Texas Trails Bassmasters Bylaws  

Revised December 18, 2010

 www.texastrailsbassmasters.com                                                                              

1.        Meetings  Meetings of the Texas Trails Bassmasters (TTB) will be held after a tournament weigh in. There will also be a meeting at the club Christmas party. For each meeting attended and for participation in any club-sponsored event the member will receive 15 points to be applied to their total points standings during the fiscal year.

2.         Agendas  To facilitate the efficient and professional conduct of meetings of a reasonable length, the president and secretary will set an agenda for each TTB meeting.  Any member with ideas or discussion points may request that the items be placed on the agendas at meetings of their choice. 

3.         Dues/Membership  TTB dues are $30.00 per person per year, payable November 1st each year, or at the time an individual wishes to join Texas Trails Bassmasters.  These dues are for the purpose of conducting club business and defraying expenses of some club functions. 

A potential new member must be sponsored by an existing member  with at least a two year tenure in the club.

4.        Insurance Requirements  Each club member who is also a boat owner must provide Texas Trails Bassmasters club with proof of current boat liability insurance coverage in an amount of no less than $100,000.00.  No boat provider, whether member or guest participant, will be allowed to enter any club-sponsored tournament using his or her boat without an insurance document on file with the TTB secretary.  

5.         Scheduling of Club Tournaments

a.         Two lakes will be scheduled at the last meeting , members may nominate up to two lakes for each month for club tournaments, if club tournaments are desired for any of those particular months.  To be selected as a tournament lake, the lake must receive a simple majority of votes of the members present at the meeting.  Examples:  At the December meeting, lakes may be chosen for January and February . At the February meeting, lakes may be chosen for March and April, ect.    Following selection of a month’s lake, the day’s date for the tournament will be decided by a simple majority.  The club must fish at least one lake per tournament year that was not fished the previous tournament year.                    

b.         No lake will be scheduled in consecutive months.  Lakes may be scheduled more than once in a fiscal fishing season. 

c.         The TTB championship event will be conducted in November. It will be a two day tournament. The second day of the championship is also the first tournament of the new year. Both days will count for the current year toward angler of the year and club championship.

6.         Payback on Tournament Events  Texas Trails Bassmasters will retain 20% of all Tournament Entry Fees collected, and 0% of Big Bass Pot Entry Fees.  Only placements will be paid, and Texas Trails Bassmasters will retain any entry fees not paid out for placements.  (Example: If the tournament yields only one fish, that contestant will be paid first place only, and will not be paid for second or third places.  The fish may qualify for the Big Bass Pot if entered.)  Individual payback from the remaining 80% will be dispersed as follows:

a.         1-25 entries     Three places at 50%/30%/20%

b.         26-50 entries     Four places at 40%/30%/20%/10%

c.         Big Bass pot will pay back 100%

d.         Additional payments from the club treasury may be added by club vote.

7.         Guest Contestants  A member who has fished with the club for at least six months may bring a guest to fish any club event.  This guest may fish only one event each fiscal year.  The guest then must join Texas Trails Bassmasters and pay all dues and fees to be eligible to fish the remaining club tournaments in that fiscal year.  The guest must fish with the member that invited him or her to fish the tournament.  If their guest fishes with them as a boater, the guest must provide proof of current boat liability insurance coverage in an amount of no less than $100,000.00. 

8.        Yearly Point Standings will be determined by a points and pound system.  [Example: 1st place will receive 100 points, 2nd place will receive 99 points, etc. combined with the actual pounds weighed in.]  Any contestant not weighing a fish will receive 50 points for participating in the tournament. 

9.        Championship Tournament Qualifications  will be limited to club members only.  An angler must fish in at least eight tournaments and attend at least two of the clubs three functions. ( (The club has two open tournament events and also helps with the Kid Fish event) The yearly “Top Six” individuals will determine entry fees and the format for the Club Championship.  The results from the Club Championship  will be used along with each member’s yearly points standings to determine the Texas Trails Bassmasters club Angler Of The Year. 

10.       Dropped Tournaments  Each club member must drop two tournaments from his or her total points standing for each fiscal season.  The two lowest tournament scores must be dropped and a total of the remaining events will be used to determine his or her total points for the year.


11       Second Party Presence  A contestant fishing in a club sponsored tournament is not permitted to have another person in the same boat with him or her unless that second person is a qualified guest or a club member. (See Guest Rule 7 above.)

12.       Expense Sharing  A tournament non-boater is responsible for paying the boater $20 to help cover the operating expenses of the boat, payable prior to take off.

13.       Grievances  A grievance committee consisting of four members, two of which are the Tournament Director and Club President, will address all grievances by any club member.  The grievance committee cannot change any club Bylaws or Tournament Rules.  The president will be responsible for appointing the remaining two members of the grievance committee.  No member of the grievance committee will be involved in the grievance; if the Tournament Director or President is involved he or she will not participate in the committee. 

14.       Bylaws and Tournament Rules  The Bylaws  and Tournament Rules, tournament dates, or tournament lakes and locations may be amended or changed by an affirmative vote from a majority of the club membership present at such proceedings.  Except for his or her safety decisions, the Tournament Director will be responsible for polling all club members concerning any changes to the tournament schedule.

15.        Official Logo    The logo is available at S&A Outdoor Wear, 405 S. Hart St., Suite 98, Quitman, TX., 903-763-2191 toll free 866-7915.

16.        Officer and Chairman Positions  The activities of this organization will be administered by incumbents of the following positions:

                        a.         Chapter President

                        b.         Chapter Vice President which will include responsibilities as:

                                                1. Tournament Director, 2. Program Chairman, and

                                                3. Conservation Chairman

                         c.        Chapter Secretary/Treasurer

                         d.        Chapter Webmaster/Publicity Chairman

                         e.        Chapter Youth Chairman (optional)

                         f.         Chapter Photographer (optional)                       

Officers of this organization are the President, the Vice President and the Secretary/Treasurer.  Either the President, the Vice President, or the Secretary/Treasurer is authorized to conduct banking business and each has signature authority for banking instruments including checks and drafts on the bank account(s) of Texas Trails Bassmasters.  The Secretary/Treasurer is authorized to select a banking company with which to conduct the business of the organization.  The President is authorized to execute and sign administrative requirements concerning the organization’s Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN).

Officer elections will be conducted as determined by the club membership (typically at the December meeting)  and new officers will assume responsibilities effective at their election.  Anyone interested in holding any of the offices should advise the Chapter Secretary/Treasurer before the ballot is presented. 

17.        Fiscal Year  The TTB fiscal year is from November 1, through October 31.