PAUSATF OFFICIALS EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MINUTES - APRIL 23, 2006

The Committee meeting was held at the home of George Kleeman, 5104 Alhambra Valley Road, Martinez, California.

Those attending: Members of the Executive Board: Bruce Colman, George Kleeman, Phil Watkins, Dickie Iwamiya, Leon Glover, Dick Connors, Jim Hume, John Murray. Guests: John Luppes and Irene Herman.

The Meeting was called to order by Chairman, Bruce Colman at 1:07 PM.

In the absence of Secretary Jon Siegel, John Murray was appointed acting secretary.

Those present observed a moment of silence for Paul Castoro.

There were no personnel issues and accordingly, no closed session.

Approval of the Minutes of the Executive Committee meeting of January 22, 2006. George Kleeman moved to approve the Minutes and seconded by Phil Watkins. Yes - all. No - None.

Items added to the agenda: Phil Watkins regarding Association wind gauges. Dick Connors regarding NCAA Championships.

Chairman's Report. Bruce Colman advised the Committee that he would be absent from the State of California until May 25..

Income/Donations: $1,500.00 from Stanford - thanks given to Dick Connors $1,500.00 from Cal.

A letter was sent by the Chairman to UC Santa Barbara Coach Dagata regarding the incident involving the coach and a Pacific Association official during a meet at Cal Poly. No response to the letter has been received.

The Chair recognized the efforts of Gail Wetzork in his attempts to locate a suitable site for the annual meeting of the Officials Committee at Cal.

Officials Room at Cal: Chairman Colman detailed efforts that have been underway with the assistance of Monte Upshaw to provide a new location for use as an officials room during meets at Cal, utilizing a bequest from the estate of Bill Monheit. . Suggestions have included a weight room on the west side of the stadium, but costs of bringing the room up to grade may be prohibitive. Phil Watkins also noted the inconvenience of a room on that side of the stadium. Chairman Colman indicated that talks will continue with Mr. Upshaw and Coach Huffins to find a suitable location.

Chairman Colman asked for Budget estimates to e presented by June for presentation to the Association by August.

Committee Reports:

Awards: Committee Chair Leon Glover asked for suggestions for the awards for this year, to include the three major awards, the 4 national awards, and the association awards. A discussion was held regarding the selection of award recipients from all areas, including LDR, as well as track and field. A proposal to create a separate award for LDR/Racewalking officials was tabled. Suggestions for recipients of awards can be sent to Leon Glover by email or other means.

Training: No report was available for the Mentoring Program. George Kleeman reported that there were a record number of attendees at the clinics - 176 persons attended 304 clinics., with Serra, Davis and American River clinics each having 84 attendees. George reported that there was little response to the request for desired topics for training classes. Problems noted were the inability to forecast the number of attendees in advance - example was the training clinic at Serra where 25 had pre-registered and 55 showed up on the day of the class. George solicited help in collecting the fees and completing the paperwork associated with the training classes. Phil Watkins proposed that a person be designated for each clinic to assist in collecting fees and passing out materials - freeing George for conducting classes. Bruce Colman proposed that assistance be provided to George for all training projects . Various proposals were made regarding assessing the cost of clinics as part of the annual fee, and including a surcharge on rulebooks to cover the cost of clinics. 225 rule books were sold to officials and the association broke even on the cost of the books. John Luppes advised that the NorCoast section would be able to save money on high school rule books. Jim Hume proposed that rule books be ordered at the annual meeting and that checks be collected at that time.

Certification: Chairman Hume reported that over 200 officials are certified for the current Olympiad, while others are still competing the certification process. He also reported that difficulties are being encountered at the National level in obtaining certification of Finish Lynx officials - the National Certification Chair requires that he do the certifying of that discipline. George Kleeman volunteered to speak with the National Certification Chair during the upcoming NCAA Championships to seek a resolution. Phil Watkins advised that a master level official must certify finish lynx results.

OLD BUSINESS Uniforms: At the last meeting, uniforms were approved except for the hat. Discussions continued regarding the style of hat, and the manner in which the cost would be assessed to each official or absorbed by the association. Dick Connors indicated that he would get in touch with two potential suppliers of hats. It was agreed that work would continue with an eye toward a firm policy by year end.

Code of Ethics: Amendments to the Officials Code of Ethics were proposed to reorganize the individual Code items, emphasizing professionalism as the first priority, followed in order by punctuality, safety, and the remaining individual provisions in the existing order, except that the directive regarding embarrassing fellow officials was relocated to follow the directive to Start of Time. . It was also proposed that the word "recreational' as referring to telephone use be changed to "personal". Finally, the reference to indoor uniform was proposed to be deleted. George Kleeman moved to accept the Code as revised, seconded by Leon Glover. Yes -All. No - None.

Operating Policies: The Secretary must notify the membership not less than 60 days prior to the annual meeting by mail or email of the existence of the amended policies. George Kleeman moved that the title Operating Policies be changed to Operating Procedures, seconded by Dickie Iwamiya. Yes-All. No - None.

NEW BUSINESS Plaques: There have been proposals for plaques to be displayed at the Officials room at Cal for the Dotta Brothers, to recognize their long term accomplishments for the track and field program at Cal and contributions to track and field in general. The proposal was made that Dick Connors investigate the cost and sources of money available to fund a plaque for the Dotta brothers. Jim Hume moved to approve the proposal, seconded by Leon Glover. Yes - all. No None.

A second plaque was proposed to recognize the accomplishments of Tom Moore. It was again proposed that Dick Connors look into the cost and source of funding for this plaque. Jim Hume moved to adopt the proposal, seconded by Leon Glover. Yes - All. No - None.

Annual Meeting: Chairman Colman reports that UC Davis will again provide the site for the annual meeting of the Officials Committee and will provide the lunch and refreshments as well. The date of the meeting was set for August 27, 2006 A discussion was had regarding the cost to the members for attendance at the annual meeting, and it was generally decided that a fee would be a means of determining the number of attendees, but in light of UC Davis providing the site and lunch, the attendance fees could be devoted to door prizes. It was agreed that Bruce Colman would send out a general email to the membership advising of the date, time and location of the meeting, and soliciting door prize donations. Phil Watkins suggested that a program be initiated during the meeting, and that the awards should be given during lunch to expedite the meeting. Jim Hume proposed that a fee of $10.00 be charged each attendee for the annual meeting John Murray moved to approve the fee, seconded by Dick Connors. All - Yes No - None.

Liability Insurance: Irene Herman, Chair of the USATF Insurance Committee, attended the meeting to provide details of an insurance program that she has been investigating to provide coverage to track and field officials. Phil Watkins opened the discussion by advising that under most circumstances, independent contractors such as lynx operators are not covered by insurance for acts that may result in injury or damage during an athletic event. Bruce Colman reported that all USATF sanctioned events provide insurance coverage to officials, and that Bob Podkaminer has advised that all NCAA sanctioned events are also covered. It appears that coverage at CIF events vary by section. Upon inquiry, UC Davis reports that they have their own coverage for officials. John Luppes advised that the National Federation of High School Officials provides insurance at a premium of $30.00 per year. Phil Watkins stated that the National Association of Sports Officials also has some insurance available to its members.

Irene Herman advised that she has received a quote for liability insurance for up to 150 officials for coverage of $1 million per occurrence and $2 million per year for an annual premium of $12.50 per person, or $1876.00 for the 150 officials, although the number of officials would not be subject to audit. The policy would provide coverage for damage and injuries, including liability that may occur from abuse and molestation. The normal exclusions - employment practices, asbestos, violations of statutes, etc. - would apply. The insurance coverage, as quoted by Irene, would cover only Pacific Association officials. Nothing has yet been released to the national office of USATF or to other associations. The preliminary indication from the Pacific Association executive officer is that the insurance is not necessary since the association sanctioned events are covered by USATF insurance. Accordingly, the Pacific Association may not approve the cost of the insurance if submitted as part of the budget for the Officials Committee. The proposed insurance would provide coverage for all officials of the Pacific Association while working at a non-sanctioned event. As presently proposed, the word "certified" is not used in the description of officials. In response to an inquiry from Phil Watkins, Irene indicated that the coverage also included counsel fees. A sub-committee of John Murray, Phil Watkins, and Dickie Iwamiya, was formed to look further into the insurance needs. It was agreed that inquiries would be made of other sanctioning bodies such as the PAC 10 to determine their insurance coverage. There would also be efforts made to identify funding sources for the insurance.

Safety: After the incident in the Central Association where an official was struck by a runner, a discussion was had regarding safety on the track. Various proposals were discussed, including safety clinics, pre-meet meetings for all officials, and appointing a safety Marshall for each meet. No final decision was reached on the issue.

Wind Gauge: Phil Watkins advised that the Association has 9 wind gauges, 5 newer small ones that are occasionally rented out, and 4 older and more expensive models. He proposed that the Committee approve one model being delivered to Leon Glover to remain in his custody for use at meets where he officiates. Dick Connors moved to approve the proposal, seconded by George Kleeman. Yes - All. No - None.

NCAA Championships: Dick Connors reported that there would be money available from the Sacramento Sports Commission for hospitality refreshments for officials during the meet, with something hopefully available each day. He also noted that there is money available in the Pacific Association budget as well to fund the hospitality. It is likely that officials will wear the National shirt each day of the competition. Marshall's badges have been ordered to be paid for by the Sports Commission and retained by the Pacific Association.

Next Meeting: The next meeting of the Executive Committee will be Friday, June 9, 2006, at 9:00 AM to be held in an available room to be designated at the dorm at Sacramento State.

Jim Hume moved to adjourn. Seconded by Leon Glover. Yes -all. No - None.

The meeting was adjourned at 4:05 PM.