CONSTITUTION
ARTICLE I – NAME
This association shall be known by the name, style and title of Quakertown Youth Baseball Association.
ARTICLE II – PURPOSE
This association is to serve the youth of Quakertown. Dedicated leadership shall be provided to train our youth in becoming good citizens while promoting the game of Baseball.
ARTICLE III – DEFINITIONS

• “Association” shall mean the Quakertown Youth Baseball Association in its entirety.

• “League” shall mean any and/or all of the divisions comprising the association. (T-Ball, Colt, Pony, Minors and Majors).

• “Officers” shall mean the elected officers of the association’s Board of Directors.

• “Board” shall mean the elected officers of the association’s Board of Directors.

• “Members” shall mean any parent or guardian of a registered player or any interested resident within the boundaries of the Association.

• “Boundaries” shall mean the area served by the organization. This shall be the same area as covered by the Quakertown School District.

ARTICLE IV – GOVERNMENT
SECTION 1 - SLATE

1. The control and management of the affairs, property and fund of the association will be vested in the Board of Directors
2. The Board of Directors shall consist of twelve (12) or more elected members. The slate of positions will be the President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer and at least eight (8) additional members.
3. The Executive Committee shall consist of the President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer.
4. Non-executive committee members will be nominated and elected to serve functional roles as determined by the needs of the board. QuickBall coordinator, Colt coordinator, Pony coordinator, Minor coordinator, Major coordinator, Fall Ball coordinator, Umpire Coordinator, Fields & Buildings coordinator, Equipment coordinator, Public Relations coordinator, and Safety Coordinator.
5. Board Members may serve more than one role; however, any single member may only serve one position on the Executive Committee.

SECTION 2 - TERMS OF OFFICE

1. If any board member is unable to fulfill his/her term of office for any reason, the remaining members will appoint a replacement who will fulfill the unexpired term. In the event the President is unable to fulfill his/her term of office, the Vice President will fulfill the term of President. A current board member will then be elected by the remaining members to fill the Vice President position. In the event the Vice President is unable to fulfill the President’s position for any reason, a board member will then be elected to fill the President’s slot.

2. As long as a board member is in “good standing”, they will be allowed to continue as a board member each term until they notify the President of their decision to leave. “Good Standing” is defined as the board member having regular attendance (no more than 2 consecutive absences from monthly meetings without prior notification to the President), fulfillment of the duties to any role to which they are assigned, and acting in a manner consistent with the association’s values. Any board members leaving the board (voluntary or involuntarily) may be reinstated to the board after a one term absence from the board.

3. A term shall run from October 1st through September 30th of the following year. All four Executive Committee appointments will be made during the October Board Meeting of each year. Members may remain on the Executive Committee but must be re-elected every two years. New board members will be elected at the October Board Meeting. Any outgoing officer shall attend the October board meeting for the purpose of presenting a final report and turning over all records.

4. If a board member fails to maintain “good standing” as defined above, the President may call to vote to have the member removed from the board. In this case, the board member will be removed if a 2/3 majority of all board members (except for the board member in question) votes in favor of their dismissal. Once removed from the board, they must remain off the board for the complete term following their dismissal. If the President fails to maintain “good standing”, any member of the Executive Committee may call a vote for their dismissal.

SECTION 3 - DUTIES OF OFFICERS, BOARD MEMBERS AND APPOINTEES

1. The President shall be the executive officer of the association and shall preside over the meetings of the membership and the board. He sustains the powers to maintain order, therein, take the opinions on all motions when legally made, and will be the association’s arbitrator. He thus shall be responsible for the interpretation of the league constitution and by-laws. The President shall reside over monthly Board Meetings and at any time and at the request of a majority of board members, may call special meetings of the association. The President does not vote, except in the case of a tie, where he/she has the authority to break the vote.

2. The Vice President, in the absence of the President, shall perform the duties of the President. The Vice President will attend all monthly board meetings. The Vice President will preside over the division coordinators and is responsible for the scheduling of association fields. The Vice President will also be responsible for arranging the use of fields within the community. The Vice President will convene a disciplinary meeting in response to any reported violation of the association’s code of ethics or other actions not consistent with the association’s values. If the Vice President is implicated in a reported violation or is the object of a violation, the President will convene a disciplinary committee.

3. The Secretary shall keep a record of the proceedings of all association and be present at all meetings of the association. He/she shall have all requisite papers needed for said meetings. Further duties shall include keeping roll and note thereon, all absences of the members.

4. The Treasurer shall provide a faithful performance of trust, as he/she will have charge of all the monies belonging to the association. He/She shall maintain a detailed record of all transactions and will submit a financial report at each monthly meeting. Financial records will be available for auditing at all times at the request of the Board of Directors. The Treasurer will sign all orders of the association (checks) along with the President or Vice President. Any expense with a value of $1000 or greater, for items not approved in the budget, shall be voted on and approved by the board.

SECTION 4 - COMMITTEES
All committees and its Chairman will be appointed by the President. All association members have the opportunity to serve on a committee. All committees hold their own meetings and will report all happenings in writing to the League Secretary for league records.
 
BY-LAWS
ARTICLE I – MEMBERSHIP
SECTION 1 - MEMBERS
The number of members in this association is unlimited. Membership is open to all people, regardless of race, creed, color or sex. Any parent or guardian of a registered player or interest member of the community may attend meetings of the association. Members may submit their ideas for consideration and any questions concerning league policies at any monthly meeting. Only members currently serving on the Board of Directors may vote on league matters. At the President’s discretion, he may ask attending members not on the board to leave the meeting during discussion and voting proceedings.
SECTION 2 – MEMBERSHIP DUES
There shall be no dues of this association.
SECTION 3 - PLAYER ELIGIBILITY

1. Any child who will attain the age of 4 years before May 1st, and who will not attain the age of 13 before May 1, shall be eligible to participate.  Refer to Cal Ripken age ranges.
2. QYBA is an age-pure league, meaning players may only participate in the division(s) applicable for their age as on May 1st.  Refer to Cal Ripken age ranges. This also applies to participation on tournament teams.
3. A registration fee will be required at the time of registration. The amount of this fee will be determined each year by the Board. All families of players must participate in one fundraiser OR pay additional monies as an option. Each family of players is expected to volunteer to help in one operating the League.
4. No player shall be excluded from participation if they cannot afford the registration fee. In this case, the player’s family may request a fee waive from the President who has the authority to grant the request. Requests will remain private. It is expected that families receiving a registration fee waiver actively participated in volunteer activities for QYBA as circumstances permit.

ARTICLE II – MEETINGS
SECTION 1
The monthly board meeting will be held the third Monday of each month at a designated time and location. A quorum (a majority of the member of the Board) must be present to vote on any proposals.
SECTION 2
Other special meetings of either the Board or committees shall be announced by the President. Any monthly meeting dates and times can be changed for any justifiable reason, location also included. An alternate date and/or time will be announced by the President.
 

ARTICLE III - NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS OF OFFICERS
Only members in good standing and who are present at the meeting when formal nominations are made shall be considered nominees. An absent member will be considered if that member can give a valid excuse for being absent and presents a written statement accepting the office nominated for.
 

ARTICLE IV – ORDER OF BUSINESS
The order of business (except in special meetings when the subject of the meeting shall be first attended to) shall be as follows:
1. Roll Call of Officers – Attendance Sheet
2. Reading of previous month’s meeting minutes – Secretary Report
3. Reading of Treasurer’s Report
4. Monthly Agenda provided by the President prior to the meeting
5. OLD BUSINESS
6. NEW BUSINESS
7. Adjournment
 

ARTICLE V – RULES OF ORDER
SECTION 1
The President will call the meeting to order, and proceed to follow the Order of Business as listed in Article IV.
SECTION 2
The Order of Business may be changed by a decision of the majority vote of the Board of Directors (for instance to discuss any urgent matter).
SECTION 3
When a question or motion is under consideration, no other motion shall be in order except for a previous question to propose, to lie upon the table, to amend, to refer to committee or for permission to speak upon the subject or motion.
SECTION 4
Motions to postpone, to lie upon the table and motion for the previous question shall take precedence of all others. They shall stand on equal footing and neither shall be made while the other is pending.
SECTION 5
A ten (10) minute discussion period will be allotted on topics that appear to be long-winded. President will enforce; or may extend the discussion period at his/her discretion.
SECTION 6
Unless otherwise noted, all motions may pass by a simple majority vote of the Board members present during a meeting.
SECTION 7
If a board member is unable to attend a meeting, they may communicate their vote in advance for any anticipated motion. This “proxy” vote must be documented in the form of memo or email and distributed to the President prior to the meeting.
 

ARTICLE VI – ADJOURNMENT
The President and/or Chairman will ask for a member of the body to entertain a motion to adjourn, after all matters of the meeting have been presented. The presiding officer shall adjourn the meeting after the motion has been made, and seconded, and after the Secretary has recorded all names of members presented.
 

ARTICLE VII – DONATIONS, LOANS, INVESTMENTS
SECTION 1
Upon making any donations, obtaining any loans, or making any long-term investments for our association, the request must be presented to the Board of Directors and evaluated by the Board. The Board will then vote for final approval or rejection.
SECTION 2
Any donations made to the league in any form, must be submitted to the league Secretary for donation record and thank you response, and also submitted to the Treasurer (if monetary) for deposit and bookkeeping record.
 

ARTICLE VIII – AMENDMENTS
Amendments of the constitution and by-laws may be proposed by: a.) any member and submitted in writing to the Board of Directors. b.) by the resolution of the Board. Any proposal submitted must be acted upon by the Board within thirty (30) days of submission. A 3/4 approval vote is required for any amendments to the constitution and by-laws.
 

ARTICLE IX – RULES
SECTION 1
A rules committee will be formed each year, and also chaired by an active Board member (e.g., the league coordinator for that particular league). This committee will investigate any/all discrepancies concerning the rules. They will revise and update the rule book.
The following rules shall be compulsory for all leagues:

• Blind Draft - all the coaches in the league shall work to create teams that are as equal in ability as possible; the teams will be assigned at random to the coaches.
• All-inclusive Playoffs – for leagues where playoffs apply, e.g., Pony, Minor and Major, all teams shall be included
• Continuous Batting order (all players bat)
• Head coaches shall not secure assistant Coaches
• No player can sit more than 2 innings (defensively) nor can they be consecutive innings (except for injury or disciplinary action)

SECTION 2
The members of the Board will vote on all revisions and additions to the rules.
SECTION 3
All rules not covered by QYBA Rules/By-Laws will be referred to and enforced from: Cal Ripken Baseball Official Regulations and Playing Rules.
 

ARTICLE X – EMAIL OR POSTING FOR HARDSHIP CASES
A fundraiser for an illness or condition for present players, coaches, board members (or a hardship) may be approved by the board for email or posting on the QYBA website.

 
AMENDMENT HISTORY