Executive Board members present: Patricia Tucker, CTC, President, presiding; First Vice President Cynthia Torsey, CTC; Treasurer Joyce McGee, CTC; Secretary Brenda LaPointe, CTC; Public Relations Director and Certification Committee Chairman Kathy Seaver, CTC; Convention Coordinator Desiree Mahurin, CTC and Director At Large, Joan Porter, CTC.

Members Absent:  Second Vice President Rhoda Quint, CTC; Legislative Committee Chairman Jill Hadaway, CTC; Education Committee Chairman Cheryl-Ann Bolouk, CTC; and Workshop Coordinator Joseph Wiggett, CTC..

Guests:  George West, Honorary member; Stephen Plodzik, PA.
(George West’s birthday was May 7th.  Happy Birthday, George!  J)

President Patricia Tucker called the meeting to order at 9:46 a.m.

Before delving into the regular agenda items Pat directed the Board’s attention to Mr. Plodzik who had been asked by George West to speak to the Executive Board about recent changes to audit procedures.  Thanking the President for the opportunity to be heard, Mr. Plodzik began by handing out samples of letters his firm recently sent out to their clients addressing the new audit standards. 

“In a nutshell, the new audit risk standards (Statements on Auditing Standards Nos. 104 – 111) require that risk be assessed for each audit and that procedures be individually developed to reduce the risk of misstatements not being detected.”  As a result, the amount of time needed to complete an audit is estimated to increase significantly.  This has caused many firms, Plodzik & Sanderson included, to re-evaluate their business practices in order to meet these specifications.  Unfortunately this has meant dropping some of their established clients and prevents them (at least temporarily) from adding new ones.

The increase in the amount of time it will take to complete an audit will escalate the cost of the service.  This is likely to hit many communities hard since some of the projected increases are projected to be as high as 50%.  (Plodzik is attempting to achieve efficiencies which are expected to limit the increases to between 20% and 40%.)   Other consequences related to the changes include later release of audit reports and changes to bank confirmation procedures.

As with any new rules and regulations the first time around is always the most difficult.  Mr. Plodzik expects that next year things will be better and once everyone has had the opportunity to adapt accordingly.  Staffing is a major hurdle for many companies to overcome right now.  George had asked Steve to “put the word out” via the Executive Board so that more people are aware of what is going on right now.  Mr. Plodzik added that the regulations have primarily changed in response to what has been happening in the corporate world.  More scrutiny is being done to limit loss and prevent so called “audit professionals” from being “in bed” with the corporations.  These same standards have trickled on down to the local government level.

A couple of other incidentals:  Steve Plodzik will be retiring (for real this time) in 2009 and George West will be leaving in September.  George has been with the auditors for 25 years; this after diligently putting in 37 years as Tax Collector!  Mr. Plodzik said it has been a pleasure to be associated with the Tax Collectors’ Association for so many years.  While he cannot guarantee that the Executive Board will be able to hold meetings at this location forever he does think continued use of the facilities will not be a problem.  As for involvement with the Certification Program, Steve told Kathy he and George are ready to go again this year.  He did ask her to make sure she has someone else slated to take their places in 2009.   

Approval of Minutes
Minutes from the March Executive Board meeting were the first routine item to be reviewed.  No corrections to the draft were made.  Joan Porter made a motion to accept the minutes of the March 13, 2008 meeting as presented.  Desiree Mahurin 2nd the motion and it passed by unanimous voice vote.

Correspondence 
Several members of the Executive Board submitted their reports via e-mail in lieu of attendance.  Pat read their correspondences for entrance into the official records.

Legislative Committee Report (via e-mail)
Jill’s correspondence denoted submission of proposed legislation changing the wording on RSA 80:59 from “may” to “shall” with the LGC policy committee.  The committee will be voting to see if they will support the request.  Jill will push forward with the legislation even if the committee votes not to support it, but she is optimistic it will go thorough without difficulty.  The purpose of the change is to make sure a tax lien is executed on an annual basis.  As the law currently is written, “may” suggests that the lien process is discretionary and not something that needs to be done.  (Who knew?)   Kathy added a bit of background information by saying that this is how the town of Windsor was able to get away with not holding a lien for so many years.  She has recently fielded a few calls from communities where Collectors were being asked to hold off on liens for certain individuals and wording from the RSA as currently written was being sited as a means to accommodate the request.

Education Committee Report (via e-mail)
Spring workshops have all been completed and an evaluation summary was provided for review and comment.  Pat noted some comments from the Hampton meeting about the need for a public address system.  Kathy said the Association owns one and it is available for use at any of the meetings.  Usually the facility will provide this type of equipment so it is not used very often.  Whenever the need arises there is one available and it is even marked with what plugs go where.

Fall convention items of note:

1. The contract with Geri King has been finalize and Cheryl already has the hand-out for the presentation.
2. Some of the panelists for the “technical issues” have been confirmed and a list of topics is being compiled.
3. The Education Committee will begin working on the outline for the user group session “A Day in the Life of a Tax Collector”.
4. Cheryl is seeking approval of the topic for the Friday morning session.  The tentative title is “Legal Issues Regarding On-Line Payments”.  If the Executive Board approves she will follow up with Bernie.

Discussion about the Friday morning session began with approval of the subject matter.  A lot of towns are interested in accepting credit card payments either on-line, over the counter, or both.  Pat asked if there are any towns currently offering this type of service.  Kathy replied, “Yes.”  As a matter of fact, she is in the process of working with a vendor right now and hopes to have something up and running in time for the December bills.  Joan and Brenda are also in the development stage.  Pat said that going over the ins and outs of it all with someone who has already done it or is in the process would be more interesting than having just the legal side of the issue discussed.  Everyone agreed with this sentiment.  Kathy said that presenting the practical side would probably be more helpful than just a legal opinion.  Pat said an “in house” dialogue starting with the warrant article and going on to reasonable time-lines would give other Collectors useful information on how to proceed.  Brenda added that information about additional charges needs to be put on the bills.  Kathy countered that although that is her interpretation as well, LGC is saying that it means it needs to be put on the customer’s credit card bill.  (HUH?)  Obviously this is a point that can be clarified before the convention and passed along accordingly.  Pat asked if everyone was in agreement that this would be a great topic and should be presented by Collectors.  The Board unanimously agreed.  Pat said she will let Cheryl know so she may plan accordingly.

Pat redirected the focus of the meeting for a moment to ask if anyone would have a problem with moving the August meeting to the 21st at 9:30 a.m.   Kathy said she will be on vacation that week but since Certification will be over with just go ahead without her.   The June meeting will be held on the 12th at 1:00 p.m.  Pat reminded Cindy that she will be in charge for the July meeting which is scheduled for the 10th at 9:30 a.m.

Reports

Treasurer’s Report
With copies of the latest Treasurer’s Report to back her up, Joyce stated that the finances are in much better shape this year than at the same time last year.  Increasing the fees for the workshops seems to have worked; the checking account will be increased by about $2,000.00 after all expenses have been paid.  She added that if expenses continue to rise in both Concord and Hampton the Executive Board may have to rethink either the locations and/or the fees.  For the time being however, everything is in good order.

Joyce asked when the dues would be going out.  Brenda responded by saying they should be out by tomorrow.  LGC is just waiting for more envelopes to be able to complete the mailing.

Pat called for a motion to accept the Treasurer’s Report.  Kathy Seaver made a motion to accept the Treasurer’s Report as submitted.  Cindy Torsey seconded the motion and it passed by unanimous voice vote.

Certification Committee Report
Kathy reported that it is time to pay the annual bill for rental of the storage unit.  She asked the Board for permission to pay one half of the bill which is $780.00.  (The other $780.00 comes from the Certification committee’s funds.)   Members of the Board directed Kathy to pay the Association’s portion of the bill.  While on the subject of the storage unit Kathy stated that the unit really does need a good cleaning and suggested setting aside a time in June to get together and just do it.  After a bit of going back and forth on dates and times it was decided to try Saturday, June 14th at 8 a.m.  The rain date will be the following Saturday.  For directions contact Kathy.

Kathy asked if a decision had been made about a gift for Convention yet.  Desiree said it is on her list of topics to cover a bit later.

The recertification class this year is all set.  Commissioner Blatsos will be presenting a class geared towards easy use of the internet as it relates to Tax Collectors.  He will be overseeing a hands-on demonstration giving a guided tour of many useful internet sites and offering useful tips on how to find information.  The space is limited, only 18 seats are available, so those that are interested should sign up as soon as possible.

Next year the recertification class will be a team building program.   The last time this was offered there were about 30 participants and because of the great reviews the committee decided to try it again.  Right now they are looking for a location.  Anyone that might be considering this program for next year should plan to budget between $75.00 and $100.00.  Attendance will have to be guaranteed for at least 30 people in order to break even.  So the search is on for a unique facility to host this event.  A few suggestions were offered – Squam Lakes Association, Wellington Association, and Old Hill Village.

Mailings for the certification program are scheduled to go out this week.  Kathy is working on letters for the recertification people.  The “recerts” will be told about next year’s plan and given the choice of which program to attend.

Convention Coordinator’s Report
Des has been busy since we last saw her so she quickly brought everyone up to date.  Letters to the vendors will be going out this week.  Joyce said that she thinks someone has already paid.  Desiree asked who and Joyce replied that the check was from Warren but LGC had classified it as a vendor payment.  It was decided that this probably should have been a workshop payment so Joyce will reclassify.  (Secretary’s note – The revised Treasurer’s Report is attached to these minutes.)  Draft Fall Convention 2008 Agenda

Moving on, Des wanted to touch on the various deadlines for Convention items. 

1. Calendar – Kathy will get it started and forward to Jill’s Deputy for proofing.
2. Registration forms – Due by August 15th.
3. Scholarship forms – August 1st in order to have them in time for the August meeting.
4. Commuter meal forms – Due by August 1st.
5. Date to mail registration forms to Association members and guests – July 7th.

Des asked if we usually send out the newsletter around the same time as the conference registrations.  Kathy said LGC won’t do that any more because of the size of the mailing.  The fact that we no longer send out a newsletter is very bothersome to her because of its historical value.  When research has had to be done in the past they relied upon back copies of the newsletters to provide information.  Newsworthy items only get distributed on-line now so there is nothing in print to archive.   Desiree suggested getting some information together in time for the next meeting, maybe limit to a page or two, and have it ready to give to LGC along with the conference mailing.  Also, a letter from the President will need to go in with the packet.  Des plans to have everything to LGC by June 15th in order to give them a few weeks to put the mailing together.

Taking a minute to go back to the subject of the news bulletin, a suggestion was made to include an attachment along with the minutes denoting recent events, dates to remember, and contact information.  This does not have to be a lengthy document just something to keep people informed.  Since it would be attached to the minutes is can be e-mailed or mailed (to those still receiving mailings) and copies kept for historical purposes.  Kathy asked if copies of the minutes are still being mailed out by LGC.  Brenda said as far as she knows, but will double check with Christian just to be certain.

Back to convention plans, Des noted making an executive decision about a couple of the locations.  2009 convention will be held at the Balsams and 2010 at the Red Jacket.  Joan inquired about the prices for 2009.  A double room will be $189.00 per night.  Although it does seem high, it is comparable to Attitash at $160.50.  Desiree asked for suggestions for future locations.  Waterville Valley was one place that many thought might be interesting so she will check it out. 

George advised the Board that he will not be setting up a display for Plodzik and Sanderson at the convention this year.  He will be there to meet and greet, just without the extra baggage.  He politely asked Des to arrange for a convenient location for him and the Mrs. to limit the amount of walking necessary to get from place to place.

At the next meeting Des will cover commuter prices, make menu selections, and discuss any new items.  She has an intriguing idea for entertainment one of the nights - a magic show!   She has the information about the performer and will forward to Board members.  As for a convention gift, a few ideas were mentioned but nothing official was decided. 

Pat asked if the Board ever decided upon the award to be presented for 25 years of service.  Although it had been discussed, a final decision was never made.  Kathy Seaver made a motion to designate the 25 years of service award as either a charm (for women) or a money clip (for the men) inscribed with the Tax Collectors’ logo on one side and “25 years of service” on the other.  Cindy Torsey seconded the motion and it passed by unanimous voice vote.

New Business
Pat noted receiving an invitation to the Belknap County Tax Collectors’ meeting.   She asked Cindy to get in touch with all of the Coordinators to remind them they need to hold a meeting and to submit copies of their meeting minutes as soon as possible for inclusion in the Convention packets.

Stan Gorzelany, President of the Connecticut Tax Collectors’ Association sent an e-mail to Pat thanking her for the gift and for participating in their annual conference.  (The gift was framed photographs of NH taken by our very talented President!)  The new President of their Association is Corrine Aldinger.

Theresa Upton of Nelson contacted Pat to find out the deadline for proposed amendments to the By-laws.  Kathy said the membership must be notified prior to the Convention of any proposed changes.  Pat will instruct Theresa to have the proposals ready for the June Executive Board meeting so they can be included with the Convention packets.

Pat received a letter from LGC asking if the Association would be participating in their annual conference.  They need a response before June 1st.  Pat suggested doing something about retention schedules.  Kathy said to contact Cheryl about her ideas.  Jill should be included if this is the topic to be discussed.  Kathy will present the idea to the Town Clerks’ Executive Board to see if they are interested in co-sponsoring the session.

LGC is also looking for input from its affiliate groups on policy recommendations for 2009-2010.  Although the deadline has already gone by, Pat will forward the request to Jill since she is the one that usually represents the Association with regards to policy.

Pat and Kathy received an e-mail from Ann Charbonneau from New Boston saying how much she enjoyed the Spring Workshop and asking for more information about accepting credit card payments.

Letter from Jenni Eldridge at the Local Government Center advising of a Affiliate Group Training Session tentatively scheduled for October 15th.  This is a new idea they have come up with to get representatives from all of the various affiliate groups together to discuss the types of services available.  Kathy received the same e-mail and responded to Jenni.  She told her that this tentative date is during the Town Clerks’ convention.  Pat will respond to Jenni and let her know no matter the date someone from the Tax Collectors’ Association will be attending.

An e-mail was sent to Pat from Charlene Kennedy of Warren asking about pay schedules for Tax Collectors.  The previous Collector used to receive a percentage of the warrant but right now Charlene does not have a contract with the Board of Selectmen and she is looking for information.  Kathy said that according to Bernie it is not legal to get paid a percentage of the warrant even though years ago many Collectors did.  His recommendation is to be paid based on fees or receive a salary.  Pat will contact Charlene and refer her to the RSA’s.

Desiree had a person come in and challenge the fees charged for lien notices so she showed the person a copy of the fee schedule.  This brought up the question of what backs up the charges.  Kathy said they are all in the RSA’s.  You have to add them up, but they are all there.  (See RSA 80:81.)  The one that is on-line is an abbreviated version of the one that usually is handed out in the Spring  Kathy has made up a new one based on the new postage rates and will make it available.  The new one will go on line as soon as available.

The meeting was adjourned at 11:52 a.m.

Next meeting – Thursday, June 12th at   1:00 p.m. – same location.

Respectfully submitted,

Brenda L. LaPointe, CTC
NHTCA Secretary

New Hampshire Tax Collectors' Association

TREASURER'S REPORT