The executive board meeting of the American Agricultural Economics Association was called to order on November 6, 1998 at 8:30am, in Salon A of the Chicago O'Hare Marriott. Introductions and changes to the agenda followed.

1. The minutes of the July 30-31Executive Board were reviewed and the following editorial corrections were made:
   • Item 2, strike the last sentence, "The policy of waiving the membership fee, for people who are not ag economists, will continue."
   • Item 5 changed to read "Lona Christoffers distributed instructions for executive board and foundation board list-serve that will become effective August 1."
   • Item 13, last sentence, "top five awards" changed to "top awards".
   • Item 21, 2nd paragraph, first sentence changed to "Shumway will refer the following two specific items to committees for further development...".
   • Item 25, last sentence under first motion changed to "Motion failed."
   • Item 27, "Armbruster" in last paragraph changed to "Shumway".
   • Item 32, first paragraph, last sentence, change "endowment income" to "reserves".
   • Item 39, 2nd paragraph, changed to "...RAE could be mailed at a standard B rate and, following e-mail approval by the board, Shumway authorized inclusion...."
   • Item 40, fourth line, remove "Shumway and".
   • Item 42, first sentence, change "lead" to "led".
   • Item 42b, remove "and operating".
   • Item 42j, remove "provided" and "the executive secretary".
   • Item 45j(d), change "associate editors" to "advisory board".

   The minutes were approved as corrected.

2. Three board e-mail decisions were ratified and moved into the record.
   • Approval for shifting budget resources to purchase the new database system.
   • Approval for publishing D. Gale Johnson's Salt Lake City presentation in the December AJAE.
   • Approval for publishing all manuscripts selected for the next RAE in one issue.

   Motion: Motion to ratify email was made by Armbruster and seconded by Parliament. Approved.

3. The Finance Committee's recommendation to establish a reserve policy was reported by J.B. Penn. The Finance Committee's recommendation was for use of 6% of the "reserve" in the annual budget. A second report from Penn concerned the Financial Committee's discussions on the investment policy and reserve guidelines. It was proposed that 50% of the AAEA annual budget should be designated as a reserve.

   Motion: Armbruster moved to make the following proposal as policy: " Establish an objective of a reserve equal to 50% of annual budget, the remainder of the current reserve be treated as an opportunity fund to cover initiatives as board adopts." Seconded by Antle.

   Following discussion, Armbruster moved to table the motion, seconded by Parliament. Shumway appointed a subcommittee of Penn, Armbruster and Antle to review the policy and bring a motion to the board the following morning. See item 23.

4. Penn presented the Finance Committee's report on the proposed 1999 AAEA budget. The AAEA office presented a proposed balanced budget with additional requests listed separately. Additional expenses recommended by the Finance Committee were accepted. Discussion took place on requests not recommended by the Finance Committee.

   Motion: Antle moved that the request of $2,500 for the Choices editor be moved to the recommended list. Caswell seconded. Approved.

   The Board discussed the request from C-FARE for support of a Congressional Science Fellow. A change was made in the request due to change in AAAS policy, moving the Congressional Science Fellow from C-FARE to AAEA oversight.

   Motion: Taylor moved that $35,000 for the Congressional Science Fellow be moved to the recommended list. Penn seconded. Approved.

   Following further discussion of the budget, changes to information technology and taxes and benefit line items were made.

   Motion: Penn moved to accept the recommendations for the 1999 budget, lowering information technology to $16,000 and taxes and benefits to $60,000. Including funding for marketing and promoting AAEA, contingency, C-FARE, CAST, COSSA, AAEA Foundation, AgEcon Search, Choices editor, and the Congressional Fellow. Parliament seconded. Approved.

5. Recommended changes in lifetime membership fees were reported by Dunn. Recommendations were made to (a) set one schedule of lifetime member fees, and (b) invoice publications and postage annually beginning with new lifetime memberships in 1999. Increasing costs of providing lifetime services have exceeded the dues of lifetime membership. All current lifetime members will be grandfathered.

   Motion: Armbruster moved to approve changes to lifetime membership. Parliament seconded. Approved.

6. The Employment Center fees report was given by Shumway. Because of several expressions of concern about the large 1998 increase in applicant fees, it was proposed that applicant fees be lowered from $70 in 1998 to $25 in 1999 and that a tiered system be implemented for employers based on the number of positions advertised. Employers would pay $225 for the first two positions and $50 for each additional position advertised.

   Motion: Armbruster moved and Antle seconded to accept the Employment Center Fee proposal. Approved.

7. A proposal was presented by Shumway to reimburse elected AAEA board members and members-elect who lack other sources of support for the full cost of transportation, lodging and meals incurred to participate in AAEA board meetings. This would be for a maximum of three meetings per year, the lowest airfare or surface transportation, lodging and meals up to the U.S. government per diem limits for the meeting city, for full or part days and up to one day of travel. Potential annual budget impact estimated to be up to $9,000.

   Motion: Moved by Caswell, and seconded by Penn. Approved. Action will take place with the February board meeting.

8. Stefanou reviewed the AJAE editorship proposal for editors rotating for four year terms. Appointments would be staggered with two appointments made every two years. The editors would assist in filling open editorial positions with editor selection by the Executive Board. Transitions for new and outgoing editors should only take one month.

   Motion: Antle moved to establish 4-year editor terms staggered such that two re-appointments are considered every two years, and the executive board continues to select the editors. Seconded by Penn. Approved.

   Shumway appointed a committee of Caswell (chair), Antle, Stefanou, and Moschini to prepare a call for applicants for the January AAEA Newsletter, screen and rank the applicants. The committee will circulate their report by e-mail to the board.

9. Stefanou reported on the requested identification system for AAEA principal and invited papers. The editors proposed publishing all principal and invited papers and discussions in the December AJAE, with different pagination beginning with "S1".

   Motion: Approval for the editors' proposal by Antle. Seconded by Caswell. Motion failed.

   Motion: Principal and invited papers be distinguished by inserting a footnote at the bottom of the first page of each article. Motion moved by Caswell, seconded by Armbruster. Approved.

10. A recommendation from the February 1998 board meeting to require executive summaries on all published articles was reviewed. No action was taken.

11. Discontinuing publication of selected paper and poster abstracts (a tabled motion from the July 1998 board meeting) was discussed. Based on information from department heads, it was decided that existing procedures should remain in place for now. No action was taken.

12. Ayer reported on a proposed European version of Choices and the meeting with John Davis of BAES (British Agricultural Economics Society) on developing a European edition of Choices. BAES is interested in moving forward with AAEA to develop a joint European version and plans to assume the financial risks associated with its expansion.

    Motion: Penn moved to approve the proposal for the AAEA and BAES to enter into a strategic alliance of some form, possibly a joint-venture or partnership. Under this alliance the associations would first more formally investigate the potential for a European version of Choices. Second, if the investigation reflects favorably on a join publication effort, the two boards will continue the alliance as publishers of a European version of Choices -provisionally titled Euro-Choices. Seconded by Caswell. Approved.

    No financial commitment was made by the board. Specific proposals to implement a European version of CHOICES, especially those with financial implications, must come to the board prior to implementation.

13. The term of Choices editor, Harry Ayer, will expire with the December 1999 issue. Shumway appointed Armbruster (chair), Penn and Taylor to serve as a committee to develop a call, screen, and rank applicants for editor.. Shumway expressed the gratitude of the board to Harry Ayer for his five years of dedicated service as Choices editor.

14. Bylaws changes for check signing were presented by Dunn. Current bylaws require two signatures on all checks. Improved internal controls would allow a single signature for checks under $3,000. The operating account would require two signatures for checks over $3,000. Checks over $25,000 need the signature of one board member. Additional controls include any staff member who prepares checks or reconciles the bank statement will not have check signing authority. It is proposed the investment account require two signatures for account transfers. At least one must be a board member.

    Motion: Penn moved to approve the check signing proposal, seconded by Armbruster. Approved.

    Current board signatories will be Shumway (president) and Penn (Finance Committee chair).

15. 1999 proposed budget was reviewed by Shumway, including changes approved in items 4 and 8.

    Motion: Armbruster moved to increase the AAEA contribution to the Foundation to make the reimbursement for Foundation board travel consistent with the AAEA executive board. Seconded by Caswell. Approved.

    Motion: Penn moved that the budget for 1999 with noted changes, be approved. (AAEA) will do every thing they can to stay within the budget for 1999. Any additional expenses would be moved to the 2000 budget. Seconded by Caswell. Approved.

16. As chair of the Extension Committee, Deevon Bailey represented the Extension Section and presented their proposals for changes in AAEA operations, including the constitution and bylaws. They recommended that the Extension Section president be an ex officio nonvoting member of the AAEA Executive Board. Because board meetings are open to all AAEA members, discussion focused on ways to broaden input to the board from all representative groups.

    Motion: Armbruster moved the AAEA president extend an invitation to the chairs of all sections and committees to attend board meetings. Second by Caswell. Approved.

    Motion: Armbruster moved the AAEA president appoint a board representative to every section and committee. Seconded by Buccola. Approved.

    The Extension Section recommended that responsibility for extension awards be transferred to the Extension Section. The board recommended that sections encourage and recommend volunteers for the Awards Committee.

    Motion: Caswell moved the president-elect consult with the chairs of relevant sections and committees regarding award subcommittee membership. Seconded by Antle. Approved.

    They requested space for a periodic column in the AAEA newsletter, space on the AAEA web site, and content control of pre- and post-conference sessions and organized symposia sponsored by the Extension Section. The AAEA Office will seek to accommodate reasonable space requests in the newsletter and on the web site. Support for a strong extension-oriented program as part of the AAEA annual meeting was expressed by the board.

    Motion: Parliament moved that the Extension Section is strongly encouraged to develop a track for the 2000 annual meeting in Philadelphia. Penn Seconded. Approved.

    The Extension Section requested that its president be involved in the selection of editors for AAEA publications. As chair of the newly appointed Choices Editor Screening Committee, Armbruster will inform the Extension Section president and other sections and committee chairs of editor candidates and seek input.

    The 1997 ad hoc Awards Policy Committee had proposed renaming the extension awards as outreach awards. At Bailey's recommendation, the board deferred action on the proposal until the Extension Section completes its elections and has a president to represent it.

17. The Graduate Student Section proposal was discussed. The proposed section bylaws and student signatures petitioning for a section comply with AAEA bylaw requirements. They do not have to have a president in place to be approved without probation.

    Motion: Parliament moved to approve the Graduate Student Section. Seconded by Armbruster. Approved.

18. The proposal from Food & Agricultural Marketing Policy Section to organize an AAEA section was discussed.

    Motion: Caswell moved to approve the Food & Agricultural Marketing Policy Section as a probationary section. Seconded by Parliament. Approved.

19. Shumway reviewed CWAE's annual report. As an AAEA committee, CWAE has had a standing charge to annually report on the status of women in the profession. They are concerned that if they organize as a section, they will no longer have that charge.

    Motion: Armbruster moved that CWAE be asked to continue to report annually on the status of women in the profession, whether they are a committee or a section. Seconded by Caswell. Approved.

20. John Antle reported on the status of journal outsourcing investigation for the AJAE and RAE. The Outsourcing Committee narrowed selections of publishers to Blackwell Publishers and Oxford University Press. Stefanou and Antle will meet with both organizations in December in Washington. Proposals were so different, it was felt a meeting was necessary to create a comparable proposal from both publishers. The committee will meet in New York at the ASSA meeting in January and bring their proposal to the February board meeting. The decision of whether to outsource either the AJAE or RAE has not been made.

21. Dunn reported that Choices outsourcing is more difficult because of all the options. The board directed the AAEA office to investigate outsourcing opportunities and report in February.

22. Antle led the discussion of principal papers proposals. A total of 22 proposals were evaluated. Nine were selected for presentation at the annual meeting.

    Dismissed for the day.

    Reconvened at 8:30 am on Saturday, November 7. Meeting called to order by Richard Shumway. Board attending: Richard Shumway, John Antle, Walter Armbruster, Robert Taylor, J.B. Penn, Claudia Parliament, Julie Caswell, Steve Buccola. Guests attending: Spiro Stefanou, Gail Cramer, Harry Ayer, Donna Dunn, Lona Christoffers, Nancy Herselius, and Pam Davis.

23. Reserve policy committee report was presented.

    Motion: Penn moved to establish an operating reserve objective, used only for unexpected nonrecurring expenses to the budget, at 50% of annual budget. Earnings and surplus will go into an opportunity fund. Five percent of the value of the opportunity fund is available for the annual operating budget. The remainder will be used for special projects, supporting the strategic plan, and no more than 15% is to be used in any one year. Seconded by John Antle. Approved.

    Caswell requested a spreadsheet of a five-year operating budget projection, reflecting commitments. Penn and Armbruster agreed. Finance Committee is charged along with the AAEA office to prepare a finance budget forecast.

24. Pre & post-conference evaluation proposals were presented by Shumway. Four of the five proposals were approved.

25. Bylaw changes were presented by Armbruster and reviewed by the board. The Awards committee proposed changes to the bylaws, Article VI. AWARDS PROGRAM, Section 5. Professional Publications. They were amended and approved by the board (moved by Armbruster, seconded by Taylor) as follows (underscores added, strikeouts deleted):
    1. Quality of Research Discovery and Quality of Communication.
       1. Quality of Research Discovery. A maximum of two awards is given. Entries must specify that the nomination is to be judged for the Quality of Research Discovery and must have been published in the calendar year preceding the year of recognition. The research must be a significant contribution to the field of knowledge in agricultural economics. The work should demonstrate excellence in research methodology and may deal with conceptualization of researchable problems as well as empirical verification.

       2. Quality of Communication. A maximum of two awards is given. Entries must specify that the entry is to be judged for the Quality of Communication and must have been published in the calendar year preceding the year of recognition. Entries must demonstrate superior communication of concepts or knowledge in any subject matter or professional specialization (i.e., teaching, research, or extension) in agricultural economics to a specified audience. The publication may communicate the author's original research or include that of others, and the communication may be directed to audiences inside or outside the profession.

    2. Publication of Enduring Quality. A maximum of one award is given for a publication which has a publication date in the fifteen year period commencing ten full calendar years prior to the year of recognition. Entries are judged on the basis of the enduring quality of their contribution to the profession. Competition is focused on a specific publication by the authors, one of whom was a member of the association at the time of publication, and not on the cumulative work of the authors. Entries may be submitted by departments or other administrative units, by colleagues, or by the authors themselves. Nominations should be accompanied by a short statement (maximum of 3 single-spaced pages) documenting the publication's contributions to the profession. Other than the publication, no other material may (be) submitted. Eight copies of the nomination letter and publication should be submitted.

26. Nancy Herselius presented a report on plans for the 1999 annual meeting. A proposal for a fund raising event for the AAEA Foundation is being looked into. The awards program will include entertainment. Graduate and undergraduate functions will be separate, but located strategically to increase participation of the exhibits and other conference activities.

27. Status of the constitution/bylaws review was discussed by Armbruster. Currently the constitution and bylaws include both governance and procedural information. The proposal was made to move to one governance document (bylaws) and a policies and procedures document. Armbruster is chairing a committee for a full review of the documents. The committee will report at the February board meeting with the objective of having revised governance documents ready for presentation and/or action at the August business meeting.

28. Communications planning was reported by Dunn. Discussion of the report brought questions and suggestions to the table. Caswell requested that universities and academia be added to the audience list. Antle suggested that publication outsourcing could generate a potential source of membership.

29. Shumway reported appointment of the Ad Hoc Nominating Committee for Professional Societies. Its purpose is to identify members who have made outstanding contributions and would be viable candidates for professional societies, encourage colleagues and employers to prepare nomination packets, and facilitate the nomination process.

    An evaluation summary of the 1999 annual meetings was presented by Armbruster. Four of the pre- and post-conferences received very good marks. Although few, the evaluations returned on principal papers reflected good ratings. The organized symposia also had high ratings, with several recommendations for fewer symposia. Selected paper evaluations reflected an overall good balance, that visuals were helpful and there was generally efficient timing from moderators. Several suggestions were offered by board members, including less frequent evaluations with instruments included in registration packets or a random sampling. The Graduate Student Section has offered to hold a session on making effective presentations.

30. Shumway requested permission to offer publication of the Monday plenary speaker's paper in the December AJAE, provided a satisfactory formal paper is presented to the editors on schedule.

    Motion: Moved by Buccola. Seconded by Armbruster. Approved.

1. The afternoon meeting began with fund raising for the 1999 annual meeting. Commitments were made by members of both boards to strive to raise more than $50,000 for the 1999 annual meeting.

2. Seevers introduced the Vanguard Investment representatives Dave Huting and Carol Misus, and announced Vanguard as AAEA's investment firm. Upon completion of the presentation on Vanguard's history and investment standards board members were invited to present questions. Seevers turned over the investment information to the Investment Committee which will make recommendations to both boards on investment policy.

Respectfully submitted,

Donna French Dunn
Executive Director
January 15, 1999