2025 Updated Bylaws

BYLAWS
OF

MOUNTAIN LAKE FISHING AND BOATING CLUB

MOUNTAIN REST, SOUTH CAROLINA


Updated OCTOBER 22, 2025

ARTICLE I

I.1 The name of this organization shall be Mountain Lake Fishing and Boating Club. It is a non-profit organization with its headquarters or location at Mountain Rest, SC. The Secretary of the Club shall designate the official mailing address at the time due bills are mailed in January of each year.


I.2 The purpose of this corporation is to own, operate, and maintain a lake for swimming, boating, fishing, the propagation of fish and waterfowl, and other similar recreational uses, and to promote water safety in boating and swimming. If, or in the event that, the corporation ceases to operate and surrenders its charter, any assets or property owned by the corporation shall be conveyed and distributed to a non-profit corporation within the meaning of the Internal Revenue Code in effect at the date of such transfer.

ARTICLE II

II.1Membership Eligibility

A-1 Who Can Be a Member of the Club

  1. Eligible Members:

Membership in the Club is restricted to the following entities:

  • Natural persons;
    • Family living trusts;
    • Life estates and/or family estates;
    • Family partnerships (Tenancy in Common or Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship).
  • Ineligible Members:

The following entities are not eligible for membership in the Club:

  • Corporations (including S corporations);
    • Limited liability companies (LLCs);
    • Partnerships (non-family);
    • Any other business entities.
  • Designation of Representative for Trusts and Estates:

A family trust, partnership, or estate may be granted membership if a Designated Representative is appointed in writing to the Club and meets all the following qualifications:

  • Must be a natural person;
  • Must be a beneficiary of the trust or estate;
  • Must be at least 18 years of age;
  • Must act as the accountable trustee or representative of the trust or estate.
  • Liability of Designated Member: The Designated Member shall:
    • Be considered the official member for the lot owned by the trust, partnership or estate;
    • Be jointly and severally liable for all obligations of membership as defined by the Club’s Bylaws and Rules.
  • Automatic Termination of Prohibited Memberships:
    • Any membership found to be held by a prohibited entity shall be automatically terminated upon discovery by the Board of Directors.
    • No refund of dues, assessments, or fees will be provided in such cases.

A-2. Secondary Trustee or Representative

  1. Appointment:
    1. A trust or estate may appoint a Secondary Representative to act on behalf of the primary trustee if they become unable to fulfill their responsibilities.
  2. Qualifications:

The Secondary Representative must:

  • Be a natural person and a beneficiary of the trust, partnership or estate;
    • Be at least 18 years of age.
  • Liability:
    • While acting in place of the primary trustee, the Secondary Representative shall also be jointly and severally liable for all membership obligations.

A-3. Grandfather Clause

  1. Pre-Existing Memberships:
    1. Any membership held by a prohibited entity prior to November 1, 2025, shall be grandfathered and allowed to continue as long as the membership is not transferred, sold, or otherwise changed in ownership.
  2. Termination Upon Transfer:
    1. Upon any transfer of ownership, the grandfathered status becomes void, and the new owner must meet the eligibility requirements stated in these Bylaws.
  3. Designation of Responsible Party:
    1. All grandfathered memberships must designate a natural person to act as the representative of the entity’s membership interests.

A-4. Limitations on Membership

  1. One Membership per Property:
    1. Membership is limited to one (1) membership per property owner. No individual or entity may hold more than one membership, regardless of the number of lots or tracts owned.
  2. Voting Privileges:

Voting rights are limited to the following individuals associated with the membership:

  • The member’s spouse;
    • The member’s children;
    • Other family members residing in the member’s household;
    • The Designated Trustee or Representative as appointed under these Bylaws.
  • One Vote per Membership:

A member owning multiple lots or tracts is entitled to one (1) vote only, regardless of the total number of lots or tracts owned or controlled

II.2  The membership in the organization is limited to the following:
A. The owner of any property touching the lake with a minimum of 100’ of
waterfront, or


B. Those current on all dues, penalties, and assessments as of December 31,
2019.

II.3 Membership in this organization shall be limited to (1) membership per property owner. No member owning or controlling more than one (l) lot or tract shall have more than a single vote. Privileges of membership shall be limited to member’s spouse and children, or other family members that are resident in the household of the member.

II.4A Any property owner joining after the purchase or inheritance of property from a property owner not in good standing will be required to pay a re-instatement fee of $1,000.00, plus any penalties or assessments that were accrue as outlined herein. Effective January 1, 2020, annual dues shall be $200.00 for all members. Bills for dues will be sent by February 1st of each year. Any member whose dues are not paid by March 1st of each year shall be deemed to be late, and a $5.00 penalty will be assessed. A second notice of dues will be sent by March 15th of each year to all unpaid members. If the dues are not paid by April 15th of that year, the membership shall be deemed forfeited, and a $50.00 penalty must be paid in order to rejoin. A forfeited membership will accrue a $50.00 per year penalty fee for each year that the membership is not maintained. After one year of forfeited membership (December 31st of the forfeiture year), the $1,000 re- instatement fee plus the $50 per year penalty for each year of forfeiture will be imposed to regain membership. Dues and fees assessed by the Club can only be changed by a mailed ballot to all members. A simple majority vote of returned ballots will be required. Any property owner whose membership is forfeited may be subject to due process in a court of law. This may result in the removal of any structures or appurtenances
that are afloat in the lake, or built on the lakebed or properties owned by the Club. Should it be necessary to take legal action, the defendant shall be responsible for all legal costs incurred by the Club.

II.4B– 11/01/2025 – Memberships in bad standing for 5 or more years are subject to II.4B 

Anyone applying for membership either by qualified subdivision of current property or a member or deeded access by original developer(s) shall pay a one-time membership Initiation fee of $5000.00.  This includes the 1st year dues through 04/01 of the following year.  Any new membership must be verified by the Lake Association Board; it is applicant responsibility to prove membership rights. This fee also applies to any membership that has been in bad standing for more than 5 years.   

Lake Association Membership Policy Summary  

  • Initiation Fee: A one-time fee of $5,000 is required for: 
    • New applicants joining via qualified subdivision of an existing property. o Individuals with deeded access granted by the original developer(s). 
    • Former members whose membership has been in bad standing for over 5 years. 
  • Included in Fee: The initiation fee covers first-year dues through April 1st of the following year. 
  • Verification Requirement: 
    • All new memberships must be verified by the Lake Association Board. 
    • It is the applicant’s responsibility to provide documentation proving their membership rights. 

II.4C New members’ fee, transfers of current memberships to new owners shall be subject to a one-time fee of $2500.  This fee does not apply to transfers to family members, spouse, children, grandchildren, or family estates.  

 Membership Transfer Policy  

Transfer Fee for New Owners When an existing membership is transferred to a new property owner, a one-time transfer fee of $2,500.00 shall apply. 

  • This fee is required for all ownership transfers, except in the following cases: 

Transfers to a spouse 

Transfers to children or grandchildren 

Transfers involving a family estate 

  • These family-related transfers are exempt from the transfer fee 

II.5 Funds collected by the Club shall be used for the administration of the organization, to pay for the patrolling of the lake and properties, to pay for the maintenance of the lake, the dam, and the spillway, to pay for the cost of stocking fish, or for any other programs or purposes deemed to be in the best interest of the Club members by the Board of Directors. Special assessments necessary for any occasional major capital maintenance items may be levied by the Board as necessary, upon approval by a majority vote of the membership at a duly called meeting. Written notice of any special assessments must be provided to the entire membership at least two (2) weeks prior to the formal action being taken. In no event shall any funds, fees, or monies collected by the Club be used in any manner to influence legislation, or any other prohibited act as defined by Section 501(c)(7) IRS Code 1in986, as amended, and no part of any earnings of said Corporation shall inure to the benefit of any shareholder or member thereof.


II.6 Should a member in good standing lease his property; he may request in writing that his membership privileges be extended to his tenant. A lease is defined here as a written agreement in which the owner of a property allows use of the property for a period of six months or more. A majority vote of the Board of Directors is required to approve such extension of privileges. Once such approval is given, the owner must maintain his membership in good standing, and shall maintain the responsibility for seeing that his tenant conforms to the rules of the lake. Any tenant wishing to exercise those privileges shall be liable for the yearly dues, but shall be a non-voting member. Anyone leasing from a property owner not in good standing may not exercise the privileges of the Club until the property owner again becomes a paid member in good standing and requests and receives Board approval as outlined above.

II.7 A social guest is someone using your property without cost, with or without the owner being present. Social Guests may use the lake and must follow the same rules as the owner as defined by the By-Laws and Rules of the Lake. Social guests may not use the boat ramp or boat ramp picnic area without the owner present. Owners are obligated to make sure that these users are aware of and follow all lake rules. The owner is responsible for the actions of these guests and anyone not following the rules will be asked to stop using the lake. Continuing issues by any owner and his/her guest may result in loss of lake privileges as defined in the By Laws and Rules of the Lake. (Examples of Social Guest, brother, sister, parent, best friend, college friend, church friend, and others that may not necessarily be related but do not fall under the defined group of owners.)

II.8A Short-term Renters/Guests of the lake will be defined as anyone renting or leasing a property from a lake member for a period of time less than six months in duration.

II.8B Members clearly have the legal right to rent their property, but these renters/guests do not have lake use rights for swimming, fishing, or boating. Members who have their properties registered with the Board as short-term rentals and have paid annual dues including the short-term rental fee for 2025, can continue to rent their property in future years provided they remain a member in good standing and abide by the rules outlined below. These rental rights are non-transferable which means that if the property is sold, the rental rights pertaining to lake usage cannot be transferred to the new owners.

Owners that plan to lease or rent on a short-term basis must:

  1. Notify the board in writing that they intend on renting their property.
  2. Use a reputable company/site such as VRBO, Airbnb, HomeAway, or other similar company;
  3. Purchase and provide proof of additional liability insurance coverage in the amount of $300,000, and must list the Lake Association as Additional Insured. The Short-term Renters/Guests will be obligated to follow all the current rules of the lake, plus the Short-Term Guest Rules. Short-term Renters/Guests and are expressly prohibited from bringing any personal/outside watercraft onto the lake and are prohibited from operating motorized watercraft of any type, gas or electric. Owners
    are obligated to make sure any guest using their property follow both the standard Rules of the Lake and the Short-Term Renters/Guest Rules. Failure of the owner to enforce these rules and avoid misuse of the lake will result in:
  4. First offense, a written warning to the owner will be issued.
  5. Second and on-going offenses with either the same or subsequent parties, the owner can be fined by the Board an amount up to $350.00.
  6. If issues persist, the Board can revoke lake privileges for the owner and therefore renters for up to 12 months. The Board can elect to restore privileges for the member, if the member creates an action plan to control issue, and/or the property is sold to a new owner.
  7. The board must at the member’s request, hold a meeting with the member within 30 days of any action that puts lake rights in jeopardy or revokes them. Owners who rent their property to Short-Term guest must pay an additional annual fee. The fee will be equal to 4 times the current standard membership fee for the Lake Association. (Note: The current fee is $100, so owners of Short-Term rentals would pay $400, if the fee is raised to $200, then owners will pay $800). Additional fees above the then standard dues, raised by the owners who rent shall be split in
  8. half into two funds: a. Dam emergency fund which would help fund dam repairs. b. Special lake projects, such as clean up, stocking, liming, aerating, etc. Any special project(s) can be brought up and voted on by attending members at the July board meeting. Owners shall not rent their properties for the week of Fourth of July allowing Lake Club members full use of the lake during that holiday.

II.9– Community Docks

  • Prohibition on Group Docks for Off-Lake Members: Members, developers, and property owners are not permitted to construct or maintain docks intended for use by a group of members who do not have direct lakefront access.
  • Access for Off-Lakefront Members: Members without direct lakefront property must use the designated community-owned dock and boat ramp for lake access.
  • Approval Requirements: All new dock construction, significant modifications, or major repairs must be submitted to and approved by the Lake Association Board prior to any work being performed.
  • Routine upkeep or maintenance of existing docks that does not fundamentally alter the structure is encouraged and does not require Board approval.

ARTICLE III

III.l The annual meeting of the Mountain Lake Fishing and Boating Club shall be held at a site designated by the President, and shall be held during the month of July each year. The Secretary of the Club will provide two (2) weeks advance notice in writing to the last known mailing address of each member. Election of officers for the following year shall be held at the Annual Meeting.


ARTICLE IV

IV.1 The Club shall be governed by a Board of Directors consisting of seven (7) Directors duly elected at the Annual Meeting of the corporation, by the current members in good standing, on a staggered three (3) year rotation. Should a vacancy occur in the Board of Directors prior to sixty (60) days from the date of the Annual Meeting, then in that event, the Board of Directors shall, from the membership of the organization, fill such a vacancy by a majority vote of such Directors, and the person so selected shall serve until the next Annual Meeting. The Directors, upon election, shall select from their number a President, a Vice- President, and a
Secretary/Treasurer, who shall serve continuously at the pleasure of the Board, performing the usual duties of that office.


IV.2 Directors may succeed themselves upon re-nomination and re-election by the General Membership.


IV.3 The elected Director/Officers of the corporation may be removed from office by majority vote of the Membership at a duly called meeting when it is deemed to be in the best interest of the Club that such removal be affected.


IV.4 Directors may succeed themselves upon re-nomination and re-election by the General Membership.

ARTICLE V

V.1 The organization, through its Directors and Officers, shall hold title to the lake property and promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary and advisable for the operation, maintenance, and control of the Lake property and water thereof. To regulate fishing, swimming, boating, and the use of the waters, and the care and management thereof, including the propagation and preservation of fish and waterfowl as may be deemed to the best interest of the members; and any violation of such rules and regulations shall be declared a forfeiture or suspension of any rights of privileges the Board of Directors may determine.

ARTICLE VI

VI.1 The By-Laws herein set forth may be changed or amended by the following procedure.
A. There will be a called meeting prior to any voting for the purpose of discussion, input, and to answer questions.
B. Every property owner in good standing will receive a ballot via regular mail. All ballots must be returned to the Post Office Box within 30 days of the postmark date. Returned ballots will remain unopened until the due date.
C. Only those votes returned will be counted. Two volunteers from the association
will open and count the ballots. The Board members will also count and the two totals must agree.
D. A simple majority of returned votes will prevail.

ARTICLE VII

VII.l The Board of Directors shall publish and distribute to the membership, after each Annual Meeting, a current publication of rules governing the use of the lake, and minutes of the Annual Meeting. Additionally, minutes of all Board of Director meetings will be distributed to members by email.

VII.2 There shall be no requirement for a quorum at a general or special membership meeting for which proper notice has been given the membership, and all actions taken at such meeting(s) shall be duly acted upon by the vote of a majority of those persons present and voting.
VII.3 A quorum shall be necessary for actions by the Board of Directors, a quorum being a majority of the elected Directors present and voting.


ARTICLE VIII


VIII.1 Emergency Response Team Established The Club hereby establishes an Emergency Response Team, composed of five (5) members appointed by the Board of Directors. The purpose of the Team is to respond to various emergencies that may arise due to weather conditions, dam/spillway conditions, actions required by DHEC, etc. which may result in the necessity of opening the intake structure valves to affect an emergency lowering of
the lake.


VII.2 The Team members will be appointed by the Board of Directors to fill a term of one (l) year.


VIII.3 The Team will have the authority and responsibility to call on other members to assist them when the need arises. All actions taken will be under the guidance and responsibility of the Team.


VIII.4 The Team will be called upon by the Board of Directors to attend Board meetings when deemed necessary by the Board to explain any emergency actions taken, and the results of those actions.


VIII.5 Any vacancy on the Team shall be filled by the appointment of a new Team member by the Board of Directors.