League Bylaws

This league shall be incorporated as Central Keystone Youth Football & Cheer League, hereinafter referred to as the “Local League.”

The registered office of the Local League shall be the address of the current president, with changes needing to be filed accordingly to the Pennsylvania Department of State Corporation Bureau. Upon election of a new President, it will be changed by February 1 of the new year at the Local League attorney’s office.

The fiscal year of the Local League shall begin January 1 at 12:01 AM, and end December 31 at 11:59 PM of the same year.

The purpose of this Local League shall be those set forth in the Local League Articles of Incorporation filed with the Pennsylvania Department of State Corporation Bureau, including the limitations restricting the operations and activities of the Local League also set forth in the Articles of Incorporation.

League:
The Local League shall be the parent organization with subordinate Chartered Association(s) being equal in their representation within the Local League, each having one (1) Appointed Member on the Board of Directors. The league shall administer and manage all matters and activities pertaining directly to the Local League as decided and directed by the Board of Directors of the Local League consisting of 1 (appointed member) of each Chartered Association and the local league elected officers for a total of 12 members; where the president shall not have a vote unless the occurrence of a tie in which the president would cast the deciding vote.

Chartered Association:
Chartered Associations are the subordinate organizations which form the Local League and shall abide by the Local League’s Articles of Incorporation, Bylaws, and Rules & Regulations.

Chartered Associations are the subordinate organizations within the Local League that sponsor and administer one or more teams, by (a.) raising money, (b.) buying equipment, (c.) recruiting coaches, (d.) securing, and maintaining fields, (e.) etc., for the teams they sponsor and administer.
1. All associations shall be required to pay a set fee per participant to the league to cover expenses, such as the end-of-season activities, league insurance, pre-season activities and other competition related expenses incurred by the league. This fee (subject to change) may be offset with a league-offered fundraiser if the association chooses to participate.

2. All association’s home location of practice/game fields wishing to start/join the league must not be within a ten (10) mile radius of any existing association’s practice/game field.

3. All associations wishing to join the league must be voted on and approved by a majority of the Board of Directors present at a regular scheduled meeting, with the proper notification as to the vote taking place, for a one year probationary period which they can participate in all meetings, stating their opinions on any matters, but will not have the voting privilege of one (1) Appointed Members. Upon completion of the one-year probationary period they must then be voted on and approved by a majority of all Board of Directors at a regularly scheduled meeting, with the proper notification as to the vote taking place, to become a Chartered Association of the Local League giving them the voting privilege of one (1) Appointed Member.

4. All chartered associations of this league must provide a copy of their association’s Bylaws to the league and submit any changes to them within 30 days of the change.

5. Chartered Organizations will be responsible for providing the Board of Directors with an end-of-year bank statement to serve as an organizational financial wellness check.  This end-of-year bank statement must be submitted to the Board of Directors no later than the final league meeting of the then current season.

6. All chartered organizations must obtain their own EIN (Earned Income Number) and apply for tax exempt status if they wish with the state of Pennsylvania.

7. All chartered Organizations must also file proper non-profit/tax exempt status paperwork with the IRS annually.

Section 1: There shall be three (3) classes of Members: Player Members, Appointed Members, and Elected Members.

Section 2: A Player Member is any individual meeting the requirements set forth in the Rules and Regulations and who resides within the boundaries of the Local League and is properly signed up to participate in the Local League. A Player Member is eligible for participation but shall have no duties, obligations, voting privileges, or rights in the management or on the property of the Local League. 

Section 3: An Appointed Member is any person, 21 years of age or older and is appointed by an association chartered with the Local League. Each association chartered with the Local League shall appoint one (1) Appointed Members, known as the Board of Directors of the Local League. An Appointed Member shall have the duty and obligation of attending league meetings, have full voting privileges in the management of the Local League, but shall have no rights in the property of the Local League. 

Section 4: An Elected member is a local league elected officer, age 21 years or older, who was elected to the position of President, Vice President, Treasurer, Administrator, Cheer Commissioner, or Football Commissioner.

Section 5: No Member shall be affiliated with another organization or group outside of the Local League to qualify as members of the Local League. No Member shall be actively engaged in the promotion and/or operation of any other football/cheer program.

Section 6: Parties interested in the success of the charter organizations and local league (such as, but not limited to, parents of players, community members, volunteers, etc…) are encouraged to be active within the local league and charter organizations. They are encouraged to attend league meetings, charter organization meetings and to provide input and feedback for the betterment of the charter organizations and the local league, by communicating directly with the directors of their charter organization and their appointed member. Feedback and information should be communicated to the representatives of their charter organization first. Communication from interested parties (but not appointed members/charter executives) to the Directors of the local league should typically only arise if the interested party has attempted to communicate with the charter organization first, and an issue still exists.

In an effort to ensure the future financial stability of the league and charter organizations, the Elected members maintain the right to set a minimum league participation fee. This minimum participation fee is per athlete (football or cheer) and is to be set only as a minimum (charter organizations have the option to set a higher participation fee). The league minimum participation fee shall be revisited and voted upon each league year prior to the sign up period. For the league year 2024, a league wide minimum participation fee of $40 per athlete will be instituted. These funds stay with the charter organization in which the athlete is participating in.

Section 1: The Board of Directors of the local league shall consist of one (1) Appointed Member from each chartered organization, and the Local League elected officers including the President, Vice President, Treasurer, Administrator, Cheer Commissioner, and the Football Commissioner. How this Appointed Member from the charter organizations is appointed is the decision of each chartered association individually, along with the Appointed Member’s term’s length. However, it is advised that an association chooses Appointed Members that they feel will best represent the views and opinions of the Chartered Association and who are responsible persons that will attend board meetings regularly. It is recommended that the charter organizations have multiple voting members within their charter organization but present a unified opinion via their appointed member when voting on Board of Director/Local League votes. The chartered associations must in writing notify the Local League each year, no later than December 31st, who their one (1) Appointed Member is for the following season and all the necessary contact information for them.

Section 2: Chartered Associations are expected to have their appointed member in attendance at every league meeting. 

Section 3: If a Chartered Association would like to request the change of an Appointed Member/Board of Directors representing their association for justifiable reasons they would need to present their request, in writing via electronic mail transmission or physical copy, to the Board of Directors two-weeks prior to the next regularly scheduled meeting for a majority vote of approval. 

Section 4: An Appointed Member cannot hold an officer’s position on the Executive Board at the same time.

Section 1: The Board of Directors of the Local League shall be vested with the voting power and management of the business and affairs of this Local League under the management and supervision of the elected officers of the Executive Board. Therefore, the most important duty of the Board of Directors is to be a responsible member who takes an active interest in all matters put before the board and to attend all meetings to represent their individual associations. 

Section 2: The Board of Directors are responsible for reviewing, granting, suspending, or revoking the privileges and conditions of the association’s charter. 

Section 3: Only the appointed members shall vote on the following officers of the Executive Board to perform the managerial duties of the Local League; President, Vice President, Administrator, Treasurer, and Commissioners.

Section 1: No officer can hold the position of an officer and as an appointed member for a charter organization.

Section 2: Officer positions will rotate as to the position of President, Administrator, and Commissioner being voted upon and taking office starting in 2024, even years, and the position of Vice President and Treasurer being voted upon and taking office starting in 2025, odd years.

Section 3: Nominations to have a name placed on the ballot for Local League officer positions shall be opened starting August 1 of the then current year with all nominations ending October 31 of the then current year. 

All nominees must be 21 years of age or older and must be submitted to the Local League Board of Directors by a chartered association. It is recommended that all chartered associations submit at least one person for each officer’s position, but it is neither required nor mandated. All submissions of nominations must be completed on the Local Leagues questionnaire/nomination form and all Board of Directors shall have full access to examine and evaluate them before the actual voting. 

Section 4: The voting for officers shall take place at the last regularly scheduled meeting of the year in November; with new officers assuming their responsibilities as of January 1st of the following year. All chartered associations, officers, and Board of Directors must be notified at least one week before the election is held as to the purpose, election of officers, as well as the date, time, and location of the meeting even though it is a regular scheduled meeting to be sure everyone is aware of the importance of the meeting. This meeting may not be postponed or rescheduled for any reason other than natural disasters or poor weather conditions otherwise it is mandated that a new election date be set to allow for nominations as to all officer positions, with no previous offices being permitted to have their names placed on the ballot. 

Section 5: The terms of office are for two years. The only exception to this is the organizational period, the forming of the league, and if for some reason the month of elections is changed, which would mandate all officer positions must be changed. In those stated conditions both the Vice President and Treasurer’s term of office would be for three years to put the elections of officers back to a rotating cycle. 

Section 6: Officers are required to attend all meetings; however, if they miss more than three meetings the Board of Directors can vote to have the officer removed for lack of duty from the office and appoint a substitution to complete the term or hold a special election in order to fill the position for the remaining term. 

Section 7: If at any point and for any reason an elected officer resigns or can no longer fulfill their duties the Board of Directors may appoint a substitute to complete the term or hold a special election to fill the position for the remaining term. If at any point or for any reason an elected officer is deemed to not be performing or is neglecting their position a motion for removal must be made and seconded to be voted on by the league board of directors and Chartered Association appointed members, this vote requires a two-thirds majority for removal. Upon removal, there will be five (5) years before the removed person, or persons can be nominated for a Local League elected position or be appointed member for a Chartered Association.

Section 1 President: The president shall preside over all meetings. The president will be responsible for conducting and coordinating the affairs of the League and have final responsibility for overseeing that all rules, regulations, and policies of the league are strictly followed. Upon approval of the Board of Directors for each matter, the president may have the power to execute for – and in the name of the league – contracts and leases. 

Section 2 Vice President: The duties of the vice president will be to fill in for the absence of the president when he cannot fulfill his duties or helping the president when needed. When doing so the Vice President has the same duties and responsibilities as listed for the president. 

Section 3 Administrator: The administrator manages the league’s official site and social media pages, manages all online processes and ensures that league rosters are maintained in conjunction with league IT personnel, assigns administrative rights to league volunteers and teams, ensures that league news and scores are updated on a regular basis, collects, posts and distributes important information on league activities to league members, maintains a register of members and directors, records the minutes of meetings, is responsible for sending out notice of meetings and maintains a record of league’s activities. 

Section 4 Treasurer: The treasurer shall manage all funds to deposit, and manage the disbursement of all money necessary for the functioning of the Local League. All checks will require two (2) signatures of authorization that are on file with the financial institution of the Local League and approval from the membership for all amounts that have not been approved as a functional expense. Authorized signatures will be all officers and any member decided upon by the Board of Directors. The treasurer will keep records of all deposits, receipts, and disbursement, and provide a monthly report for meetings. Records must be available for inspection. An audit will be conducted at the end of each year by a committee of all league officers and four Appointed Members determined by the Board of Directors of the Local League. 

Section 5 Football Commissioner: The commissioner has the duties of coordinating between coaches, referees, and the league. The football commissioner is responsible for supervising weigh-ins and handling game scheduling. The football commissioner will also be responsible for the day-to-day operations and enforcement of football rules and regulations. Football commissioner will manage and enforce grievances brought forth by member Chartered Associations regarding football rules and regulations. Chartered Associations can file a written appeal in reference to the football commissioner’s decision to the league president if they so choose.

Section 6 Cheer Commissioner: The commissioner has the duties of coordinating between coaches, referees, and the league. The cheer commissioner will also be responsible for the day-to-day operations and enforcement of cheer rules and regulations. The cheer commissioner will manage and enforce grievances brought forth by member Chartered Associations regarding cheer rules and regulations. Chartered Associations can file a written appeal in reference to the cheer commissioner’s decision to the league president if they so choose.

Section 7: In extreme cases, it will be the duty of the Executive Board (President, Vice President, Treasurer, Administrator, Commissioners) to decide, vote on, or mediate any issues arising between charter organizations and any potential rule violations. Game play issues are not considered extreme. The Executive Board will determine what defines an “Extreme case”.

Section 1: Monthly meetings will be held starting in February and continuing through November, leaving January as a meeting for the new officers. The officers of each association chartered with the league and all Board of Directors will be notified of the date, time, and location of the first meeting in February, giving at least two weeks’ notice of this first meeting. Thereafter, the next meeting date should be set and announced before leaving the present meeting and should be set around the same time each month.

Section 2: Special meetings may be held but a one-week notice must be given to all officers of each association and all Board of Directors of the date, time, location, and purpose of the meeting.

Section 3: Notification of meetings will only be to all officers of each chartered association, and its Appointed Members/Board of Directors It is the responsibility of the officers of each chartered association to notify its interested parties. Meeting notice will be made via the communication application chosen by the Board of Directors and shared on the league’s website. Personal phone notifications will only be for those not having internet access, and this will be the individual association’s responsibility to forward notifications they receive from the Local League.

Section 4: Robert’s Rules of Order shall govern the proceedings of all meetings.

Section 5: The only required attendees for local league meetings are the Board of Directors (League Officers and Appointed Members). It is the opinion of the league that any interested party (such as parents, volunteers, community members etc) are welcome to attend league meetings. Individuals in attendance that are not members of the Board of Directors or Appointed Members (regardless of their participation within the league itself) are welcome to attend only for the purpose of observing. They are not welcome to speak during the meeting, have their opinion heard, or take part in the meeting in any way. All topics of discussion are decided upon by the league officers and appointed members and the agenda for the meeting is set prior to the meeting.

Section 1: There will be two types of voting; procedural voting and session voting. 

Section 2: Procedural voting will be when an issue is brought before the board at a meeting for discussion and not voted upon until a future designated meeting, leaving members the time to take the issue back to their affiliated associations to seek their opinions before placing a vote on the issue and allowing all Board of Directors an advance notice of the aforementioned voting. Procedural voting will take place as to any issues concerning the Local League Constitution, the Local League Rules and Regulations, and issues voted on at a session voting to be deemed a procedural voting issue. Notice must be given to all associations, officers, and Board of Directors as to the matter being voted upon, with the date, time and location of the meeting.

Section 3: Session voting will be when an issue is brought before the board at a meeting and voted upon at the same meeting. This type of voting will be for all issues in which decisions must be made in a timely manner to keep the daily operation of the league functioning. At no time can an issue concerning the Local League Constitution or the Local League Rules and Regulations be voted on at a session vote, but must always be a procedural vote. If a rare, special situation would arise that a session vote would be needed as to the Rules and Regulations; it would only be as a temporary vote until a procedural vote can take place, with the procedural vote taking precedence over the session vote.

Section 4: Voting takes place via the secure portal given by the Board of Directors. Appointed members will be given a login and password to vote. Voting will take place during set times arranged by the Board of Directors.

Section 5: Upon a tie vote the current president will have a one-time voting privilege to break the tie.

Section 6: Virtual Attendance via video conferencing shall be permissible if a member of the board of directors (league officer or appointed member) is unable to attend in person. In person attendance is always preferred, and no virtual attendance will be made available for non voting members. 

With the formation of Central Keystone Youth Football and Cheer League, the Local League decided to adopt the most current form of PIAA rules and regulations for football and cheer. Any additional rules and regulations beyond standard PIAA rules and regulations must be voted on by the league board and appointed members and will be notated in a formal league rules and regulation handbook.

These Bylaws may be altered, amended or repealed and new Bylaws may be adopted by a majority vote of the Board of Directors, requiring two-third being present, of the Local League at a regular scheduled meeting of the Local League, or at a special meeting called and announced one week prior as to the date, time, location, and purpose of considering amendments. If voted on at a regular scheduled meeting all Board of Directors must be informed that an amendment is being considered and what meeting this will take place.