07/29/23 EC Minutes
Executive Council Meeting
July 29, 2023
Muncie, Indiana
8:00 a.m. Nominations Committee meeting
1. EC meeting began at 8:16 a.m.
In attendance: President Rich Hanson, Fishers IN; EVP Randy Cameron, Pittsburg MO; CFO Keith Sessions, Burlington KY; District I Andy Argenio, Smithfield RI; District II, Eric Williams, Schenectady NY; District III Mark Radcliff, St. Marys WV; District IV Jay Marsh, High Point NC; District V, Andrew Griffith, Jacksonville FL; District VI Gary Himes, Kansas City MO; District VII Randy Gibson, Lansing MI; District VIII Lawrence Harville, Hurst TX; District IX Brandon Koch, Mandan ND; District X Greg Stone, Yorba Linda CA; District XI Phil Tallman Medical Lake WA; Executive Director Chad Budreau; Felix Gora, attorney.
Others present: Staff: Eric Bachmann (staff), Randy Batchelor (staff), Ilona Maine (staff), Angie Martin (staff), Tyler Dobbs (staff), Bill Lee (member, remote) Rusty Kennedy (AMA Foundation chairman, remote), Jim Rice (AMA Safety Committee), Gary Fitch (District II AVP), Randy Adams (District III AVP), Steve Brehm (District I AVP), John Fisher (AVP District VI, remote), John Hunt (District VIII AVP), Twana Cheek (Brady Ware & Associates, remote), Linda Rice (member).
Additions to final flight: A moment of silence.
2. Consent agenda
- Approval of April 29, 2023, minutes
- AMA Fellow award to Terry Frazer
- AMA Fellow award to Joyce Hager
- Lifetime Achievement award to Joyce Hager
- Hall of Fame Committee report
- Adjust dates of F3C/N and Heli Nats
- Carl and Beth Goldberg Vital People award to Joyce Hager
All passed by acclamation.
3. President’s Report
Rich Handon (President) reminded the EC that additions to the agenda should be submitted in writing at least two weeks in advance of the meeting. Rich attended the AMA National Fun Fly, Joe Nall, and the EAA Fly-In to sign an MOU with the FAA acting Administrator Polly Trottenburg. The MOU focuses on AMA’s educational efforts giving it more national recognition and credibility. Rich also attended numerous in person and virtual committee meetings.
4. Executive VP Report
In May Randy Cameron (EVP) went to Scott Air Force Base near East St. Louis for a fly-in and helped staff with the AMA Simulator trailer. He also attended the Wings for Kids event in Louisville where they raised more than $46,000 for the Norton Children’s Hospital. In the past 25 years, the event has raised $509,000 for that cause.
The National Fun Fly was in June with 96 registered pilots. Randy suggested that the summer EC meeting be held in conjunction with the Fun Fly. There was discussion about the low attendance since the launch of the event. Lawrence Harville (VIII) asked where the attendees came from, Randy said he would send a CD report and the EC can look up the names and locations. Chad offered to send the CD report once Randy submitted it. Eric Williams (II) noted that Joe Nall has taken 40 years to grow, and this was only the fourth year for the Fly In. Jay Marsh (IV) mentioned a larger “vendor row” would be a draw. Keith Sessions (CFO) commented that vendors will come once the event attracts crowds.
Randy discussed the Flying Site Improvement Grants (FSIG) grants and suggested a Zoom class for volunteers on how to do scoring. Rusty Kennedy (Foundation Chair) noted concerns and also suggested having a Zoom training session with the volunteers. Andy Argenio (I) noted that it takes 3-4 weeks to score and suggested that the list be broken down to smaller, more reasonable numbers of applicants. Lawrence Harville (VIII) noted that he had had people back out because of the amount of work. Randy Gibson (VII) noted that the current application now allows for an applicant to better showcase their work. Rusty reiterated that the biggest problem is getting a sufficient number of scorers to evaluate the applications. Rich sent the matter back to the committee to reevaluate the process and suggest improvements.
5. CFO Report
A. Audit report. The market bottomed out twice last year. This negatively impacted AMA’s 2022 final numbers, but we are starting to recover. It is anticipated there will be another Fed action with a possible raise in interest rates that will affect the market. The market will lead the way and will probably grow slightly going into 2024. Keith Sessions (CFO) reminded the EC that inflation also negatively impacted AMA in 2022 and may continue to impact AMA. Keith added that there will be a change in AMA’s accounting practices for Life Memberships retroactively starting in 2022. New Life Membership revenue will not be recognized as earned income in that year’s operating budget, instead the income will be deferred over the next 30 years based on Life Member age averages and annuity tables. This does not impact cash flow, but the new change will reduce AMA’s income for 2022 and future budgets.
Twana Cheek (Brady Ware & Associates) was invited to present the 2022 Audit. She described AMA as receiving a “clean” audit report for 2022 and thanked staff for their cooperation and hard work. She noted very large losses in 2022 because of stock marketing investments, but agreed with Keith that some of the investments have been recouped. She discussed changes in membership. Chad noted that AMA met our 2022 membership revenue goals at 100.18%, but after accounting for Brady Ware’s new recommendation to defer Life revenue, that number will drop further impacting AMA’s 2022 net losses. Twana then discussed the management letter highlighting two immaterial issues that were reconciled to include deferring Life Membership revenue over a 30-year period.
Motion I: Motion by Randy Cameron (EVP), seconded by Phil Tallman (District XI), to approve the auditor’s report contingent on general counsel’s audit letter.
Motion passed: 12 yes (I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, EVP) 1 absent (NAA).
6. Executive Director’s Report
Chad Budreau (ED) invited Tyler Dobbs (staff) to share government updates. Tyler attended EAA AirVenture and met with FAA Policy and Aviation Safety Leadership regarding Remote ID related issues. AMA was given assurances that FRIA and broadcast module issues would be resolved in the coming months. Tyler also met with industry stakeholders to include EAA, Wing, FliteTest, and Zipline. Tyler and Chrystal Pearson (staff) will be attending the FAA Symposium in Baltimore. They have multiple meetings scheduled with FAA Flight Standards and FAA Policy regarding FRIAs, remote ID modules, and higher altitude operations.
AMA is awaiting the Senate to resume work on FAA Reauthorization. AMA has been given verbal commitments that their amendment is in the Managers Package of this bill. This bill is becoming increasingly confrontational, so we will need to keep pressure on the committee to include the amendment when talks resume. It’s likely FAA Reauthorization receives a short continuing resolution, but still likely that a bill is passed near the end of 2023.
Tyler also discussed a new process to replace club LOAs in controlled airspace under 7011 Airspace Authorizations. Tyler believes this is a good short-term solution, but expressed some concerns.
Chad and Tyler then discuss the FRIA process. The FRIA team is submitting the last of the AMA’s FRIA applications and will make the September 16, 2023 deadline. AMA is engaging the FAA expressing concerns the agency will not complete the FRIA approval process by the September deadline.
Chad then provided updates to the 2023 Program of Work and other assigned task. He confirmed that staff implemented the April 2023 motion to provide National Free Flight Society with 50 free memberships to support Science Olympiad. Staff completed the April 2023 motion to accept the Warbird Classic Alliance application as a Special Interest Group. Staff completed EC’s request to create a club roster training video. Staff also completed the April 2023 motion to launch the Active Military Discount Program as presented ahead of schedule. Pending tasks include developing a virtual portal for leader members to attend EC meetings and completion of the pavilions on site 4. Chad closed his presentation with a slide outlining the status report of each 2023 Program of Work initiative.
7. NAA report
Greg Principato (NAA) is at Oshkosh and asked Chad Budreau (ED) to provide a report. Chad noted that Greg sends his thanks to AMA and offer to help in the future. Chad reminded the EC about the FAI general Conference in Dayton, Ohio, on October 23, 2023. NAA has a couple agenda items to include discussions on environmental/workforce sustainability and FAI’s financial sustainability. Chad noted that Greg encouraged Randy Gibson (VII) and his DEI initiatives and offered his help. Chad then shared sponsorship opportunities for the FAI General Conference. There was no interest from the EC citing concerns that AMA already disproportionately funds FAI.
8. Committee Reports
Safety Committee: Large Model Helicopters
Brandon Koch (IX) shared the proposed Large Model Helicopter (LMH) Program. The hobby has evolved globally and many of the LMH pilots cannot fly under the current rules. There was discussion validating the credentials, experiences, and knowledge of those involved in designing the program. There was discussion about operations conducted at flying fields and events, Brandon suggested that most would be flown at demos or air shows. Eric Williams (II), Rich Hanson (President), and others proposed edits such as a better text to define the helicopter platform. The item will be sent back to the committee to refine and post it to Basecamp for a vote before the October EC meeting.
Lunch/Executive Session
Rich Hanson (President) discussed forming a search and selection committee for the CFO position. The committee will be Randy Cameron (EVP) as the chairperson with Randy Gibson (VII) and Greg Stone (X) as committee members. They will review the job description, recommend a search process, develop a selection process, and offer recommendations by the August conference call.
Advanced Flight Systems Committee: Remote ID Modules
Andy Argenio (I) noted there are over 10 modules currently available and he feels that maybe 4-5 are acceptable for the hobby. These companies are interested in forming a relationship/partnership with AMA. Weight, size, and price are extremely important. In addition to staff, Andy has invited others in the industry to help review the modules.
Andy mentioned various technology and additional capabilities of some of the components and wants to share other values that some of them have. He then discussed the value of surveying members.
Rich Hanson (President) thanked Andy for his work on this committee and for exploring collaborative efforts with some of these companies. Rich asked that Andy’s research be made available on the AMA website. A majority of the EC was in favor of providing pricing in the report. Andy will develop a chart that offers a balanced comparison of the individual features, price, and where the manufacturer’s website is located.
There was much discussion about a possible discount and whether or not AMA should endorse or provide benefits.
FAI Executive Committee: Blue Book Approval*, F2 WC Approval*
Rich Hanson (President) noted that the EC had a couple months to review and discuss the presented FAI Blue Book and asked for any further discussion before asking for motion.
Motion II: Motion by Jay Marsh (IV) seconded by Gary Himes (VI) to accept the revised World Championship Teams Blue Book as presented.
Motion passed: 12 yes (I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, EVP) 1 absent (NAA).
Bill Lee (member) was commended for his work in updating the FAI Blue Book. Bill, who was present virtually, also discussed the F2 World Championships (WC) in 2024. There have been no bids for the F2 WC for various reasons. Bill feels there is enough member and SIG support for AMA to host the event at the IAC. CIAM is willing to award it to the US if the EC supports and approves the bid. The largest concern is the scheduling of the Nats. Currently the plan is to schedule the portions of CL Nats adjacent to the WC in early August.
It is tradition for the WC host to host a two-day World Cup preceding the WC to make sure that the logistics are in place. The planning is underway.
Rich Hanson (President) questioned the condition of the site and what modifications would be necessary. Bill has concerns about the paved site conditions to include cracks and general deterioration over the past few decades. He also noted a lack of power at some of the sites and that having power run to the other sites would enhance the site’s usability.
Chad Budreau (ED) reminded the EC of a five-year depreciation plan to improve the IAC which flying site improvements in 2025. Discussion ensued concerning what could be expedited to properly host a 2024 F2 WC. Mark Radcliff (III) stressed that if it could be repaired well enough for the Nats, then it should be good enough for the WC. PADCOM will investigate solutions for repairs.
Motion III: Motion by Mark Radcliff (III) seconded by Randy Cameron (EVP) to approve the F2 2024 World Championship bid to be hosted at the IAC in August 2024.
Motion passed: 12 yes (I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, EVP) 1 absent (NAA).
SIG Committee:
MultiGP’s government lead is applying for FRIA statuses under another Community-Based Organization for AMA clubs who also host MultiGP chapters. Andy Argenio (I) reported on the history of the AMA and MultiGP relationship. There was a discussion as to how this may impact AMA’s operations and relationship and benefits with the clubs.
Randy Cameron (EVP) noted that the AMA staff managing SIG renewals are also leading AMA’s FRIA efforts. He requested that AMA auto renew SIG status for 2023 with the exception of those that failed to renew in 2022 so staff can continue to focus on FRIAs. The EC concurred.
PADCOM:
IAC Site Improvements R. Cameron
Chad Budreau (ED) will get bids for IAC improvements once PADCOM finalizes their plans for the IAC. Much was discussed the previous day at the PADCOM meeting on future plans of the IAC and the five-year depreciation plan.
10. New Business
AMA Remote ID Messaging C. Budreau
AMA will continue to educate and inform members about Remote ID to include in digital media and Model Aviation. There are concerns the FAA may not meet the September 16, 2023 deadline to review FRIA applications. Contingency measures were discussed as the deadline approaches. Ilona Maine (staff) has been providing the District VPs with an updated FRIA list for each district.
AMA Applying Federal Grants and Bids C. Budreau
Mark Benson (staff) joined the meeting to discuss the AMA simulation trailer. Wing is willing to sponsor the trailer allowing AMA to refurbish or replace the trailer and truck to maintain the program. The trailer attended 11 events this year and it is a popular attraction introducing thousands to the hobby. Felix Gora (legal counsel), Mark, and the EC discussed various terms in the proposed contract. Greg Stone (X) asked about getting other manufacturers involved in funding the project. Mark indicated other sponsors can support the trailer with Wing. Renting/leasing a truck was also discussed.
Motion IV: Motion by Randy Cameron (EVP) seconded by Greg Stone (District X) to approve the contract with Wing making them the title sponsor for the AMA STE(A)M and Education Trailer Program.
Motion passed: 12 yes (I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, EVP) 1 absent (NAA).
Chad Budreau (ED) noted that two new STEM grants from the FAA have been released, but AMA does not meet the qualifications. AMA is discussing this with FAA petitioning for exemptions or waivers.
Nominations Committee:
Brandon Koch (IX) confirmed that the following have been approved:
- EVP Randy Cameron (unopposed)
- District III Randy Adams and Jeff Black
- District VII Randy Gibson (unopposed)
- District XI Phil Tallman (unopposed)
Motion V: Motion by Brandon Koch (IX) and seconded by Andrew Griffith (V) to accept the nomination committee report.
Motion passed: 12 yes (I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, EVP) 1 absent (NAA).
12. Awards
Rich announced that both PAMPA and NSRCA celebrated their 50 anniversaries. He wants to create an award for the two SIGs.
Meeting adjourned at 4:20 p.m.
Release Date
Mon, 09/11/2023 - 13:45