METRO LADIES BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION

CONSTITUTION

 

September 2006

 

 

Article 1

 

The name of the Association shall be the Metro Ladies Basketball Association (MELBA) hereinafter called the Association.

 

Article 2

 

Objectives:

1)       To provide organized basketball for members.

2)       To encourage an atmosphere of sportsmanship, as well as competitive levels of play.

3)       To protect mutual interests of its members.

4)       To maintain and enforce a standard set of playing rules. (F.I.B.A.)

5)       To provide this basketball within a reasonable budget.

 

Article 3

 

Membership:

1)       Membership in the Association shall include three classes: I) Active ii) Associate iii)Honorary

2)       Active Membership shall be defined as a duly approved Team.  Each active team shall have one vote at any special or general meeting.

3)       Associate membership shall be open to all organizations or persons who desire to assist in the promotion of Basketball.  Associate members shall not be entitled to vote at any special general meeting.

4)       Honorary membership shall be granted to those nominated by the active members of the Association and unanimously approved by the Executive.  Honorary members shall not be entitled to vote.

5)       Any member who accepts membership in the Association shall be deemed to have undertaken to abide by the provision of the By-laws and the regulations of the Association.

6)       Players or Teams registered with another association (varsity, high school or small college) are ineligible for membership.  The Executive shall decide any exceptions to this Article.

7)       Any Member may terminate membership by giving written notice of its intended resignation to the secretary.

8)       The Association may terminate the membership of any member for sufficient reason, by an extraordinary resolution approved by two-thirds majority of those present and entitled to vote at a Special or General Meeting called for that purpose.

 

 

 

 

 

BY LAWS

 

By-Law #1

Fees:

1)       Fees for Active and Associate membership shall be set by the Association at the Annual Fall Meeting to cover expenses for the upcoming season.

2)       Fees must be paid in full by the date set by the Association at its Annual Fall Meeting.

3)       Basketball Nova Scotia membership fee must be paid with league fees.  Melba will forward all membership fees to Basketball Nova Scotia upon completion of collection.

4)       Honorary membership shall be granted without payment of dues.

 

By-Law #2

Management:

1)       The operation of the Association shall be administered by the Executive; consisting of a President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, League Coordinators and Statisticians.  All members of the Executive should be players of an Active Membership.

2)       The Executive may invite to meeting such persons as they deem advisable to act as consultants.

3)       The Executive shall meet at least semi annually.  All Executive members will be available for all meetings and if not available a suitable reason will have to be provided.

4)       The Executive shall be elected for a term of one year.

5)       The Executive, acting within the Constitution and By-Laws of the Association, shall be responsible for drafting the Association’s policies, for submission to the membership for approval, and for carrying them out.  The Executive shall also be responsible for drawing up and submitting for approval to the membership the annual operating budget and statement.

6)       The Executive may approve expenditures not specifically provided for in the budget and when funds are available with a limit of $100.00.

7)       The Executive shall be responsible for the day-to-day administration of the Association and shall act within the framework of the policies established by the Association.  The Executive shall have full authority to implement the policies of the Association, referring all matters that would constitute departures from established practice or precedent, to the Association for prior approval.

8)       The Executive, by a two-thirds majority vote, may call for the resignation of any member of the Executive, who in their opinion is not performing and fulfilling the duties of her position.  The request for resignation shall be sent to the member by registered mail.  Replacement of the position shall be in accordance with By-Law #8.

 

By-Law #3

Responsibilities of the Executive:

1)       The Executive shall enforce the Constitution and by-laws of the Association.

2)       The following members of the Executive shall act as the Protest Committee: President, Vice President, Secretary and League Coordinators.  All decisions are final.  Any Executive member that is involved in the event being protested will be replaced on the Protest Committee by another active member of Melba who shall be appointed by the Executive.

3)       The Executive shall be responsible for forwarding any disciplinary issues on to Basketball Nova Scotia for resolution, through the Basketball Nova Scotia disciplinary policy.

4)       The Executive shall decide on any matter not specifically covered in the By-Laws.

5)       Any Executive member who has a conflict of interest shall make it known to the Executive.

 

By-Law #4

Duties of Officers:

1)       It shall be the duty of the President to preside at all meetings of the Association and to provide leadership in the development of the Association.  The President shall be a member of all committees.

2)       The Vice President will preside at Executive meetings and General meetings in the absence of the President.  In the event the President cannot fulfill her term in office, the Vice President will assume the duties of the President until a new President has been elected.

3)       The Secretary shall keep and distribute minutes of all meetings of the Association and of the Executive.  She shall give notice of all meeting, notify delegates of agenda items and attend to all correspondence.  The outgoing secretary shall be responsible for recording any changes to the Constitution, By-Laws or Standing Orders that emanate from any Annual or Special General meeting.

4)       The Treasurer shall keep a financial account of all money received and spent by the Association.  She shall be co-signer, along with the President, of all cheques and provide a financial report at all General Meetings.

5)       The League Coordinator shall obtain gyms and a schedule of games and playoffs for all teams registered with the Association and shall be responsible for recording the names of winning teams and for having league trophies engraved.

6)       The Tournament Chairperson shall be responsible for acting as liason with Basketball Nova Scotia to organize annual provincial tournament.

7)       The Social Coordinator is responsible for organizing all social events of the Association.  These may be specific events or be used in conjunction with tournaments or regular meetings.

8)       The Statistician is responsible for recording all statistics of the Association’s league games, players (including tracking technical fouls, game expulsions etc.), and tournaments.  Information regarding technical fouls and game expulsions should be compiled and submitted to the Executive at least twice per month.  She shall maintain a record of team standings and report these to the League Coordinator. 

 

By-Law #5

Voting:

1)       Each active membership (team) shall deem one voting representative on their behalf to attend any General or Special meeting of the Association.

2)       Each member of the Executive is entitled to one vote, except the President, who shall not have a vote except in the event of a tie when the President shall cast the deciding vote.

3)       Twenty five percent of the members shall constitute a quorum for any General Meeting.

4)       A simple majority shall constitute a quorum for transactions of business at Executive meetings.

 

 

 

 

By-Law #6

General Meetings:

1)       The Association shall hold at least one General Meeting during the fiscal year.

2)       Written notice shall be given to each voting member at least seven days prior to a General or Special meeting.

 

By-Law #7

Amendments:

1)       A two-thirds majority may amend articles and By-Laws of the MELBA Constitution at the Annual General Meeting, provided that written notice of the proposed amendment is given to the membership at least three (3) weeks prior to the meeting.

 

By-Law #8

Vacancies of Executive Members:

1)       If a member of the Executive is unable to fulfill her duties and resigns between the spring and fall meetings, an election to replace the position will be held at the fall meeting.  If the resignation occurs between the fall and spring meetings the Executive has the authority to appoint someone to the position for the remainder of the term.

 

By-Law #9

Standing Orders:

1)       At General or Special meetings of the Association,  membership may authorize Standing Orders of the Association relative to any matter of procedure or organization of the Association not otherwise dealt with or inconsistent with the Societies Act (Province of Nova Scotia) or by-laws of the Association.  

2)       Standing Orders may be implemented by ordinary motion or resolution and shall remain in force until expressly amended or repealed.

3)       Every motion or resolution to implement a Standing Order shall be expressly designated as such.

4)       The Standing Orders of the Association shall be consecutively numbered and copies of those in force shall be available to all members on the same basis as the Constitution and By-Laws.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

STANDING ORDERS

 

1.    Team Rosters must be submitted to the League treasurer with full fees (including Basketball Nova Scotia membership fee) by the first league game the team plays.

2.    Any changes to the initial team rosters must be made by the last league game played before the Christmas break.

3.    Additions to team rosters after the Christmas break will only be considered by the executive if a team's membership is reduced to seven (7) or fewer players. A team will only be allowed to increase their team to eight (8) players under this article. Applications must be made in writing to the President giving the names of those players lost and those players to be added. The Executive has full authority to approve or disapprove of any addition.

4.    Effective October 2006, all disciplinary issues will be forwarded to Basketball Nova Scotia for resolution in accordance with Basketball Nova Scotia’s disciplinary policy.  This includes any and all issues related to behaviour during a Melba basketball game, whether exhibition, regular season, playoffs or tournament.

5.    Any team that withdraws from the league after the season has started will not be entitled to any refund of fees.

6.    The minimum age limit of players in the league is 17 years of age and she must not be enrolled in high school.

7.    Games will only be cancelled or postponed by the Executive. For a game to be rescheduled a team which cannot field a team for a particular game must notify the League Representative at least two days in advance of the game.

8.    Default of a game will be caused by:

A.   a team having fewer than five (5) players at the beginning of any scheduled game or,

B.   a team using ineligible or unregistered player(s).

C.  a team submitting registration fees after the deadline, will default a game per each week the registration is late.

D.  a team submitting a roster after the deadline will default a game per each week the roster is late.

E.   a winning team not reporting game result to the statistician within 48 hours of the game.

9.     

a.     If a team defaults one game the team must pay the referee fees (approximately cost $65).

b.    If a team defaults a second game the team must pay the game's gym rental (approximate cost $50) and referee fees (approximately cost $65).

c.     If a team defaults a third game, the team is expelled from the league for the rest of the season, with no refund of fees.

10.                       TEAM COLOURS: New teams or teams changing colours must check with the appropriate league representative that the proposed colours are not currently being used by another team. Legal numbers should be used (4 – 15 inclusive).

11.                       Effective Fall 1994, new players registering for intermediate women’s B league division including MELBA sponsored tournaments must not have played university or national basketball within the last 3 years.