(2) The Executive Committee shall have complete power to manage the business, to raise funds in any manner not inconsistent with the policies of the NSS, and to perform all other necessary functions.

(3) Decisions of the Executive Committee may be overruled by a majority vote of the members.

(2) A petition signed by the majority of the membership shall require the Executive Committee to call a special meeting for the purpose stated in the petition.

Applications for membership shall be in writing and shall be accompanied by dues as specified herein and a statement to be read and signed by the applicant indication support for the goals of the Pine Mountain Grotto and its conservation policies. All applications for membership shall be acted upon by the Executive Committee.

There shall be the following classes of membership: Full, Regular, Student, and Family. Full members must be members of the NSS. Regular and Family members must join the NSS within one year of joining the grotto.

The amount of annual member dues, their due dates, and the collection procedures shall be determined by the executive Committee.

Membership shall be terminated for non-payment of grotto dues, or for failure to join the NSS after one year of grotto membership. A member dropped for non-payment of dues may be reinstated automatically upon payment of current grotto dues. A member dropped for failure to join the NSS may be reinstated automatically upon presentation of evidence of current membership status in the NSS.

Members may be admonished, suspended from certain privileges, or expelled from grotto membership for any of the following reasons:

*Willful misuse of grotto property or facilities.

*Willful disregard for the safety of themselves and/or others while participated in a grotto activity.

*Willful disregard of the conservation policies of the grotto.

*Other conduct detrimental to the grotto and/or the NSS.

Disciplinary action under this provision shall be taken only upon a two-thirds vote of the

Executive Committee by secret ballot. Disciplinary action shall be initiated only upon presentation to the Executive Committee of a written petition for disciplinary action submitted by at least two members of the grotto not in the same household. Upon receiving such a petition, the Executive Committee shall take such actions as are deemed necessary to notify the accused members, in writing, of the petition, and of the place, time, and date at which the petition will be considered by the Executive Committee. The accused members shall have the right to speak on their own behalf. Such considerations shall take place no sooner than twenty-one days and no later than seventy days after the petition is received by the Executive Committee.

No special assessments may be made against members of the grotto. Voluntary contributions may be solicited by the Executive Committee for specific purposes. A charge may be made for the grotto’s special publications and extra copies of regular publications, and fees may be collected for use of the grotto’s property when approved by the Executive Committee. Gifts and bequests may be made to the grotto in any form or amount and for any use compatible with the purpose of the grotto.

A charge may be made to non-members for attendance at grotto-sponsored activities; use of the grotto’s equipment and library; copies of publications, maps and other data; and inclusion of non-members on the grotto’s mailing list.

The Executive Committee shall consist of a grotto Chair, a Vice-Chair, a Secretary, a Treasurer, and an At-Large member. Each member of the Executive Committee shall be elected for a term of one calendar year. Members of the Executive Committee shall be elected by the membership of the grotto, as specified herein.

Candidates for the executive Committee shall be selected from among grotto members by an Elections Committee of at least three members, a majority of whom are not executive committee members. This committee shall be appointed annually by the Chair and approved by the Executive Committee. The chair of the Elections Committee shall not be a candidate for the Executive Committee in the election for which the committee is formed. Additional nominations of members may be made from the floor at a regular general meeting, provided that such nominations are seconded, and subject to the acceptance of the member so nominated. The ballot shall have provisions for write-in votes.

The deadline for receiving ballots shall be the last day of the calendar year. Ballots shall be mailed to the members at least thirty days before the deadline for receiving ballots.

The Elections Committee shall submit to the Executive Committee a written report on the results of their selection process and any nominations from the floor. The Elections Committee shall prepare, distribute and receive the ballots, and shall act as tellers for the elections, and shall submit a written report of the results of the election to the Executive Committee. The Elections Committee shall also notify each nominee of his or her position in the order of finish in the election, and of the place, date and time of the organizing meeting of the new Executive Committee.

Those elected will take office at the start of the first Executive Committee meeting of the calendar year. Any ties in the election shall be broken at this meeting by a ballot of members of the previous year’s Executive Committee and those elected candidates not tied in the election.

There shall be at least one Executive Committee meeting in each of at least six months of the calendar year. The date, time and place of these meetings shall be provided to the membership before the date of such meeting. The Executive Committee shall determine the day, time and place for any special meetings. A quorum at an executive Committee meeting will be a majority of the members of the Executive Committee.

Any member of the Executive Committee may appoint a member of the grotto to act as a proxy for him or her at a meeting of the Executive Committee. Proxy may act at one meeting for only one Executive Committee member. The presiding officer must be notified of such proxy appointment directly or in writing by the absent Executive committee member before the proxy may be allowed to serve. Authorization should state whether or not discretionary voting powers have been given to the proxy.

The Executive Committee may remove any Executive Committee member who, without just cause, fails to attend two regular Executive Committee meetings in one calendar year without sending a proxy or who, without just cause, attends no Executive Committee meetings in person for three consecutive months.

Vacancies of the executive Committee that occur shall be filled for the balance of the calendar year by Chair’s appointment, subject to majority approval of the rest of the Executive Committee.

Committee chairs may attend meetings of the Executive Committee and have the privilege of speaking on matters relevant to the committee’s function but shall have no power to vote by virtue of position as committee chair. Any other member of the grotto may attend executive Committee meetings and may be granted the privilege of the floor at the discretion of the presiding officer but shall have no power to vote.

Robert’s Rules or Order, as revised, shall govern all procedural questions arising at General and Executive Committee meetings when they are applicable and when they are not inconsistent with the grotto’s constitution and bylaws.

Committees shall be established by the Executive Committee to execute the work of the grotto. Chairs of the committees shall be appointed by the Chair of the grotto, subject to the approval of the Executive Committee. All committees will operate under the direction and approval of the Executive Committee other than the Elections Committee.

The grotto may acquire real and personal property, including equipment, literature, and other materials for use by and on behalf of the membership. The fiscal year is the calendar year.

The grotto will issue and distribute to members in good standing, other than Family members, regular issues of a newsletter, and is empowered to issue and distribute special publications, subject to regulations governing the subject matter, publication dates, sales, and distribution as prescribed by the Executive Committee.

In the event of dissolution of the grotto, all assets remaining after meeting outstanding liabilities shall be assigned to the National Speleological Society. However, if the named recipient is not then in existence or is no longer a qualified distributee, or is unwilling or unable to accept the distribution, the assets of this organization shall be distributed to a fund, foundation, or corporation organized exclusively for the purposes specified in Section 501 © (3) of the Internal Revenue Code of the 1954 (or the corresponding provision of any future U.S. Internal Revenue law).

This grotto is a non-profit organization. No part of the net earnings of the grotto shall inure to the benefit of or be distributable to its members, trustees, officers, or other private persons, except that the grotto shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and to make payments and distribution in furtherance of the purposes set forth in the constitution of the grotto. No substantial part of the activities of the grotto shall be the carrying on of propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and the grotto shall not participate in, intervene in (including the publishing or distributions of statements) any political campaign on behalf of any candidate for public office. Notwithstanding any other provision of these bylaws, the grotto shall not carry on any other activities not permitted to be carried on (a) by a corporation exempt from federal income tax under Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code (or the corresponding provision of any future U.S. Internal Revenue law) or (b) by a corporation, contributions to which are deductible under Section 170 (c) (2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (or the corresponding provisions of any future U.S. Internal Revenue law).

All proposed amendments in these bylaws must be presented to the entire membership and notice given to the members of the place, date and time of the General Meeting at which the amendment(s) will be considered for adoption. Provisions shall be made for absentee voting. This notice shall be given not less than twenty days prior to the designated meeting. Adoption of the amendment(s) shall require a majority vote of the members voting, either in person or by absentee ballot, and the total votes cast must constitute a majority of the membership.

Unless otherwise provided herein, the Constitution and Bylaws of the National Speleological Society shall be binding on the grotto where applicable. Any actions inconsistent therewith shall be null and void.