Constitution & By-Laws

A. Election

The officers for the Board of Directors shall be elected at the Summer General Meeting in June. Those officers shall be President, First Vice-President, Second Vice-President, Director of Programs, Secretary, Treasurer, Registrar, Arbitrator and seven Coordinators. The immediate Past President shall be a member of the Board with all voting rights. Those elected will assume office upon adjournment of the meeting.

All Officers shall be elected in the Summer General Meeting and shall serve two-year terms. The President, Second Vice President, Registrar, Treasurer and three Coordinators shall be elected in even years and the First Vice President, Secretary, Arbitrator, Director of Programs, and remaining four Coordinators elected in odd years.

B. Eligibility for League Office

No individual club shall control, at any time, more than 25 percent of the voting strength of the Board of Directors.

A candidate or Board member’s affiliation shall be determined by the Nominating Committee according to the following sequential criteria:

• The candidate or Board member holds a position on a club’s Board of Directors or governing body.
• The candidate or Board member is a coach of a club’s team.
• The child or spouse of a candidate or Board member is a member of a club.
• The candidate’s or Board member’s last affiliation or long-standing affiliation with a club.

The Nominating Committee has sole discretion in determining Board affiliations with clubs. Appeals of their decisions must be submitted to the Appeals Committee according to League policy and by laws.

If a club exceeds 25 percent representation on the Board, the Club will indicate to the League which Board member(s) is to be withdrawn from the Board to be in compliance with the 25 percent rule. The club must notify the League in writing within ten days of the election, or all Board members from the club will be temporarily suspended from the Board until the club complies. The club has sole discretion in determining which Board member will resign.

C. Removal and Resignation from Office

Any member of the Board of Directors absenting himself/herself from 3 successive meetings without adequate reason, who fails to discharge his/her duties or who resigns may have his/her office declared vacant by two-thirds vote of the Board. In the event of any vacancy, a majority of the remaining Directors may fill such vacancy until the next regular general meeting.

D. Conflicts of Interest

1. No transaction involving remuneration or any other benefit to an Officer or a Coordinator or a member of the Officer or Coordinator’s immediate family, or to an organization of which an Officer or a Coordinator or a member of the Officer or Director’s immediate family is an officer, director or a controlling stockholder or in which any such person has a substantial interest, shall be entered into by HVYSL without full disclosure by the interested Officer or Coordinator and the approval of the Board of Directors in the manner provided in HVYSL’s Constitution and these by-laws and unless the transaction is fair and reasonable to HVYSL. Common or interested Officers and Coordinators shall be counted in determining the presence of a quorum. The transaction must be authorized by unanimous written consent, provided at least one (1) Officer or Coordinator so consenting is disinterested, or by affirmative vote of a majority of the disinterested Officers and Coordinators, even though the disinterested Officers and Coordinators be less than a quorum.
2. Every Officer and Coordinator, in a manner and form prescribed by the Board of Directors, shall, as a condition of the office, be required to fully disclose any area of conflict of interest and must as a condition of office immediately disclose any conflict of interest that may arise following the initial disclosure.
3. Officers and Coordinators may not be employees of the HVYSL; however, an Officer or Coordinator may provide services to HVYSL as an independent contractor, if such contract is approved by the Board.
4. It is expected that all Officers and Coordinators will use their best efforts to avoid the appearance of impropriety with respect to any matters that may come before the Board.

A. Standing Committees

The Rules Committee shall consider and propose amendments to the Constitution and By-Laws. It shall have all matters of rules referred to it and meet whenever necessary.

The Registration Committee shall have charge of all matters concerning club and player registration and be chaired by the Registrar. This committee is composed of the President, Registrar and Secretary.

The Publicity Committee shall handle all matters pertaining to League publicity and be chaired by the Second Vice-President.

The Arbitration Committee shall handle all matters pertaining to League arbitration and be chaired by the Arbitrator.

The Screening Committee shall review and make recommendations to the Board of Directors with respect to applications for Full, Travel Only, Guest, or Temporary club membership in the League. The application must be presented to the Delegates for a motion to accept. Notice of a membership application must be sent to all member clubs 14 days in advance of the Delegates' meeting at which the acceptance vote is to be held.

The Tournament Committee shall be in charge of running tournaments sponsored by the League.

The Coordinator Committee shall have charge of all matters concerning games sponsored by the League and of all championship tournaments and shall be chaired by the Games Chairman.

Additional standing committees may be created by the Board of Directors as necessary.

The Registrar’s Committee shall review and rule on all player transfer requests and shall consist of the Registrar ( as chair ) and at least two other members.

The Supervisory Committee shall review and rule on all non-game related issues of behavior detrimental to EHYSL and shall set penalties where appropriate. It shall consist of at least three appointees chosen by the President with the assistance and approval of the Board of Directors

The Programs Committee will oversee the supplemental training offered HVYSL, included but not limited to camps, T3, Hudson Valley Academy, and Hudson Valley Premier.

B. Special Committees

Special committees shall be appointed by the President with the assistance and approval of the Board of Directors.

The Auditing Committee shall be annually appointed by the Delegates of the League to inspect the books of the Treasurer and to certify his/her financial reports.

The Appeals Committee shall handle all appeals to the League.

The Nominating Committee will be announced at the March delegates meeting each year. Nominations will be accepted (in writing, or electronically) by any member of the Committee until 2:00 PM on the day one month prior to the Summer General Meeting in June. Within a week, the Chairman will advise the League office, for timely transmission to the Clubs, of names of the candidates nominated by position. All persons being nominated must be present at the June meeting or inform the Nominating Committee, in writing, of their intention to hold office.

A. Rules of Order

Robert's Rules of Order shall be the parliamentary authority for all matters of procedure not specifically covered by the Constitution and By-Laws of the League.

B. Order of Business

The order of business for all meetings shall be:

• Roll Call of Officers
• Submission of, and amendments to, minutes of previous meeting(s), including Club attendance.
• Treasurer's Report
• Correspondence
• Reports of Officers
• Reports of Standing Committees
• Reports of Special Committees
• Reports of Delegates (Delegate Meeting only)
• Old Business
• Amendments and Additions to the Constitution and By-Laws (Summer and Winter General Meetings only)
• Election of Officers (Summer General Meeting only)
• New Business
• Installation of new Board by Past President (Summer General Meeting only)
• New President calls for other business (Summer General Meeting only)
• Adjournment

C. Notification of Meetings

Member clubs shall be given at least 14 days prior notice in writing, or electronically, of all general, Board of Directors and delegate meetings.

D. Penalty for Delegate Meeting Absence

Full Member clubs are to be fined $10 per meeting for failure to attend the delegate meeting and $50 per meeting for failure to attend either of the two general meetings. In addition full member clubs absenting themselves for 2 successive mandatory meetings shall forfeit their vote at the next Annual General Meeting. These sanctions will be imposed automatically by the evidence of the amended minutes submitted by the Secretary. The Board of Directors, by two-thirds vote can exempt clubs from fines if extenuating circumstances exist, in response to an appeal by the club, in writing, supplying any pertinent details.

E. Minutes

Minutes of general, Board of Directors and delegates meetings shall be provided to each member club president within fourteen (14) days of said meeting. The only information which may be redacted from the minutes distributed would be any discussion/vote of a personnel issue pertaining to an employee who receives a W-2 form for tax purposes and for matters discussed in executive session provided that a majority of board members present agree to go into executive session.

F. Electronic and Hybrid Meetings

1. Authorization
Any meeting of the Board of Directors, Delegate Board, or any standing or special committee may be conducted by video conference, teleconference, or any combination thereof (“Electronic Meeting”), or as a combination of in-person and electronic participation (“Hybrid Meeting”).
2. Participation Constitutes Presence
Any officer, coordinator, committee member, or accredited club representative participating in a meeting by approved electronic means shall be deemed present for all purposes under these By-Laws, including calculation of quorum and eligibility to vote. Participation by electron means confers the same voting rights as in-person attendance.
3. Approved Platforms
The Board of Directors shall designate the approved platform for League meetings. Any approved platform must, at minimum, allow all participants to hear one another simultaneously, identify each participant by name, and support individually recorded votes. The Board shall review designated platforms annually.
4. Notice
The notice requirements of By-Law III-C apply equally to Electronic and Hybrid Meetings. Meeting notices shall include the platform to be used and connection instructions. Connection information shall be distributed no later than 48 hours before the meeting.
5. Voting
All votes at Electronic or Hybrid Meetings shall be conducted in a manner that allows each participant’s vote to be individually identified and recorded. Acceptable methods are roll call vote, in-platform polling that records individual votes, or written ballot submitted electronically during the meeting. Voice votes without individual identification are not permitted at Electronic Meetings.
6. Minutes
Minutes of Electronic and Hybrid Meetings shall comply with By-Law III-E and shall additionally reflect the platform used, any significant technical difficulties, and the voting method used for each vote. The League should retain any recording of a meeting for at least 90 days as a supplement to the official minutes.
7. Limitations
Nothing in this Section modifies the substantive voting rights, quorum requirements, notice periods, or amendment procedures set forth elsewhere in these By-Laws. This Section governs only the manner in which meetings may be conducted.

A. Admission Procedures

Any organization wishing to become a member of the League for the purpose of entering a team, must petition the Board of Directors through its Screening Committee. This request for membership must be received by the committee on or before June 1 for the Fall season, and November 1 for the Spring season. The Board of Directors, after reviewing the findings of the Screening Committee, will decide whether to recommend admission of the petitioning organization to the Clubs' Delegates.

A club may petition for temporary membership. Approval by both the Games Chairman and the League President is required for admission under this status. This membership will terminate at the end of the soccer season but may be renewed annually through reapplication. While a temporary member, a club may follow the procedures to gain membership with “Full”, “Travel Only” or “Guest” status.

Each club, upon being accepted as a member of the HVYSL shall receive a copy of the Constitution and By-Laws.

B. Club Obligations

Each new club shall pay an initiation fee of $100.

Member clubs must be registered and known by the name of the town or community they represent, and players be residentially representative of these subdivisions.

Each club shall be responsible for ensuring the proper registration of its players and teams, proper accounting of fiscal transactions and accurate reporting of all information required by the League.

C. Registration Payment and Late Penalty

A team or club renewing membership shall submit to the League office all club registration forms, electronic submissions or written of teams and players, and full payment of all dues and fees as set by the Board of Directors. If a club cannot meet the deadline for registration, a late fee of $50.00 per team will be charged, however the fee could be waived by the registration committee depending on the circumstances. Consideration of how late teams and players were submitted should be taken into account. Travel deadline is the last Friday in June. Invoices will be issued to the clubs 3 times annually: July/August, November/December, and February/March time frame, with payment due within 21 days of receipt.

D. Seasonal Year

Clubs must renew membership each seasonal year, which shall extend from September 1 to August 31 of the following year.

A. Procedures

The League office will prepare and publish annually to member clubs a written set of procedures pertaining to team and player registration. Specific methodology will be included relating to team formation and dissolution, player registration by club registrars, and other pertinent information which the clubs should know in order to process new applicants and transfer existing players. Teams must have the following minimum number of players to register a team:

• U9 and U10 – 7 players
• U11 and U12 – 9 players
• U13+ - 11 players

Outstanding balances must be paid no less than seven days prior to the seeding meeting.

Each team must submit to the League Registrar the appropriate club registration forms, submit electronically players and teams thru the registration system to the league office, or written, and comply with BY Law IV: Club Registration. The procedures for such registration shall (with the advice and consent of the Board of Directors) be issued by the League Registrar.

Team names and shirt colors shall be included in the standard information submitted by the clubs prior to the season.

B. Team Name

All clubs' teams must be identified by a separate "team" or "mascot" name.

C. Withdrawal

A team may withdraw without penalty or forfeiture of fees prior to player registration date.
A team may withdraw prior to the seeding meeting, however all fees paid will be forfeited.
A team withdrawing after the start of the respective season Fall or Spring will forfeit all fees paid.
A team may withdraw from participation by requesting permission to do so from the League Office and approved by the Games Chairman. The request must be in writing.

A. Player Residence

Players should reside in the club's community to the maximum extent possible and within the flexibility provided by the By-Law for Player Transfer and Release. This is intended to prevent the formation of select teams and vying for players.

B. Registration Procedures

For the USSF annual registration period, players will be registered with their own member clubs using the team registration process approved and issued by the League office prior to the publicized registration deadline. Movement of players from that moment until the end of the playing season will be governed by all applicable rules and procedures stated elsewhere in the Constitution and By-Laws.

C. Restrictions on Participation on Hudson Valley Academy Teams

Before participating in a Hudson Valley Academy team game, a player must be registered at least 14 days or have participated in a minimum of 2 scheduled League games.

A player must be registered on an HVYSL club team before being eligible to try-out for an academy team. Exceptions may be made by the Academy Director for other USSF affiliated clubs or teams, and players returning from college to play U19 Hudson Valley Academy Program.

All Hudson Valley Hudson Academy team players must try out for their own age group first and if recommended by the Coach within that age group, may, with the approval of the Academy Director of the League, try out for the next age group.

A. Player Registration and Binding to Team
A travel players registration binds him/her to their travel team for the soccer playing year from League’s Registration date until the end of the playing year (the following July 31st) and any releases to transfer to another travel team will be allowed in limited circumstances.

B. Transfers
A written request for a release for the purpose of being allowed to transfer to another travel team and the Player Transfer Form must be filed with the HVYSL office.

A player may leave a travel team to go into his/her home clubs recreational player pool at any time during the soccer year. Any recreational player who has not been previously registered to a travel team in the current season and is currently rostered to a recreational team and wishing to be released to join a travel team may do so at any time during the season, with the written approval of his/her current club. A travel registration form must be completed prior to the player’s transfer to that travel team.

C. Player Transfer Fee

The club is required to pay a fee as established annually by the League when a player is transferred from one team to another, even within the same club. The player will have to be re-registered and issued a new pass.

Travel team player transfer requests between clubs must be accompanied by a $50.00 fee which may be refundable at the discretion of the committee.

D. Restrictions on Transfers Between Clubs

A Club shall be limited to a total of three players per age group from all other clubs per seasonal year unless otherwise permitted by the Board of Directors.

E. Poaching

Any coach, who by his/her actions, or any club which, through its responsible officers or representatives, attempts to recruit or induce a registered player of any team of this League to leave his/her team, without prior consent of the players present club, shall be deemed to have committed an offense of poaching and shall be dealt with by the Board of Directors of the League. This shall also apply to the borrowing of players for tournament play without the appropriate permission of the present club.

F. Guest Players

Coaches using guest players must secure the written approval of the coach of the team with whom that player is registered prior to that player’s participation. This written approval must be attached to any Permission to Travel request for out of state play prior to submission for approval. It must also be presented at all sanctioned events within the state association.

G. Solicitation of Players

Players are free to move to any organization at the start of the year, however, no club may solicit a player registered to another team/club or induce them to participate in a tryout either directly or indirectly through intermediaries. This includes invitations to “camps”, “tournament teams”, “training programs”, etc. Such conduct will be considered “poaching” and may be punishable by the action of the Board of Directors or appropriate disciplinary committee.

A. Primary Objective

An important purpose of the League is to encourage and achieve clean competition and good sportsmanship. Conduct which is consistent with the Constitution and By-Laws of this League is required by all who are involved in League competition. This includes club officials, coaches, players and spectators. The following will not be tolerated:

• Foul language
• Interference with play
• Unsportsmanlike conduct
• Encouraging unsportsmanlike conduct
• Causing a disturbance during or after a game
• Entering the field without the direction of the referee

HVYSL complies with and enforces all relevant ENYYSA and US Soccer rules, regulations and consequences governing match behavior including, but not limited to, ENYYSA’s Zero Tolerance Policy and US Soccer’s Referee Abuse Prevention Policy (Policy 531-9). HVYSL establishes league-specific rules in the Games Operating Procedures.

B. Coaching Conduct
Coach conduct is subject to the FIFA Laws of the Game, national and state governing bodies, and specific rules established by the HVYSL Games Operating Procedures.
A coach is also responsible for the behavior of spectators supporting his/her team. Moreover, a coach may receive a caution (yellow card) or ejection (red card) from the grounds by the referee based on their inability to control these spectators.

C. Player Conduct
Player conduct is subject to the F.I.F.A. Laws of the Game, national and state governing bodies. and specific rules established by the HVYSL Games Operating Procedures.

A.  Arbitrator Responsibility for Game Misconduct

Based on the submitted referee report the League Arbitrator shall take the following actions against a player or coach: 

• If a player or coach is yellow carded in three games in one season it will result in suspension of one game plus any other suspensions incurred. Every yellow card received in each game within that season thereafter will result in a suspension of one game plus any other suspensions incurred.
• A red card will result in a minimum of a one game suspension. If the misconduct is violent conduct or abusive language, the minimum suspension is three 
• A coach or player ejected (red carded) twice within one season will receive a minimum of a two game suspension.
• The minimum suspensions for red cards are not subject to appeal.

B.  Procedures for Misconduct Against Referees

Any player, spectator or coach who was found to have attacked or threatened to attack a referee at any HVYSL match will be dealt with according to the State-designated procedure and US Soccer’s Referee Abuse Prevention Policy (Policy 531-9).

C.  Board of Directors Authority

The Board of Directors has the right and authority to suspend, or otherwise discipline any member club, team, its representatives or players if their actions have been contrary to the Constitution and By-Laws of the League.

The League may ban a person from attending all League games. If a person disregards the League decision, the child or children may be suspended from participation in the League.

The Board of Directors may, at its discretion, suspend from membership, or expel
any individual, team or club that:

1. Willfully refuses or violates any of the provisions of the Constitution and By-Laws of the League
2. Commits any act which is inconsistent with the principles and standards of good sportsmanship and fair play.

Such action shall require a two-thirds vote of the Board of Directors. A member shall have an opportunity to show cause why such action shall not be taken.

D.  Reinstatement After League Suspension

The Board of Directors may, by a two-thirds vote, reinstate a member, team or club that has been suspended from the League.

E.  Termination of Game

If the referee terminates a game prematurely for reasons other than weather or field conditions, the arbitrator may declare a forfeit with a score of 3-0, based upon his analysis and the referee's report.

Upon a coach removing his/her team from the field of play during or prior to the conclusion of a match, the referee will immediately report this in the match report, whereupon the Arbitrator may impose a suspension.

A. Line of Authority for Appeals

The line of authority, should any person, team or club wish to appeal any decision, shall be:

1. From Arbitrator or Supervisory Committee to Appeals Committee of the League.
2. From the HVYSL Appeals Committee to the Appeals Committee of the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association.

B. Appeals Procedures

Appeals may be made on decision of the Arbitrator, Supervisory Committee or Board of Directors, following the line of authority as listed above.

Appeals are to be written in triplicate and signed by the coach and sent to the Chairman of the Appeals Board by registered mail within three days of the postmarked date on the previous protest or appeal decision.

Appeals to the Board of Directors are to be written in triplicate and signed by coach and sent to the Secretary of the League, by registered mail, within three days of the postmark of the date of the previous protest or appeal.

A fee of $75 must accompany all appeals to the Appeals Board or Board of Directors. All fees will be returned if the appeal is successful in total.

Upon receipt of a properly filed appeal and the fee, the Chairman of the Appeals Board will convene the appropriate body and invite, not later than 5 days before the meeting, the involved clubs and individuals to a hearing of the case. An individual or club, having been invited to a meeting and failing to appear, shall forfeit any right of further appeal. The available evidence shall be reviewed and a verdict, based upon such evidence, shall be rendered. A detailed report will be sent to both coaches and the club on the verdict of the Board.

Referees who disregard the invitation shall be reported to the New York State Soccer Referee Association and the Hudson Valley Soccer Referee Association.

All parties to a case shall be notified in writing within 5 days of an appeals hearing of the decision made by the convening body. Appeals to the E.N.Y.Y.S.A. are made directly to them, with the appropriate fee within three days. The appeal must include all details and charges. An additional copy must be sent to the opposing club. Check must accompany the protest. Failure to follow the above procedure voids an appeal.

A. The League shall, to the full extent permitted by applicable law (as now or hereinafter in effect), indemnify any person (and the heirs, executors and administrators of such person) who, by reason of the fact that he or she is or was a director or officer of the League, or is or was serving at the request of the League as a director or officer or another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or other enterprise, is or was a party or is threatened to be made a party to:

(i) any threatened, pending or completed action or proceeding, whether civil or criminal (other than an action by or in the right of the League), against judgments, fines, amounts paid in settlement and expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection with any such action or proceeding if such director or officer (x) acted in good faith, for a purpose which he or she reasonably believed to be in, or, in the case of service for any other corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or other enterprise, not opposed to, the best interests of the League and (y) in criminal actions or proceedings, in addition, had no reasonable cause to believe that his conduct was unlawful; or

(ii) any threatened, pending or completed action by or in the right of the League to procure a judgment in its favor, against amounts paid in settlement and expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by him or her in connection with the defense or settlement of such action except that no indemnification shall be made in respect to (x) a threatened action, or a pending action that is settled or otherwise disposed of, or (y) any claim, issue or matter as to which such person shall have been adjudged to be liable to the League, unless, and only to the extent that, the court in which the action was brought or, if no action was brought, any court of competent jurisdiction, determines upon application that, in view of all the circumstances of the case, the person is fairly and reasonably entitled to be indemnified for such portion of the settlement amount and expenses as the court deems proper.

B. Any indemnification by the League pursuant hereto shall be only made in the manner and to the extent authorized by applicable law, and any such indemnification shall not be deemed exclusive of any other rights to which those seeking indemnification may otherwise be entitled.

C. The League shall obtain and maintain, at all times, the following insurance coverages on behalf of any person who is or was a director or officer of the League, or is or was serving at the request of the League as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or other enterprise against any liability asserted against him or her and incurred by him or her in any such capacity, or arising out of his or her status as such, whether or not the League would have the power to indemnify him or her against such liability under applicable law:

(i) Directors and Officers (D&O) Liability Insurance, in a coverage amount determined by the Board of Directors to be reasonable and sufficient given the League's size, activities, and risk profile, but in no event less than $1,000,000 per occurrence. The D&O policy shall cover all current and former officers, directors, coordinators, and committee members acting in their official capacities on behalf of the League.
(ii) General Liability Insurance, as required by applicable law and any venue or field agreements to which the League is a party.

D. The Board of Directors shall review the League's insurance coverages annually, no later than the first Board of Directors meeting following the Summer General Meeting and shall report its findings to the Delegate Board.