Charter & By-Laws
Of the
Gate
City Chapter #1533
Harley Owners Group
The Harley Owners Group (H.O.G.), is an International Organization founded and sponsored by Harley-Davidson, Inc. The club was instituted to offer motorcycling benefits and services to Harley-Davidson enthusiasts and to develop a close relationship between the Harley-Davidson rider, the Harley-Davidson dealer, and Harley-Davidson, Inc.
We have joined together for the common interest of promoting responsible local motorcycling activities for our members. We are a family-oriented, social organization of H.O.G. members dedicated to advancing the enjoyment, image, and safety of the sport of motorcycling.
II.1 The name of this organization is the Harley Owners Group, Gate City Chapter #1533, hereafter referred to Gate City Chapter”, or "The Chapter”.
II.2
Our
Sponsoring dealer is Nashua Harley-Davidson of Merrimack, New Hampshire
who is authorized by the Harley Owners Group on May 1, 1999, to establish the
Gate City Chapter as a not-for-profit, independent corporation.
II.3
Gate
City Chapter by-laws are subordinates to the constitution and rules of the
Harley Owners Group a division of Harley-Davidson Motor Company, and is
superseded by such in the event of a conflict.
Nominations for open primary officer positions shall be made during the October
meeting. Elections of open primary officer's positions shall take place at
the regularly scheduled November meeting. The term of office for primary
officers shall be two years, staggered, from the beginning of January to the end
of December, encompassing twenty four months total, with the Director and
Secretary serving the same two year term and the Assistant Director and the
Treasurer serving the same two year term. There shall be twelve
months difference between elections for Director/Secretary and the Assistant
Director/Treasurer. The discretionary officers shall
be one year terms from the beginning of January to the end of December.
In the event of a primary or discretionary officer position vacancy, a replacement may be appointed by the primary officers. If more than one vacancy exists, a special election will be held to fill the vacancies.
The sponsoring dealer (Nashua Harley-Davidson) may assume any, or all, officer position(s) including their respective responsibilities and may remove any officer from office in the dealer's sole discretion.
All Officers shall work with the sponsoring dealer to
uphold the Annual Charter for H.O.G. Chapters and H.O.G. operating policies as
published in the current Annual H.O.G. Handbook. The sponsoring dealer has the
authority to override the chapter by-laws provided they abide by the national
H.O.G. Charter.
Further, the duties and responsibilities of the primary chapter officers shall be as follows:
The Director shall be responsible for conducting all club meetings in a timely and orderly fashion, represent the chapter on the regional, state, and local level, maintain harmony in the chapter, appoint and direct committees as needed, keep members up-dated about coming events and issues directly related to the chapter, and appoint the non-elected officers of the Gate City Chapter.
The Assistant Director shall assist the director in carrying out the Director’s duties. The Assistant Director shall also be responsible for promoting membership, membership orientation and keeping the chapter members informed of H.O.G. programs and benefits.
The Treasurer shall be responsible for the collection and disbursement of chapter funds, reporting the financial transactions to the membership on a monthly basis, submitting an annual financial report to H.O.G., compliance with all revenue recording and reporting requirements of the local, state, and federal governments.
The Secretary shall be responsible for the administrative needs of the chapter, keeping the minutes of chapter annual business meetings and general meetings, ensuring that all chapter members are current H.O.G. members, having on file a signed copy of the Annual Chapter Membership Enrollment Form and Release of each member as signed on an annual basis, and submitting to H.O.G. the H.O.G. Chapter Charter Application and any other reports as required by H.O.G. Further, the Secretary shall ensure that all insurance requirements are met (including participant signatures to required release forms), shall ensure preparation of injury report forms, timely submission of injury report forms to the appropriate insurance company and shall be responsible for the maintenance and storage of release forms and injury reports.
Further, the duties and responsibilities of the discretionary chapter officers shall be:
The Activities Officer shall be responsible for the administration of chapter events; assists in the coordination of the calendar of chapter sponsored events, and keep the membership informed of rides that may be of interest to members.
The LOH Officer shall be responsible for representing the chapter in all LOH functions, and encouraging women members to take an active part in chapter activities. The LOH officer shall also keep the membership informed of all LOH events and activities.
The Safety Officer shall be responsible for providing chapter members with information relating to the availability of rider training programs. The Safety Officer informs members of safe riding habits. The Safety Officer shall work with the Director, Assistant Director, Activities Officer, and the Road Captains in order to ensure that the safety of the members is of first importance regarding rides or planned events.
The Senior Road Captain shall work with the Director, Assistant Director, Safety Officer, Activities Director, and any designated ride Lead Road Captain on all planned rides or events, know the route of and the rules of the road for each ride, and assist those participating in a chapter ride or event as necessary.
The Public Relations Officer shall manage all forms of press releases, pictures, posters, flyers or other such material related to chapter events and resultant release to the public. The Public Relations Officer may work with the chapter Photographer, Activities Officer, and other officers as necessary in the preparation of such materials. The Public Relations Officer shall schedule and notify members of all interviews and photo sessions including the general membership and its officers. All material and the funds necessary for printing and distribution are subject to approval by the primary officers.
The Chapter Editor shall prepare and make arrangements for the publication of the monthly chapter newsletter. The chapter newsletter is subject to review by the primary officers.
The Photographer shall
be responsible for obtaining and organizing chapter photographs for use in
chapter publications.
The Historian shall be
responsible for the preparation and maintenance of a written and pictorial
account of the history of the chapter, to include officer positions, chapter
activities and membership levels.
The Quartermaster
shall be responsible for all chapter merchandise as ordered through the
dealership for sale to chapter members or by the chapter.
Ordering of merchandise in excess of $150. Shall be voted on by the
membership unless prepaid by a chapter member for specific merchandise.
All other chapter property shall be placed in the safe keeping of the
quartermaster and made available by the quartermaster for any chapter sponsored
activity upon request.
1) All Harley Owners Group members in good standing are eligible for membership in the Gate City Chapter.
2) All members must complete and sign an application for annual membership. The membership year is May 1st to April 31st.
3) An expired membership in H.O.G. International organization terminates Gate City Chapter membership.
4) The sponsoring dealer may suspend or terminate a person’s membership in the sponsored chapter if the sponsoring dealer, in the sponsoring dealer’s sole discretion, determines that a member’s conduct is undesirable or contrary to the sponsoring dealer’s interests.
5) Primary Officers of the Gate City Chapter may not hold a (Primary) Officer position concurrently in another H.O.G. chapter but may have dual memberships.
1) Gate City Chapter meetings will be held the first Tuesday of every month, or any other day so voted by the membership.
2) Providing a minimum of 10 days notification to the membership and a suitable location, Primary officers may call special meetings.
3) The meeting format will follow the general guidelines set forth in Robert's Rules of Order.
4) Solicitations for donations without prior approval from the Director are expressly forbidden during the meeting.
5) Chapter voting during meetings must be by a majority vote of a chapter quorum. A quorum shall consist of 10% of the current chapter membership.
6) Members must sign in at each meeting to exercise their right to vote at the meeting.
7) Voting for election of officers, amendments, alterations, or repeals of by-laws must be either in person, or by written proxy received before the meeting named therein. Proxies must be requested from the Secretary in writing and must be witnessed to be valid.
8) Scheduling of chapter activities must be approved by the membership at a regular monthly meeting and made available to each member. Chapter activities may be scheduled between meetings with the approval of the Activities Director, the Road Captain, and the Director, and posted at the dealership.
9) No consumption of alcoholic beverages will be permitted in the room during the meeting. No consumption of any alcoholic beverages by operators will be permitted at any chapter event or ride. Any operator who partakes in the consumption of an alcoholic beverage during a chapter activity or ride will be asked to leave the group by any chapter officer.
10) No smoking will be permitted in the room during the meeting.
1) Membership fee is $20.00 per year, and every year thereafter, due and payable by May 1st with an application for membership renewal.
2) The membership fee is non-refundable. Initial memberships after January 1st will apply through the next full membership year.
3) Members will be provided a receipt for all fees paid. The burden of proof of payment lies with the member, not the chapter.
4) No officer or member shall receive payment for the performance of his or her chapter duties.
5) The Secretary shall be reimbursed for all expenses pertaining to the performance of that office.
6) The Editor shall be reimbursed for all expenses incurred in the production and distribution of the Gate City Chapter Newsletter.
7) The Treasurer shall be reimbursed for all expenses pertaining to the performance of that office.
8) Expenditures on charitable or other worthy causes shall not exceed $150.00 (one hundred fifty dollars) at a single time without prior approval of the Director, except as provided in the following section #9.
9) All expenses other than those expressly provided for herein shall require prior authorizations from the membership. No reimbursements will be issued without proper receipt.
1) The Treasurer and a Primary Officer control all moneys and receipts for the chapter. Any outstanding income must be turned over within 10 working days of receipt, or the next scheduled chapter meeting.
2) Any trophies, certificates, awards, etc. earned by the chapter will be offered to the Nashua Harley-Davidson for display.
3)
Quartermaster shall be responsible for chapter property not specified above.
1) All chapter publications, whether written, oral (broadcast), or electronic must be approved by Nashua Harley-Davidson.
2) Copies of all printed materials from the Gate City Chapter will be sent to the H.O.G. Office.
3) The Gate City Chapter mailing list is the property of the Gate City Chapter and is considered to be confidential material for chapter use only. The mailing list may not be used or provided for personal profit or gain.
1) All H.O.G. logos are registered trademarks of Harley-Davidson, Inc.; Products bearing these logos must be obtained under the direction of the merchandise coordinator of the H.O.G. staff in Milwaukee.
2) The right to distribute or associate any product and/ or services with the phrase "Gate City Chapter" or any recognizable variation thereof is reserved by Manchester Harley-Davidson of Nashua.
3) The right to display the full-size "Gate City Chapter" rocker with the full-size H.O.G. logo is granted to active members of the Gate City Chapter. No other logo is approved for use in conjunction with these unless permission is granted by H.O.G. National, the Gate City Chapter, or Manchester Harley-Davidson of Nashua.
4) Officer patches are provided to current officers of the Gate City Chapter and remain the property of the Chapter. Past officers must return patch(s) indicating previously held position(s) in the Gate City Chapter. Past officers will receive a new patch at the expense of the chapter indicating their previously held position.
While the Gate City Chapter is affiliated with H.O.G. National and Nashua Harley-Davidson, it remains a separate entity, responsible for its own actions. All Harley Owners Group members and their guest(s) participate voluntarily and at their own risk in H.O.G. and H.O.G. chapter activities. Harley-Davidson, Inc., H.O.G., Nashua Harley-Davidson, and the Gate City Chapter are released and held harmless by the members for any injury or loss to the member or his or her property which may result from participation in H.O.G. or the Gate City Chapter activities. This means that all members agree not to sue Harley-Davidson, Inc., H.O.G., Nashua Harley-Davidson, and the Gate City Chapter for any injury that results to them or their property.
This Charter of the Gate City Chapter shall be reviewed and or amended, as necessary, by a two-thirds majority vote of members who are present at the next scheduled meeting after notification to all members of the proposed change(s) or addition(s).
I)
All amendments shall be appended to this section and shall supersede any Article
or Section that precedes it.