By Laws

BY LAWS OF

RACQUET SPORTS PROFESSIONALS ASSOCIATION

SOUTHWEST DIVISION

ARTICLE I - NAME AND PURPOSE

Section 1.   NAME OF THIS DIVISION.  The name shall be the Racquet Sports Professionals Association, Southwest Division. (Hereafter sometimes referred to as the RSPA Southwest Division).

Section 2.   PURPOSE. The purposes  of  the  RSPA  Southwest  Division shall be to administer the programs and funds entrusted to it and placed in its charge by the RSPA in accordance with the by-laws of the RSPA, and to do any further acts in accordance with the Bylaws of the RSPA.

ARTICLE II – MEMBERS

Section 1.  ACTIVE MEMBERSHIP.  Application for membership, admission procedures and testing and classification as a member of the RSPA Southwest Division shall be in accordance with the provisions of the by-laws of the RSPA.

Section 2.   HONORARY MEMBERSHIP.   These persons who  have  made an outstanding contribution to the sport of tennis or to the RSPA Southwest Division shall be eligible to become honorary members of the RSPA Southwest Division.  Honorary membership shall be proposed and voted on by the Executive Board of Officers of the RSPA Southwest Division. Honorary Members shall not be deemed Members of the RSPA and have no voting power, nor be eligible to be an officer of the Division.

ARTICLE III - EXECUTIVE BOARD OF OFFICERS

Section 1.   POWERS   OF   EXECUTIVE   BOARD   OF   OFFICERS.  The RSPA Southwest Division shall be managed by its Executive Board of Officers.

Section 2.   MEETING   OF   EXECUTIVE   BOARD   OF   OFFICERS.  The Executive Board  of  Officers  shall  meet   annually  as   such  time   as  it   deems

convenient / necessary.  It shall also meet at the call of the President upon twenty (20) days’ notice or upon the call of a majority of the Executive Board of Officers  who  may  call  a  meeting  of  the  Executive  Board  of  Officers  upon  twenty

(20) days’ notice.

Section 3.   MAKEUP   OF   EXECUTIVE   BOARD   OF   OFFICERS.  The Executive Board of Officers will consist of the President, Regional Vice President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary Immediate Past President, and such other officers as the Executive Board of Officers deem necessary or desirable.  All officers must be Elite, active members in good standing of the RSPA Southwest Division at the time of their election.

Section 4.   NOMINATION  AND  ELECTION  OF  EXECUTIVE  BOARD  OF OFFICERS.  The Executive Board of Officers will be elected by the Divisional membership for a two-year term.  The election will be held as follows: Nominations will be made at least eight (8) weeks before the election by their Nominating Committee.  The Nominating Committee will propose a complete slate of officers and forward this slate to a person (or persons) designated by the Executive Board of Officers.  At least seven (7) weeks before the election, said persons (or persons) will mail to the membership the Nominating Committee’s slate of officers and call for further nominations.  At least five (5) weeks before the election the nominations from the membership must be received by said person (or persons), who will thereupon add to the ballot the names of those persons who receive the greatest number of nominations from the membership. Only one (1) nominee per office will be added to those people nominated by the Nominating Committee and the names added will have received the greatest number of nominations from the membership. To qualify as a candidate or challenge a candidate nominated by the nominating committee, an individual must have applied to be a candidate to the nominating committee during the then current election cycle.  A nominee added to the ballot must receive nominations from at least twenty (20) members of the division Nominees for the positions of President and the delegate to the Executive Committee may not be challenged. In the event two proposed nominees receive the same number of votes, the proposed nominee that has the highest number of continuing education points shall be added to the ballot.  In the event, the proposed nominees remain tied after consideration of the continuing education points, both names will be added to the ballot. Thereafter, at least four (4) weeks before the election, the Nominating Monitor(s) will send out the ballots to the members. The ballots will then be returned to a Counting Committee, which will be appointed by the Board of Officers. In the event the nominees remain tied after counting the number of continuing education points and the number of votes received for each nominee, the nominee presented by the Nominating Committee shall be declared the winner.

Section 5.   NOMINATING COMMITTEE.  The Nominating  Committee  will always  consist  of  the  immediate  past  President  of  the  Board  of  Directors  and  will be composed of three (3) members one of whom shall be from the prior Nominating Committee, which person shall be chairman of the new Nominating Committee. If a division has no Nominating Committee, the initial Nominating Committee for the Division will be appointed by the President of RSPA. All members of the Division Nominating Committee must be members in good standing with the RSPA and must reside within the geographical boundaries of the division. Except as provided herein, no person on any prior Nominating Committee shall be allowed to serve on future nominating committees, with the exception of the person on the old Nominating Committee who is elected to be chairman of the new Nominating Committee, as set forth above, or until such time as a period of two complete terms of the Nominating Committee following the end of their previous term.  All persons who serve on the Nominating Committee agree not to be a candidate for election to the Board of Directors in the then current election cycle. If a member of the Nominating Committee resigns or must resign because of a relocation, the Division President may appoint a replacement.  After the Nominating Committee has nominated a slate of officers, it will appoint a new Nominating Committee, which will nominate candidates for the following election year.  The presence of majority of the members of the Nominating Committee shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of selecting a slate of officers.  The Nominating Committee shall act by majority vote.   In the event that a member of the Nominating Committee for any reason cannot serve or is not present, provided a quorum is established, until such time as his/her replacement shall be made by the Board of Officers upon majority vote, or by the President as provided above, the remaining members of the Nominating Committee may act by majority vote of the members present. A member of the Nominating Committee can be removed for cause upon majority vote of the Board of Officers of the Division or the RSPA Board of Directors.

Section 6.   RSPA BOARD SUPERVISION.   The entire election procedure of the Division, as set forth in preceding paragraphs 3, 4, and 5, is under the supervision of the Board of Officers of the RSPA, which may, at its discretion, ensure, in whatever manner necessary, the fairness of the Division’s election of its Executive Board of Officers.  The supervision of the RSPA Board of Officers may be invoked upon the petition of at least ten percent (10%) of the division’s membership, or at its own discretion.  In the event of a conflict between the Division and the RSPA Board of Directors, the decision of the RSPA Board of Directors shall be binding.

Section 7.  VOTING PROCEDURE AT EXECUTIVE BOARD OF OFFICERS MEETINGS.  At meetings of the Executive Board of Officers meetings a quorum shall be a majority of the Board.  No proxy voting will be allowed.  The President will chair the meeting.  Roberts’ Rules of Order will govern proceedings of the Executive Board of Officers meetings if the chair is challenged.  The President may poll the Executive Board of Officers by telephone but only in cases where time is of the essence and the majority of the Board does not object to the procedure.

Section 8. DUTIES OF OFFICERS.

(a) President.  The President will be the Chief Executive Officer of the RSPA Southwest Division. The President shall preside at all meetings, preserve order, appoint all committees, with the approval of the Executive Board of Officers, not otherwise provided for, and see that the Officers and Committees perform their respective duties.  The President shall be ex-officio member of all committees appointed by the President.  In the event of resignation or death of a member of the Executive Board of Officers, the President is empowered to appoint an interim officer, with a majority vote of approval by the Board.

(b) Regional Vice-President.  The Regional Vice-President of the Division, along with the President of the Division, will represent the Division on the Executive Committee of the USPTA in accordance with the RSPA by laws. The Regional Vice President shall assist the President in the performance of his/her duties and shall exercise the powers of the President in the President’s absence. In case of the President’s death or removal from office, the Regional Vice President shall succeed to the position of President.

(c)  Vice  President.  The Vice-President shall  assist  the  President  in  the

performance of his or her duties and shall exercise the power of the President in the President’s absence or in case of his or her death. The Vice President shall assist the President or the Regional Vice President in the performance of his/her duties.

(d)  Secretary.   The Secretary shall perform the duties usual to the office

of the Secretary and in assistance to the President.

(e) Treasurer.  The Treasurer shall be responsible for oversight of all the financial records and the Executive Director’s payment of all authorized bills. The Treasurer shall report to the Board on the Division's financial affairs at least semi-annually or as requested by the President or the National Treasurer. The Treasurer, and/or the Executive Director shall also report periodically to the National Treasurer of the RSPA in accordance with the RSPA Bylaws.

(f)   Immediate Past President.  The Immediate Past President shall be a member of the Executive Board of Officers.  Immediate Past President shall assist the President in performing of the President’s duties.

Section 9.   ONE OFFICE PER PERSON.   In no event shall any two of the offices comprising the Board of Officers be filled by the same person. In the event that a member of a Division Board of Officers or a Division’s representative to the  Executive  Committee  is  elected  to  the  National  Board  of  Directors,  that individual shall relinquish their Division position as either the Division’s representative on the National Executive Committee or the Division Board of Officers or both if applicable. The President or remaining members of the Board of Officers of the Division shall appoint a substitute representative to serve as the Division representative to the Executive Committee and/or the Division Board of Officers to fill the vacancy. The substitute representative or Board member shall serve until the end of the term of the relinquishing representative/Board member.

Section 10.  REMOVAL OF OFFICERS AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS. Any officer or committee member may be removed from office or a committee for cause, by a two-thirds majority vote of the Board of Officers or the USPTA Board. Cause will include, but not be limited to, breach of the USPTA Code of Ethics, dereliction of duties, malfeasance.

ARICTLE IV - MEMBERSHIP MEETING

The members of the RSPA Southwest Division shall meet annually, or more often, at a time or times set forth by the Executive Board of Officers.  At the membership meetings, which shall be chaired by the President of the RSPA Southwest Division, the members may discuss the affairs of the RSPA Southwest Division and make recommendations to the board.  They may also vote in person or by proxy on proposed amendments to the by-laws of the RSPA, as set forth therein.

ARTICLE V - AMENDMENTS TO THE BY LAWS

Amendments to the Bylaws may be adopted by the RSPA Board of Directors, by the majority vote of the Board of Officers or proposed by a member to the Board of Officers and approved by a vote thereafter of the members at a meeting called upon due notice or by a mail ballot. In the event an amendment is adopted by mail in ballot, a member must have at least twenty-one (21) days to return their ballot. The proposed amendment will be adopted if at least two-thirds of those voting vote to adopt the amendment. The effective date of any amendment will be when the amendment is adopted or at a time specified in the amendment resolution. Any amendment to the Bylaws may be revoked by the RSPA Board of Directors at its discretion, and the Divisional amendment process is under the supervision of the RSPA Board of Officers, which may be invoked or modified at its discretion.

ARTICLE VI - INCORPORATION IN THESE BY LAWS OF THE USPTA BY LAWS

All pertinent provisions of the RSPA Bylaws, such as but not limited to, membership eligibility requirements, the code of ethics and disciplinary proceedings, are incorporated by  reference  in  these  Bylaws. In the event of a conflict between these Bylaws and the RSPA Bylaws, or in the absence of a provision in these Bylaws covering an issue, the relevant provision of the RSPA Bylaws shall control.  The USPTA Board of Directors shall have the exclusive authority to interpret and resolve any conflicts arising under these Bylaws.1

09/27/2024