Article 1. MEMBERSHIP

1. Any person, 18 years of age or above, and citizen or legal resident of US and residing in VA, MD or DC, irrespective of caste, creed, color, race, sex, or national origin, who subscribes to the objectives of SFV and participates regularly in its activities and devotes time to SFV, may apply for membership. Membership will be denied to an individual with a criminal record.
2. Membership application form duly filled and signed, shall be submitted in person to the Board of Trustees for approval. If application is not approved, the Board shall give reason(s); the applicant may then appeal to the General Body in the next regularly scheduled meeting. However, it may then be resubmitted after a period of one year.
3. The membership fee per person shall be as follows, unless otherwise determined by a majority of the voting members from time to time:

   Full-time Student	$11.00 annually.
   General Member	$31.00 initially and annually thereafter
   Life Member	$1100.00 lump sum
   Contributing Trustee	$1100.00 initially $551.00 annually thereafter
   Patron	$2500.00 lump sum

4. Donation for the Gurdwara shall not be automatically contributed toward membership unless specifically requested.
5. Voting: All ongoing membership dues must be paid in person or by mail postmarked by December 31st in order to be voting member in good standing for the following year. All new membership dues must be paid at least 90 days prior to voting in the General Body meeting.
6. All members not attending 3 consecutive general body meetings (annual) shall be inactive for quorum.

Article II. GENERAL BODY (GENERAL MEMBERSHIP)

1. Members who meet the requirements of Article I of the By-Laws shall constitute the General Body of SFV. The General body is the ultimate power of all the functional bodies of SFV.
2. Annual General Body meeting shall be held before Baisakhi, in the month of March, and annual election shall be conducted at this meeting. The charge should be handed over to the new officebearers on first Sunday after Baisakhi.
3. A report on the activities of SFV, including its financial activity shall be presented at this meeting. All records and registers shall be brought up-to-date two weeks before election.
4. At least two weeks notice shall be given to the voting members, advising the date, time, place, and agenda of the meeting of the General Body.
5. Special meeting(s) of the General Body may be convened upon a written request, specifying the issue(s) to be discussed by at least 25 percent of the General Body membership or by the Board of Trustees.
6. All meetings of the General Body will be presided over by the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees, or an appointed representative from the Board.
7. At least seven days written notice shall be required for any proposal(s) for the inclusion/consideration of additional item(s) on the agenda of General Body meetings.
8. The quorum for the General Body meeting shall be constituted by the presence of one-third of the voting members.
9. A notice of the General Body meeting shall be mailed to the voting members at the last known address.
10. Any item may be added to the agenda at the General Body meeting itself by a simple majority vote.
11. The General Body membership strength shall be limited not to exceed three hundred and fifty one (351) members. No new members shall be added when the 351- membership strength is achieved.

Article III. BOARD OF TRUSTEES

1. The Board of Trustees shall consist of 15 members, 12 contributing trustees, and 3 elected trustees. These numbers may be increased by amendment of these By-Laws.
2. A contributing trustee will be approved by a simple majority of the Board of Trustees present and voting, and by a simple majority of the General Body present and voting.
3. The term of a contributing trustee shall be for a minimum of 10 years. After a full strength of 12 contributing trustees has been reached, two contributing trustees shall retire annually on a seniority basis.
4. The term of a contributing trustee shall begin on the date of approval by the General Body. Seniority for retirement purposes shall be determined by the date of application.
5. If a contributing trustee fails to pay the annual dues by December 31st, he or she shall automatically disqualify himself or herself from the Board of Trustees. In such an event or for any other reason, a contributing trustee ceases to be an active member of the Board of Trustees but shall remain a life member of SFV.
6. An elected trustee shall be elected by a simple majority of the General Body for a period of one year.
7. The entire Board of Trustees shall elect among themselves the Officebearers, consisting of a Chairperson, a Secretary, a Treasurer, and a Public Relations Officer (PRO) for a term of one year.
8. The entire Board of Trustees shall form a Management Committee consisting of seven trustees (four contributing and three elected trustees which includes the officebearers).
9. The Board of Trustees shall manage all financial and policy matters of the Sikh Foundation of Virginia, and through its Management Committee shall carry out day-to-day activities of SFV, it being clearly understood that Management Committee members individually and collectively are accountable to the Board of Trustees for their actions.
10. Requirements of a Trustee
    
    1. A member eligible to be a trustee shall have been an active participant in Gurdwara activities and a paid member for one year in good standing, willing, and be able to devote time for SFV.
    2. A trustee shall meet the requirements of Article I of the By-Laws and applicable requirements of Article III of the By-Laws.
    3. A trustee shall attend at least 50% of the regularly scheduled meetings, and shall not miss more than three consecutive meetings. If a trustee fails to fulfill this requirement or requirement 10b above, he or she shall cease to remain on the Board.
    4. A voting member shall apply for the position of a contributing trustee on a prescribed form. The Board of Trustees shall then review the said application and accept or reject the application by a two-thirds majority present and voting. All applications for contributing trustees, accepted or rejected by the BOT, shall be presented to the General Body for final decision.
    5. A member eligible to be an officebearer of SFV shall not hold a similar office in a parallel organization.
11. Meetings of the Board of Trustees
    
    1. The Board of Trustees shall meet within two weeks of the annual election to elect the officebearers.
    2. The Board of Trustees shall meet at least once every two months; and
    3. At all meetings of the Board of Trustees, a majority of the trustees must be present to constitute a quorum.
12. The Board of Trustees may invite any person to attend its meetings and offer suggestions. Such a person, however, shall not participate in the Board voting.
13. The Board of Trustees may appoint, from time to time, special committees on behalf of SFV. The term and exact functions of the committee shall be clearly defined by the Board of Trustees.
14. The Board of Trustees may appoint delegate(s) to any national or international organization. The role of such delegate(s) shall be clearly defined by the Board of Trustees.
    
    1. The delegate must be a member in good standing for one year; and
    2. The delegate must be familiar with the constitution, by-laws, and workings of SFV.
15. Duties of Officebearers
    
    1. Chairperson
       
       1. shall preside over all meeting of the Board of Trustees and of the General Body, and shall be an ex-officio member of any other committee formed by the Board of Trustees;
       2. In the absence of Chairperson, he or she shall appoint one of the trustees to preside over the meeting;
       3. shall countersign minutes of all meetings;
       4. shall countersign all checks over $500.00;
       5. shall sign jointly with the Secretary and Treasurer any agreements or contracts entered on behalf of SFV; and
       6. shall perform in general all duties incidental to the Office of Chairperson.
    2. Secretary
       
       1. shall keep minutes of all meetings of the Board of Trustees and the General Body of SFV;
       2. shall send copies of minutes to all members of the Board of Trustees;
       3. shall attend to giving and serving of all notices;
       4. shall prepare the agenda for the meetings of the Board of Trustees and the General Body;
       5. shall, when so required, affix the seal of SFV to all bonds, contract, and other obligations as authorized by the Board of Trustees;
       6. shall act as Master of Ceremonies at all religious functions;
       7. shall send notice of the Board of Trustees meetings to all the patrons; and
       8. shall, in general, perform all duties incidental to the office of Secretary.
    3. Treasurer
       
       1. shall have custody of all funds and securities of SFV;
       2. shall, when necessary and proper, endorse on behalf of SFV checks, notes, and other obligations in such bank or banks or depository as the Board of Trustees may designate from time to time;
       3. shall sign all receipts and vouchers for payment made to SFV, whenever required by the Board of Trustees;
       4. shall keep detailed accounts of cash received and the expenditures in books provided for this purpose;
       5. shall render statement of accounts whenever called upon to do so by the Board of Trustees and will prepare the quarterly financial statement and display it on the notice board.
       6. shall have accounting books readily available for inspection by the members of the Board of Trustees after a reasonable notice and a mutually agreed to time and place;
       7. shall keep account of assets and debts of SFV;
       8. checks and drafts drawn on behalf of SFV shall be signed by the Treasurer and either the Chairperson or the Secretary it being understood that any check over $500.00 shall be countersigned by the Chairperson also; and
       9. shall, in general, perform all duties incidental to the office of the Treasurer.
    4. Public Relations Officer
       
       1. Shall act as a spokesperson for SFV and shall carry out all promotional activities of SFV as approved by the Board of Trustees.
16. The Chairperson, Secretary, and the Treasurer shall be empowered to sanction expenditures up to five hundred dollars ($500.00) at one time for each item. Any expenditure over this limit shall be budgeted and authorized by the Board of Trustees.

Article IV. PATRON

1. A voting member who meets the requirements of Article I shall qualify as a patron of the Sikh Foundation of Virginia.
2. The patron is a life member of SFV.
3. The patron shall have the privilege to attend all Board meetings but shall not participate in Board voting.

Article V. ELECTION

1. An election committee appointed by the Board of Trustees shall be responsible for conducting an annual election.
2. The election committee shall propose a slate of qualified members to be nominated to the Board of Trustees.
3. The General Body has the right to nominate from the floor any qualified member at the time of election.
4. All elections shall be held by a secret ballot, unless election is unanimous or uncontested.

Article VI. VOTING

1. All business, whether it be by the Board of Trustees, or the General Body, shall be adopted by a majority vote of members present and voting, or as mentioned under Article III and Article X.
2. Voting for approval of contributing trustee shall be held by a secret ballot.

Article VII. AUDITS

1. The accounts of SFV shall be audited by two persons appointed by the Board of Trustees or under their direction. The accounts of the SFV shall also be audited by an outsider auditor. The auditor's report shall be submitted to the Board of Trustees for review and then circulated to the General Body prior to the General Body meeting for final approval.

Article VIII. ASSETS AND LIABILITIES

Assets and liabilities of SFV shall be administered by the Board of Trustees. No member of the Board of Trustees shall, however, be personally held responsible for any liability of SFV.

Article IX. ACTIVITIES AT THE PREMISES

1. The Sikh Foundation of Virginia Gurdwara's main hall of worship and other designated areas shall be limited to the performance of Sikh religious activities.
2. The Sikh tradition shall always be maintained in the conduct of any or all activities at the Gurdwara premises.
3. Other cultural activities may take place in areas designated by the Board of Trustees away from the main hall of worship.

Article X. NO-CONFIDENCE MOTION(S)

1. No-confidence motion can be moved against any officebearer of SFV with written endorsement of at least 25 percent of the voting members. A General Body meeting shall be called within 60 days to discuss the no-confidence motion. Such a resolution shall require for its passage the approval of the two-thirds majority of the members of the General Body present and voting. In such an event, a new election may take place in accordance with Article III of the By-Laws to fill the vacancy.

 Article XI. AMENDMENT(S)

1. All amendments shall be submitted in writing to the Board of Trustees three (3) months before the General Body meeting. The Board shall assemble the amendments and study the impact of various amendments.
2. These By-Laws can be amended on the approval of both two-thirds majority of the Board of Trustees and by two-thirds majority of the General Body present and voting at a duly called meeting, after a written notice of two weeks, embodying such amendment(s), has been given to all members, stating the date, time, and place of the meeting.
3. If an amendment is defeated, the same amendment or amendment with similar intent may be resubmitted after a period of one year.

Constitution and By-Laws of the Sikh Foundation of Virginia were amended to facilitate better operation of the organization. This copy represents Constitution and By-Laws as approved in General Body meetings held on March 23, 1991, February 27, 2000, March 11, 2001, March 17, 2002, and March 13, 2005 at The Gurdwara Sahib, 7250 Ox Road, Fairfax Station, Virginia 22039.