Is the SCCA Strategic Plan available?

[problemchild]

Any discussion involving hard copy Sports Car magazines as a "benefit" just shows how out of touch the SCCA leadership is with their customers. Sorry for referring to members as customers, but ...... Sports Car magazine was a benefit in 1987. Who wants 4 month old "spun" news? In 2017, 98% go straight into the recycling bin. I expect the remainder sit in the way for a few months, before going in the bin. Removing, just the cost of postage, would lower the membership fee considerably. And the tree-huggers would not be upset either with the removal of a half-million SC magazines per year from non-circulation. The only people upset will be those in the magazine production process.

[Peter Olivola]

If you could look at most Regions budgets, I think you will find that the membership monies make up a very small percentage of their income. Any Region active in SOLO or Road Racing derives their main income from those activities. SCCA receives the Regions tax filings as part of the annual Charter renewal so the data is available to them.

I think that would depend on how detailed the region P&L statements are. They're not under any obligation supply and operating statement.

[John Nesbitt]

If you could look at most Regions budgets, I think you will find that the membership monies make up a very small percentage of their income. Any Region active in SOLO or Road Racing derives their main income from those activities. SCCA receives the Regions tax filings as part of the annual Charter renewal so the data is available to them.

It depends a bit on how you look at it.

I belong to a jumbo region, with annual dues of $20. The region runs active road racing, solo, PDX, and rallycross programs.

If you look at overall revenue, dues would constitute somewhere between 5% and 10%, so a fairly small proportion.

However, if you consider that most revenue is directly and immediately offset by event expenses (track rental, insurance, etc.), you would find that dues make up a very large fraction of 'core' revenue - the money that supports the maintenance of the region (the region office, staff cost, membership-related expenses etc.)

So dues are a non-trivial factor in region finances.

[farrout]

John - Being a small Region (~125 members), we do not have a Region Office, staff cost, etc. The SOLO program has benefitted in the past few years by drivers from 3 surrounding cities/Regions driving 90 mins to come to our events because they had lost their SOLO sites. That and a local driver upswing in numbers. Our one Road race is a bare bones effort and has been lucky enough to be profitable in the past 4 years. Your jumbo experience is definitely different than ours. I wonder how many of the Regions pay for an office and staff?

Peter - If a Region is filing using a Form 990, the form is detailed enough to provide basic P&L data. As I recall, Regions are "required" to send SCCA their most recent tax forms when they apply for their annual charter. I do not know if SCCA is actually being strict about the requirement.

[Peter Olivola]

Peter - If a Region is filing using a Form 990, the form is detailed enough to provide basic P&L data. As I recall, Regions are "required" to send SCCA their most recent tax forms when they apply for their annual charter. I do not know if SCCA is actually being strict about the requirement.

IRS Form 990 (https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f990.pdf) provides for a place to differentiate program revenue sources on Page 9, Section VIII.2 but does not appear to require delineation.

990 Schedule C Page 3 Part III (https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f990sc.pdf) does not provide for a breakdown of dues by any category or even class of membership.

It would appear there is no compunction to delineate either dues or program revenue by Club Racing, Solo, etc., making that reporting voluntary. For regions without an office/office manager I rather suspect the decision would be to lump all program revenue into a single line.

[Will Velkoff]

This year I did not receive a membership/competition license renewal notice in the mail. Since I joined in 2011 I recall receiving 3-4 renewal notices in the mail. What gives?

[Steve Demeter]

I am wondering the same thing as mine expires the end of January.

[MDRacing]

Mine was very late this year. I was worried that my 90 days would expire on my physical before I got a renewal package. You can't wait to get your renewal package to schedule a physical. At least now I have a blank physical form for next year, if I can find it, if they don't change it.

Mike

[farrout]

Medical and licensing forms are available on line at SCCA.com. Pull them down and schedule your physical when it is best for you. Do not wait for SCCA to send you the forms because it is obvious that their timing is way off and not in your best interests. Even in good years, I would get my only renewal package about a week before it was due. If you are in the 2-3 year competition license age group, renew for the 2-3 years on the one medical and save yourself the hassle of doing it every year.

Once you have the medical and forms, send them to SCCA (Keep a copy). Call them up and figure out the cost to renew and use a credit card or mail a check to pay them. If you have worker points reductions, you should be able to figure these out on line. If you mail them a check and forms, it follows a circuitous route and does not get to Membership until about a week after "SCCA" actually receives it. Because it has money in the package, the package goes to accounting first; sits there for a few days and then finally gets routed to Membership.

[Bob Clark]

Mine was very late this year. I was worried that my 90 days would expire on my physical before I got a renewal package. You can't wait to get your renewal package to schedule a physical. At least now I have a blank physical form for next year, if I can find it, if they don't change it.

Mike

You have 6 months now before the physical expires. Been that way for at least a year. It's in the GCR.