Bylaws

Article I: Name

The name of the Corporation shall be Scioto Southland Civic Association, Inc.
Hereafter known as “SSCA”.,’ the “Association”, or the “organization”.

Article II: Place of Office

The place in Ohio where the principal office of the corporation is to be located shall be the City of Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio.

Article III: Boundaries

The physical boundaries of the association area shall be an area bounded in the
Northwest corner by the intersection of the Scioto River and State Route 104, following State Route 104 E to the CSX railroad tracks to Williams Rd. East to the intersection of Williams Rd. and Groveport Road, Southeasterly to Hamilton Rd./ State Route 317, S ot Pontius Rd. south ot the Franklin County line on the South, Wto Jackson Pike/ State Route 104, Nto Interstate 270, East ot the Scioto River, and North to State Route 104 (excluding the village of Obetz, the village of Groveport, the village of Lockbourne, incorporated portions of Grove City, Hamilton Township, Jackson Township, Madison Township, and Truro Township).

Article IV: Organizational Purpose

  1. An exclusive charitable and educational organization that provides leadership for the association area through regularly scheduled meetings and programs for the purpose of sharing information, raising issues, and reaching consensus.
  2. To interact and cooperate with other community organizations, boards, commissions, governmental bodies and city leaders as the Scioto Southland Civic Association, in order to assist the residents, tenants, landowners and business people within the association area in meeting their civic needs and presenting their opinions to the community.
  3. To provide information and otherwise cooperate with the requests of boards,
    commissions, and other governmental bodies as the Scioto Southland Civic Association.
  4. To study the social, economic, and civic needs of the association area.
  5. To protect the general welfare and unity of the association area, as a non- commercial, non-partisan, non-sectarian association.
  6. To improve the association area through public and private programs; To promote restoration, preservation, and maintenance of the association area.
  7. To encourage development in accordance with the guidelines of the Scioto Southland Area Plan as adopted by the City of Columbus and to do all things necessary to effectuate these goals.
  8. To engage in any other lawful act, activity or business not contrary to and for which a not-for-profit corporation may be formed under the laws of the State of Ohio and to have and exercise all powers conferred by the laws of the state of Ohio on not-for-profit corporations.

Article V: Restrictions

  1. No part of the net earnings of the corporation shall inure to the benefit of any private individual or entity.
  2. No substantial part of the activities of the corporation shall be carrying on propaganda or otherwise attempting to influence legislation except as provided in section 501(h) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954.
  3. The corporation shall not participate in, or intervene in, any political campaign on behalf of any candidate for public office.
  4. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in these articles of incorporation the corporation may not engage in any activity which is not permitted to be engaged in by an organization under section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Service Code.

Article VI: Membership

  1. The organization shall be open to al persons, businesses and organizations that reside, own property, or operate within the boundaries of the association. Occasionally, person(s) that show a vested interest in the community and who may not reside, own property, or operate a business within the physical boundary stated in Article III will be accepted with membership status to the group. This decision is made by a simple majority vote of the members present and voting at the meeting.
  2. Membership shall be governed by such additional qualifications as may
    be established from time to time by the Scioto Southland Civic Association membership. All changes to membership requirements shall be made in writing to these bylaws and shall be voted upon by the membership and approved by a majority of members present and voting at the meeting.
  3. Membership shall be based upon address and/or family unity/voting membership for a household will be for each dues paying resident of that address that is age 18 and over and each member shall have one vote.
  4. Membership application for businesses and/for corporations will be restricted to the owner or to officers from the organization’s membership for business providing that address with one vote in matters of organization business.

Article VII: Dues

  1. Dues for members will be collected annually at the monthly meeting in June. The dues shall be $5.00 (Five Dollars) per member per residential address. The dues shall be $25.00 (Twenty-Five Dollars) per place of business/business address.
  2. Past presidents do not pay membership dues after they conclude their elected position. This is a courtesy and recognition extended to them for their service to the association.

Article VIII: Additional Funds and Donations

  1. The membership may be asked for voluntary donations to assist in defraying unexpected costs of the organization.
  2. Donations will be accepted from organizations and persons within and outside the boundaries of the organization. Donations will be recorded by the treasurer and a list of the donors and donations will be available at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the organization.
  3. Fundraising events will be approved by the trustees and the membership of the organization.
  4. If the Scioto Southland Civic Association should cease to exist or close, then the remaining membership shall hold a final business meeting. At that final business meeting, al members will hold a vote and select a local, not- for-profit organization that the remaining balance of our treasury (after payment of the Civic Association’s final expenses) will be donated to. Selection of this charitable organization will be made by a simple majority vote of those members in good standing present at the final meeting.

Article IX: Meetings

  1. The organization will meet regularly on the second Monday of each month at a location and time to be announced. If the regular meeting day is a legal holiday, the meeting will be moved to the following Monday. Attendance by at least four dues paying members in addition to at least two officers and trustees shall constitute a quorum, for a general meeting. For the purposes of a committee meeting, a simple majority of the committee members needs to be present to constitute a quorum.
  2. The monthly meeting in November will serve as the meeting at which elections of the officers will be held. Elections will be held by a secret written ballot. Nominations for officers will be received at the monthly meeting in October. The December meeting is NOT a regular business meeting, but instead it is the annual holiday gathering. If the need to hold business in December arises, a special meeting will be announced in advance. New officers will assume office on December 1st of the year.
  3. The trustees shall meet as needed to review actions of the organization and proposed courses of action from the body of the organization to ensure that such actions and/ or proposed actions do not violate the nonprofit charter of the organization.
  4. Committees will meet as needed to review developments in their areas of responsibility but may meet more frequently if necessary. Each committee shall report business, activities and/or findings to the general membership meeting on a regular basis.
  5. The officers of the organization shall meet at least once monthly to prepare new business for the general meeting and to invite presentations and/or speakers to the general meeting.

Article X: Trustees and Officers

  1. General
    • The officers of SSCA will be President, Vice President, Treasurer and Recording Secretary.
    • In the event of an unfilled office one officer, excluding the president, may be permitted to hold one additional office.
    • All officers must be current members of the organization and serve on the board of trustees.
    • All officers are limited to serving three consecutive terms in the same office. If a member has held office for three consecutive terms, he/she must sit out one year before running for the same office again. Said members) may, however, run for another office at any time.
    • The immediate past president may be on the board of trustees after their term as president has expired as an ex-officio, non-voting member.
    • The minimum number of trustees needed for the Board of Trustees is 5 not including the immediate past President. The maximum number is 9.
  2. Trustees
    • The organization shall be controlled and managed under the direction of a board of trustees. The names and addresses of persons who will serve as the trustees of the corporation/ organization are:
      • Curtis Brown
      • Reba Jones
      • Pam Richards
      • Marsha Kessler
      • Judy Campbell
      • William Palmer
  3. President
    • The president of the organization will be elected by the membership for a period of one year. The president will preside over the monthly and any special meetings of the organization.
    • The president will serve as an ex officio member of all committees.
    • The president shall appoint members to standing and special committees of the SCA. The president will perform other duties associated with the office as required.
  4. Vice President
    • The Vice President shall be elected by the membership for a period of one year and shall fulfill the duties of the President in the event of the President’s absence.
  5. Recording Secretary
    • The Recording Secretary shall be elected by the membership for a period of one year and shall keep minutes of general membership meetings and the meetings of the officers of the organization. Additionally, the Recording Secretary will be responsible for receiving and handling al correspondence on behalf of the organization and at the request of the President.
  6. Treasurer
    • The Treasurer shall be elected by the membership for a period of one year and shall be responsible for the collection of dues, donations, and funds. The Treasurer shall manage the distribution and administration of grant monies. The Treasurer shall be responsible for the disbursement of monies to defray the expenses of the organization.
    • The Treasurer shall present a financial report at the regularly scheduled monthly meeting and exercise all duties incident to the officer of Treasurer including compliance with all fiscal requirements of all grants and other federal regulations pertaining to 501 c (4) organizations.
    • The Scioto Southland Civic Association will file their 501 (c) 4 tax documents with the Internal Revenue Service and the State of Ohio in the month of December, as this month is the close of our fiscal year.

Article XI: Standing Committees

The President shall appoint all committees and a chairperson of each committee. Committees shall consist of at least the chairperson and two other members. The standing committees of this organization will be the Executive Committee, Audit Committee and Community Relations Committee.

  1. The appointments to the committees will be made at the 1st monthly meeting in January and will be for a term of one year.
  2. A vacancy will be filled in the manner of the original selection.
  3. The president shall serve as an ex officio member of all committees.
  4. The president will appoint a chair of each committee and will designate at least two other members to serve on the committee.
  5. All committees will be required to make a report at the monthly meeting.
    • The Executive Committee shall consist of the President, Vice President, Recording Secretary and Treasurer. The Executive Committee shall meet quarterly to evaluate the plans for Scioto Southland Civic Association activities.
    • The Audit Committee will consist of an officer other than the Treasurer and two additional general members to oversee the integrity of SSCA financial statements and compliance with legal and regulatory requirements. The audit committee will meet biannually.
    • The Community Relations Committee will promote the activities and existence of the Scioto Southland Civic Association to the community including residents, businesses, other individuals, and organizations. The committee will also promote safety, health, recreation, and social services in the area and make recommendations concerning such. This committee will meet as directed by the committee chair.

Other committees may be formed by the Scioto Southland Civic Association as needed and wil follow the same organizational structure and rules as above. Any committee formed will have to present regular reports to the membership of the organization and will have to operate within the guidelines of the bylaws.

Article XII: Code of Conduct

Members of the Scioto Southland Civic Association shall treat other members and guests of our organization with respect and consideration regardless of the others opinion, income, homeowner or renter status, political affiliation, race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, age, disability, familial status, or military status as defined in Columbus City Code

No member of our organization who is not a member of a committee, an officer or board member, or who si not acting with the direct written permission of an officer or board member, has the authorization/permission to represent the Scioto Southland Civic Association in any manner. To do such is an expellable offense with no warning needed. For all other offenses against the by-laws, an initial violation of these guidelines will result in a verbal warning by the presiding officer of the meeting. Asecond violation will result in the offending members removal from the meeting. Repeated failure to adhere to this rule is grounds for removal from the organization; such removal will occur upon a 2/3 affirmative vote for removal by the membership present and voting at a regular monthly meeting of the organization. The decision of the membership is final.

Article XIII: Parliamentary Authority

The most recent version of Roberts’ Rules of Order shall govern the conduct of our
organization and meetings in all cases to which they are applicable and not inconsistent with these bylaws.

Article XIV: Amendments

Amendments to the By-laws shall be adopted by a majority vote of the membership present and voting at any regularly scheduled meeting. Reviews of these by-laws shall be handled by the executive committee members or by special written request of any dues paid member. Any review of the by-laws that results in changes will require such changes to be voted on by the membership as above. To be valid, all pages of this document must be initialed by the signer, and dated except the last, which must be signed and dated except the last, which must be signed and dated.

Approved on this date by a vote of the membership:

July 2nd 2024