THE WISCONSIN STATE CHAPTER

OF

THE NATIONAL WILD TURKEY FEDERATION, INC.

 

 

ARTICLE I

 

NAME

 

The name of this organization is the Wisconsin State Chapter (hereinafter referred to as the State Chapter) of the National Wild Turkey Federation, Inc. (hereinafter referred to as the NWTF). The State Chapter shall not have or use any other name.

 

ARTICLE II

PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES

The purpose and objectives of the State Chapter are:

a)       To develop, restore and maintain wild turkey populations and habitat;

b)       To establish, maintain and promote public interest in the restoration and management of the wild turkey;

c)       To give and promote lectures, entertainment and exhibitions concerning wild turkeys and areas of related interest for the general public and members of the State Chapter;

d)       To assist the NWTF, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and the Wisconsin Conservation Congress in promoting the conservation and management of wild turkeys;

e)       To do all things necessary and proper to further the stated purpose and objectives, consistent with the exclusively educational and nonprofit nature of the State Chapter.

ARTICLE III

POWERS

The State Chapter shall operate exclusively for charitable, scientific and educational purposes, as defined in IRC, Section 501 (c)(3). The State Chapter shall not engage in any activity that could or would cause it to lose its tax-exempt status.

The State Chapter shall not participate in or intervene in any political campaign on the behalf of any candidate for public office. Lobbying or otherwise attempting to influence legislation shall be limited to the extent permitted by the Internal Revenue Code and the regulations of the Internal Revenue Service applicable to organizations with tax-exempt status.

The activities of the State Chapter shall not conflict with the policies and activities of the NWTF, the NWTF Constitution and Bylaws or violate any law. Otherwise, the State Chapter shall have all the powers necessary to carry out its purpose and objectives.

ARTICLE IV

MEMBERSHIP

All State Chapter members must be members in good standing of the NWTF. The State Chapter may not exclude any member who has been properly assigned to the State Chapter by the NWTF, based on NWTF rules and procedures.

The State Chapter may not charge dues to become a member or continue membership in the State Chapter.

All Local Chapters chartered by the NWTF and assigned to the State Chapter shall follow the Constitution and Bylaws of the NWTF and the State Chapter. A Local Chapter may not create, enact or enforce any rule or procedure that does not comply with the Constitution and Bylaws of the NWTF or the State Chapter. Members may establish a Local Chapter in any geographic area within the boundaries of the State of Wisconsin. A Local Chapter shall have elected officers, including but not limited to President, Secretary, Treasurer and Banquet Chairperson.

ARTICLE V

DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS

Section 1

 Directors and Officers Required

The State Chapter shall have a Board of Directors (hereinafter referred to as the Board) and State Chapter Officers (hereinafter referred to as Officers).

The Board shall consist of thirteen (13) members (hereinafter referred to as Directors). Any changes in this number shall be by vote of the Board.

Directors shall be at least eighteen (18) years of age at the time of election and must remain members of the NWTF and the State Chapter during the term of office.

Section 2

Terms of Office

All Directors shall be elected to a three (3) year term. Terms of Directors shall be staggered over a three (3) year period, such that 5 Directors are elected in one year, and 4 Directors are elected in each of the other two years. Once established by the By-laws, the staggered rotation of terms shall remain in effect unless changed by the Board.

Section 3

Nominating Committee

The Nominating Committee shall be composed of the Officers of the State Chapter. The President of the State Chapter shall be the Chairman of the Nominating Committee.

Section 4

Notice of Elections

A notice of election of Directors shall be posted on the State Chapter Website, www.NWTF-WI.org,  at least three (3) months prior to the election. The notice of election shall state that the Nominating Committee is accepting nominations for the Board of Directors and specify the number of Directors that will be elected.

Section 5

Nominations for the Board of Directors

Nominations to the Board of Directors may be made from any State Chapter member, by submitting nomination papers to the State Chapter Secretary. Nomination papers for the Board of Directors must be signed by a minimum of five (5) members of the State Chapter and must be received by the deadline date. The Nominating Committee will consider all valid nominees and will forward a slate of candidates for the open positions to the Board.

Section 6

Election of the Board

A ballot listing all candidates will be posted on the State Chapter Website, www.NWTF-WI.org. All ADULT State Chapter members are eligible to vote. A State Chapter member may vote only once and must use the official ballot on the State Chapter Website. Voting will be done online using the official ballot during the time period listed on the ballot. The time period for voting shall be no less than four (4) weeks after the ballot is posted on the website. State Chapter members will be instructed to vote for as many candidates as there are open positions on the Board. Only one vote is allowed per candidate. Ballots that contain less votes than or more votes than the number of open positions; or more than one vote per candidate; or received after the cut-off date for the election will be considered invalid and will not be counted in any way. All ballots will be tallied by the State Chapter Webmaster and results will be sent to the Secretary for validation.

The candidates obtaining the highest number of votes for the open positions will be elected. In case of a tie for last place, the State Chapter Nominating Committee shall select the winner or winners from among those tied.

If there are no nominations made from any State Chapter member, the Nominating Committee shall select a slate of candidates that will automatically be elected. If there are not enough candidates to fill all open positions, the Nominating Committee shall select enough candidates to fill the remaining open positions and all candidates will automatically be elected. If there are only enough candidates to fill all open positions, the slate of candidates shall automatically become elected.

There shall be no automatic appointments to the Board. All members of the Board must be nominated and elected, with the sole exception of filling vacancies as specified in Article V, Section 12.

A National Director of the NWTF may not be a Board member of the State Chapter or an Officer of a Local Chapter during the term of office on the National Board. 

Section 7

Election of State Chapter Officers

Officers shall be elected by a simple majority vote of those present at the first Board meeting following the election of Directors. Any Director may nominate another Director for consideration as a State Chapter Officer, except as provided in this section, and the Director nominated has not already served the maximum years allowed in this section.

No person shall hold more than one elected office on the Board at any one time. Officers shall serve one-year terms and shall be elected annually at the first Board meeting following election of the Board Directors. The President and Vice President shall not serve in that capacity for more than four (4) consecutive terms. 

Section 8

Reporting election results

The State Chapter president will provide to the Director of State Chapter and Membership Development of the NWTF, a written list of names, addresses, and phone numbers of all newly elected Officers and the dates they will take office.

Section 9

Responsibilities of State Chapter Officers

a)       President – The President of the State Chapter shall also serve as the Chairman of the State Chapter Board of Directors. The President shall be the chief officer of the State Chapter and have general supervision over the affairs of the State Chapter. The President shall preside at all meetings of the Board, shall keep the Board fully informed on matters concerning the affairs of the Board and shall have such other powers and duties consistent with this Constitution and as may be assigned from time to time by the Board.

b)       Vice President – The Vice President shall have the powers and duties as may be assigned by the Board. In the absence of the President, the Vice President shall perform the duties of the President.

c)       Secretary – The Secretary shall be responsible for recording and maintaining the minutes of all meetings of the Board. The Secretary shall also perform all such other duties customarily incidental to the office of Secretary.

d)       Treasurer – The Treasurer shall have custody of all funds and securities that belong to the State Chapter. The Treasurer shall keep full and accurate records of all receipts and disbursements of the State Chapter and shall be responsible for the depositing of all monies and other valuable effects of the State Chapter in the appropriate accounts as the Board may from time to time designate. Whenever required by the Board, the Treasurer shall render a statement of accounts to any Director of the State Chapter. The Treasurer shall perform all duties customarily incident to the office of Treasurer, subject to the control of the Board.

Section 10

Resignations

A Director may resign from the Board at any time, by delivering a written letter of resignation to the President.

A State Chapter Officer may resign from Office at any time, by delivering a written letter of resignation to the President. If the President resigns, a letter of resignation shall be delivered to the Secretary.

A State Chapter Officer may resign from Office without resigning from his position on the Board.

Section 11

Removal from Office

Any Director and/or any Officer may be removed from office by a vote of not less than two-thirds (2/3) of the entire Board. Before the Board votes on removing a Director/Officer, that person has the right to address (for a reasonable time) the Board at a scheduled meeting. Notice of such meeting shall be sent by registered mail, to the person under consideration for removal. This notice shall be mailed to the person’s address of record no fewer than fourteen (14) days prior to the scheduled meeting.

Section 12

Vacancies

Any Director may nominate a State Chapter member to fill a vacant position on the Board. An appointment shall be made by a simple majority vote of Directors at the next regular Board of Directors' meeting following the date of resignation. Appointment as a Director shall extend through the original elected term of office for that position.

When a vacancy is created for the position of President, the currently elected Vice President shall become President until the next year's election of Officers.

When the Vice President assumes the office of President caused by the resignation of the President, that position shall be filled at the next regular Board of Directors' meeting using the same procedure established under Section 7.

If the Vice President (except as noted above), Secretary or Treasurer resigns, the position shall be filled at the next regular Board of Directors' meeting using the same procedure established under Section 7.

ARTICLE VI

COMMITTEES

The Board may establish such committees that it deems necessary and consistent with the goals and purposes of the State Chapter. The number of committees, their composition and length of existence shall be determined by the Board.

ARTICLE VII

BORROWING FUNDS AND STATE CHAPTER LIABILITIES

The State Chapter shall not to borrow funds from any institution or individual. The NWTF is not responsible for any liabilities of the State Chapter.

ARTICLE VIII

LOSS OF STATE CHAPTER CHARTER

The Board of Directors of the NWTF may revoke the charter of this State Chapter. All State Chapter assets immediately become the property of the NWTF and must be turned over to the NWTF.

ARTICLE IX

FORMAT OF MEETINGS

 State Chapter meetings shall follow Robert’s Rules of Order.

ARTICLE X

BYLAWS

The Board may establish State Chapter Bylaws as long as they do not conflict with the Constitution of the State Chapter or the NWTF. Any such Bylaws shall be written and accompany this Constitution.

ARTICLE XI

AMENDING THE CONSTITUTION

This Constitution may be amended by a two-thirds (2/3) majority vote of the membership of the Board at any regularly scheduled or special meeting called for the purpose of amending this constitution. Proposed amendments must be presented to the Board members at least thirty (30) days prior to the date of the meeting.

Revised: Section 4 June 8, 2008

Revised: Section 6 June 8, 2008

BYLAWS

As provided in Article X of the Constitution of the Wisconsin State Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation, the following Bylaws have been adopted and form part of the Constitution.

Bylaw 1

Staggered Terms of Office

Article V, Section 2, Terms of Office describes the procedure for staggering the terms of Office for Directors.

In the year 2003, there will exist vacancies for no less than 7 positions on the Board. To equitably distribute the terms of office for newly elected directors, to bring the number of vacancies into line with the rotation in Article V, Section 2, the following procedure will be utilized:

A.)     The candidates will be seated based on the number of votes each one receives.

B.)     The four (4) candidates with the highest number of votes will be elected to a full three (3) year term of office.

C.)      The three (3) candidates with the fifth(5^th), sixth (6th), and seventh (7^th) highest number of votes will be elected to a two (2) year term of office.

D.)     If more than 7 open positions exist on the Board in 2003, the candidates will continue to be seated according to the number of votes received until all positions are filled.

In the year 2004, there should be five (5) vacancies on the Board. If this is not the case, the procedure outlined above, awarding a three (3) year term to the person who receives the highest vote total and continuing through the slate of candidates until all vacancies are filled.

In the year 2005, there should be four (4) vacancies on the Board. If this is not the case, the procedure outlined above, awarding a three (3) year term to the person who receives the highest vote total and continuing through the slate of candidates until all vacancies are filled.

In the future, whenever the number of vacancies exceeds what is listed in Article V, Section 2, this procedure will be followed.

Enacted: March 24, 2002

Revised:  June 8, 2008 Heading added to Bylaw

Bylaw 2

Committees

Article VI, Committees, provides for the establishment of committees by the Board. The Chapter President shall appoint the committee chair and committee members. Committee Chairs are expected to attend all State Board meetings. The following committees have been created and exist on a permanent basis:

A.)    Superfund – the purpose of the committee is to review Local Chapter requests for project funding and release funds to Local Chapters based on policies, guidelines and procedures established by the committee and/or the Board.

The committee will meet no fewer than two (2) times each calendar year.

The committee shall consist of ten (10) members who are appointed by the President and will serve at the pleasure of the Board.

B.)    JAKES Scholarship – the purpose of the committee is to review applications from graduating high school students and award one (1) annual scholarship of not less than $1,000.

The committee will meet at least annually and will forward the name of the winning applicant to the National headquarters for consideration for the national scholarship. The committee will notify the winning applicant and advise him or her of the procedures used to access the prize.

The committee shall consist of three (3) members who are appointed by the President and will serve at the pleasure of the Board.

C.)    Landowner *Hunting Heritage Days – the purpose of the committee is to coordinate Landowner *Hunting Heritage Days that are held throughout the state. The committee will work with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to distribute **LHHD materials to each registered turkey hunter in the state of Wisconsin. The chair will provide the Wisconsin DNR with a list of events with addresses where and dates when the events are scheduled.

D.)    State Convention – the purpose of the committee is to coordinate the Wisconsin State Chapter’s annual convention.

The committee will meet as needed to prepare for the event.

The committee shall consist of Local Chapter members from the surrounding area where the convention is to be held and other State Chapter members who may be interested in helping with the planning of the event.

E.)     SOS/Seed Subsidy – the purpose of the committee is to coordinate the ordering and distribution of the SOS/Seed Subsidy products to interested individuals within the state of Wisconsin.

The committee will meet as needed.

Enacted: March 24, 2002

Revised: October 4^th, 2008 Bylaw 2 Sect. C. changing title from Landowner Appreciation Days to Landowner Hunting Heritage Days. Also changing acronym from LAD to LHHD.

Bylaw 3

Meeting Minutes

Article IV, Section 9, c.) describes the duties of the Secretary. Hereafter, all minutes recorded and maintained by the Secretary shall be distributed to members of the Board using the Internet. A paper copy will be mailed to any Board member who does not have access to the Internet. Board members will review and submit corrections or changes to the Secretary. Once corrections and/or changes are made, a final version will be sent to the Board members, who will vote online to approve the minutes prior to the next regularly scheduled meeting. The Board will formally adopt the approved minutes during the next regularly scheduled meeting.

Minutes shall be a description of the actions taken by and topics discussed at the Board meetings. The Board is not required to publish the minutes in any public or private forum. However, State Chapter members may receive a copy of minutes by sending a written request to the Secretary. The written request must include the member’s name, address, chapter affiliation, membership number and date of meeting minutes needed. Minutes shall not be shared with others or otherwise disseminated to the public without expressed written consent of the Board. A request with open-ended dating shall not be considered.

Enacted: June 8, 2008

Revised:

Enacted: October 4th, 2008
Revised: Jan 23rd, 2009