Minutes of the Budget Sub-Committee Meeting
9th of June 2007
Participants, all members of the Budget Committee: Jacqueline (in function of chair), Cheryl, Annette
Planning of the ALAC budget current financial term 2007/2008 as well as next term 2008/2009
General procedure of budget application approval:
1. ALAC, based on the proposals of its Budget Sub-Committee, plans a prioritised proposed budget / funds requirement forecast, for a given period, based upon RALOs and ALAC members input.
2. ICANN decides on funds availability and proposes a match of funds (modified, full or partial) to each prioritised proposal (and if certain project proposals are not accepted as being either of merit OR able to be funded) ICANN gets in touch with ALAC before denial and explains its reservations, so that the SC can act to find a consensus for the budget plan.
Function of the Budget Committee (as already practised beginning of last year):
- puts together a proposal for fiscal year activity and project plan for the ALAC
- receives every single extra request (workshops etc. of RALOs and ALAC as well as individual demands of ALAC and RALO members (such as travel costs to meetings other than ICANN meetings) for reason of transparency and to give recommendation to staff (larger projects in consultation with ALAC).
(AM: Personal comment: I think, that the ALAC should always have access to a forum where all the budget expanses - planned and already realized - are listed. Agreed by CLO, adding the proposal to include a nominee(s) contact from the RALO’s, agreed by AM)
A form for application (perhaps a small modification for endorsement from RALO others?/ comments from ALAC SC etc., etc., to the current form available would work for this) for funding has to be used.
SC Actions:-
After San Juan Meeting, Chair sends out to all regional lists a request for planning their regional projects and handing in budget applications within the following four weeks.
Budget Committee puts proposals together and for finalizing the planning 2007/2008 online before LA Meeting and Doug Brent will be invited to take part in a Budget SC tele/conf and at the ALAC meeting in LA.
(AM Comment: request for proposals for current financial year 2007/2008 should be sent out imediately, answers to be made within 3 weeks - deadline Monday the 15th of October - so there will be (short, but at least some) time for the budget committee and the ALAC to come up with a plan before next ICANN meeting end of October in LA, where we should arrange a meeting with Doug Brent. Agreed on)
Now request for proposals for current financial year 2007/2008 by COB 27th September end dated 15th of October, this gives 21 days.
For clarification: this will be the 1st round funding proposals from the Regions and their organisation / members and we can then allow for other activities to be included that come up in LA.
For planning the fiscal year 2008/2009 the Budget Committee proposes the deadline for applications by RALOs and ALAC for the 2008-09 Fiscal year is 10th of December.
(We should also think about some contingency funding request to be set aside for new activities that come up in response to urgent need...)
Review by Budget Committee to ALAC: 21st of December.
Back from ALAC to Budget Committee 31st of January.
21st of February (or later) Budget Committee sends out to RALO/ ALAC.
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Further issue of the BSC Meeting was the per diem - we all agree that it is much easier and less bureaucratic, but it should be monitored if there is a risk of being an incentive for people to attend ICANN meetings for the sake of getting money instead of doing voluntary work for individual Internet users.
(CLO, personal comment: I’d also like us to consider with the considerable travel costs involved in Regional Meetings (in synch or otherwise with ICANN Meetings) that some system of endorsement can occur which involves RALO’s and the ALAC... We don’t want to end up funding people for travel who don’t then contribute at the meeting (of continue to contribute after)... Both these points therefore need to be on OUR AGENDA for LA.)
End of the minutes of our Budget SC Meeting.
Further actions:
I’ll work with Cheryl to create announcement texts to the lists and any form links (new / modified forms we might need as well)
The Final minutes of this meeting should go onto a Wiki page dedicated for this purpose (CLO volunteered to set it up).
All the best to all of you
Annette
