ISMA News - Association Suisse 6mJI

ISMA News International 6mJI Association Bulletin 1/2007 7
Background
For several years the Association has struggled to achieve a level of income which would allow it to fund its activities
properly. A summary of income and expenditure for the years 2004 – 2006 is attached as Annex A. ISMA
has been able to meet its obligation to pay a subscription to ISAF. However it is clear that the ISMA Journal and
website together absorb all the Association’s remaining income, and this may still be inadequate to meet these
costs (see ISMA Journal 2/2005 pp 8 – 10). Thus the ISMA Journal and website only survive thanks to the goodwill
of the editor.
The lack of funding is a matter of serious concern. There is no spare capacity for meeting the costs of other activities
which the Association might wish to undertake, such as:
• meeting the running expenses (stationery, postage, telephone) of the Association’s officers
• insuring the trophies
• paying membership fees to other bodies
• funding the purchase of new trophies
• subsidising activities to facilitate the racing and social programme
• funding other forms of publicity
• paying meeting expenses (such as hire costs for meeting venues)
establishing a contingency fund.
Current Funding Arrangements
Historically, ISMA has derived its income by charging a fee for each boat, collected wherever possible through
National Associations. There have been two particular problems:
From a comparison of fees paid by each national fleet, compared with the number of boats which feature in race
results from those countries, it has become clear that some national fleets have many more boats actively competing
in six metre races, both nationally and internationally, than are paying subscriptions.
A number of people have expressed an interest in the class, and some actually own boats which are laid up or undergoing
restoration. They have sought advice from ISMA, and the Association’s officers have expended significant
time and effort, and some expense, in corresponding with them and answering their questions. Many of these
people have been added to the circulation list for the ISMA journal, and others may wish to be on the list. However
because ISMA fees have, in theory, been related to boats, there has been no attempt to derive an income from such
people to offset the administrative cost of keeping in touch with them and sending them the journal. Some former
boat owners also remain on the circulation list despite no longer paying a subscription.
In an attempt to generate more income, the Association introduced a requirement for sail certification marks on
all sails measured after 1 March 2005. This has proved only partially successful. It is only effectively policed at
major events, and derives no income from boats which use second-hand sails.
Proposals for Alternative Funding
Clearly the Association needs to spread its net wider in the search for funds. This could be achieved to some
degree by more effective monitoring of which boats appear in active competition. The recent initiative to collect
more accurate records of each national fleet will assist in this respect. However, it is the responsibility of each
National Association to control the situation in its own waters. In this regard it is perhaps relevant to note that the
ISMA by-laws permit attendance and voting at General Meetings by National Associations ‘in good standing’.
What comprises ‘good standing’ is nowhere defined, but it might be argued that a National Association which fails
to collect dues from competing boats should automatically forfeit its ‘good standing’. This would mean that its
members would be unable to compete in international events, and it would be unable to vote in meetings or host
events itself.