Secretary-Treasurer’s Report
by Alison Dobbie, MD
I am extremely pleased to report that STFM ended 2009 in the black by $22,800. In spite of the economy, the Society was able to provide services that our members have said were important to them and make improvements to existing programs. We have much to celebrate beyond our fiscal success. Kudos are due to members, leaders, Stacy Brungardt, CAE, executive director, Dana Greco, CAE, chief financial officer, and all the STFM staff.
The Society’s financial model is pretty straightforward. About 40% of our income is derived from conference net revenue, 35% from membership dues, and about 25% from an assortment of items, such as classified advertising, subscriptions, service contracts, interest, and other miscellaneous items. In the spirit of openness (one of STFM’s core values), this year, my report includes some additional financial information to give you a fuller picture of how the Society dollars are gained and spent.
Under income, membership income did well, at $118,227 ahead of last year, secondary to our dues increase. Thanks to state budget cuts and hiring freezes across the country, advertising income was behind budget by $71,319. Our meetings and workshops were successful, but income fell $40,500 below budget. This was largely due to the annual meeting falling short of budget projections and the budgeted income lost due to the cancellation of the 2009 Conference on Families and Health. However, avoiding the expenses associated with the Family Conference, which lost money in 2008, more than compensated for the lost income.
Some unbudgeted sources of income included $2,500 from a Family Medicine article reprint, $2,138 from a new CDC Immunization Grant, a $3,000 administration fee for fmCASES, and $9,450 in rental income for STFM laptops and projectors.
Several 2009 expenses were favorable to budget. Salaries were $33,869 below budget. A renegotiated printing contract for Family Medicine netted savings of $19,706 over last year. The Resource Library expenses were $51,287 under budget, due to being able to keep many development costs in-house rather than outsourcing them. Similarly, office operations were also down $5,800 compared to budget. Board and Committee expenses were both below budget, and meeting expenses decreased by $137,247, in large part due to canceling the Family Conference and ceasing to sponsor the Behavioral Science Forum. Finally, we had anticipated $23,000 in start-up costs for the Family Medicine online review system, but these expenses will not now occur till 2010.
The Opportunity Fund is a separate fund held in savings, which is used for special projects that emerge throughout the year that are unbudgeted but important. Because we use a special money market fund to pay for these special projects, we back these expenses out of our financial report.
One other item we back out of the statements is unrealized earnings or losses from our long-term investments. Financial accounting rules require that earnings/losses be reflected on financial statements. These earnings reflect the difference in what the investments would be worth if we sold them today compared to their purchase value. Since we do not plan to sell these investments, what was gained or earned does not reflect true dollars to run the association. We deducted the $285,061 we “earned” from these investments to reflect dollars we actually have to spend on STFM programs and services.
Members should be pleased to know that STFM is on solid financial footing. Our main financial goal for 2010 will be to continue to work to meet our strategic priorities and advance family medicine while being good stewards of your membership dollars. Major challenges, as for 2009, include maintaining membership and meeting attendance. Active efforts to increase membership continue under the leadership of the Membership Committee and staff. With its wonderful staff and committed volunteers, STFM remains in a strong position to weather the current financial downturn and continue to thrive.