July 16, 2005 Board of Directors Meeting Report Out
ASHI’s second Board meeting of the 2005 Membership year was held on July 16th in St. Louis, MO, in conjunction with our annual Town Hall Meeting. This is a brief report to the ASHI Membership of the actions taken during this meeting. These are not the meeting minutes, as discussion items and failed motions are not included. The official minutes of this meeting will be presented for Board approval at their next meeting on October 22, 2005, in Chicago. We encourage you to review this report in order to be fully informed of actions taken on your behalf by the ASHI Board.
I. CONSENT AGENDA
The Board reviewed and approved items presented on a Consent Agenda. Consent Agenda items are those that do not require debate or dialogue in order for action to be taken on them. This approval includes the following:
A. Approval of Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, as the official site for InspectionWorld 2007, to be held January 10-14, 2007.
B. Approval of the revised charge of the Finance Committee as follows:
The charge of the Finance Committee shall include, but is not limited to:
• Prepare budgets for submission and approval of the Board;
• Develop financial planning and policies with reports to the Board;
• Prepare and present financial reports to the Board;
• Develop appropriate fraud prevention detection and risk management policies for submission and approval by the Board;
• Oversee the investment of ASHI’s re-serve funds and other financial accounts in accordance with Board policy;
• Recommend to the Board the outside accounting company to perform the yearly financial audit, and to offer suggestions and comments to the Board in connection with such audit;
• Offer recommendations to the board with respect to managing, reducing or eliminating financial conflicts of interest; and
• Other duties that have been or may be assigned by the Board
II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Board meeting minutes were reviewed and approved by the Board. These included:
A. Minutes of the April 16, 2005, Board meeting held in Rosemont, IL, as presented.
III. FINANCE COMMITTEE
The Board entered into a “Committee of the Whole” format to fully review and discuss the proposed 2005-2006 Operating Budget as presented by the ASHI Finance Committee. The Board approved the proposed $3.4 million budget with some minor adjustments. Approval of the 2005-2006 Operating Budget includes the following items of note:
A. The Membership Dues amounts for the 2005-2006 Membership Year are as follows:
1. Full Members – $395
2. Candidates with Logo Use Privileges (C2) – $395
3. Candidates – $295
4. Retired Members – $85
5. Affiliates – $645
• All Canadian Members and Candidates will continue to pay $100 less for dues than the US Membership amounts.
• All new Candidates will continue to pay an $80 one-time administrative fee upon joining.
• All Candidates who become either a C2 or a full Member during the membership year will continue to pay an upgrade fee, which has been reduced to $50.
• Upon joining ASHI, the total dues amount to be paid by the Candidate will be prorated based on the time of year of application. Previously, the Candidate was required to pay the full dues amount and fees up front and their dues were prorated in the following year.
B. The Board agreed that the above dues amounts are the only dues charges to be paid by the ASHI Membership for the 2005-2006 year. There will not be additional fees for Strategic Expenditures as all expenditures, whether strategic, operating or otherwise, are now under one fee. Further, the Board agreed that there is no longer a need to collect $50 additional per person to be diverted back to their local chapter as the program has successfully distributed over $500,000 in the past two years to all ASHI Chapters and has generated very positive results. The Board agreed that Chapters can and should continue to collect additional fees on their own to continue their excellent work.
C. The new Operating Budget includes coverage of fees necessary to launch an interactive online version of the ASHI Reporter, which will debut in the fall of this year and will feature searchable articles and enhanced article links providing additional information to the viewer. In addition, money was allocated to enhance ASHI’s membership recruitment and retention efforts including funding for a member-get-a-member campaign and increased appearances at inspector-related shows and events.
D. Also included in the approved budget are expenditures for ASHI’s enhanced participation in the National Association of Realtors(r) Conference, as well as several key public relations activities, all designed to continue the promotion of The ASHI Experience and use of ASHI Inspectors.
Further, the Board agreed to revisit the area of public relations after completion of the 2005-2006 Membership renewal campaign in order to determine if proposed additional expenditures can be added to the budget at that time.
E. In addition to approving the Operating Budget within the Finance Committee Report, the Board also approved a Capital Expenditures Budget for the 2005-2006 year, a formal policy on ASHI endorsement of products and services to the membership including provisions and criteria for reviewing and entering into endorsement agreements, and a proposal to retain the services of Ahlbeck & Company, Certified Public Accountants, to perform the official audit of ASHI’s 2004-2005 financials.
IV. WORK AREA STATUS REPORT
At each meeting, the Board receives status updates on how the Committees and Staff are progressing in their work within each area of the Strategic Plan. These reports have taken the place of “Committee Reports for Review” and “Committee Reports with Motions.”
A. Advocacy Task Force
1. In order to discuss openly, the Board entered into a “Committee of the Whole” format and reviewed recommendations submitted by the Advocacy Task Force, which had met in an effort to determine ASHI’s role as an Advocate. There were various recommendations made by the Task Force to the Board for their consideration. Upon conclusion, the Board approved the following items as ASHI’s official Strategies within the ASHI as Advocate section of our Strategic Plan:
New Strategies:
• 3.13 Define and measure technical expertise & service excellence.
• 3.12 Provide public relations, marketing, lobbying and a national voice to create public awareness of the benefits and value of an ASHI inspection.
• 3.11 Promote competent technical inspections and high ethical conduct.
• 3.10 Establish, promote and maintain professional standards and qualifications.
• 3.9 Promote and enhance relationships with members, other associations, governmental agencies, standards organizations and the general public.
• 3.8 Develop, maintain and enhance membership growth and retention programs.
• 3.7 Develop, review and publish technical and educational materials.
• 3.6 Communicate the ethics, standards, purposes, goals, and accomplishments of the Society to its membership, government, private sectors and the general public.
• 3.5 Plan, develop, and provide educational opportunities.
• 3.4 Require ethics education on a regular basis.
• 3.3 Guide and influence state and federal agencies regarding home inspection regulation.
• 3.2 Develop alliances to combine advocacy dollars.
• 3.1 Continue financial support of our Advocacy position.
2. The Board also approved the new Trends, Challenges, Solutions and Desired Results presented by the Task Force as backup information for the new Advocacy Strategies. Several recommendations for action were presented by the Task Force to the Board. A motion was approved to commit the following three proposed action items to the appropriate committees for review and recommendation(s) to the Board by the January 2006 meeting:
a. Consider removing the words “Standards of Practice” from Bylaw 2.7.3.
b. Maintain disciplinary procedures with regard to the Code of Ethics and all other provisions of Bylaw 2.7.3.
c. Review all policies and procedures to bring them into alignment with the new ASHI as Advocate Position Statement. (i.e., Section 9 – Complaints Committee)
B. Chapter Relations Committee Motions
1. A motion was made, seconded and approved to change ASHI Policy Chapter 7, paragraphs 7.1 and 7.2 as follows:
7.1 Policy: Requirements for Chapter Formation
The primary requirement for chapter formation is that there be at least three ASHI Members petitioning for chapter formation, with the expectation that the chapter will gain seven additional Members within two years of chapter formation. The three initial Members must represent three separate inspection businesses.
7.2 Procedure: Chapter Formation
a. Groups of Members wishing to become chapters shall notify ASHI National and shall maintain contact as needed for advice and information. The application for chapter formation shall include a list of the Members and Candidates, along with the geographical area the chapter intends to serve, and will also include a brief plan on growing the chapter by seven additional members within two years of formal chapter recognition. The Group also shall acknowledge the existence of the Chapter Viability and Compliance Program as addressed in the ASHI Policy and Procedure under part 7.9 of Chapter 7.
b. The Chapter Relations Committee will review the request to ensure the application meets 7.2a above and also to determine if granting the chapter status is in the best interest of the American Society of Home Inspectors.
2. The Board approved a motion to change the criteria for the John E. Cox Award within the Policy and Procedure Manual.
5.2 Policy: John E. Cox Member of the Year Award
a. The John E. Cox Award honors individuals who have made exemplary contributions to their chapter during the specified year.
b. The recipient must be an ASHI Member who has rendered outstanding service to an ASHI chapter, either over a period of years or under circumstances that are special and may not occur again.
c. The nominee may be a past nominee or recipient of the John E. Cox Award. The nominee may be any full Member of ASHI who previously has not been awarded the John E. Cox Award.
d. Each chapter may submit the name and biography of one individual for the John E. Cox Award. The nomination should include how the individual has contributed to the chapter’s development, as well as other vital information of local contributions that benefit the chapter and the home inspection industry as to why the individual should be considered for the award.
C. Membership Committee Motions
Several motions included in the original Board Agenda from the Membership Committee were not presented to the Board for approval as they were already included in the Operating Budget, which was approved by the Board earlier in the meeting. After Board discussion on a motion presented that was ultimately withdrawn by the presenter, the Board approved the establishment of a task force by the ASHI President to review the possibility of changing the names of ASHI’s Membership classifications.
D. Standards Committee Motion
A motion proposing a Member vote on changes to the ASHI Standards of Practice was postponed until the October 2005 Board meeting.
V. MISCELLANEOUS REPORTS
In the Board meeting, various reports are given. At this meeting, reports were provided to the Board from various Task Forces, the Council of Representatives, Headquarters and Legal Counsel. Actions were taken during the following reports:
A. Task Force on Felony Membership
The Board of Directors approved the following as an official policy: ( See Announcements and Notices, page 44).
VI. UNFINISHED& NEW BUSINESS
A. The Board again entered into a Committee of the Whole format to discuss the education and training portions of ASHI’s Strategic Plan and current operations. As the Board entered into this discussion, all Officers and Directors who have an affiliation with inspector training and education or receive compensation in any manner from inspection training and education were asked to identify their conflict and leave the Board Room for the length of the discussion. When the Board returned to their regular meeting, they approved the establishment and funding of a task force to develop programs that will be used primarily by chapters to assist in the conversion of Candidates to full Members. The task force will consist of the chairs of the Membership, Education, Standards and Chapter Relations Committee, along with the Board and Staff Liaisons to these committees, along with Director Guibor.
B. A motion was made, seconded and approved for the Conference Planning Committee to accept Nashville as a destination for IW 2008 contingent upon actual contractual negotiations.
C. A motion was made, seconded and approved to revisit the proposal to re-release ASHI’s existing Public Service Announcement at the October 2005 Board meeting.
VII. EXECUTIVE SESSION
During Executive Session, only the Board is allowed to be in the room. Unless otherwise requested, all guests and staff are asked to leave. After the Executive Session is completed, typically, the Secretary reports certain actions taken during the session as appropriate. The following actions were taken during Executive Session:
The Board agreed to accept Legal Counsel’s contract for renewal for 2005-2006 without changes. In addition, the Board assigned responsibility for future Attorney contract review to the Finance Committee.
VIII. ADJOURNMENT
With no additional business to discuss, the July 16, 2005, ASHI Board of Directors meeting was adjourned at 4:50 p.m.
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