ALABAMA Bass FEDERATION, Inc.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING

August 2, 2008

MINUTES

The Board held a scheduled meeting at the La Quinta Inn in Prattville, AL on August 2, 2008.  The meeting was called to order at 8:50 AM.

Board members in attendance were:

Al Redding (President/Treasurer); Jeff Smith (District 1); Stan Blevins (District 2); Earl Andrews (District 4/Secretary); Ellis Strickland (District 5); Larry McConnell (District 6); Ronnie Williamson (District 7); Jim Sparrow (District 8/Vice-President/Youth Director); John Hall (District 9).

Minutes from the January 5, 2008 meeting (as previously reviewed and posted) were formally accepted by a unanimous vote.

President/Treasurer Al Redding distributed and reviewed detailed 2008 financial documentation through August 1, 2008 to/with the Board.  It was noted that the   Alabama Bass Federation , Inc. has operated at a significant deficit in 2008 due to the fact that participation was down and expenses were up. The Federation's overall financial condition remains in good standing due to prior years' prudent operation.

A motion to accept the Financial Report was passed unanimously

Al reported to the Board that he would not be attending the FLW Cup Championship at Lake Murray in South Carolina this year to reduce expenses. Reason: There was no scheduled meeting for the Presidents, only Youth Directors and Jim Sparrow the Alabama Youth Director will be in attendance. 

Youth Director Jim Sparrow presented a review of 2008 youth activities and programs.  The 2008 Youth Championship was held April 12, on Logan Martin Lake, Pell City Park.

It was well attended and had five extra boat captains and boats.  The winner in each age group will be going to the Youth Championship in South Carolina.  A motion was passed by the Board to give each winner $400.00 travel and expense money with an additional $200.00 each coming from FLW.  Room and meals will be provided by the Alabama Bass Federation, Inc. and TBF.

The 2009 State Youth Championship is set for April 11, 2009 and probably will be held on Lake Mitchell with the Federation helping with expenses. 

 Tournament Schedules for 2009 and 2010 were discussed.  No final decisions were made on all the tournaments.  The Directors have committed to getting this completed with agreements by the State Championship.

State Championship Payout was discussed and the following amounts were approved:

1^st Place - $2,500; 2^nd Place - $1,500; 3^rd Place- $1,200; 4^th Place - $1,100; 5^th Place $1,000: 6^th Place - $900: 7^th Place - $800; 8^th Place - $700: 9^th Place - $600: 10^th Place $500: 11^th Place - $400; 12^th  through  20^th Places - $300 each; 21^st through 30^th Places - $200 each.

Clothing Package for 2009 State Team will be reduced as follows: limited embroidery on shirts/use patches; limit number of shirts to three with all supplied by sponsors if possible; no rainsuits, shoes or socks will be provided; pants will be three pair for tournament days; use of buffet style restaurants will be used when possible.  The combination of all of the above will reduce the state team expenditures by an estimated $5,000.00.  The motion carried unanimously.

On Line Registration was discussed.  Complete*at is the company that will supply hassle free online management of the on line process.  This will provide the Federation member the opportunity to register for a tournament with a credit card.  The company will charge a fee and the credit card use fee will be added to the total registration fee to each member registering on line. 

The motion was to try this proposal for one year and the motion carried unanimously.

Tournament registration by cash or check will still be available.

Other Items Discussed: Boat ticket sales; trailer purchase from FLW with attached generator to increase the cost by the amount of the generator; ways to increase the participation in Federation tournaments; Director Larry McConnell made a presentation to go to a boater/nonboater format with different entry fee amounts.  The boaters would fish against other boaters and the nonboaters would fish against other nonboaters.  The State team would be comprised of six boaters and six nonboaters to be taken from the Angler of the Year points standings. Other rules and regulations of this format were discussed, with no action taken on the discussion.

Meeting was adjourned at 1:00 PM.