December 2, 2003

TVMA Board of Directors Meeting
Monday, December 2, 2003
Centerpoint Energy, Greensport Service Center, Houston, TX

After determining that a quorum was present, President Steve White called the Board of Directors meeting open at 10:00am on December 2, 2003.  The following members were present:: Steve White, A.J. Thibodeaux, Ray Erwin, Steve Prather, Myron Rabalais, Paul Northcutt, Mike Meador, Don Telge, Ron Held, George Pylant and David Wall. 

Paul Northcutt read the minutes of the 10/28/03 TVMA Board Meeting.  There were no corrections to the minutes as read.  Steve Prather made a motion that the minutes be approved, Myron Rabalais seconded the motion, and the board approved the minutes as read.  

Officers reports were taken.  There being no President’s report, the board heard the Vice President’s report who discussed the 2004 Conference.   

David Wall passed out a floor plan of the Holiday Inn, a listing of responsibilities, and a list of the nine hotels which had been contacted and a summary of the proposals received from seven hotels.  Several hotels would not offer State room rates during October.  Three hotels offered State rates and 1/3 of the room nights in Arlington were State rate rooms.  Rates for non-state were fairly close.  A group including Steve Prather, James Koenig and Don Telge, toured the hotels on November 19, 2003.  Don Telge provided an update on the three hotels toured.  Don felt the Holiday Inn Riverwalk, 217 N. St. Mary’s, San Antonio, TX 78205, would be the ideal layout and discussed the layout and how the conference could be arranged within the Holiday Inn, advised that the meal menu was reasonable, and there was in-facility parking which would be convenient, and that we would likely be the only group there during our conference.  The Program Committee had a conference call subsequent to the site tour and elected to recommend to the Board that we sign a contract with the Holiday Inn.  Conference date will be October 10 (Sunday), 2004, with meetings on Monday 10/11/04 through Wednesday, 10/13/04.  The proposed contract with the Holiday Inn was evaluated in detail by the Board. Don Telge made a motion which was seconded by Steve Prather, and approved by the Board that we accept the proposal from the Holiday Inn Riverwalk.  A motion was made by Steve Prather, seconded by Paul Northcutt, and approved by the Board, that the Program Committee be authorized a planning budget of $23,000 for the 2004 Annual Conference, and that anything in excess of that amount would require Board approval. The Board authorized David to sign the contract with the Holiday Inn Riverwalk.  Myron will issue the deposit check as required by the proposal.  

David then discussed the “Committee Responsibilities / Budget” spreadsheet for the 2004 Conference.  Responsibilities were discussed and David.  David recommended we consider recognizing Board Members, Committee Members and/or Sponsors who do so much for the Conference.  The Board authorized David to continue to research ways to recognize key conference support personnel and report back at a later time.  

Ray Erwin recommended that if we have a “Sporting Clay Shoot” again in 2004, that we advise the participants to bring their own shotguns and their own shells.  

Ron Held will look into the tax requirements for distributing TVMA-related items (caps, etc) at the conference.  

The Treasurer provided an update on the financial condition of the Association, and provided the detailed statement and balance sheet.  Myron reported that we made approximately $6,800 in profit at the 2003 Conference.  Total assets of the Association are approximately $32,348.01, which includes $26,044.86 in our checking account, and $6,303.15 in our saving account.  Myron reported that one sponsor, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, had yet to pay their $295 exhibitor fee.  Myron is working with TCEQ to satisfy this issue.  After discussion, Don Telge made a motion which was seconded by Steve Prather and approved by the Board, that the Treasurer’s report be accepted as submitted.  Myron reported that Control Solutions had not paid their advertising fees.  

No committee reports were heard for the Parliamentary, Historical, Membership, Scholarship, Legislative or Public Relations Committees.  For the Editorial Committee, Paul Northcutt discussed that the deadline for articles for the December 2003 CLIP was 12/15/03.  The Board Member expiration-term dates were clarified and will be posted to the TVMA web page.  Ray Erwin made a motion, seconded by Mike Meador, and the Board approved placement of the 2003 Annual Conference attendee list onto the TVMA web page.  

Don Telge provided an update on the Training Committee and advised that he would be visiting with the Texas Department of Agriculture to get the latest information and requirements from that Agency to insure that our program addressed their needs, and to make sure that our ties with TDA were strong.  

Ray Erwin volunteered to chair the Membership Committee once vacated by outgoing chair David Jalowy.  

There was no update at this meeting on the status of the TVMA tax-exempt approval process.

Steve White recommended that we include as an agenda item on the February 2004 Board meeting, a discussion on ways to handle an increasing bank balance, should that trend be demonstrated by TVMA, and to look at priorities for spending any excess funds, if available.  Steve also reiterated that guests were welcome to attend the TVMA board meetings.

Myron will check on interest-bearing checking accounts which might be more suitable for the Scholarship Fund.   

The Board discussed the revised Corporate Sponsorship and Advertising Opportunities as presented by Paul Northcutt.  After discussion, Myron Rabalais made a motion, seconded by Ray Erwin, and approved by the Board that the Corporate Sponsorship and Advertising Opportunities be approved and be posted to the web site.  Platinum sponsorship was set at $2,000, gold at $1,500, silver at $1,000, bronze at $650, and nickel at $400, each of which include at least one conference registration. Advertising rates were set at $200 for 1/8 page and $300 for ¼ page ads.  

The Board reviewed the proposed changes to the TVMA by-laws caused by the Association name change and by the requirement to accept ballots by electronic means.  It was decided to continue working on the by-laws during this coming year so that a revised set of by-laws could be presented to the membership 30 days prior to the 2004 Annual Conference, and voted on by the membership during the 2004 business meeting.  Electronic voting, would start following the vote during the 2004 business meeting.  A review of the by-laws is to be placed on the agendas for each of the Board meetings during the coming conference year. Board members are to down-load the current TVMA by-laws from the TVMA web page and review them prior to the next meeting.  

A motion was made by David Wall, seconded by Myron Rabalais, and approved by the Board, that electronic ballots for TVMA board members be accepted as valid immediately.  The Secretary-Editor will implement the procedures necessary to solicit Board ballots.  

In discussing the 2004 conference fees and the deadlines, the motion which was made, seconded and approved by the Board in their August 19, 2003 meeting be rescinded.  The August 19, 2003 motion permitted members to secure the “discount” registration fee if their registration form was received by the deadline set by the Board, regardless of whether payment accompanied the registration form or not.  After considerable discussion, a motion by David Wall, seconded by Don Telge, and approved by the Board, that a discount registration fee be extended to any member who paid their registration fees by the deadline established by the board, and that the regular registration rate apply to any member who pays their registration fees subsequent to the deadline established by the board.  

The Board established a September 10, 2004 deadline in order to qualify for the discount registration.  

A motion was made by Don Telge, seconded by Ron Held and approved by the Board that the 2004 discount fee be set at $100, and the normal registration be set at $125.  

Paul Northcutt reported on potential costs to the Association for using a private audio-teleconferencing service.  Two quotes were received; AT&T and SBC.  AT&T was $15 set-up and $0.71 per minute per caller.  SBC was $0 setup and $0.39 per minute per caller.  After discussion, it was suggested that our corporate board members utilize their in-house corporate audio-teleconferencing services should TVMA have a future need for that service.   

Steve White summarized the surveys received from the 2003 conference and indicated that most comments were very favorable.  

The Board authorized the Program Committee to establish a suitable reduced fee for spouses and guests of conference attendees who attend the 2004 TVMA Annual Conference.  The Program Committee is to report back to the Board on their recommendations.

Member communications were read including recommendations from Dr. Mary Ketchersid and Mr. Buddy Hudson.  The Secretary-Editor will contact each with the Board’s recommendations.

No final date has been set for the February, 2004 Board meeting to be held in Austin in conjunction with the annual Legislative Dinner.  Steve White will confirm dates with the legislators and advise the Board.  It is likely that the Board meeting will be held at an LCRA facility, and Steve will confirm this with Craig Johnson. It was discussed that A.J. Thibodeaux will secure a facility available through the Nature Conservancy for the May 18, 2004 TVMA board meeting and report back to the Board.  The meeting times for this meeting was set at 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. The August 10, 2004 meeting will be held at the Holiday Inn Riverside in San Antonio.  

There being no further business, the TVMA Board meeting was closed by President Steve White at 12:45 pm. 

Respectfully submitted:

Paul Northcutt
TVMA Secretary-Editor

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