1. Roll Call and Introduction of Guests. All members of the Executive Committee were present. Also present were Executive Director Terry Harper and, at the invitation of the President, Rob Overton and Dick Hanneman.
   
2. Approval of Minutes. The minutes of the December 22, 2000 meeting of the Executive Committee were approved with one revision.
   
3. Advertising Code and Eligibility. Dick Hanneman, Chair of the working party established to look at the effect of ISAF changes on the Advertising Code, reported. A proposal was previously distributed; the approved proposal is attached. For non-ISAF classes, US SAILING believes that decisions regarding advertising should be determined by the class and restricted, if desired, by the local organizing authorities. Handicap and Rated fleets are designated as Category C, because in many parts of the United States participation in these fleets is international. Most other countries are moving to Category C, therefore we would be restricting entrance if Category C is prohibited. Ultimately, however, the decision as to whether or not to advertise depends on the individual sailor. Nonmembers who wish to advertise must become US Sailing members, unless they are already members of their MNA (Member National Authority – US SAILING is the MNA in the US). (See Attachment A.)

It was requested that a line be printed on the membership card stating that Category C licensing is granted, giving written permission to advertise to members who travel to foreign countries. The staff is investigating the feasibility, and exact wording is to be recommended.

The Executive Committee supports the ISAF recommendation that event organizers should not charge multilevel fees relative to the advertising level selected by a competitor. Wording of this text for inclusion in the Rule Book was referred to the Rules Committee.

The Executive Committee agreed that advertising rules properly belong in the Sailing Instructions and Notice of Race, but they also should be incorporated into the US SAILING Rule Book. Drafting of this text was referred to the Rules Committee.

It was requested that at the end of each code it should be noted that ISAF can change the codes at any time and refer people should be referred to the web site for the most recent versions.

At the conclusion of this discussion, Dick Hanneman signed off.

4. Rules. With the resolution of the following policy issues, the Rules prescriptions will be distributed to the members of the Executive Committee by e-mail for a vote. Votes will be due 5 days after distribution of the prescriptions to the Executive Committee Members.

4a. Rule 26 - Starting System: The Executive Committee voted unanimously to not add a prescription to Rule 26, effectively resulting in a single starting system in the 2001-2004 Racing Rules in the US.

4b. Appeals of RRS 69 Matters:

• Motion: A motion was moved, seconded and approved to bypass the association
  appeals committee for these matters only.
• Motion: A motion was moved, seconded and approved that appeals of Rule 69
  decisions be handled by the Article 14 Review board only.

4c. Simplified Sailing Instructions: The Executive Committee supported efforts to develop simplified sailing instructions. Reference to their existence will be made in Appendix K and they will be posted on the US SAILING web site, once they have been reviewed and approved by the Rules Committee and the Race Management Committee.

4d. Fees for Protests: The Executive Committee unanimously voted that fees for the filing of protests are not permitted.

4e. Right to Entry: The Executive Committee strongly supports including language that no sailor is to be denied the right to entry for arbitrary, capricious, or discriminatory reasons.

4f. Rule Book Publication: Given that the Rule Book ranks highly as a member benefit, the Executive Committee supported the need to improve the durability and the binding of the new Rule Book. Options are being developed by the staff.

Rob Overton signed off.

4. Budget Report. No report.
   
5. President’s Remarks. No report
   
6. Treasurer’s Report. To date, US SAILING has not used operating reserves or its extended line of credit.
   
7. Executive Director’s Report
   8a. Membership Report: The report was previously distributed.

8b. Contracts: Several sponsorship contracts have been signed, including an Optics Supplier relationship with Nikon.

9. Multihull Youth Nationals. The Executive Committee discussed how to best encourage the growth of youth multihull sailing and meet the needs of the sailors. It was agreed that sending a multihull team to the ISAF Youth Worlds in France in July, 2001, is an opportunity worth making available to sailors.

• Motion: A motion was moved, seconded and approved that the qualifier for the
  multihull team for the Youth Worlds be held at Spray Beach, NJ, in June, 2001.

10. Olympic Committee

10a. Pan Am Games

• Motion: A motion was moved, seconded and approved that the Executive Committee
  support the following eight pieces of equipment for the 2003 Pan Am Games --
  Hobie 16, Laser, Laser Radial, Men’s and Women’s Mistral, Snipe, Sunfish and J/24.
  The inclusion of the J/24 would bring keelboats back into the Pan Am Games. If any of
  the eight pieces of equipment is not meeting enough support among the PASF
  Delegates, our alternate choice is the Lightning.

10. Web site. Traffic in December is up 80 percent over the previous December. Some 7,000 members now receive e-ussailing, and transactions continue to increase. An on-line directory of members is being developed. Password-protected access would allow US SAILING members to look up contact and certification information on fellow members, but would also give members the option of not listing contact information. Non-members will only be able to look up a member’s name, city, and certification.
    
11. National Sail Programs Symposium. Joni Palmer put together an excellent program, 225 people attended. In addition, the new program Sailing Smart was launched.
    
12. Unfinished Business

13a. Compliance. Efforts continue to ensure that US SAILING fulfills the requirement that "There shall be a sufficient number of Sailor-Athletes to comprise at least 20% of the Executive Committee."

• Motion: A motion was moved, seconded and approved to invite sailor-athletes Louise
  Van Voorhis Gleason, USOC Athletes Advisory Council Representative from
  US SAILING, and Craig Healy to become interim members of the Executive Committee,
  pending final approval by the Board of Directors.
• Motion: A motion was moved, seconded and approved to accept the proposed list of committee members (see www.ussailing.org/directory for lists of committee members).
• Motion: A motion was moved, seconded and approved to endorse the current working definition of athlete, as written (see Attachment B).

13b. Paralympic team. Following a formal, zaplet e-mail vote, the committee for Sailors with Special Needs voted in favor of moving responsibility for the US Disabled Sailing Team and the Paralympic movement to the Olympic Sailing Committee. The Olympic Sailing Executive Committee also unanimously supported this proposal.

• Motion: A motion was moved, seconded and approved to accept this proposal (see Attachment C), and thereby change the effected terms of reference and budgets of
  these committees.

13c. Strategic Planning. Prior to the March 22, 2001, strategic planning meeting, the Strategic Planning Committee is working to solicit as broad input as possible regarding what should be the strategic priorities of US SAILING.

13d. Prince of Wales National Match Racing Championship. The Executive Committee reminds this committee that it must meet annually, as required by Article Eleven, Section 1 of US SAILING’s by-laws.

• Motion: A motion was moved, seconded and approved to accept the new Championship Conditions - Draft 10/26/00 KSB with one change: both the skipper and crew must be members of a Yacht Club.
  See www.ussailing.org/championships/POW/POW2000Conditions.pdf for more
  information.

13e. The US Offshore Championship.

• Motion: A motion was moved, seconded and approved to instruct the US Offshore Championship Committee to award the Lloyd Phoenix Trophy based on the current
  results, subject to any future decision of the Appeals Committee.

Executive Session (Executive Committee members and Executive Director only)

Article 14 and RRS 69 Issues. A report was distributed previously.

The meeting adjourned at 10:40 pm (Eastern Time). The next scheduled meeting is at 8 p.m. (Eastern Time), February 20, 2001

Respectfully submitted,

Sarah Alger

Secretary, US SAILING

ADVERTISING CODE POLICY

As a matter of policy, US SAILING does not restrict or authorize non-event advertising. These decisions are properly made by the non-ISAF classes and can be restricted by local organizing authorities as defined in the code.

All non-ISAF one-design classes can elect Category C, if they choose, or will remain category A in the absence of that election.

Handicap and Rated fleets including offshore one-design boats when racing under handicaps or ratings, are designated as category C by US SAILING. Local organizers may determine whether these events are "club" or "invitational" within the code.

US SAILING grants licensing to any currently active US SAILING member by virtue of that membership.

For calendar year 2001, US SAILING grants the blanket right to organizing authorities to restrict Category C advertising in club or invitational events. This decision will be reviewed annually.

D -- Designated Committees – The following boards, committees and other groups at US SAILING are deemed to be designated: Board of Directors, Executive Committee, Voting Members (i.e. the Annual Governing Meeting), Olympic Sailing Committee, Budget Committee, U.S. Jr. Women’s Championship Committee, U.S. Team Racing Championship Committee, U.S. Youth Championship Committee, Inshore, Offshore Teams, Offshore One-Design and Level Classes Committee, Sailors with Special Needs Committee, The ISAF Delegation, Nominating Committee and the Article 14 Review Board.

1. At the time of election, at least 50% of the athletes on the board or committee will have demonstrated their experience in an Olympic or Pan Am boat by either:
   

1. within the last 10 years, represented the U.S. in any one of the following events:

• Olympic Games,
• Pan Am Games,
• An operation Gold Event,
• A World Championship in an Olympic or Pan Am Class (at the time of competition) for which competitive selection was required (a listing of these classes is included in attachment 1),
• The ISAF World Championships (which are held once every 4 years) for classes included in the program of the Olympics or Pan Am Games at the time of the event;
  

2. or, within the previous 24 months, finished in the top half of any of the following events:

• The Olympic Trials,
• The Pan Am Trials,
• A selection event, if one was held, for any of the World Championships or Operation Gold events listed above in D-I-a.

• 1990 – Present
• 49er 1997 – Present
• Europe (W) 1990 – Present
• Finn 1990 – Present
• Flying Dutchman 1990 – 1992
• Laser 1993 – Present
• Mistral 1990 – Present
• Soling 1990 – 2000
• Star 1990 – Present
• Tornado 1990 – 2000
• Tornado Sport 2001 – Present
• Yngling (W) 2001 – Present

•  
• 1990 – 1995
• Europe (W) 1992 – 1999
• Finn 1990 – 1999
• Hobie 16 1996 – 1999
• J/24 1992 – 1995
• Laser 1992 – 1999
• Laser Radial 1996 – 1999
• Lightning 1990 – 1999
• Mistral 1990 – 1999
• Snipe 1990 – 1999
• Sunfish 1996 – 1999

Note: the 2000 – 2003 period will be determined at a vote of the PASF on February 9, 2001

Any class (as defined in the Racing Rules of Sailing) that holds races utilizing the Racing Rules of Sailing promulgated by the International Sailing Federation.

It is proposed that the responsibility for the Paralympic Sailing Program in the US and for developing the US Disabled Sailing Team and the selection of the US Paralympic Sailing Team be transitioned from the Sailors With Special Needs Committee (SWSN) to the Olympic Sailing Committee (OSC), along with its current budget, excluding G&A (unless some portion of it is contracted from the Executive Director by the OSC).

The OSC will adhere to the following principles throughout this transition and continuing into the future:

1. The Paralympic Movement in US SAILING is and will continue to be an integral part of the Olympic Movement within US SAILING, and the Paralympic Athletes will continue to be an integral part of our Olympic Family.

2. Paralympic Athletes should have equitable representation in US SAILING Governance.

3. Paralympic athletes should be integrated wherever practical into US SAILING programs.

4. US SAILING Acknowledges that it has responsibilities to Paralympic Athletes under the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act.

5. That funds raised by or for the US SAILING Disabled Team should be allocated to athletes either on or striving to become members of the US SAILING Disabled Team and for programs supporting our Paralympic Movement. Funds raised by or for the benefit of the US SAILING Team should be allocated to US SAILING Team members or aspirants and for programs supporting our Olympic Movement.

To this end, the OSC will invite a disabled athlete or team member to be a member of the OSC Executive Committee, and the OSC Chairman will name event liaisons to the OSC for each of he Paralympic events (currently: 3-person and single-handed).

The budget, both income and expense, in support of the US Disabled Sailing Program will be appropriately segregated, recognizing that some amount of the income will need to support the committee's G&A, the overarching goal of this transition is to take advantage of the synergies provided from the current level of G&A that is invested in the OSC. As such, the Budget associated with the Paralympic Movement will become a part of the OSC multiyear planning and spending plan, and as such will move off of the Income Statement, as the OSC budget currently does.

As with the Olympic Selection Trials, the OSC will now become the designated committee within US SAILING responsible for the arranging of the Paralympic Selection Trials. We will reach out to those most familiar with the needs of the disabled sailors in accomplishing this task, and will see how we can best synergize with the Olympic Selection Trials. The OSC will follow the same approach in naming the Team Leader and any other appointed/hired member of the US Paralympic Sailing Team.

Any funds raised that are designated, either for the US SAILING Team or for the US SAILING Disabled Team, will be segregated as discussed above. It should be noted that any funds from the USOC not otherwise designated for the Disabled Sailing Team/Program, are always presumed to be designated, by default, for the US SAILING Team/Program.