NESDCA By-Laws
NATIONAL ENTOMOLOGY SCENT DETECTION CANINE ASSOCIATION
By-Laws
ARTICLE 1:
This Association shall be known as the National Entomology Scent Detection Canine Association
ARTICLE 2:
OBJECTIVES
To unite, assist, and continuously improve all Entomology Scent Detection Canine Teams.
To establish a working standard for all Entomology Scent Detecting Canines, Handlers, and Trainers through an accredited program.
To improve the image of Entomology Scent Detecting Canine.
ARTICLE 3:
MEMBERSHIP
Section A:
Regular Members – Full membership in this association shall be open to any person/s actively involved in the pest control industry, any Entomology Scent Detection Handler, and/or Trainer, and any employee of a state or federal pest control governing authority with working Entomology Scent Detection Teams certified with NESDCA. If a company or agency pays for the member’s membership dues, the company or agency has the right to reassign that membership to another qualifying person anytime during that dues period. The change in membership by the company or agency must be in writing to the nesdca@nesdca.com. The written change will include the current member’s complete information and the new replacement person’s complete information on a NESDCA membership application.
ARTICLE 4:
DUTIES OF DIRECTORS
No elected Board Member, Evaluator or Advisor to the Association shall receive any salary for services rendered to the Association. However, out of pocket expenses incurred necessarily by these positions may be reimbursed while conducting the affairs of the Association with the approval of the Board. Any vendor or service paid for as part of normal operating costs for the Association shall not be paid until approved by the Board.
EXECUTIVE BOARD
The Executive Board consists of the elected NESDCA officers. Only elected officers of the Executive Board may vote in any Board proceedings. For the purposes of all proceedings the terms “Executive Board” and “Board” are interchangeable and shall only refer to Executive Board Members with the right to vote.
PRESIDENT
It shall be the duty of the President to call and preside at all regular and special meetings. He/she shall see that the Bylaws and all Rules and Regulations are respected and obeyed. He/she shall cast the deciding vote in case of a tie. He/she shall appoint committees and may designate their Chairperson. He/she shall perform such other duties as are usual and incidental to the office of President. He/she is a member ex-officio of all committees except the Election Committee.
VICE PRESIDENT
The Vice President shall actively assist and support the President in his/her duties, and shall be the President pro-tempore in the absence of the President, during which time the Vice President shall assume all the duties and responsibilities of that office. He/she shall be required to attend, with the President, all hearings, committee meetings, conferences, etc., to which the President is required or expected, in the interest of and or on behalf of the membership of this Association in order that he/she may be as informed of all matters concerning the Association as is the President.
SECRETARY
It shall be the duty of the Secretary to accurately record the proceedings at meetings. He/she shall forward all meeting minutes for posting to the membership via established means to the Executive Director in a timely manner. He/she shall receive all moneys in the absence of the Treasurer.
TREASURER
It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to collect all moneys due to this association, giving receipt thereof. He/she shall keep a suitable set of book of record. He/she shall deposit all moneys of this Association in a bank designated by the Executive Board. He/she shall draw all checks or other obligations authorized by the Executive Board, and attested to by the Secretary, including payments of all benefits. The account books as well as all papers in his/her custody shall be open for inspection and examination by the Executive Board. He/she shall not lend or invest any of the funds except when duly authorized by the Executive Board.
K-9 ADVISORS (Non-Voting Position)
A K-9 Advisor will be an appointed position who shall serve as an advisor to the Executive Board. A K-9 Advisor will serve as a subject matter expert related to K-9 and scent detection topics. A K-9 Advisor can not evaluate while holding this position.
Entomology Advisors (Non-Voting Position)
An Entomology Advisor will be an appointed position who shall serve as an advisor to the Executive Board. An Entomology Advisor will serve as a subject matter expert related to entomology and scent detection topics.
Executive Director (Non-Voting Position)
The Executive Director shall serve at the discretion of the Board. He/she will perform those duties designated by the Board and/or established Association by-laws. He/she shall communicate and correspond with all persons and organizations both within and outside the association relative to Executive Board business. He/she shall be responsible to maintain all certification records for each certified or re-certified Entomology Scent Detection Canine Teams. He/she shall be responsible for maintaining of records related to meeting minutes, membership and certification of teams in compliance with State law of the State of Incorporation of the Association.
Regulatory Officer (Non-Voting Position)
The Regulatory Officer shall report directly to the Board on any issue related to regulatory issues pertaining to the Association as directed by the Board.
ARTICLE 5:
ELECTIONS
Section A:Election of the President, Secretary and Regulatory Officer will be held on every even numbered year.
Section B:Election of the Vice President and Treasurer will be held on every odd numbered year.
Section C:Newly elected Officers shall take office 30 days after date of official election.
Section D:All candidates for office shall be nominated at the General Membership meeting at the National Training Workshop of the designated year.
Section E:A majority vote shall elect each position. Members are to be notified as soon as possible.
Section F:In the event of a Board vacancy a majority Board vote will be used to fill the vacant position until the next regularly scheduled election for that position.
ARTICLE 6:
MEETINGS
A quorum shall consist of the majority of the Executive Board present. All Executive Board members shall be notified adequately in advance as to any and all meetings.
ARTICLE 7:
BYLAWS
All proposed changes must be submitted in writing to the Executive Board. The Executive Board shall review and present a final proposed change to By Laws at the Executive Board meeting. Regardless, if any amendment, addition or deletion is passed unanimously, it shall be null and void if it is in direct conflict with the Articles of Incorporation.
ARTICLE 8:
DUES
The yearly dues of the Association for a regular member will be $225.00 plus $110.00 for each additional team after the initial team included in the membership dues. If a membership fee is not renewed within 15 days after current membership has passed the members NESDCA status will be listed as “Certification Expired” and that team may not present themselves as NESDCA Certified.
A $30.00 service charge will be assessed for any bad/bounced check, no matter what the reason for it being dishonored. In addition any paperwork, such as certifications, is suspended until the check is made good.
ARTICLE 9:
IMPEACHMENT
Any Officer or member may be removed for any violation of the provisions of the Bylaws, for any personal conduct that may bring discredit upon the Association. Charges for the impeachment of any Officer or member may be initiated by any member in good standing. The charge shall be presented, in writing to the Executive Board via nesdca@nesdca.com. The accused Officer or member will be given a copy of the charges against him/her. If the Executive Board ascertains that there is enough evidence to warrant a hearing, the accused member will be notified of the meeting and location at which the hearing will be held, not less than thirty (30) days prior to the hearing date. The accused shall be given the right to present evidence in his/her behalf at this hearing. The Executive Board will then decide if the accused is innocent or guilty of the charges and present their recommendation. If it is decided the charges warrant impeachment, the accused Officer shall be removed from Office and the accused Officer or member shall never hold any Office in the Association.
ARTICLE 10:
REPRESENTATION / USE OF NESDCA’s NAME (ACRONYM OR SPELLED OUT) AND LOGO’s
NESDCA’s name and logo’s may be utilized by any Regular member Scent Detection Team in good standing. Anyone whose membership and/or annual re-certification has expired may not represent or advertise utilizing NESDCA’s name or logo’s until they restore their membership to an updated and current status or pass an annual re-certification.
ARTICLE 11:
CODE OF ETHICS
Section A: The application for membership shall provide that the applicant, agrees to abide by these By Laws and all Rules adopted by the Executive Board. He/she further agrees to abide by the Code of Ethics.
Section B: No member will act in a manner prejudicial to the Association or its members. No member will knowingly falsify or misrepresent any record or document in connection with the certification, sale, or representation of a dog.
Section C: Any member in good standing may prefer charges against any other member for alleged conduct in violation of the Code of Ethics. Such charges must be in writing, signed by the complainant, setting forth the facts upon which the charges are based in a concise and summary manner, and shall be filed with the Executive Board at nesdca@nesdca.com. The complainant must agree to appear and furnish full evidence in support of the charges if requested to do so. The Executive Board will then proceed as described in Article 9.
Section D: Disciplinary action may include the temporary suspension of privileges, censure, expulsion or any other action deemed appropriate by the Executive Board.
Section E: If the Executive Board finds that a member in preferring charges against another member did so for spurious reasons, out of improper motives, and if the charges are wholly false and without proper foundation, then the Executive Board may, if it desires, take appropriate disciplinary action against the complainant.
Section F: No disciplinary action shall be taken against a member, be he/she the complainant or accused, unless the member shall have been afforded the opportunity of a hearing before the Executive Board.
Section G: Every member shall be presumed innocent of misconduct, and disciplinary action shall be taken against a member only if he/she is found guilty of misconduct from evidence found true by the Executive Board.
Section H: Any member who is found guilty by the Executive Board of any violations of NESDCA Bylaws and/or Rules and Regulations, shall have a maximum of thirty (30) calendar days from the date of his/her written notification, to file a written appeal of the findings and punishment to the Board in writing for their consideration via nesdca@nesdca.com.
ARTICLE 12:
POSTING OF BOARD MEETING MINUTES
All minutes related to Board meetings shall be posted in a password protected area of the Association web page for viewing by active members.
It shall be the responsibility of the Executive Director to, in a timely manner, have approved minutes from all meetings posted to the Association web page for viewing by the membership.
Any member requesting access to the posted minutes area will do so via email to nesdca@nesdca.com.
ARTICLE 13:
ASSOCIATION RECORDS
All records related to financial information shall be maintained by the Treasurer at the direction of the Certified Public Accountant utilized by the Association.
All records related to meetings and/or certification and membership status shall be maintained by the Executive Director in accordance with State law of the State of Incorporation of the Association.
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