Monday, March 12, 2007
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Johnson: Enforcement of Dues Deadline Saved Bar About $50,000
By TINA BAY, Staff Writer
Strict enforcement of the Feb. 1 deadline to pay State Bar membership dues this year resulted in an estimated savings of $50,000 to the organization, State Bar Executive Director Judy Johnson said at a Board of Governors meeting Friday.
The imposition of a penalty for payments not made by Feb. 1—$100 for active members and $30 for inactive members—resulted in more timely payments, cutting the cost of sending second dues reminders by about $20,000 in production expenses and $20,000 to $30,000 in postage, Johnson told the governors.
This year, 88 percent of State Bar members paid on time, as compared with the
73 percent who paid by Feb. 1 a year ago. Approximately 22,000 members have not paid their dues this year, compared to the 58,000 who prompted second statements last year.
The State Bar’s director of media & information services, Dean Kinley, told the MetNews after the meeting that the substantial increase in timely payments means a much smaller drain on the Bar’s resources than has occurred in the past.
“One of the big things for the Bar is we have this money in early and it’s earning interest, so it’s a better use of the money,” he said. “The members who pay on time are not forking out money to collect the money from the members who chose not to pay on time—at least not such a large sum anymore.”
Due to the success of this year’s deadline enforcement, Kinley added, the Bar has decided to cut out a fourth mailing to delinquent members and send at most three.
With more money in the general fund, the Board of Governors has more to work with, Kinley said, noting that the board is “always making efforts to provide members with more services.”
In addition to the increase in timely dues payments, the number of members who used the Bar’s online payment service also went up by 18,000, following elimination of online banking fees that were previously attached to the service.
Copyright 2007, Metropolitan News Company