NSS S-T Report
Attachment E-5
Spring 2010 NSS BOG Meeting
NSS Membership Classes
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Prepared by Peri Frantz
Background
At the summer 2009 BOG Meeting in Kerrville Texas, the board asked me to study the
NSS membership structure, and make recommendations for streamlining it.
The S.T. will review the 16 membership categories the NSS currently has and make
recommendations as to how this number can be reduced and the bookkeeping work on these
reduced. The goal will be to simplify the membership system by phasing out many of the
existing different types of membership. This report shall be presented to the NSS BOG at
the Spring 2010 Board meeting.
This document reviews the NSS’s membership classes, discusses the reasoning behind
them, and makes some general suggestions for rationalizing them. It also presents some
things for the BOG to consider before changing the Bylaws. I strongly believe that it is
premature at this point to undertake an actual rewrite, and recommend that the this report,
along with comments from the BOG be referred to the Secretary-Treasures, and the Bylaws
Membership, and Strategic Planning Committees for further action.
Membership Classes
NSS membership classes are defined in Section I Membership - Dues of the NSS Bylaws, a
copy of which is attached. This Bylaw defines 15 membership classes, which co-mingle the
rights and privileges of membership with the requirements, payment methods, donor status,
awards and rules for setting dues. These Bylaws have evolved overtime, and some changes
have created inconsistencies and left loopholes. They expend a great deal of verbiage
addressing special cases and unusual circumstances, obscuring the underlying intent. The
end result is a tangled web of inconsistent, confusing, rules and definitions that are difficult
to understand and leave much to interpretation. A spreadsheet that summarizes this Bylaw
can be found at the end of this report.
This hodgepodge of membership categories, coupled with the options for paying multiple
years at a time, make record keeping and accounting difficult, and complicate making the
dues projections needed for effective budgeting. A drastic simplification is long overdue.
Additionally, with the advent of electronic publishing, the NSS will have to adjust its
accounting to reflect who is entitled to hard copy, and how to handle subscriptions for those
who want to pay extra for it. A thoughtful redesign of our membership and dues structure
now will greatly facilitate that transition.
The 15 categories, as currently defined are
Associate
Basic
Regular
Life
(Regular) Sustaining
Conservation
Conservation Life
Institutional
Family Associate
Family Life
Family Regular
Family Sustaining
NSS S-T Report
Attachment E-5
Spring 2010 NSS BOG Meeting
NSS Membership Classes
Honorary Member
Outstanding Service Member
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Spouse of Deceased Life Member
Before changing our membership class structure, we should make sure we understand what
the current structure was intended to do. I believe that the current structure evolved as an
attempt to
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Control who can vote, serve on the BOG, and chair committees
Manage who receives which publications
Provide incentives to become Life members
Provide recognition for major donors
Provide a time-payment plan towards Life Membership
Provide lower cost options for multiple family members
Provide lower cost options for people with restricted income (seniors, students, etc.)
Prevent abuse of the associate, family and spouse categories by restricting when
they may be used.
Which of the objectives to retain, and which to drop or modify is a question for the BOG to
answer.
The following summary of our memberships classes, which ignores many of the finer
details, attempts to align these classes wit the above objectives.
Regular Members constitute the bulk of our member ship (50%), and are the standard for
defining most other membership classes.
The Basic Member class provides a low-cost membership option without publications, but
with voting privileges. Approximately 10% of our members are Basic Members.
The Associate Member class provides a membership path for those too young to join as
Regular Members but not living with another NSS member, and for full time students of
any age. It is a low cost, non-voting membership, which nonetheless receives full
publications. As such, it is heavily subsidized, presumably to encourage our younger
members. By lumping full time students with those under 17, it denies a vote to students
who would otherwise be old enough to vote. About 1.2% of our members are Associate
Members.
Life Members of all classes are permanent members, who no longer pay dues because they
have paid an “age-discounted life-membership fee”, either as a lump sum, or via a “life
membership account”. Typically, “life membership accounts” are built up through
sustaining memberships, but direct deposits are also allowed. Life membership fees are
placed in the Life Membership Fund, ‘where they generate sufficient income to “pay” the
members dues each year. The various Life Members constitute about 17% of our total
membership.
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NSS Membership Classes
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The various Family Member classes provide low-cost memberships for multiple family
members living together, and avoid duplicating publications. At least one resident of the
household must be a Regular or Associate Member. About 18% of the membership are
Family Members of one type or another.
The two Sustaining Member classes provide time-payment plans for achieving Life or
Family Life membership. There is no time-payment plan for Conservation Life. We
currently have 148 Sustaining Members.
The Conservation and Conservation Life classes provide recognition for exceptionally
generous donors. The NSS currently has 7 Conservation Members, and 7 Conservation
Life members.
The Honorary Member and Outstanding Service Member classes provides recognition
for those who have received the Society’s highest awards. It is worth noting that Fellows
are not considered a membership class.
Spouse of a Deceased Life Member: When a Life Member dies, the surviving spouse
becomes a Life Member. Apparently, this membership class was created to prevent the
surviving spouse from bequeathing their inherited membership to a subsequent spouse. This
concern is highly unlikely, and in the rare case that it did occur, the Life Membership Fund
will cover the ensuing expenses. I see no need for this class.
Recommendations:
A new membership structure should de-couple the membership categories from all the other
extraneous issues - awards, payment plans, and donor status. These can be used as
modifiers to the underlying membership. The Members Manual already does this for
Honorary Members and Outstanding Service members, who are listed as RL (HM) and RL
(OS), in the same way that Fellows are recognized - RE (FE). Likewise, the monthly
Membership Mailing counts MH and OS as Regular Life Members, and does not provide
separate counts for them.
The following recommendation is offered as a starting point for the BOG discussion and
consultation with the membership, both of which are needed before we can proceed.
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Restructure the Bylaws so there are separate sections for Membership Classes,
Dues, Life Membership and Discounts.
Modify Section I Membership - Dues, to address only membership, and to reduce
the number of classes to 5;
• Regular: age 17+. voting, hardcopy NSS News, electronic Journal
• Associate: age 17+ voting. Electronic publications only; This class would
include family members age 17 and above, who would receive additional
discounts, and also cover out current “basic” members.
• Scientific: age 17+, voting, hard copy News and Journal
• Youth: Under 17, non-voting, electronic publications
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Spring 2010 NSS BOG Meeting
NSS Membership Classes
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Institutional: Corporations, Institutions, Organizations, etc.
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Modify Section II Awards - Grants, to provide recognition to awardees by the use of
reward codes (HM, OS, FE)
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A new Bylaw for Dues should
• Authorize the BOG to set dues for some classes and establish formulas for
calculating the dues and fees for others.
• Provide general guidelines for setting dues. For example, there is currently a rule
that states “Dues for Basic membership shall be set no lower than the amount
which added to the cost of a subscription to the monthly periodical of the
Society equals the dues set for the regular membership”.
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A new Bylaw for Discounts should provide for
• Age discounts on Life Membership Fees for those 60 and over
• Family discounts for 2nd, 3rd (and beyond) members in same family at same
address (either Associate or Youth)
• Student discounts for full time students
• Paying multi-year dues (2 or 3 years)
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A new Bylaw for Life Membership should
• Define Life membership as a modifier on other membership classes
• Define the rules for upgrading the various types of Life Membership. For
example upgrading Associate (Life) to Regular (Life).
• Define the rules for inheriting Life memberships.
• Make time payment plans available for all Life Membership types.
• Define minimal payment levels for recognition as a Sustaining Member
• Make provisions for crediting a surviving spouse from deceased’s Life
Membership Account
Before these, or any other changes, can be implemented, the BOG should consider:
• Creating a formal statement of membership/dues policy
• Establishing a timeline for implementing this change
• Creating a policy for translating existing membership classes to the new ones
• Developing a process for informing the membership of the potential changes, and
soliciting their input.
• Providing guidance to the Finance Committee to aid in determining dues, fees and
discounts under the proposed Bylaws. The Finance Committee will also have to
analyze the fiscal impact.
NSS S-T Report
Attachment E-5
Spring 2010 NSS BOG Meeting
NSS Membership Classes
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NSS Bylaws
I.
MEMBERSHIP - DUES
A. Applications for membership must be accompanied by payment of dues or lifemembership fee. Applicants must signify that they support the goals and conservation
policies of the Society.
B.
(1) The classes of members are as described in this section. Persons under seventeen
years of age may only be associate, family-associate, honorary, or outstandingservice members.
(2) Except where otherwise provided below, dues are set by the Board of Governors.
A change in dues may be approved only at a meeting at least thirty days later than
the board meeting at which it is moved. The only amendments to a motion for a
change in dues that may be accepted at the subsequent meeting will be those
which would reduce any proposed increases or which would delay the effective
date of the change.
(3) Honorary members are individuals to whom membership is awarded by the Board
of Governors for outstanding contributions to the field of speleology. Only one
honorary membership may be awarded each year. Honorary members have the
same privileges as life members.
(4) William J. Stephenson Outstanding Service members are individuals to whom
membership is awarded by the Board of Governors for outstanding service to
speleology and the Society. Only one outstanding Service membership may be
awarded each year. Outstanding Service members have the same privileges as
life members.
(5) A full fee for life membership shall be established by the Board of Governors.
Everyone has an age-discounted life-membership fee calculated as follows: For
people less than 60 years old, the discounted fee is equal to the full fee; for people
60 through 89, the full fee is reduced by 2.5 percent for each year over 59; and for
people 90 or over, the discounted fee is 25 percent of the full fee. For a person
who is a sustaining or family-sustaining member, the discounted fee is calculated
based on the full fee in effect at the time the person became a sustaining or
family-sustaining member, providing that there has been no subsequent lapse of
two years or longer in the members status as a sustaining or family-sustaining
member. In all other cases, the discounted fee is based on the current full lifemembership fee. A person may become a life member by paying the discounted
fee. An eligible person may become a family-life member by payment of onehalf of the discounted fee. In addition, members may establish a life membership
account by making a payment toward life membership of at least one-tenth of the
current full fee or by becoming a sustaining or family-sustaining member.
Additions to an account may be made through sustaining or family-sustaining
dues or other payments to the Society for this purpose. A member seventeen
years of age or older whose account reaches the members discounted lifemembership fee becomes a life member; an eligible member may elect to become
a family-life member when his or her account reaches one-half the members
discounted life membership fee. A life-membership account is not refundable.
Money in such accounts shall be placed in the Life Membership Fund.
(6) A life member is an individual who is exempt from payment of dues and has all
the privileges of a regular member. Any surviving spouse of an honorary,
outstanding service, or life member is entitled to and shall be offered life
membership status.
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(7) A family-life member is married to an outstanding-service, honorary, or life
member. In the event of the death of the spouse, the family-life member will
become a life member. In the event that a family-life member is divorced from
the spouse, the family-life member's life-membership account will be credited
with the amount necessary to bring it to one-half the members current
discounted life-membership fee, unless it already exceeds that amount, and the
required total payment will be set to the members current life-membership
fee. The divorced family-life member's class shall become regular with dues
expiration in two months. A family-life member may make additional
payments toward life membership into his or her life-membership account at
any time. Family-life members do not receive publications, but otherwise have
all the privileges of regular members.
(8) A sustaining member is an individual who pays dues that are regular member
dues plus, for each year, one-tenth the current full life-membership fee.
Eleven-tenths of the amount paid in excess of regular dues will be credited to
the member's life-membership account. Sustaining members have all the
privileges of regular members.
(9) A family-sustaining member is married to an outstanding-service, honorary,
life, or sustaining member. Dues of a family-sustaining member are current
family-regular dues plus, for each year, one-twentieth of the current full lifemembership fee. Eleven-tenths of the amount in excess of the current familyregular dues is credited toward the life-membership account of the familysustaining member. If a family-sustaining member's spouse should die while a
sustaining member, any excess in the spouse's life-membership account over
the amount in the surviving member's account will be credited to the survivor's
account, and, if the total in the account does not entitle the surviving member to
life membership, the survivor's membership class shall become regular for the
remainder of his or her dues year. If the spouse should die an outstandingservice, honorary, or life member, the surviving member will become a life
member. Family-sustaining members do not receive publications but otherwise
have all the privileges of sustaining members.
(10) Regular members are individuals at least seventeen years of age who have all
privileges of Society membership, including the rights to vote, serve on the
Board of Governors or as committee chairmen, receive current issues of the
NEWS and JOURNAL, and have access to the Society's records and data.
(11) Associate members are under seventeen years of age, or full-time students, or
non-U.S. citizens who reside outside the United States. They have all the
privileges of Society membership except the rights to vote and serve on the
Board of Governors or as committee chairmen.
(12) Family-regular and family-associate members are members that are in the
immediate family of and reside at the same address as a member, other than a
family member, of the Society. These members do not receive publications,
but otherwise have all the privileges of regular or associate members,
respectively. When their memberships depend on dues-paying members of the
Society, their dues will expire at the same time.
(a) A family-regular member must be at least seventeen years old, and his or her
membership must not depend on an associate member.
(b) A family-associate member is under seventeen years of age, or his or her
membership depends on an associate member of the Society. In addition,
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Spring 2010 NSS BOG Meeting
NSS Membership Classes
C.
D.
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full-time students and non-U.S. citizens living outside the United States may
be family-associate members if they wish.
(13) Institutional members are organizations or corporations, but not individuals,
which have all the privileges of regular members except the rights to serve on
the Board of Governors or as committee chairmen.
(14) Basic members are at least seventeen years of age. These members do not
receive publications, accept as stated; but otherwise have all the privileges of
Regular members.
(a) Basic members receive copies of Society periodicals no more than once per
year, and such special publications or issues of periodicals as the Board of
Governors may direct.
(b) Dues for Basic membership shall be set no lower than the amount which
added to the cost of a subscription to the monthly periodical of the Society
equals the dues set for the regular membership.
(15) Conservation Members are members who have an interest in providing
additional support for NSS activities. Conservation Members have all the
privileges of a regular member.
(16) Conservation Life Members are life members who have an interest in providing
additional support for NSS activities. Conservation Life Members have all the
privileges of a life member.
A serial number will be assigned to each member at the time of admission to the
Society. Upon granting a request for reinstatement of a former member his original
membership number will be reinstated.
Fellows are individual members of the Society that have been so designated by the
Board of Governors for service in speleological research, exploration, conservation,
or administration. The number of fellows shall not exceed ten percent of the total
Society membership.