Henry County Indiana Cemetery Commission
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Henry County Indiana Cemetery Commission
Henry County Cemetery Commission By-laws
Article 1
General

Section 1: Name
The Henry County Cemetery Commission (hereinafter "Commission") is created and exists pursuant to the laws of the state of Indiana and shall be known as the Henry County Cemetery Commission (IC 23-14-67 et seq.) and is an agency of the Civil County of Henry, state of Indiana. Henry County Ordinance # 3-9-01 Adopted September 19th 2001 by Commissioners Philip J. Estridge, Larry D. Hale and Donald Shaw; attest Linda Winchester, Henry County Auditor.

Section 2: Purpose
It shall be the purpose of this Commission to locate, define legal boundaries, restore, fence, map, record, regulate, safe keep, catalog, and maintain all abandoned, deteriorated, neglected, and unresourced burial grounds of Henry County, Indiana pioneer leaders or Veterans of American War, established prior to 1850, located and found in Henry County, Indiana, or owned by Henry County.

Section 3: Policy Statement
It shall be the policy of this Commission to give due consideration to the concerns of private property on which any aforedescribed burial grounds are located.

Section 4:
The Henry County Cemetery Commission may act in consent with other government Cemetery Associations and/or entities located in Henry County, Indiana.

Article II
Membership and Duties

Section 1: Members
The Commission shall consist of five (5) residents of Henry County who are appointed by the Henry County Commissioners pursuant to IC 23-14-67-2.

Section 2: Duties
A. This Commission shall meet each year in the month of January for the purpose of organizing, and reorganizing, the Board of the Commission, and shall elect a president, a Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer. The Board shall also appoint no less than three (3) Henry County residents, to serve as an Advisory Board to the Commission.
B.(1) The President of the Commission shall preside over all meetings of the Commission according to an agenda approved by the Commission and shall conduct the meeting in accordance with "Roberts Rules of Order."
(2) The Vice President shall conduct all meetings in the absence of the president and shall assume the office of president should that office become vacant.
(3) The secretary shall record and preserve minutes of all meetings of the Commission and make them available upon request.
(4) The Treasurer shall maintain records of monies available and spent, and work with the Henry County Auditor to file necessary reports. The Treasurer will also prepare an Annual Report to be reviewed by the Commission during the month of February, and file to the County Commissioners by March 1st of each year.

Article III
Meetings

Section 1: General Meetings
General meetings of the Commission, unless altered by the Commission, will be held monthly at a regular time and place. These meetings will be open to the public and notice of the meetings will be provided to the media and posted as required by law.

Section 2: Special Meetings
The Commission may call an executive session for the purpose of discussing matters allowed by statute. Such meetings will not be open to the public.

Section 3: Quorums
At any duly called general or special meetings of this Commission, a quorum shall be necessary to conduct business. A quorum shall exist when at any such meeting three (3) or more, members of the Commission are present.

Article IV
Reports and Budgets

Section 1: Budget
The Commission shall prepare an annual budget before June 1 for the ensuing year and present it to the County Commissioners for approval at an appropriate time and in a timely fashion.

Section 2: Annual Report to the County
The Commission shall prepare and present an annual report to the County Commissioners during the month of March. This report shall include a review of expenditures for the previous year, and a presentation of activities (such as restoration, mapping, recording of cemeteries) planned and scheduled for the ensuing year.

Section 3: Annual Report to the Historical Bureau
Before March 1st each year, the Commission shall file and annual report with the Indiana Historical Bureau. The report should include, at a minimum, information regarding:
1) The budget of this Commission for the preceding calendar year:
2) Expenditures made by this Commission during the preceding calendar year:
3) A listing of activities of the Commission during the preceding calendar year:
4) The plans of the Commission for the calendar year during which the report is filed.

Article V
Rights, Responsibilities & Duties of the Commission

Section 1: General
It shall be the duty of the Henry County Cemetery Commission, unless altered by statute or by the Henry County Commissioners, to locate, define legal boundaries, restore, fence, map, record, and maintain all abandoned, deteriorated, neglected, unresourced burial grounds reasonably locatable as described in Article 1, Section (2) above. Furthermore, the Commission may act in any, and all ways applying to Cemetery Commissions if not restricted or prohibited by the Henry County Commissioners.

Section 2: Maintenance
For the purpose of this section, unless altered by statute or by the Henry County Commissioners, the maintenance of a burial ground under the discretion of this Commission shall include, but not be limited to:
1. Locating and defining legal boundaries of the burial ground;
2. Providing and maintaining access to the burial ground from a public way;
3. Resetting, restoring, straightening, and recording all monuments;
4. Leveling and seeding the cemetery ground access ways;
5. Constructing fences where there are none and repairing existing fences;
6. Destroying and cleaning up detrimental plants, noxious weeds, and rank vegetation; and
7. Mapping and recording of each such burial ground.

Section 3: Rules and Regulations
A. The Commission, subject to the approval and/or modification by the Board of Commissioners, may make, adopt, and enforce rules and regulations:
1. For the use, care, control, management, restriction, and protection of all parts and subdivisions of each such cemetery;
2. For restricting, limiting, and regulating the use of all property within the cemetery;
3. For regulating the care or destruction of plants or shrubs within the grounds and preventing the introduction of certain types of plants or shrubs;
4. For regulating the conduct of persons and preventing improper assemblages in the cemetery;
5. For all other purposes considered reasonable by the Commission.
B. All rules and regulations adopted by the Commission shall be subject to the approval and subsequent modification and/or termination, in whole or part, at such point and time the Henry County Board of Commissioners may, at their discretion, choose.

Section 4: Employees
A. The Henry County Board of Commissioners is solely in charge of employing all employees who will, or/are, employed in carrying out the purposes hereof and may at their sole discretion, review and consider employee recommendations given by the Commission; however, any advise is solely up to the Henry County Board of Commissioners.
B. The Commission may, only at the request of the Henry County Board of Commissioners, submit to the Henry County Board of Commissioners the Commission's position regarding employee promotion, discipline, suspension, and/or discharge and, at the request of the Henry County Board of Commissioners, submit recommendations to the Henry County Board of Commissioners.

Article VI
Amendments to these By-Laws

Any proposal for amendment to these by-laws shall be submitted in writing at any general meeting of the Commission. The proposed amendment shall be read into the minutes of the meeting and shall be held under advisement until the next general meeting of the Commission when the proposed amendment shall be read and fully discussed. After consideration, a vote shall be taken and a vote of at least three (3) Commission members (voting in favor of the amendment) shall be necessary for the amendment to tentatively be adopted subject to the approval of the Henry County Board of Commissioners.

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