THE EUFAULA HEAD HUNTERS
TEAM FORMAT
CONSTITUTION/BY-LAWS
Updated 10/4/08
ARTICLE I: NAME AND PURPOSE
SECTION 1: NAME
The name of the organization shall be The Eufaula Head Hunters, hereafter called the “Club”.
SECTION 2: PURPOSE
The purpose of the Club is to promote bass fishing as a major sport through conservation, management, and fellowship. To promote and encourage youth fishing by sharing bass catching techniques and ideas.
ARTICLE II:
MEMBERSHIP
SECTION 1: NUMBER OF MEMBERS
The Club shall have an active membership of not more than sixty teams (Boats). After this quota is filled, the Secretary will maintain a waiting list.
SECTION 2: REQUIREMENTS FOR MEMBERSHIP
A. Must be 18 years of age or 16 years of age if a teammate of a parent or guardian.
B. Must be a member in good standing of the Bass Anglers Sportsman Society, hereinafter referred to as “B.A.S.S.”.
C. Must maintain a membership in the Alabama B.A.S.S. Federation Nation (ABFN).
D. Must be sponsored by a current team.
E. Must be voted on and approved by a majority of the current members at a monthly meeting.
F. Must not be a full time guide on any body of water the club is fishing.
G. Must be willing to take a polygraph test if required by the club.
H. Must NOT have been voted out of any club or trail.
I. Must not have been disciplined for any act of cheating during a tournament.
SECTION 3: MEMBERSHIP DUES
A.
The annual membership dues shall be one hundred
forty dollars ($140) per team or one hundred and twenty dollars ($120) if
fishing alone, hereinafter referred to as “solo”. This membership fee includes all Alabama B.A.S.S.
Federation Nation dues. Any new members joining after the May
tournament will be charged eighty five dollars ($85) for the team or solo
membership fee. * See Big Fish of the year qualification *
B. Membership dues shall be payable in one lump sum or in two payments made before fishing the second tournament.
C. New members must pay applicable dues at the close of the meeting following their membership acceptance.
D. Members failing to pay their dues by the established guidelines shall be removed from the active membership roster and lose all membership privileges.
E. ARTICLE III: OFFICERS AND COMMITTEES
SECTION 1: OFFICERS AND THEIR DUTIES
A. PRESIDENT
The President shall preside over all Club meeting and office business. The President shall supervise all Club functions and shall cast the tie breaking vote on club matters.
B. VICE PRESIDENT
The Vice President shall assist the President in his/her duties and preside in the absence of the President.
C. SECRETARY/TREASURER
The Secretary/Treasurer shall maintain accurate minutes of all Club meetings, maintain accurate financial records and report on the same at each meeting.
SECTION 2: COMMITTEES AND THEIR DUTIES
A. TOURNAMENT COMMITTEE
The Tournament Committee shall consist of three teams. Duties are as follows:
1. Present and propose for Club approval an annual fishing tournament schedule at the January meeting.
2. Present awards/payouts for:
a. Top boat for the year (TBD)
b. Second place boat for the year (TBD)
c. Third place boat for the year (TBD)
d. Big fish award for the year (TBD)
e. End of the year “Classic” (TBD)
These monetary awards will be based on membership. At the end of the year the club will take 75% from the general fund and distribute it equally between the end of the year awards and the end of the year “Classic” (50%, 30% & 20% for 1st, 2nd & 3rd). The big fish of the year award will pay 5% (2½% for ½ year members) of the general fund at the end of the year. In the event of a tie the monies will be combined & divided equally.
3. Keep accurate records of each tournament’s results and year-to-date standings for each team.
SECTION 3: ELIGIBILITY FOR HOLDING OFFICE
To be eligible for nomination to an office a member must:
A. Have been an active member of the Club for at least one year prior to nomination.
B. Have shown an interest in all Club functions.
C. Have attended a minimum of seventy-five percent (75%) of Club meetings and functions.
SECTION 4: NOMINATIONS AND ELECTION PROCEDURES
A. Nominations shall be presented to the Club members by any member in good standing at the regular October meeting. Nominations will be accepted from the floor by active members at that time.
B. The President will present a list of nominees to the Club at the regular November meeting with voting to take place at that time.
SECTION 5: ELIGIBILITY OF VOTE
A. Each team and each solo (as determined from the active membership roster) shall be entitled to one (1) vote. In other words each boat gets one vote.
B. Proxy votes are disallowed.
SECTION 6: TERM OF OFFICE
The term of office for all officers and committee members is herby established as one (1) year. The term of office is hereby established as January 1 through December 31, which shall also be the “business year”. Transition of officers and committee members may commence at the end of the regular scheduled November business meeting following election certification to maintain smooth continuity of Club operations into the next business year.
SECTION 7: VACANCIES
In the event of a vacant office, nominations shall be asked for and an election held to fill the unexpired term of the individual vacating the office. The President shall preside over and certify this election in accordance with established guidelines.
The Constitution and /or By-Laws may be amended at any regular meeting of the Club by a sixty-six percent (66%) vote for approval based on active members in attendance. (As determine by the active membership roster).
A team may be dropped from the Club membership for the following reasons:
A. Failure to pay Club dues by established times.
B. Any action which would reflect dishonor and disgrace on the Club.
C. Any act which could be deemed unsportsmanlike during any tournament or Club activity.
D. Cheating. Anyone caught cheating will be removed from the club and banned for life. Any member who brings accusations against another member must be willing to pay for a polygraph test. If the accused member fails the test the club will reimburse the accusing member for the cost of the test. However, if the accused member is not guilty the accusing party must pay for the test and apologize to the accused member in front of the club.
Recommendations for such action can be presented to the Club by any team member in good standing. Vote for dismissal from Club membership or other punishment, shall be a majority vote of members, present at the meeting, in good standing, as determined by secret ballot. The President and/or Secretary shall certify results.
E. Note: Dismissal from the Club membership for any of the above will NOT entitle that person to reimbursement for any funds and/or dues paid to date.
SECTION 1: REGULAR BUSINESS MEETING
Regular business meetings shall be held on Monday prior to the Saturday Club tournament. Regular business meetings shall be held for the months of January through November, with the month of December being reserved for the End of the Year Awards presentation (date to be announced prior to the November meeting). Regular business meetings may be rescheduled at least one (1) month in advance where conflicts such as holidays may occur. This will be accomplished by a majority vote of members present.
SECTION 2: SPECIAL BUSINESS MEETINGS
The President may call special meetings anytime to conduct regular Club business and/or special functions.
SECTION 1: MONTHLY TOURNAMENT
A monthly tournament will be held one Saturday a month from January through November.
SECTION 2: TOURNAMENT LOCATIONS
Tournament locations shall be presented to the Club by the Tournament Committee and shall be approved by the Club. The Club cannot relocate or reschedule a tournament at the last meeting prior to that tournament. The tournament Committee may relocate and/or reschedule any tournament at anytime, when safety is deemed to be an issue, provide all participating teams are notified.
SECTION 3: TOURNAMENT RULES AND REGULATIONS
A. No live bait or trolling will be allowed. All fish must be taken on artificial bait and be taken in a sporting manner.
B. No fishing will be allowed when the combustible engine is in operation.
C. Life preservers shall be worn when the combustible engine is in operation.
D. The kill switch must be operational and attached to the driver when the combustible engine is in operation.
E. Only largemouth, smallmouth, spotted and redeye bass will be accepted for weigh-in purposes.
F. Minimum length shall be twelve (12) inches, unless State law is greater, in which case the legal length shall govern. Total length of fish measures from the front of the mouth to the tip of the tail with mouth closed and tail moved from side to side.
PENALTY: Any bass presented for weigh-in which does
not meet the minimum length shall result in the loss of 1.0 pound as well as
the short fish, for all short fish.
Courtesy length checks will be provided but must be asked for.
G. A five (5) bass limit shall be enforced for all tournaments unless State law is less, in which case the legal limit shall apply. Culling must take place upon catching the sixth fish.
PENALTY: If more than the legal limit is offered for weigh-in a penalty will be applied with the largest bass being culled first (others in descending order) until a legal limit is reached.
H. All boat owners participating in a tournament must have liability insurance ($100,000) minimum. A copy of the boat owner’s insurance coverage must be submitted prior to the beginning of the tournament season.
I. Late penalty: Any team returning to the weigh-in area late shall be penalized 1 pound per minute, up to 15 minutes. Any team coming in later than 15 minutes will lose all of that day’s catch.
J. All protest must be made prior to closing of the scales. Protest will be resolved by the Tournament Committee prior to closing of the scales. Tournament Committee decisions are final.
K. No locking through to other bodies of water. We will always fish the body of water as chosen by tournament committee and approved by the club.
L. Four (4) ounces (0.25 pound) will be deducted for each legal bass presented to weigh-in which is dead.
M. Any team will be allowed to fish solo if one partner is unable to attend.
N. It is not prohibited for any team to fish another tournament, on the same day & landing as ours, as long as they get prior approval from the club.
O. Teams will not be allowed any substitutes. However, if a team member is not able to attend or a person is fishing solo, they can have an immediate family member ride along provided that family member does not assist in fish catching in any way or contribute to the days catch.
P. Any team may change partners during the year provide they receive approval from the tournament committee. Once a partner change has occurred you will not be allowed to rejoin that partner for the remainder of that year. Also, when a partner change occurs all team points, to date, will be forfeited. This includes “solo’s” adding a partner.
Q. The
club will always follow the laws of
R. There will be a mandatory live well check the morning of the tournament.
S. Members may cull a dead fish as long as doing so is not against state regulations.
SECTION 4: ENTRY FEES
A. There will be no mandatory entry fees.
B. Voluntary side pot entry fees at each tournament will $50 per boat.
SECTION 5: TOURNAMENT PAYOUT
A. All monthly tournaments will not pay money from the general fund. However, if you so choose you can fish for points only and still be eligible for the end of the year awards.
B. The voluntary side pot will pay 100% back at the ramp with $5 per boat going toward the big fish pot. See payback schedule.
C. Payout at the end of the year classic will be decided by the club based on funds available.
D. In the event of a tie the monies will be combined and divided equally.
SECTION 5: CLASSIC QUALIFICATION
A. To qualify for the end of the year classic, teams must fish at least (7) tournaments.
B. The Classic location will be decided by drawing from all 11 tournament locations fished during that year. The draw will take place after the November tournament.
SECTION 6: POINTS SYSTEM
A. Four (4) points per team/solo shall be awarded for each regularly scheduled business meeting attended. Only one member is required to attend to get these bonus points.
B. Last place points at each tournament will be 15 points less than the points received by the last team weighing a fish.
C. Earned tournament points will be calculated by the teams finish in each tournament.
D. The maximum points that a team can receive for an individual tournament is 104, as follows:
Winning the tournament 100 points
Attending Business Meeting 4 points
TOTAL POINTS 104 points
EXAMPLE: The winning team would receive 100 points and the second place
team would receive 99 points. This would continue until the
last team that weighs in fish is placed. Once the place of the last team weighing fish is determined the remaining participants with no fish would get 15 points less than the last team weighing a fish. (Last team to weigh fish gets 75 points the remaining teams with no fish would get 60 points each).
E. Club sponsored events:
Teams will receive Five (5) bonus points for working at a Club sponsored activity, such as the Annual Open Tournament, Casting Kids, and any other event to benefit The Club.
All Club funds will be placed in a checking account in the name of The Eufaula Head Hunters. A financial statement will be presented to the Club by the Secretary/Treasurer at each regular business meeting for approval.
All Club members are to assist in whatever capacity to assure the event is conducted in accordance with good business practices.
ABSOLUTELY NO ALCOHOL OR ILLEGAL DRUGS WILL BE PERMITTED AT ANY CLUB FUNCTION. SMOKING IS NOT PERMITTED DURING REGULAR SCHEDULED MONTHLY MEETINGS.
A. SCHEDULING:
No events will be schedule in conflict with Federation Nation events
B. CONDUCT
Any members participating in an Alabama B.A.S.S. Federation Nation sponsored event must abide by the by-laws and/or tournament rules of that event. Any members found in violation of the above mentioned rules by Alabama B.A.S.S. will be subject to reprimand or dissolution in accordance with The Eufaula Head Hunters constitution and by-laws.