VCOG Board of Directors meeting, July 11, 2023
July 11, 2023
2 p.m. via Zoom
In attendance: Paul Casalaspi (VP), Brian Colligan, Katy Evans, Maria Everett, Craig Fifer, Joe Fuentes (Treasurer), Chris Gatewood, Bob Gibson, Stephen Hayes (Secretary, by phone), Josh Heslinga, Lawrence McConnell (by phone), Bruce Potter, Jeff South (President). Also in attendance, Megan Rhyne (Executive Director) and Sue Asgari (Richardson Legal Fellow)
The meeting convened at 2 p.m. Rhyne introduced Asgari, the 2023 Richardson Legal Fellow from the University of Richmond School of Law., and the directors introduced themselves.
Rhyne noted that she did not record all of the Dec. 6, 2022, meeting so the minutes are a combination of what she created from her notes and what she did record. South moved to approve the minutes. Heslinga seconded. The motion passed unanimously.
Rhyne presented the year-end budget totals. Gift revenue was the highest amount received ever: $18,558.60. On the other hand, dues income was down again. Media subscriptions were significantly ahead of budget. We didn’t quite meet our conference income goal. Overall, revenue was $3,080 ahead of budget.
Expenses. Contract services were down, primarily because the webmaster did not need to do the site upgrades we anticipated. In response to a question from Potter, Rhyne explained how we use funds from the two internships to offset her salary, not to add to it. We spent less on development than anticipated though Rhyne did purchase some promotional items recently. Overall, expenses were $5,527 under budget, meaning we finished the year with an $8,607 surplus.
Rhyne noted that in a comparison over the past four years, the trend line is for gift revenue to go up while dues income has gone down. Also notable, contract service has gone down because we moved bookkeeping in-house. On the other hand insurance costs have gone up. Our service fees from payment platforms have steadily increased, but on the bright side, higher fees are a product of more online donations. Potter asked Rhyne to highlight where NFOIC is paying VCOG under the MOU. Fuentes asked for clarification about the membership trend lines.
Rhyne went over the monthly balances for the endowment, which doesn’t show our realized and unrealized gains, but it nonetheless grew by almost 6%, despite taking $30,000 in drawdowns.
Rhyne presented the proposed budget, noting that income is budgeted relatively flat. The biggest increase in expenses is in the contract services category to see if we can get a higher level of accounting review and the eventual updates to the website we avoided this past year. Other expenses have increased to adjust for inflation.
Fuentes moved to accept the budget as presented; McConnell seconded. The motion passed unanimously.
Rhyne went over the chart of board positions expiring at the end of the year and noted the lack of representation of broadcasters — who are our biggest contributors — on the board and hopes VAB can fill more of the open seats. Rhyne said she will send a follow-up to see who wants to renew their terms and who doesn’t; she also encouraged board members to think of new candidates with diverse skills.
Rhyne reviewed the hours she spent working on NFOIC issues. After a steep learning curve, her average monthly hours have settled into the anticipated range of 10-15 hours/month.
Fifer asked to go back to the budget discussion and asked Rhyne if she would make adjustments to the budget to increase her salary. Rhyne thanked him for his confidence and said there was wiggle room in the budget to make an increase. Fifer moved and others seconded to amend the budget to increase Rhyne’s annual salary. Before a vote was taken, discussion ensued about various ways to make up the difference, including taking the full 5% drawdown from the endowment and using the internship money to supplement, not offset Rhyne’s salary. Fifer offered a substitute motion to approve those changes to the budget and asking South to convene a committee to look at ways to make salary review more systematic and less ad hoc, and to have Rhyne look at the salaries of her counterparts in other states. Several people seconded and the motion passed unanimously. Fifer also noted that it was board director Jay Speer who initiated this discussion among the board prior to the meeting. And Fuentes confirmed that this change wouldn’t disrupt numbers for the bookkeeper. Rhyne thanked the board for their confidence in her.
Rhyne reviewed the numbers for the 2023 annual conference. She thanked Gatewood and Hayes for securing the biggest donations. She said the venue was difficult to work with and the costs for the proposed board dinner kept spiraling upwards.
Rhyne reviewed the 2023 legislative session, noting successes, failures and missed opportunities. Rhyne thanked the Legislative Committee for their review of the 2024 wish list that she will be asking legislators to review for possible legislative proposals.
Rhyne talked about the results of the survey she did with SPJ about state agency compliance with FOIA’s requirement for posting a rights and responsibilities page. South suggested using the methodology for doing crowd-sourced surveys in the future. Rhyne asked for suggestions on what other surveys may be conducted.
Heslinga asked if there was any desire to follow up on the results of the survey, whether through legislation or litigation. Rhyne said it might be time to initiate a broader board discussion about litigation.
Heslinga also asked about why the FOIA Council had not met all year. Rhyne thanked board director Pat O’Bannon for writing a letter in support of Rhyne’s appointment to the FOIA Council.
The meeting adjourned at 3:17.
