N.Y. RCO Law § 20 — New York Code / Act RCO / Article 2 / Section 20
Corporations for acquiring parsonages for district superintendents and camp-meeting grounds
Status: in_force

§ 20. Corporations for acquiring parsonages for district\nsuperintendents and camp-meeting grounds. The district superintendent\nand a majority of the district stewards residing within a district\nerected by an annual conference of The United Methodist Church, may\nbecome incorporated for the purposes of acquiring, maintaining and\nimproving real property to be used either as a parsonage for the\ndistrict superintendent of such district or as a camp ground for\ncamp-meeting purposes, or for both of such objects by executing,\nacknowledging and filing a certificate stating the name and object of\nthe corporation to be formed, the name of such annual conference, and of\nsuch district, the names, residences and official relations to such\ndistrict of the signers thereof, the number of trustees of such\ncorporation, which shall be three or some multiple of three not more\nthan twenty-one, the names of such trustees, designating one-third to\nhold office for three years, one-third to hold office for two years, and\none-third to hold office for one year. On filing such certificate the\ndistrict superintendent and all the stewards of such district by virtue\nof their respective offices, shall be a corporation by the name and for\nthe purposes therein stated, and the persons therein named shall be the\nfirst trustees thereof. The district superintendent and stewards of any\nother adjoining districts, in this or any other state, may become\nmembers of any such corporation, at the time of its formation or any\ntime thereafter, with the consent of such corporation, which has for its\nsole object, or for one of its objects, the acquiring, maintaining and\nimproving of real property as a camp ground for camp-meeting purposes,\nif such district superintendent and a majority of such stewards sign,\nacknowledge and cause to be filed in the office of the secretary of\nstate, a certificate stating such object, the name of such adjoining\ndistrict, and the names, residences and official relations to such\ndistrict of the signers thereof, with the consent of the original\ncorporation indorsed thereon.\n  If such a corporation, which has for its sole object or one of its\nobjects, the acquisition and maintenance of camp grounds for\ncamp-meeting purposes, is composed of the district superintendent and\nthe district stewards of more than one district, the number of such\ntrustees shall be apportioned equally, as near as may be, between the\ndifferent districts, and the district superintendent and district\nstewards of such district shall elect the number of trustees so\napportioned to such district, and the remainder, if any, over an equal\ndivision of the trustees, shall be elected by all the members of the\ncorporation.\n  A person holding property in trust for the purposes of a parsonage for\nthe district superintendent of a district, and his successors in office,\nor for camp-meeting purposes, for The United Methodist Church, may\nconvey the same to a corporation formed for the purpose of acquiring\nsuch property within the district in which the property is situated.\nMeetings held under the direction of such a corporation upon camp\ngrounds owned by it shall be deemed religious meetings, within the\nprovisions of law relating to disturbances of religious meetings.\nWhenever such a corporation or any camp ground association owns land\nbordering upon any navigable waters, to be used for camp-meeting\npurposes only, such corporation or association may regulate or prohibit\nthe landing of persons or vessels at the wharves, piers or shores upon\nsuch grounds during the holding of religious service thereon.\n  If the trustees of any such corporation heretofore incorporated have\nnot been classified, so that the terms of office of one-third of their\nnumber expire each year, the trustees of such corporation shall be\nelected annually by the members thereof; but if the trustees of any such\ncorporation have been so classified, one-third of the total number of\ntrustees shall be elected annually to hold office for three years. Such\na corporation heretofore incorporated may, by a majority vote, at an\nannual meeting, or at a special meeting duly called therefor, determine\nto change the number of its trustees to three, or some multiple thereof,\nnot more than twenty-one. On such determination a majority of the\ntrustees shall sign, acknowledge and file in the offices where the\noriginal certificate of such corporation is filed, a supplemental\ncertificate, specifying such reduction or increase; and thereon the\nnumber of trustees shall be the number stated in such certificate. If\nthe number of trustees is increased, the corporation shall elect, at its\nnext annual meeting, a sufficient number of trustees to hold office for\none, two and three years, respectively, so that the terms of office of\none-third of the whole number of trustees of such corporation shall\nexpire at each annual meeting thereafter. If the number is reduced, the\ncorporation shall thereafter elect at its annual meetings one-third of\nthe number of trustees specified in such supplemental certificate, but\nthe trustees in office when such certificate is filed shall continue in\noffice until the expiration of their terms, respectively.\n