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Lake Forest Garden Club By-Laws

Article I - Name

The name of this non-profit organization shall be Lake Forest Garden Club (LFGC), and belong to Orange County District (OCD), California Garden Clubs, Inc. (CGCI), and National Garden Club (NGC).

Article II - Objectives

The objectives of LFGC shall be the following:

Create, stimulate and inspire interest in horticulture, gardening, floral and landscape design.
Provide information and education related to gardening.
Participate in civic beautification.
Participate in philanthropic activities which benefit our community and support our objectives.

Article III - Membership and Dues

Section 1: Membership shall be open to all garden enthusiasts.

Section 2: LFGC’s fiscal year shall be July 1 to June 30.

Section 3: Dues for membership for LFGC’s next fiscal year are due June 1 and are considered in arrears after June 30.

Section 4: New members may join based upon available openings and full payment of dues.

Article IV - Officers and Executive Board

Section 1: Elected Officers and Executive Board shall be President, First Vice President (Programs), Second Vice President (Membership), Third Vice President (Ways & Means), Treasurer, Recording Secretary, and Corresponding Secretary. They shall be elected at the General Meeting in May.

Section 2: A Parliamentarian and Historian shall be appointed as officers by the incoming President and serve on the Executive Board.

Section 3: The elected and appointed officers shall compose the Executive Board.

Section 4: No elected officer of the Executive Board shall be eligible to hold the same office for more than two (2) consecutive years, unless a position is unable to be filled. Additionally, no elected officer shall hold more than one Executive Office during the same fiscal year.

Article V - Duties of the Officers, Executive Board
and Committee Chairs

Section 1- President shall:

Be the official representative of LFGC for all events where a representative is required. If unable to do so, the First Vice President (Programs) or another member of the Executive Board appointed by the President shall represent LFGC.
Preside at all LFGC Board and General Meetings.
Be ex-officio member of all committees except the Nominating Committee.
May co-sign checks.

Section 2- First Vice President (Programs) shall:

Preside in the absence of the President for LFGC Board and General Meetings.
Attend an event where a LFGC representative is required, if the President is unable to attend.
May co-sign checks.

Section 3- Second Vice President (Membership) shall:

Maintain an accurate record of membership.
Receive, record, and forward dues promptly to the Treasurer.
Coordinate the preparation, printing and distribution of the Membership Directory.
Maintain attendance records (sign-in sheets) of all General Meetings and, at the end

of the year, provide to the Recording Secretary.

Section 4 - Third Vice President (Ways and Means) shall:

Be responsible for coordinating fundraising for the club.
Enforce the requirement that expenses of each subcommittee do not exceed the approved/allocated budget.

Section 5 – Recording Secretary shall:

Sign and submit minutes to the President and the Treasurer within one
1. week as a record of the proceedings of all LFGC Board and General Meetings.
Maintain attendance records (sign-in sheets) of all Board meetings.
Retain the attendance records of the General Meetings provided at the end of the fiscal year by the Second Vice President (Membership).

Section 6 – Corresponding Secretary shall prepare and send appropriate correspondence.

Section 7 – Treasurer shall:

Keep an accurate account of all financials.
Be custodian of all the receipts and disbursements. Sign and present a report to the monthly Board and General Meetings.
Be a co-signer on the checking account.
See that the endorsement card for the bank contains at least three signatures from the Executive Board.

Note: two (2) signatures are required for issuing all checks.

Prepare and present an annual budget for Board approval in September.
Present the annual budget for member review in writing (by either electronic or paper form) 30 days prior to the October General Meeting for vote.
Ensure proper payments and forms to CGCI are made to ensure liability insurance coverage for meetings/events requiring such.
File all required federal and state forms.

Section 8 – Parliamentarian shall:

Advise on points of parliamentary law and procedure according to Roberts Rules of Order.
Serve as advisor to the Bylaws Committee, as appointed by the President.

Section 9 – Historian shall keep an accurate record of all club activities.

Section 10 – Committee Chairs:

Are appointed by the President, as deemed necessary.
Are encouraged to attend Board meetings.

Section 11 – Executive and Committee Board Voting

President does not vote except as a tie-breaker.
All other Officers, Executive Board, and Committee Chair positions shall have one (1) vote per position.

Article VI - Meetings

Section 1: The monthly Board Meeting shall be on the first Friday of each month at the Lake Forest Beach and Tennis Club, unless otherwise determined by the Executive Board. Additional meetings of the Board may be called by the President. (A majority of the eligible voting members of the Board must be present to conduct business.)

Section 2: The monthly General Meeting shall be on the third Friday of each month from September through June at the Lake Forest Beach and Tennis Club, unless otherwise determined by the Executive Board.

Section 3: Meetings may be held electronically.

Section 4: The election of Executive Board officers shall be held at the General Meeting in May.

Article VII – Nominations

Section 1: The Nominating Committee shall be elected in the March General Meeting and shall consist of three (3) members of LFGC. At least one (1) shall be from the Executive Board and up to two (2) are selected from the membership-at- large.

Section 2: Nominations from the floor must be made with the consent of the nominee.

Section 3: No absent member shall be nominated unless his or her written consent has been secured.

Article VIII – Elections

Section 1: Vote shall be by ballot unless there is only one candidate for each office. In that event, the election shall be held by voice vote. A quorum is necessary for an election.

Section 2: The Executive and appointed officers of the Executive Board shall be installed in June.

Section 3: The term of office shall be for a minimum of one (1) year.

Article IX - Parliamentary Law

Roberts Rules of Order Newly Revised shall be the authority in all questions of Parliamentary Law not covered by these bylaws.

Article X – Amendments

Any proposed amendment shall be submitted to the Board for consideration. The membership shall have thirty days to review the proposed amendment prior to voting. The proposed amendment must be approved by a quorum of members to go into effect.

Article XI – Maintaining 501 (c)(3) Status

Section 1. LFGC is exclusively for garden education, philanthropy or civic purposes in accordance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or the corresponding section of any future federal tax code.

Section 2. No part of the net earnings of LFGC shall inure to the benefit of, or be distributable to its members, trustees, officers, or other private persons, except that LFGC shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes set forth in the purpose clause hereof.

Section 3. No substantial part of the activities of LFGC shall be the carrying on of propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and LFGC shall not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distribution of statements), any political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for public office.

Section 4. Notwithstanding any other provision of these articles, LFGC shall not carry on any other activities not permitted to be carried on (a) by an organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or the corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or (b) by an organization, contributions to which are deductible under section 170(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code, or the corresponding section of any future federal tax code.

Section 5. Upon the dissolution of LFGC, assets shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or the corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or shall be distributed to the federal government, or to a state or local government, for a public purpose. Any such assets not so disposed of shall be disposed of by a Court of Competent Jurisdiction of the county in which the principal office of the organization is then located, exclusively for such purposes or to such organization or organizations, as said Court shall determine, which are organized and operated exclusively for such purposes