Section Council and Committee In-Person Meetings FY 2024/25

  1. Consistent with the FY 2024-2025 budget, the ISBA Assembly and Board have approved a FY 24/25 organizational budget that authorizes section council and committee member expense reimbursement for attendance at in-person meetings held at the Annual and Midyear meetings. The approved budget does not include expense reimbursement for any other in-person meetings.
  2. The approved FY 24/25 budget envisions that all section council and committee meetings held outside the Annual and Midyear meetings will be conducted by Zoom (or similar interactive audio-visual means).1 This continues the Assembly approved budget policy and practice from FY 23/24.
  3. In-person section council and committee meetings held at times not associated with the Annual and Midyear Meetings are not prohibited. However, to comply with the approved FY 24/25 budget and to take advantage of the benefits resulting from Zoom meetings, the following meeting protocols are in place:
    1. the meeting must be accessible via Zoom by all members;
    2. no travel, food, lodging, or other member expense reimbursements will be made by the ISBA;
    3. all venue health and safety measures must be followed;
    4. ISBA staff liaisons are expected to attend via Zoom (but if they attend in person they will not be reimbursed for expenses); and
  4. Section council and committee member expense reimbursement is not authorized for in-person meetings not associated with the Annual and Midyear Meetings. However, a section council or committee may request member expense reimbursement in extraordinary circumstances. The section council or committee must make such a request to the Manager of Section Services 45 days in advance of the meeting. The request must be supported by a description of the extraordinary circumstances justifying a deviation from the generally applicable “no member expense reimbursement” policy. The description should include all relevant factors necessary to fully evaluate the request including, at a minimum, how member expense reimbursement will materially advance the purposes of the meeting that cannot otherwise be advanced via Zoom participation. Requests will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and determinations will be promptly communicated to the requesting group.
  5. No meetings may be scheduled in November 2024 and May 2025 to assist groups in preparing for the Midyear and Annual Meetings (applies to councils and committees meeting at the Midyear and Annual only)


[1] During the Covid pandemic, all section council and committee meetings were held via Zoom. The attendance rate was a significant increase over pre-pandemic section council and committee attendance. The use of Zoom (or other audio-visual media) has resulted in improved member engagement, greater convenience for members, and meeting administration efficiency.