[rogersrick123]

Hello,
I’d like to talk about MAAC insurance for the RC community. I've been a Proud MAAC member for many years now and I would like to put forward a few ideas to bring MAAC into the 21 century.
MAAC should bring down their expenses
First - Stop publishing the MAAC magazine and mailing them out to members. You can still publish your information online and send an e-mai/textl to your members. For the small minority who are not online, they can order a hard copy for a nominal fee.
Second - MAAC should look into a video streaming system for official meetings. Air fare and fuel are very expensive. This would make it easier for members/ officers to attend and see what is going on.
Third – give clubs the option of buying an insurance plan that will allow anyone who joins the club to be insured without needing to buy a yearly membership. These people can still be registered with MAAC. We can add the extra cost in our joining fee at the club.
Forth – We have a dirt track and I know MAAC members will be insured, but RC track drivers usually don’t need MAAC insurance to use a track at other locations, so this makes it very hard to sell this to people. If you had a club plan this would help solve the problem. Anyone could use the track and the land owners would be covered with liability insurance.
Fifth – if you have any surplus from these savings it should be dived up and used to help build RC clubs in Canada.
Don’t you think this would bring down our annual insurance fees, and make RC activities more affordable and accessible to Canadians?
Final note
The renewing of Club registration needs to be looked at. It should be easy to renew this each year instead of filling in all the forms over and over again each year. Have a system that remembers last years info and an option to edit it for submission,
Thanks
Rick Samuels
MAAC# 69880
President - Fraser Valley RC Flyers
www.fvrcf.com

[Mike Sebastien]

I like your ideas.

[Lazy Ace]

Originally Posted by rogersrick123

Hello,
I’d like to talk about MAAC insurance for the RC community. I've been a Proud MAAC member for many years now and I would like to put forward a few ideas to bring MAAC into the 21 century.
MAAC should bring down their expenses
First - Stop publishing the MAAC magazine and mailing them out to members. You can still publish your information online and send an e-mai/textl to your members. For the small minority who are not online, they can order a hard copy for a nominal fee.
Second - MAAC should look into a video streaming system for official meetings. Air fare and fuel are very expensive. This would make it easier for members/ officers to attend and see what is going on.
Third – give clubs the option of buying an insurance plan that will allow anyone who joins the club to be insured without needing to buy a yearly membership. These people can still be registered with MAAC. We can add the extra cost in our joining fee at the club.
Forth – We have a dirt track and I know MAAC members will be insured, but RC track drivers usually don’t need MAAC insurance to use a track at other locations, so this makes it very hard to sell this to people. If you had a club plan this would help solve the problem. Anyone could use the track and the land owners would be covered with liability insurance.
Fifth – if you have any surplus from these savings it should be dived up and used to help build RC clubs in Canada.
Don’t you think this would bring down our annual insurance fees, and make RC activities more affordable and accessible to Canadians?
Final note
The renewing of Club registration needs to be looked at. It should be easy to renew this each year instead of filling in all the forms over and over again each year. Have a system that remembers last years info and an option to edit it for submission,
Thanks
Rick Samuels
MAAC# 69 Fraser Valley RC Flyers
www.fvrcf.com

Don't expect much most has been suggested before and has been turned down for various reasons. Might want to go over some of them with your Zone Director to get his take then you might reword them a bit for correctness.

The best bet is to contact your constitutional chairman and work with him on the wording. He will help you get the syntax and meaning that you are after correct before you put it to your AZM. If your idea is not worded correctly or the meaning is in error it will not even get considered but sent back to you to revise for next years AGM.

Its a lot of work to get one idea accepted and your the one who wants it so the work will fall on your shoulders. Lots of idea men out there few willing to work for what they believe in.

I wish you luck.

[marcham]

This version should be a little easier to read:

Originally Posted by rogersrick123

Hello,
I’d like to talk about MAAC insurance for the RC community. I've been a proud MAAC member for many years now and I would like to put forward a few ideas to bring MAAC into the 21 century.

MAAC should bring down their expenses

First - Stop publishing the MAAC magazine and mailing them out to members. You can still publish your information online and send an e-mai/textl to your members. For the small minority who are not online, they can order a hard copy for a nominal fee.

Second - MAAC should look into a video streaming system for official meetings. Air fare and fuel are very expensive. This would make it easier for members/ officers to attend and see what is going on.

Third – give clubs the option of buying an insurance plan that will allow anyone who joins the club to be insured without needing to buy a yearly membership. These people can still be registered with MAAC. We can add the extra cost in our joining fee at the club.

Forth – We have a dirt track and I know MAAC members will be insured, but RC track drivers usually don’t need MAAC insurance to use a track at other locations, so this makes it very hard to sell this to people. If you had a club plan this would help solve the problem. Anyone could use the track and the land owners would be covered with liability insurance.

Fifth – if you have any surplus from these savings it should be dived up and used to help build RC clubs in Canada.

Don’t you think this would bring down our annual insurance fees, and make RC activities more affordable and accessible to Canadians?

Final note
The renewing of Club registration needs to be looked at. It should be easy to renew this each year instead of filling in all the forms over and over again each year. Have a system that remembers last years info and an option to edit it for submission,

Thanks
Rick Samuels
MAAC# 69880
President - Fraser Valley RC Flyers
www.fvrcf.com

[marcham]

I agree with most of what was posted above. On another note, I went to find the financial statements and I couldn't find them in the MAAC documents. Anyone know where they are other that in last summer's MAAC magazine?

I would expect that office costs and insurance would be the largest cost. It's my understanding that they already use virtual meetings when possible but the executive still needs 1 or 2 in person meetings per year.

Print magazine should go... there's no doubt about that.

The magazine is available online here: http://www.maac.ca/en/magazine.php

[Lazy Ace]

On a personal note

Originally Posted by rogersrick123

First - Stop publishing the MAAC magazine and mailing them out to members. You can still publish your information online and send an e-mai/textl to your members. For the small minority who are not online, they can order a hard copy for a nominal fee.

Nope I like the mag exactly as it is. Don’t want to see it discontinued. I sat through an AGM where this was discussed at length and it was determined that a certain amount of communication re the corporate business of MAAC needed to be in hard copy, delivered to each individual member. Notice of AZM/AGM etc. would require individual mailing with associated costs. The magazine fulfills this requirement as well. Email/electronic at that time was not an option. Most of the cost of the Magazine was in the design and layout of each publication and the costs for that remain the same for which ever medium you choose to publish in. The cost to set up and publish a few magazines will be near the same cost as the limited run we have now.

Originally Posted by rogersrick123

Second - MAAC should look into a video streaming system for official meetings. Air fare and fuel are very expensive. This would make it easier for members/ officers to attend and see what is going on.

This already happens for some meetings but the AGM will always be a face to face event over several days. Again attend one to find out that the work and lobbying goes on long after the full day sitting around the table. 3 days prior to the actual AGM. How you would ever expect anything to get done video conferencing is beyond me.

Originally Posted by rogersrick123

Third – give clubs the option of buying an insurance plan that will allow anyone who joins the club to be insured without needing to buy a yearly membership. These people can still be registered with MAAC. We can add the extra cost in our joining fee at the club.

I can see an insurance company agreeing to this. Not likely. It’s not as if we have insurance companies beating down the door to get in line to underwrite our policy. I personally don’t want one red cent of my dues to be spent representing non-members of MAAC. Want to enjoy the benefits then join. In fact I think MAAC should raise dues to match today’s inflation. Another $25 bucks would be a good starting point.

Originally Posted by rogersrick123

Forth – We have a dirt track and I know MAAC members will be insured, but RC track drivers usually don’t need MAAC insurance to use a track at other locations, so this makes it very hard to sell this to people. If you had a club plan this would help solve the problem. Anyone could use the track and the land owners would be covered with liability insurance.

Sorry I refuse to pay for someones free ride. Again want the benefits then join or go off and start your own organization but don’t expect me to fund it for you.

Originally Posted by rogersrick123

Fifth – if you have any surplus from these savings it should be dived up and used to help build RC clubs in Canada.

I don’t think so who’s going to monitor how the money is spent. Can you say Christmas Party!!!!!! I think the funds of a not for profit organization would have to be accounted for at the end of the year.

Originally Posted by rogersrick123

Don’t you think this would bring down our annual insurance fees, and make RC activities more affordable and accessible to Canadians?

Actually I don’t think any of these ideas were thought out very well and I don’t see any of them making it to the floor of the AGM even with serious revisions.

Originally Posted by rogersrick123

Final note
The renewing of Club registration needs to be looked at. It should be easy to renew this each year instead of filling in all the forms over and over again each year. Have a system that remembers last years info and an option to edit it for submission,

If filling out a form once a year for Club Registration is problematic I don’t see much hope for these ideas to go much further than Santa’s Wish List.

[smoknrv4]

I like your ideas as well Rick! Especially getting rid of the magazine. Waste of money IMO!

[Pauld]

MAAC is way more than just an insurance provider. There are documents that show the financial breakdown but it's way less than you are thinking. Something like 30% of the budget. Give Bill Rollins a call, he a very approachable guy. Unfortunately, you should have picked this up bout 2-3 months ago before the AZM. It was within 45 min drive of Chilliwack.

As far as sharing insurance with others, I'm a member of a club on city land where the city lets other r/c users have access to the field under a fair use policy. Many don't have MAAC and are "freeloading" off the city and the club who pays for the registration. Not ok IMO.

PaulD

[marcham]

Found the last financial statements here:

http://www.maac.ca/docs/MAC/MAC-2015-03.pdf

Magazine production and distribution is less than 20% of total expenses.

[4*60]

I opted out of the magazine for next year even though the latest is not online yet. I wonder if at least the latest could be online right after mailout. Also I am not a particularly"green" person but despite no savings I decided to save the paper. Don't have an outhouse so I don't need the paper.