Thank you for taking the time to visit our Web site. You will find a wealth of content that will help you in your work as a spatial data information professional, as well as information about the American Congress on Surveying and Mapping (ACSM) itself. ACSM Executive Director Communique September 1, 2009 Another quarter of 2009 has passed, and the economic situation in the country has yet to rebound sufficiently. Evidence of the downturn became obvious at the end of June when staff conducted its annual “member count” for the purposes of setting the per-member fee each will Member Organization (MO) will remit to ACSM, beginning in January 2010, to cover basic infrastructure and administrative costs for the coming year. Overall, there was a drop in membership numbers of approximately 11%. Like every other business in the country, this means that ACSM will have to tighten its belt in 2010. Also like every other business (and person) in the country, we must (and will) adapt to our situation and move ahead with a positive attitude. Some things are occurring that will help us in the coming months, and during 2010. I will expound on this further in this report. There is also further information on some of the items I addressed in the June 1,  2009 update that will be covered herein as well. Annual Conferences Our projections for net revenue from the 2009 conference were pretty accurate. The ACSM share turned out to be very close to the amount I mentioned in the June communiqué, coming in at just under $51,000. As noted earlier, the share that ACSM receives will not reach the minimum threshold that would allow distribution of a portion to the MOs. The success of the Student Appreciation Panel discussion in Salt Lake provides a springboard for ACSM participation in a FIG-initiated Young Surveyors program. The ACSM FIG Forum will be sponsoring a student to attend the XXIV FIG International Congress 2010 to be held in Sydney, Australia in early June. Work is under way for the planning of the 2010 ACSM/APLS (Arizona Professional Land Surveyors) joint conference April 24-28, 2010 in Phoenix. As has been reported earlier, the conference will be co-located with the GITA Geospatial Solutions conference. The Call for Presentations including  the “crossover” educational track that is intended to draw from both sets of attendees, is posted on the ACSM website, www.acsm.net.  Please consider making a presentation in this track, and contact associates who may be willing to do so. Negotiations are still underway with ESRI regarding the possibility that the 2011 ACSM annual conference may be held in July in conjunction with the ESRI Surveying, Engineering, GIS Summit (which overlaps the ESRI 13,000 attendee User Conference by a couple of days). Participation with Other Organizations The Coalition of Geospatial Organizations (COGO) has held a number of discussions regarding the Imagery for the Nation (IFTN) initiative. In July, the group met through conference call in an attempt to work out a statement to which all parties could agree. After long discussions, no agreement could be reached, and 10 of the 11 member organizations ended up signing a very short, non-descript letter that merely indicated that they each think it is a good concept. In August, another conference call/webinar meeting was held in an attempt to address the underlying points of contention that resulted in a non-unanimous vote on the IFTN matter. After some rather heated dialog, Chairman Cy Smith brokered a plan among the group for more in-depth discussion of what  seems to be the sticking point in almost every COGO attempt at unanimity. That topic being the methods for procurement of professional services (by licensed individuals or not), and the differences of opinion about who is qualified to be selected for such services using the various procurement methods. Fortunately, an agreement was reached wherein the advocates on each side of the issue will provide more in-depth information, and attempt to arrange for opportunities through which COGO organizational representatives can become better educated on these matters rather than reacting on whatever limited information they may have available to them. This summer, I have met with FEMA officials and representatives of the National Flood Determination Association regarding a plan to utilize the eLOMA submittals process to achieve the goals initially set for the Certified Floodplain Surveyor (CFS) program. I have attended a WestFed Board meeting, the conference of the North American Surveying and Mapping Educators (henceforth to be known as Surveying and Geomatics Educators Society – SaGES), the ESRI Summit and User Conference, and the NCEES annual meeting. I also attended a retirement luncheon for Rollie Self, executive director for the Michigan Society of Professional Surveyors for the last 20 years, and a very good friend of ACSM and NSPS. In the next couple of months, I will attend another WestFed Board meeting, a special fall forum with the Utah Council of Land Surveyors, Lobby Day, the ACSM/MO fall meetings, and the Maryland Society of Surveyors fall conference. Of course, I will also attend the 42nd annual Hillsville Flea Market and Gun Show (about 400,000 people gathered in a town with a population of about 1,000) in my hometown during Labor Day weekend, and throughout the fall nervously cheer for my beloved Hokies to win football games. Staff Issues In late July, staff and I met with leaders of CaGIS to discuss the activities and responsibilities they will assume as of January 2011. Biographical information about candidates, and ballots, are being compiled for posting on the ACSM and MO websites. Only a list of candidates will be printed in the ACSM Bulletin. Dues renewal notices will begin to be mailed in mid November. Reviews and Audits Bob Jupin and I have met with one accounting firm during August, and are scheduled to meet with another this week to determine if we can find a better fit for us as we move ahead with future reviews and audits. Neither ACSM nor its MOs plan a review of our respective books for 2007. We are contemplating resuming review and audit activities beginning with the 2008 books. 2010 ACSM Budget Accounting Manager Bob Jupin, ACSM Treasurer John Matonich, and I have worked out the details for the draft 2010 budget, and will be conferring with the respective MO treasurers during September in preparation for the fall Congress and MO meetings at which time the 2010 budget will be approved. Collaboration with BLM Beneficial to ACSM For some time, the ACSM staff has participated in the administration for the BLM Certified Federal Surveyor (CFedS) program, bring needed revenues into ACSM. In concert with the Memorandum of Agreement between ACSM and BLM, we are in the process of establishing the Public Land Survey System (PLSS) Foundation that will be tasked, among other things, with the printing and distribution of the “next edition” of the BLM Manual of Surveying Instructions. As a result, ACSM will recognize additional revenues for its services associated with this undertaking, further supporting our budget. The Foundation will also engage in a number of other activities, including the development of a PLSS informational website, scholarship endowments, other educational opportunities, etc. ACSM staff will assist with these activities as well.