Call to Order:

Eric Zimmerman opened the meeting at 11 a.m.

Attending:

Secretary’s Report:

Allison moved to accept January's minutes. Bill seconded, all were in favor. Motion carried.

Treasurer’s Report:

Greg passed out the Treasurer's Report. The report reflects the balance of the checking account as $6,936.42 and savings as $15,767.90. Total assets at this time are $23,841.31. Greg reports that all bills are paid to date and that he has the information for the audit. Bill moved to accept the Treasurer's Report. Laird seconded, all were in favor. Motion carried.

Membership:

Lori reports that there were many membership renewals in January. She reports an record number of active members - 796 - at this time.

Education:

Susan reports that the Chief's Summit is scheduled for Thursday, March 13, 2003, at the Embassy Suites, Indianapolis. All Probation Administrative Staff are invited to attend. Cherie reports regarding the Annual Conference. She has spoken with the District 8 members (Rodney Fetcher and Jim Brewer) who have expressed interest in assisting with the conference. A teleconference will be scheduled to discuss the conference.

Awards and Recognition:

Laird reports that he updated the scholarship paperwork. The scholarship application will be sent out with this month's minutes and the deadline to apply will be March 31, 2003. Active members pursuing a degree are encouraged to apply for the scholarship.

Corporate Membership:

Susan reports that she will send out membership renewal reminders to Corporate Members. Susan motions to up the Corporate Membership fee to $425.00. Laird seconds, all were in favor. Motion carried.

Legislation:

Eric reports Senate Bill 506 regarding the formation of a Probation Administrative Fee was amended to incorporate that the individual counties have the discretion to set Probation Officer's salaries as long as they meet the Indiana Judicial Center minimums. The bill came out of the Senate Committee with a unanimous vote of 10-0. If passed, this bill would become law on July 1, 2003. The POPAI Board would like to extend gratitude to those who contacted their Senators in support of this bill. Other bills of interest include Senate Bill 205 and House Bill 1743 regarding Interstate Compact.

Election:

Eric appoints Jennifer to the Election Committee. Eric reports there is still no District 3 Representative. Any interested District 3 member should contact Eric at 260.449.7195. Counties included in District 3 include St. Joseph, Elkhart, Marshall, Kosciusko, Fulton, Cass, Miami, Wabash, Carroll, Howard, Clinton, and Tipton.

Technology:

Greg reports that the Technology Committee met today regarding what they would like to see on the website. Matt Taylor will be requested to be at their next meeting to discuss the website development. Eric reports that Matt Taylor signed a contract on December 31, 2002, with a start date of February 1, 2003.

Merchandise:

No report.

Old Business:

No report.

New Business:

Allison reports that a request came in from a member in her district to seek support from POPAI for an increase in support staff salaries. At this time, the Board has no vehicle to seek increased support staff salaries. The Indiana Judicial Center sets salaries for Probation Officers, not all Court employees.

Greg reports that an Audit Committee needs to be appointed. Eric states that he can have someone look at the report and then an adhoc committee of the President and Vice President can meet to discuss the findings. Eric will report back in two months (April meeting).

Greg motions that up to $500.00 per year be allocated for travel and reimbursement expenses for the President (or a person appointed to attend in the President's place) to attend legislative sessions. Discussion followed. Bill seconded, all were in favor. Motion carried.

Greg moved to close the meeting. Laird seconded, all were in favor. Motion carried.

Next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, March 12, 2003, at 3 p.m. at the Embassy Suites, Indianapolis.