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National Legislative Program Evaluation Society
Executive Committee Meeting Minutes
July 23, 2002, Denver, CO
The executive committee met on Tuesday, July 23, 2002, in Denver, CO. Copies of handouts discussed during the meeting are kept on file with the NLPES secretary.
Members present at the meeting were Joel Alter, James Barber, Gary Brown, Martha Carter, Ethel Detch, Phil Durgin, Shan Hays, Wade Melton, Heather Moritz, Jane Thesing, and Kate Wade. Also present were Tim Osterstock (UT), Ron Sissel (NM), Gary VanLandingham (FL), and Bob Boerner from NCSL.
Call to Order
The meeting was called to order by Joel Alter, Chair, at 3:07 p.m.
Minutes
Joel noted that the minutes from the Executive Committee's April meeting were adopted via e-mail and are available on the NLPES website.
Committee Reports
Heather Moritz reported for the Annual Meeting Committee. Heather thanked James Barber, Bob Boerner, and members of the Annual Meeting Committee for their help in preparing for the meeting. She described the NLPES activities planned for the meeting and said that evaluation forms and cards for signing up on the listserv would be available at these sessions.
Martha Carter reported for the Awards Committee. Martha announced that Wisconsin won this year's Excellence in Evaluation Award and that Kentucky won the Excellence in Research Methodology Award. She said the committee was pleased to receive five applications for each of these awards. She said the committee also received 19 applications for Certificates of Impact Recognition and they all met the selection criteria and would receive certificates. Joel Alter announced that Cheryl Ridings, former Deputy Director of the South Carolina Legislative Audit Council, would receive the outstanding achievement award. Martha said that the committee would provide the new awards committee with a list of frequently asked questions about the awards process, which could be posted on the NLPES website. Elaine Howle noted that states often start preparing award applications based on the previous year's criteria and suggested that the March, 2003, date for changes to the criteria (contained in the committee's charge) could make it difficult for those states. The committee agreed that changes to the awards criteria should be made earlier in the year.
Jane Thesing reported for the Training Committee. Jane outlined the status of work on the fall training conference in Arizona and said panelists were still needed for several sessions. Shan Hays described these sessions, and executive committee members volunteered to serve on and find panelists for them. Shan also asked the executive committee members to contact their assigned states to find out which offices expect to send staff members to the training conference. Bob Boerner said NCSL has a list of states with travel bans, which he will provide to the executive committee. Shan said her office will provide written facilitator guidelines to the session facilitators but, based on low attendance last year, will not hold a session for facilitators at the start of the conference. Jane explained that budget expectations for the conference have been reduced based on the expectation of lower attendance due to tight state budgets. Bob passed out the current budget, which is in the black. Jane also mentioned that the poster session at the conference will focus on staff-related issues, such as training, recruiting, etc., but all posters are welcome.
Jane reviewed the sites for upcoming training conferences. The committee had previously approved Michigan in 2003 and Florida in 2004. Jane moved and Wade Melton seconded that Pennsylvania be designated as the site for the conference in 2005. The motion was adopted unanimously.
Gary VanLandingham indicated that he was revising the CD-Rom training program based on feedback he'd received after the executive committee's April meeting. He expects to send a draft to committee members in advance of the September meeting. He is also compiling a written "how to" manual to accompany the CD.
Shan Hays reported for the Communications and Technology Committee. Shan said the fall newsletter was well underway and had James tell the committee a little about the planned articles. Bob said NCSL is likely to reduce or discontinue the paper version of the newsletter due to the additional printing and mailing costs. Joel Alter reported that we'd had an excellent response (of more than 30 states) to our survey of state offices. Shan also indicated that NCSL is still taking input on improving its website. Wade provided the committee with information on peer reviews conducted in several states and asked for input before the information is posted on the website.
Kate Wade reported for the Professional Liaison Committee. Kate said a new liaison is needed for the Governmental Accounting Standards Advisory Council to replace Phil Leone, as he no longer serves on the council. She said some additional work is also needed to share materials gathered by the Liaison Committee this past year related to the General Accounting Office and best practices materials developed by National State Auditor's Association.
James Barber reported for the Membership and Nominations Committee. James indicated that the committee's new members are Tim Osterstock (UT) and Manu Patel (NM). He also said he expects that state budget restrictions will make it even harder to attract new members to the committee.
Other Business
Joel reported that LSCC is about to launch an electronic bill text and tracking system for state legislation. Initially, it will contain only a few states but more will be added as the project develops. Heather indicated that LSCC is also continuing to work on the merger of the AFI and ASI committees.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:50 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Martha Carter, Secretary
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