New York GAA Bye-Laws 2026

The Association shall be known as the Gaelic Athletic Association of Greater New York. It is affiliated with the Gaelic Athletic Association in Ireland.

• 1.

  The objective of the Association shall be the cultivation and preservation of Irish national games and pastimes.

• 2.

  The Association shall be strictly non-political and non-sectarian. No political questions shall be asked at any of its meeting.

• 3.

  The Association shall be a non-profit organization.

County Convention shall be held annually before 18th December and shall consist of the Officers and Members of the outgoing Committee (voting rights as on the Committee), and two delegates from each club that competed in a Junior or higher-grade championship of the current year.

A newly elected Officer, unless a member of the outgoing County Committee or a delegate, shall not have the right to vote at any stage of the Convention.

A club which does not take part in or does not complete its schedule obligations in any Championship competition shall not be eligible to make nominations, table motions, vote, or take part in the Annual Convention or the Rules and Regulations meeting.

The names of delegates and proxies who are to represent clubs at the Annual Convention and meetings of the Association must be sent to the Secretary prior to the Convention. The names of delegates may not be changed after the date of nominations for positions of the Board.

Having firstly been duly nominated in accordance with Bye-Law 1.03, County Convention shall elect/appoint the following:

• ➢
  Officers (Rule 3.9):

  Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary, Assistant Secretary, Treasurer, Assistant-Treasurer, Development Officer, Coaching Officer, Communications Officer and Youth Officer and shall appoint a Planning and Training Officer, a Demographics Officer and a Children’s Officer as recommended by the outgoing County Committee.

  The Roles & Responsibilities of Officers is to be found at Appendix A.

  A member who has served three (3) years may be re-elected for one additional year in a specific officer-ship but shall be ineligible to hold that officer-ship for the ensuing three-year period.

  The outgoing Board Chairperson may not hold any office in the Board for a period of two (2) years after their term expires.

  The Board Officers, and only these individuals, shall have voting rights, independent of their clubs, at Convention.

  Exception: The Treasurer is not subject to the maximum period in office as outlined above.

• ➢
  Representatives in accordance with Rule 3.9 (d):

  The elected Chairperson shall be the representative on Central Council.

• ➢
  Delegates in accordance with Rule 3.10:

  The Chairperson and Secretary of the Association shall automatically be New York delegates to Annual GAA Congress. Three further delegates shall be elected at the Annual Convention.

  A delegate unavailable to attend Annual Congress shall not be replaced by a proxy.

• ➢

  At Convention elections a delegate may vote only once on any issue.

of Officers outlined in Bye-Law 1.02 shall take place at a meeting prior to the Convention designated by the governing body. Such meeting shall be announced at two prior consecutive meetings.

• ➢

  Nominees must be present to be nominated.

  Exception: In the event of an emergency, written notice signed by the nominee, will be accepted to signify acceptance of nomination.

• ➢

  Prior to Nomination:

  • a.

    Clubs of nominators, or nominees to any office, must have their affiliation fee paid to the Treasurer prior to the Convention (Affiliation for upcoming year).

  • b.

    Nominees for office must be duly accredited club representatives for at least one year prior to the Convention at which they will be candidates for office.

  • c.

    An elected officer may not hold a position as Chairperson of a Divisional Committee.

for consideration by Convention shall be submitted in accordance with Rule 3.12 of the Official Guide 2025, Part 1.

Convention motions submitted in accordance with Rule 3.12, shall be examined by the Management Committee. Motions considered out of order shall be returned to the submitting Unit indicating the reason(s) and affording an opportunity to re-submit within a timeline specified.

of New York GAA shall be reviewed annually at Convention. To adopt, amend or delete a Bye-law, a three-fifths majority of those present, entitled to vote, and voting is necessary.

The County Committee shall be the governing and controlling body of all the affairs of the Association within the county, excepting those functions reserved to a Provincial Council and Central Council under the Official Guide.

The New York Committee shall consist of the officers elected at County Convention, the Referees’ Administrator appointed by the County Committee, in accordance with Rule 3.17 (h) Official Guide Part 1, 2025, the Chairperson of the Senior Football Division, the Chairperson of the Intermediate Football Division, the Chairperson of the Junior Football Division, the Chairperson of the Hurling Division, the Chairperson of the Minor Division and two (2) named delegates from each club of a junior or higher grade affiliated to the New York Board.

All members shall have voting rights including Divisional Chairpersons.

The club representative may appoint a proxy to attend at, participate in, and vote at meetings of the County Committee only, subject to Rule 3.16(g).

• (i)

  All members of sub-committees shall be named and ratified by County Committee.

• (ii)

  No individual shall sit on two sub-committees unless specified within these Bye-Laws.

• (iii)

  Meetings shall, in the absence of the Sub-Committee Chairperson, be chaired by the most senior officer present (seniority is per order of election – See Rule 3.9).

• (iv)

  The quorum for meetings of each Sub-Committee shall be in accordance with Rule 4.2 or as otherwise stated in these Bye-Laws.

• (v)

  A Sub-Committee meeting may only be attended by accredited members of that Committee. Non-member(s) must leave the room before any discussion, or vote, is undertaken by that sub-committee on any item.

It shall consist of the Officers/Representatives elected at County Convention, the ex-officio chairperson for one year after termination of their elected term, and the five (5) Divisional Chairpersons who were elected by the Divisional Committees and approved by the County Committee.

It shall consist of a Chairperson, a Vice Chairperson, elected by the management committee and approved by the County Committee, the County Secretary, a Correspondence Secretary (appointed by management and who shall have a vote in the absence of the Secretary), one representative elected by the following divisions: Senior Football; Senior Hurling; Intermediate Football; Junior Football together with the County Referees Administrator who shall be entitled to vote only on the appointment of referees. All members shall be approved by the County Committee.

• i.

  It shall be responsible for all arrangements for games, including the appointment of referees and control of any matters arising from games under the jurisdiction of the county committee, including disciplinary matters other than those whose function is reserved to the Hearings Committee. A quorum for disciplinary purposes will be at least three members.

• ii.

  The CCC shall schedule games four weeks prior to the game if possible. Tie games shall be rescheduled at the discretion of the CCC. The CCC shall have the right to schedule games in non-numerical order when necessary.

• iii.

  Any affiliated club which has a dedicated, regulation size, GAA field as their home pitch be allotted at least two home championship games in their respective division at that location (does not apply to play-off or relegation games).

• iv.

  It shall process and make recommendations to the County Committee on the grading of clubs and players.

• v.

  It shall investigate and process matters relating to the enforcement of rules, including the hearing of objections and counter-objections which shall be carried out in accordance with Rule 7.5.

• vi.

  The CCC shall be responsible for making decisions on applications for transfer within the County.

It shall consist of six named members, none of whom shall be members of the Management Committee. The quorum for a Hearings Committee meeting shall be three. This is excluding interested parties. A member of the Hearings Committee is deemed an interested party if his club, native County club or a person from his native County are involved in any matter being heard by the Hearings Committee.

• i.

  A member of the Hearings Committee who misses any Hearing meeting on an shall not be allowed to sit in on any subsequent meeting(s) hearing the matter.

• ii.

  Only appointed members may sit on the committee.

• iii.

  Proxies may only be appointed by the County Committee.

It shall consist of three named persons who are not members of any other sub-committee. All of the members of this committee shall be approved by the County Committee. A member of the Appeals Committee is an interested party if his club, native County club or a person from his native County are involved in the appeal. New York born members are considered an interested party if their club, Irish county affiliated club, or a person from their affiliated Irish county is involved in the appeal.

It shall consist of four named members. The membership will include the Treasurer who shall act as the Committee’s Chairperson. It will be responsible, subject to the overall control of the County Committee, for any matters of finance referred to it by either the County Committee or the Management Committee.

It shall consist of the County Committee Chairperson, Vice Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer and four other named members.

It shall consist of three named members including the County Referees’ Administrator who shall act as its Chairperson.

It shall consist of four named members including the Coaching Officer who shall act as its Chairperson.

It shall consist of three named members.

It shall consist of three named members including the Communications Officer who shall act as its Chairperson.

It shall consist of three named members.

The membership of the County Teams’ Management and Panels’ Committee shall be as outlined in the Charter for County Committee/Player Relationships and as approved/changed from time to time by Central Council. The functions of this Subcommittee shall be as outlined in Rule 3.18 (xiv) Official Guide 2025, Part 1.

It shall consist of three named members.

It shall consist of four named members.

In accordance with Rule 3.17 (m) O.G. 2025 County Committee shall appoint the following subcommittees whose powers and functions shall be as detailed in these Bye-Laws:

It shall consist of a named Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary and a CCC Representative, all of whom shall be elected by the Division and approved by the County Committee. Its function shall be to draw up a schedule of games and present same to the County Committee for ratification and forwarding to the C.C.C.

It shall consist of a named Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary and a CCC Representative, all of whom shall be elected by the Division and approved by the County Committee. Its function shall be to draw up a schedule of games and present same to the County Committee for ratification and forwarding to the C.C.C.

It shall consist of a named Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary and a CCC Representative, all of whom shall be elected by the Division and approved by the County Committee. Its function shall be to draw up a schedule of games and present same to the County Committee for ratification and forwarding to the C.C.C.

It shall consist of Chairperson who shall be the Senior Hurling Chairperson elected by the Senior Hurling Section, Vice-Chairperson who shall be the Junior Hurling Chairperson elected by the Junior Hurling Section, a CCC Representative, who shall be elected by the Senior Hurling Section.

Each section shall have an Assistant Chairperson, Secretary, and all shall be approved by the County Committee. Each section shall draw up a schedule of hurling games, and present same to the County Committee for ratification and forwarding to the C.C.C.

The Youth Division is recognized as a division of the New York Board. It shall have the same status and is entitled to the same privileges as all other divisions. It shall consist of a Chairperson, Vice-Chairman, Secretary, Assistant Secretary, Financial Officer, Assistant Financial Officer, PRO, and Delegate to Convention. Its function shall be to conduct the day to day business within the Youth Division with a monthly report submitted to the County Secretary and to draw up a schedule of games at all underage levels and present same to the County Committee for ratification and forwarding to the C.C.C.

The winner of the Intermediate Football championship shall be promoted to the Senior Division except where the club already has a senior team.

The winner of the Junior Championship shall be promoted to the Intermediate Division unless the club already has an Intermediate team.

• (i)

  When the winners of the Junior or Intermediate division are promoted the team at the bottom of the division to which they are promoted must be re-graded.

• (ii)

  The team that finishes at the bottom of the Senior Hurling Division shall be relegated. In the event of two teams being tied on points at the bottom, a play-off shall take place to decide who should drop down to junior.

• (iii)

  Only the team, which has won a Division Championship the previous year, may be promoted the following year.

• (iv)

  A team which wins their divisional championship and cannot advance as they have an existing team in the higher division must advance ten of their starting team (as per team sheet submitted to referee). This does not apply to players 18 years of age or younger. Subject to CCC review.

A senior team seeking to be re-graded may only drop one division subject to CCC approval.

Any team regrading from a Senior Championship competition shall only be permitted to return at a lower level subject to CCC approval.

A club with one team who wins/ advances to a higher grade and requests to enter a team in a lower division must advance the starting fifteen (as per team submitted to referee) on their last match day or final subject to CCC approval.

Any team looking to regrade, or regrading shall submit their request to the County Secretary by February 15th of the same year. A team is only allowed drop or advance one division and applications will be subject to CCC approval and subsequent ratification by the County Committee.

A junior or intermediate player may be advanced by registration to a senior team of the same club name. However, if he takes part in any senior competition, he may not play junior or intermediate again in the same year.

Players being re-graded at the start of the playing season must stay intermediate/junior for two games. However, if the intermediate/junior team is knocked completely out of the competition before they play two intermediate/junior games they are permitted to go back to intermediate/senior after their intermediate/senior teams next scheduled game of that year’s competition. However, they cannot be re-graded again in that year’s competition.

Sanctions shall not be accepted for registration by the NY Board after July 1st.

A player who has been included on an Inter county Senior Championship list submitted to the Referee, in accordance with Rules of Chapter 2 of the Official Guide – Part 1, 2025 for a game in the current year’s Championship shall not be eligible to be accepted for Registration as a Sanction / Transfer member of any club in New York Board jurisdiction.

A player who has been included on an Inter County Senior Championship list in this or the prior year’s Championship is not eligible for a 60-day sanction to a team in the Junior Divisions.

Each senior football team shall be allowed four (4) 60-day sanction players. A newly promoted senior team shall be allowed two (2) additional sanctions in their first year, and one (1) additional sanction their second year.

Each Intermediate football team shall be allowed three (3) 60-day sanction players.

Each Junior A football team shall be allowed two (2) 60-day sanction players.

Junior ‘B’ football teams shall not be allowed any 60-day sanction players.

Each Senior Hurling team shall be allowed three (3) 60-day sanction players.

No weekend sanctions/authorizations allowed.

Each Junior A Hurling team shall be allowed three (3) 60 day sanction players.

A player who has played Inter County Hurling in Ireland at any level - U-18, U-21 and/or Senior in the current or previous season is ineligible to play in the Junior Hurling Championships.

Hurling Sanctions must be with the County Secretary no later than June 15th to be an eligible sanction. From the date of approval of a Sanction by Croke Park a player cannot play for their own Club in Ireland for a minimum of 60-days.

To be eligible to participate in the play-offs a 60-day sanction player must have played (either started or come on as a substitute) in at least two qualifying games for those play-offs.

Penalty: Loss of game.

A player who transfers to a club in Ireland and returns to New York as a 60-day sanction player in the same season may only play with the club from which he transferred. Deadlines outlined in Chapter 6 of the Official Guide, Part 1, 2025 apply.

A 60-day Senior, Intermediate or Junior Football sanction player who has played four or more Championship games in New York and who returns to Ireland, shall be allowed to play with their clubs in Ireland, and return to NY, as a weekend player, subject to the rule outlined in Chapter 6 of the Official Guide, Part 1, 2025, for the championship playoffs.

Championship play-offs shall be quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals.

Elimination games are not covered under this rule.

A 60-day sanction player who remains in the New York jurisdiction upon completion of his sanction and who transfers to New York must transfer to the club he was sanctioned to for a minimum of one year.

The County Secretary shall notify clubs via email of all sanctions within one week of deadline for each and only after CCC approval.

The rules governing the drafting of players shall be made at Annual Convention. A player must be a legitimate intermediate or junior player in order to be drafted. A legitimate intermediate or junior player is defined as any player transferred into NY by July 1st, of the year prior to the draft.

• 6.01.1
  Senior Football Drafts:

  Four from either the Intermediate or Junior Divisions plus six who are or were in the minor grades of the NY Youth Division.

  A team or teams promoted to the Senior Division shall be allowed six from either the Intermediate or Junior Division plus four who are or were in the minor grades in the NY Youth Division, their first year at senior level.

• 6.01.2
  Intermediate Football Drafts:

  Ten from the Junior Division with a requirement that five of the ten drafts are or were in the minor grades in the NY Youth Division.

  Exception: For a club which has come through the Youth Division and has a team they be allowed ten drafts from that B team only.

• 6.01.3
  Junior A Drafts:

  Junior A football teams are allowed to draft ten from Junior B with a minimum of four who are or were with a club in the minor grades in the New York Youth Division.

• 6.01.4
  Senior Hurling Drafts:

  Five from the Junior A Hurling Division who played in the prior year’s championship.

  Senior and Junior A hurling teams may draft an unlimited number of Junior players who have come through the New York Youth Division during the playing season, provided that these players were registered and approved as eligible players prior to the start of the playing season.

  Teams newly promoted be allowed six drafts from the Junior A Hurling division.

A player’s status in the previous year’s championship shall determine draft eligibility. A players may only be drafted to a grade higher than the grade he played in the previous year’s championship.

Players on a team who end their season at the bottom of the table, and are being relegated from Senior to Intermediate, or from Intermediate to Junior, shall be deemed to have competed at their new level in the previous year’s competition and are eligible for the draft.

Players from a promoted intermediate or junior winning championship team who remain in the division shall be ineligible for the draft that year.

The County Secretary shall notify clubs via email of all drafts within one week of deadline for each and only after CCC approval.

All transfers must comply with Chapter 6 of the Official Guide – Part 1, 2025.

Club Transfers must be made on official forms of the New York Board. The player shall appear in person, at the scheduled meetings in February, to verify the request to transfer. Having presented proper identification, the player must sign the transfer. A list of transfers shall be compiled and distributed to the clubs. The county committee shall select not less than three dates, one of which must be on a Saturday or Sunday evening, on which players may apply for transfers. Transfer dates shall be after the current year’s Bye-Laws have been sanctioned by the Management Committee of Central Council. (General Rule: A transfer becomes effective in accordance with Rule 6.5 (j) Official Guide 2025 Part 1).

Any player desirous of leaving one club to join another club must apply to the County Committee for a transfer. A player can only transfer club to club once every two years i.e.: if a player transfers in 2024, he is not eligible to transfer again until 2026, if a player transfers in 2025, he is not eligible to transfer again until 2027. Inter County transfer players are not exempt from this rule.

A team may receive a maximum of eight transfers per team in a given year. This includes internal and Inter County transfers. However, no more than three of these may come from one club internally.

Any player who has not played in the previous year still must transfer before July 1st but will now count against the eight.

A club with two teams must deem which grade each of their Inter County Transfers will be playing with, that player will not be allowed to advance to his higher-grade team his first year.

A player or players may not transfer to a team of any club which has not competed in or completed its schedule obligations in the previous years’ championship.

The deadline for inter county transfers to New York will be July 1st.

In order to be eligible for an Inter County transfer a player must have been residing in the New York jurisdiction for 28 consecutive days prior to July 1st. Applications will not be approved until the player produces his passport to the Secretary, to check compliance with the 28-day residency requirement. Players with American passport must register on arrival to ensure compliance. Online applications for Inter County transfers will be accepted.

A player who has been included on an Inter County Senior Football Championship list submitted to the Referee, in accordance with Code 9.2 GAA Official Codes 2025, for a game in the current or prior year shall not be eligible for a transfer to a junior club in the New York jurisdiction.

A player who has played Inter County Hurling in Ireland at any level, U-18, U-21, and Senior in the current or previous season is ineligible to play in the Junior Hurling B Championships.

• Note

  • (i)

    The Junior B Hurling Division is intended for hurlers who have come through the New York Minor Division or newcomers to hurling. Therefore, any players that did not attend high school in the United States must submit a written request to the New York Hurling Division requiring special dispensation to play Junior B Hurling in New York.

  • (ii)

    This request must be approved by the County Committee.

  • (iii)

    Requests must be submitted prior to the start of the playing season.

  • (iv)

    Players who have appeared in adult or minor (U18) championship hurling at any grade club, or county in Ireland are prohibited from making this request.

Prior to his first game, an inter-county transfer player must register in person with the New York County Secretary. To register, the player must complete his transfer request, produce his valid passport, (28-day residency requirement) and submit his New York Registration ID card along with two (2) passport size photographs to the Secretary of the County Board.

The County Secretary shall notify clubs via email of all club to club transfers and Inter County transfers within one week of deadline for each and only after CCC approval.

Players of the Year in all grades to be represented at the GAA Annual Dinner Dance as in U-21, Senior, Intermediate, Junior Football and Hurling. Players to be selected by the Board of Officers of the New York GAA.

Perpetual cups shall be provided for the New York Championships.

They shall be presented to the captains of the winning teams on the day of the final.

Such cups shall not bear the name of any living person.

All cups must be returned to Board in the same condition as received by June 1st of the following year.

Clubs in possession of the cup will be responsible for the repair cost of any damage done during their possession.

The Association will provide a set of twenty-five standard medals, emblematic of the Association to the winners of the Senior, Intermediate and Junior Football, Senior and Junior Hurling and the U-21 Championships. These medals shall be without commercial endorsement.

Any club, who loses, damages, or fails to return a championship trophy to the Association before the start of the playing season shall be required to pay the cost of repairing or replacing same.

Divisional Chairperson shall be responsible for notifying Clubs of the return date.

All cups to be inspected and professionally appraised.

The NY County Teams selection committee shall consist of a manager and three selectors. The manager shall be appointed by a sub-committee of the board consisting of the Vice Chairperson, the Secretary, the Chairperson of the Senior Football Division, the Chairperson of the Intermediate Football division and the Chairperson of the Junior Football Division.

The committee, in conjunction with the manager, shall appoint three selectors, one from the Junior Football Division, one from the Intermediate Football Division and one from the Senior Football Division. The trainer is to be selected by the manager and selectors. These appointments shall take place in January for a period of two years subject to approval of the County Committee.

Candidates for Manager and Selector shall submit their names to the County Committee through their clubs. They shall be read out a County Committee meeting prior to interview or appointment.

The manager and selectors of the New York Hurling team shall be elected by the Senior Hurling division subject to approval of the County Committee.

The other New York Football and Hurling team officials shall be elected by the Hurling and Football divisions as each division sees fit subject to the approval of the County Committee.

All Management Teams are subject to ratification by the County Committee.

The funds of the Association shall not be appropriated for any purpose other than the necessary expenses required for the running of the Association.

The affiliation fee is $100 per club per year. Affiliation for a new club, or a club who did not participate the year prior, will be $500 for the first year and a $100 per year thereafter.

March 31st will be the deadline for all fees/ levies, insurances and other County Board financial obligations. Penalty – Removal from schedule.

Each Hurling club shall be allowed a $500 allowance per club towards the purchase of hurleys.

A financial report shall be read out at each County Committee meeting. It shall contain a complete listing of all account activities since the previous County Committee meeting. In absence of the financial officers, it shall be read out by any Board Officer. Any and all Board expenses should be pre-approved by the County Committee.

A comprehensive treasurers report shall be read quarterly at a regular meeting of the County Committee.

All Ireland tickets shall be paid for, by everyone, when tickets are given out or distributed.

Referees shall be admitted free of charge to games on days on which they are officiating.

Referees shall be compensated $75 per game for expenses.

The Chairperson shall preside at all meetings of the Association other than those provided for in these Bye-Laws. They shall impartially put all motions, duly seconded and in order, to a vote and declare the result thereof. They shall have the casting vote on all matters except positions for elected office. They shall nominate for appointment by the County Committee, members of all Sub-Committees necessary for the welfare of the Association, other than those provided for in the Constitution. The outgoing Chairperson shall continue as an “ex-officio” officer for one year after the termination of their elected term. The Chairperson shall automatically be the New York Board representative to the Central Council of the GAA.

The Vice-Chairperson shall preside at all meetings of the Association in the absence of the Chairperson and shall be governed by the same rules as the Chairperson. Rule 3.18 (iv) (c) – No member of the Management Committee or Competitions Control Committee may serve as a member of the County Hearings Committee.

It shall be the duty of the Secretary to attend all meetings of the Association (where possible) and keep a accurate account of all business transacted and give a full report at regular meetings. They shall give a report at each regular meeting of the Association of the business transacted at the Committee meetings. It shall also be the duty of the Secretary to receive and read at meetings all correspondence in connection with the Association, and to reply as directed by the Association, or by the presiding officer, at meetings of the Association. They shall keep a correct list of all delegates representing clubs.

The Assistant Secretary shall provide assistance to the Secretary in their duties as outlined, and substitute for the Secretary in their absence.

The Treasurer shall keep the funds of the Association in a checking account in the name of the Gaelic Athletic Association. There must be two signatures on all checking accounts. All withdrawals from the checking account shall bear the signature of the Treasurer and the Chairperson. They shall act in conjunction with the Assistant Treasurer at games. The Treasurer is not subject to the maximum period in office as outlined in the New York Bye-Laws.

The Assistant Treasurer shall receive all funds, dues etc. of the Association and hand them over to the Treasurer. It shall be their duty to collect the expenses of the teams and referees and have same for the Treasurer at the following meeting.

It shall be responsible for Publicity, Marketing and Publications.

The duties the Development Officer shall include, but shall not be limited to, enhancing the development of underage hurling and football, advancing relationships between the Board and other jurisdictions, particularly in North America, developing and managing summer coaching camps and other responsibilities as deemed appropriate by the Board of Officers.

The duties of the Youth Officer shall be to, but shall not be limited to, oversee and coordinate all youth activities as deemed appropriate by the Board of Officers and they must also be actively involved in the Youth program within the region.

Role to be defined by 2026 Management Committee.