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ARTICLE I	Name
	Section 1. The name of the Section shall be the Southwest Section of the U.S.F.A. Section 2. The Executive Committee may also be referred to as the EC. The Southwest Section may also be referred to as the Section.
ARTICLE II	Membership
	Section 1. The Southwest Section shall consist of the Ark-La-Miss, Border Texas, Gulf Coast, Louisiana, North Texas, Oklahoma, and South Texas divisions, U.S.F.A., and any divisions in territory immediately contiguous thereto, provided it requests and obtains the consent of the Southwest Executive Committee and the Board of Governors of the U.S.F.A. at least one month prior to the date of the next scheduled championships. Section 2. Membership in the Southwest Section shall be limited to members of the component divisions.
ARTICLE III	Management
	Section 1. The management of the Section shall be vested in the Southwest Executive Committee composed of the Chair of each Division in the Section, the Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary and Treasurer of the Section( the Section officers) and the Director to the USFA Board. Any unfilled Section office may be appointed by the incoming Executive Committee from among members of the Section if the position is not filled through general election at the annual Section meeting. Section 2. The Executive Committee shall conduct annual Section Championships and shall have other such powers as may be designated by the Board of Directors of the U.S.F.A. Section 3. The Executive Committee shall be vested with the full power of managing the affairs of the Section, subject to the Constitution and Bylaws of the U.S.F.A. Section 4. Meetings of the Executive Committee may be called by the Chairman at such times as the business of the Section warrants. It shall be the duty of the Chairman to call a meeting upon the request of not less than two of the members of the committee. Section 5. At any meeting of the Executive Committee, the quorum shall be not less than five (5) members from three (3) divisions. Section 6. The Executive Committee shall have the power to formulate, establish, and publish the rules governing designated Section competitions, these rules at no time to conflict with the U.S.F.A. rules of competition. Section 7. The Executive Committee shall have the power to appoint such committees as it deems necessary to conduct the business and activities of the section. Section 8. There shall be elected at the annual meeting a Vice-Chair whose term of office shall be for one (1) year, from August 1 to the following July 31, and should be a member of the Section in good standing. Section 9. There shall be elected at the annual meeting a Secretary whose term of office shall be for one (1) year, from August 1 to the following July 31, and should be a member of the Section in good standing. Section 10. There shall be elected at the annual meeting a Treasurer whose term of office shall be for one (1) year, from August 1 to the following July 31, and should be a member of the Section in good standing. Section 11. There shall be elected at the annual meeting a Director to the USFA Board of Directors, and an alternate Director, whose term of office shall be for one (1) year, from August 1 to the following July 31 or until their successor shall have been elected and qualify, and should be a member of the Section in good standing. Section 12. A tournament President shall be appointed/elected by the Division Executive Committee in which the Sectional Championships are to be held (in order to facilitate his/her duties in connection with them), whose term of office shall be for one year, from August 1 to the following July 31, and the Section Executive Committee shall be notified by August 1 of the appointment. If the host Division is unable to fill or replace the position within two weeks of a vacancy of that position, the Section EC shall appoint a President to serve the remainder of the term. Section 13 Specific details of the Section business may be further addressed in the Section Operations Manual. Modifications of the Section Operations Manual shall occur with a majority vote of the EC.
ARTICLE IV	Duties of Officers
	Section 1. The Chairman of the Executive Committee shall preside at all meetings of the Section and at the meetings of the managing body. Section 2. The Chair shall, in close collaboration with the tournament President, the officers of the Section, and with the approval of the Executive Committee, plan all the details of the Section Championships, schedule the time and place for the Championships and the annual meeting of the Section, select and purchase awards, and such other matters as are necessary for the holding of the Section Championships. The Chair of the Section shall become a member of the USFA Congress but will not be entitled to more than one vote. Section 3. The Vice-Chair shall assist the Chair in special Section projects (i.e. a Section web-site, the Section Circuit and the Regional Youth Circuit, directorÕs and armourerÕs clincis) and other special projects as the Chair shall undertake. Section 4. The Secretary shall conduct all official correspondence, other than such correspondence that shall pertain to the activities of the Chair of the EC and the President; keep a record of all meetings of the Section and the EC; issue notices to the membership of all meetings of the Section; perform all such duties that may be assigned by the EC. The minutes should be mailed or e-mailed to the members of the EC and posted on the Section web-site within 30 days following an official Sectional meeting. The Secretary shall, at the annual meetings, submit a report at the Section meeting on the activities of the previous fiscal year. Section 5. The Treasurer shall keep the accounts of the Section; receive all fees, dues, etc..., pay all bills approved by the EC, and perform all such duties that may be assigned by the EC. The Treasurer shall, at the annual meetings, submit a report of the financial transactions of the previous fiscal year. The Treasurer shall submit his records for audit, if requested, by the Executive Committee. Section 6. The Director to the USFA Board of Directors shall represent the interests of the Southwest Section to the USFA Board of Directors meetings, and shall report via mail or e-mail to the EC the results of the Board of Directors meetings, and shall be in attendance at the annual Sectional meetings to discuss with the Section membership issues pertaining to the USFA Board of DirectorsÕ activities. In the absence of the Director from a meeting of the USFA Board of Directors, the elected Alternate Director may attend and exercise at such meeting the powers of the absent Director pursuant to procedures and guidelines adopted by the Board of Directors or the USFA Executive Committee.
ARTICLE V	Meetings and Elections
	Section 1. The annual business meeting of the Section shall be held at the time of and in the same city as the Section Championships. At least thirty (30) days notice of the time and place of the Annual Meeting shall be given to the Chairman of each Division so that he may notify the members of that Division. td> Section 2. Any vacancy that may occur in the offices of Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer or Director to the USFA Congress shall be filled for the unexpired term by appointment made by the Executive Committee of the Section. Section 3. Signed, dated proxy votes by eligible voters will be allowed at the Sectional meeting. An eligible voter is a member of the Southwest Section in good standing who is age 18 or older and a USFA member as of February 1 of the year in which the Section meeting is held.
ARTICLE VI	Dues
	Section 1. The annual Sectional dues for Active and Junior Members shall be determined by the Board of Governors of the U.S.F.A., and shall be forwarded to the Sectional Treasurer by the National Treasurer.
ARTICLE VII	Southwest Championships
	Section 1. The Southwest Section Championships shall be held annually between April 15 and May 10 (inclusive) unless changed by a majority vote of the Executive Commitee. The Championships shall be held on a rotation basis according to the following order of invitations: (1) Oklahoma; (2) South Texas; (3) Ark-La-Miss; (4) North Texas; (5) Border Texas; (6) Louisiana; (7) Gulf Coast. In the event that the Division whose turn it is to host the Championships fails to accommodate the invitation, that Division then goes to the bottom of the list. The next Division then being eligible shall be asked to tender an invitation. Section 2. The Southwest Championships shall include individual, and junior championship events, as well as prize competitions in individual events, as may be designated by the Executive Committee. Section 3. All member Division of the Section shall support the annual Sectional Championships as provided in the USFA bylaws. Section 4. No Southwest Championships shall be held in any scheduled event unless competitors from at least two Divisions actually participate.
ARTICLE VIII	Discipline
	Section 1. The disciplinary powers of the Executive Committee shall be limited to competitive penalties of expulsion and exclusion. All other discipline shall be referred to the offending memberÕs Division or to the Board of Directors of the U.S.F.A.
ARTICLE IX	Amendments
	Section 1. Amendments become effective August 1 following the Section annual meeting in which they were approved by a majority vote of the eligible voting members (including proxy votes). Section 2. Proposed bylaw amendments shall be published as part of the notification of the annual Section meeting.