Executive Committee of the American Institute of Physics
Minutes of Meeting
Members Present: R. A. Sawyer – Chairman, Joseph A. Burton, H. R. Crane, Ronald Geballe, W. W. Havens, Jr., H. William Koch, R. B. Lindsay, Mary E. Warga
AIP Staff Present: H. William Koch, Wallace Waterfall, G. F. Gilbert, Lewis Slack, Robert H. Marks, Mary M. Johnson
Chairman Sawyer called the meeting to order at 3:05 p.m.
1. Minutes
Upon motion made and passed without dissent, the minutes of the Executive Committee meeting of July 10, 1970, were approved as distributed.
2. Confirmation of Mail Ballot re Purchase of Equipment
By letter dated August 17, 1970, to members of the Executive Committee, the Director requested approval of the purchase of equipment totaling $35,635 for use in in-house typewriter composition. (A copy of the August 17 memorandum explaining the reasons for the proposed purchase it attached to the official minutes.) The Secretary reported that letter ballots approving the proposed purchase had been received from all members of the Executive Committee. A motion confirming results of the mail ballot was made, seconded, and passed without dissent.
3. Financial Statement for First 6 Months 1970 and Projection to End of Year
The Treasurer reported that a financial statement for the first six months ended June 30, 1970, had been mailed to all Governing Board members on September 10. (A copy is attached to the official minutes and to these minutes for others who have not previously received it.) That statement showed net income for the first half of 1970 as $17,718.
The revised 1970 budget adopted by the Executive Committee at its meeting of July 10 anticipated a net income for 1970 of $17,775. The Treasurer explained that, since the revised budget was adopted, there has been further loss of advertising income and other changes so that a projection to the end of the year seems appropriate. Whether we have a net income or expense is heavily dependent on the performance of the journals. We have not had time or staff to make a detailed analysis of all items of journal income and expense but have studied a few areas which seem most questionable. The archive journals have a chance of coming out close to budget if they are carefully controlled. Our initial examination of PHYSICS TODAY indicated that it might show a loss for the year of as much as $39,000 instead of the net income of $11,550 in the revised budget. Accordingly, the number of text pages for the year has been cut from 645 to 635, the Washington Office editor and one free-lance editor have been eliminated, and with these changes we hope to hold the net expense of PHYSICS TODAY for the year to $28,100. The attached sheets (Exhibit A) show the projected budget for PHYSICS TODAY for 1970. On the plus side we anticipate about $15,000 more income from short-term investments than indicated in the revised budget. We also propose to make some changes in the cost distribution of the expense of the Washington Office. With these changes indicated above we project a net expense for AIP for 1970 of $1,300 instead of the net income of $17,775 shown in the revised budget. The Treasurer pointed out that there are still a number of uncertainties and we cannot tell at this time whether our net will be income or expense but it will be close.
4. NSF Indirect Cost Rate
The Treasurer distributed and commented on a memorandum (copy attached as Exhibit B) reporting that NSF had agreed to a new indirect cost rate for AIP of 16.73%. He pointed out that the approved rate varies from year to year and each rate is applicable to grants made in the pertinent year. At the present time we are operating with five different rates on 15 or 16 grants.
5. Report of Employee Benefits Committee
At the July meeting the Secretary reported that AIP had been advised that our employee benefits were not keeping pace with the times and something should be done to improve them. The Director had appointed a committee to study the benefits and that committee has been working strenuously with the hope that a new benefit program can be put into effect by January 1, 1971. The benefits under study include major medical insurance, Blue Cross-Blue Shield, group life insurance, long-term disability insurance, and a retirement plan. Our present benefits are covered by several insurance carriers and our retirement plan is a very complicated arrangement with Bankers Trust Company as the trustee of pension funds. When our present benefit program was set up we were told that we were not eligible to participate in TIAA. We now learn that we can participate in TIAA and the committee has concluded that it will be to the advantage of AIP employees and AIP to have as much as possible of our benefits program handled by TIAA.
The Secretary distributed a table (copy attached as Exhibit C) showing the present cost of employee benefits and the approximate cost for 1971 of proposed benefits. He discussed some of the details of the proposed benefits and indicated that still further discussion with TIAA was necessary to work out further details. APS now has a benefit program for its employees which is handled by TIAA at a cost of approximately 14% of pay roll. AIP expects to take over a number of APS employees at Brookhaven and it is very desirable that the APS and AIP benefits programs should be essentially the same. For that reason Mr. Burton of APS has been working with the AIP benefits committee and it is hoped that both organizations will end up with essentially identical programs. One of our big problems, especially with the retirement plan, is to make sure that no present AIP employee will fare worse under the proposed new plan than under the existing plan. As the table indicates the proposed new program is estimated to cost approximately 7% of pay roll whereas the present program costs less than 5%. The additional cost of the proposed program is substantial but it will provide benefits which are well in line with other organizations. Much of this increased cost is due to the fact that nearly twice as many employees will be on the retirement plan in 1971 as are on it in 1970 because the new plan provides that most employees will be eligible after one year employment rather than two years as in the present plan. It should be borne in mind that our pay roll distribution is such that only about half of the cost of benefits is borne by AIP. About one-quarter gets charged to contracts and grants and one-quarter to activities carried on for the Societies.
In concluding his remarks the Secretary requested that the Executive Committee approve the proposed benefit program in principle so that the staff committee can continue to work out the details with TIAA and so that the costs of the proposed program can be included in the 1971 budget. He said that the details of the various elements of the benefit program would be presented to the Executive Committee for approval along with the 1971 budget. After further discussion of various items, the following motion was made, seconded, and passed without dissent:
MOVED that the proposed AIP employee benefits program be approved in principle.
6. Agreement with APS on AIP Handling Typewriter Composition of PR-C and PR-D at Brookhaven
Mr. Marks distributed copies of a draft of a proposal on this subject which he said AIP intended to submit to APS. In reviewing the background of negotiations he said that last July AIP had proposed to APS that we do typewriter composition for PR-D in our New York Offices. After various other proposals and conferences, APS suggested that AIP set up a facility at Brookhaven to handle copy editing and typewriter composition of PR-C and PR-D. Subsequent negotiations have indicated that space is available at Brookhaven and can probably be leased from AEC and that some of the present APS staff at Brookhaven can be taken over by AIP to form the nucleus of an AIP staff there. According to the proposal, AIP would have a staff of approximately 45 employees at Brookhaven. We would expect APS to buy the typewriters and other equipment needed. We believe that the annual cost of the operation at Brookhaven would be between $300,000 and $350,000. If there are no delays in completing the arrangements AIP believes that it can produce the April 1971 issue of PR-C and the June 1971 issue of PR-D at Brookhaven. There are many details yet to be worked out but the AIP staff would like to have approval of continuing and concluding the negotiations. After some discussion the following motion was made, seconded, and passed without dissent:
MOVED that the AIP staff be authorized to proceed with negotiations with APS as heretofore described.
7. Appreciation for Frank Myers’ Service as Editor of JAP and APL
The Director said that he felt that AIP was greatly indebted to Frank Myers for pinch-hitting as editor of JAP and APL under unusual circumstances and he proposed the following motion which was made, seconded and carried without dissent:
Recognizing the postponement of retirement plans, after almost six years as editor of the JOURNAL OF APPLIED PHYSICS and of APPLIED PHYSICS LETTERS, in order to fill the gap left by the unexpected death of his successor in that position, the American Institute of Physics expresses its appreciation to Frank E. Myers for his effective service to the physics community as a journal editor.
8. AIP Journals for Corporate Associates at Member Rates
The Secretary explained that, at the present time, Corporate Associates may have one free subscription to each AIP-owned journal if they so request. We have been charging such subscriptions to the Corporate Associates program at non-member rates. The total charge to the Corporate Associates program will amount to approximately $39,000 this year and the charge will be substantially higher in 1971 with the new rates. If the subscriptions were charged at member rates the total charge this year would have been only $13,500. The cost of the subscriptions comes out of the Corporate Associates program and the money goes into journal subscription income so there would be no loss or gain to AIP. To make this change requires Executive Committee action because in December 1962 the Executive Committee ruled that only persons who are members of member organizations may subscribe to Institute journals at the reduced member rates. After brief discussion, the following motion was made, seconded, and passed without dissent:
MOVED that AIP Corporate Associates be permitted to have one subscription to each AIP-owned journal without charge, the cost of the subscription to be charged at member rates to the Corporate Associates program.
9. Gracing of AIP Journals
The Treasurer distributed copies of a memorandum (copy attached as Exhibit D) explaining that APS had recently decided to grace their journals for three months beginning in 1971. He said he believed it would save money if all journals were graced for three months and it would certainly reduce complications if uniform gracing policies were adopted for AIP-owned journals and all Society journals. After brief discussion the following motion was made, seconded, and passed without dissent:
MOVED that AIP-owned journals be graced for three months beginning in 1971 and that all member organizations for whom AIP publishes journals be urged to adopt the same policy.
10. Report of the Property Committee
The Secretary explained that the AIP Editorial Mechanics Section is now split between the Commerce and Honeywell Buildings and leases on both places expire on October 31, 1971. In these two places the Editorial Section now has enough room but they may need more during the latter part of 1971 if in-house typewriter composition is expanded. The Information Division in the Allied Arts Building across the street from headquarters has space enough at present but will be crowded by late 1971. It would be desirable to have the production section of the Information Division housed with the Editorial Section and, if that could be done, there would be enough room in the Allied Arts Building for the rest of the Information Division for some time to come. The Allied Arts Building lease runs till 1973 and there is a possible extension for five more years if the building is not wrecked for the proposed UN Development. After studying the situation, the Property Committee has concluded that some time before October 1971 the Institute should rent nearby space totaling between 12,000 and 15,000 square feet for the Editorial Section and the production section of the Information Division. We should lease the space for a period of five years with privilege of subleasing.
Those who have visited the APS operation at Brookhaven have been greatly impressed by the quality of the staff. Studies have indicated that it should be relatively easy to get a sufficient number of high quality employees to staff an AIP operation in Suffolk County on Long Island. If our experience with the production of APS journals at Brookhaven as proposed in Item 6 is good, we may wish to consider buying land in the area, building a building of our own, and moving other of our activities out there. We understand land prices in Suffolk County are rising rather rapidly so we should start soon to investigate possibilities. We would plan to retain our present headquarters building in Manhattan as executive headquarters for AIP and for the Member Societies housed with us.
On motion made, seconded, and passed without dissent the report of the Property Committee was approved.
11. Appointment of Executive Review Committee
Through the Personnel Committee which was established several years ago, the Institute now has a satisfactory mechanism for reviewing the performance and salary of most AIP employees. However, the Personnel Committee has never considered it within its province to deal with the corporate officers of the Institute. For this purpose the Chairman said he would like to appoint an Executive Review Committee consisting of J. A. Burton – Chairman, H. R. Crane, and H. I. Fusfeld. He would ask this committee to review the performance and salaries of the corporate officers as soon as possible so that any changes they might suggest in the salaries of these officers could be incorporated in the 1971 budget.
By motion made, seconded, and passed without dissent the appointment of the committee was approved.
12. Staffing APS Placement Contract
Item 9 of the minutes of the Executive Committee meeting of July 10, 1970, records that the Executive Committee approved an arrangement whereby APS would supply AIP with $38,500 to be used in expanding the AIP manpower services in certain ways. Mr. Slack reported that AIP has been searching for the right man for the job and believes that one has now been found who has the proper qualifications and the enthusiastic endorsement of APS officers. We hope to conclude an arrangement with him within the next couple of weeks.
13. Information Program Activities
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Exhibit at APS-AAPT New York Meeting
The Director reported that the Information Division has purchased space in the exhibit area on the same basis as other exhibitors and plans to display samples of the services it will offer for sale and also make some demonstrations.
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Brochure on SPIN
The Director distributed copies of a newly-printed brochure describing SPIN (Searchable Physics Information Notices). The brochure says that SPIN tapes will be supplied once a month starting in January 1971 under either a lease or license plan. The 12-month lease fee will be approximately $2,500 and will vary depending on user requirements.
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Preview Abstracts in Physics and Astronomy (PAPA)
The Director described a new abstracts publication on which the Information Division is working. On acceptance of an article by an AIP journal editor the author would be sent a standardized sheet and asked to type the title of his article, his name, the name of his institution, and the abstract of his article on the sheet and send it to AIP. We would assemble these abstracts and publish them several months before the journals appear. We believe that such a publication would be appreciated by both authors and by subscribers and that it could be produced by photo offset at relatively little expense. We are canvassing members of the AIP Publication Board to get their reactions.
14. Appointments to Editorial Boards
The Director reported that the new editor of JAP and APL is Gilbert J. Perlow of Argonne National Laboratory. Effective July 1, 1970, Morton Hamermesh became the editor of JMP. The Director said he had not yet received recommendations from the editors of AIP journals about the composition of their editorial boards for the coming year but he would like to have authority to make such appointments when the recommendations are received. By motion made, seconded, and passed without dissent, the Director was given the authorization request.
15. Review of Governing Board Agenda and Assembly Program
The Director pointed out that, at the Assembly of Society Officers and Governing Board [meetings], a representative of each Society will speak briefly on the subject of “Present Status and Future Trends of AIP-Member Society Relationships” and he will then speak for AIP. He distributed copies of an outline of his talk (copy attached to official minutes) and said he would distribute copies at the Assembly. He said he intended to focus attention on the difficulties the Institute has in financing the various “society-member programs” most of which are included in our “General Activities.” In the past these programs have been financed mostly by the net income from AIP-owned journals but this is too great a burden on our publishing program. The Director said that, if these programs are to be continued at their present level, the Societies should support them more than they do because the programs are largely for the benefit of Society members.
Executive Committee members voiced no objection to such a presentation.
The meeting was adjourned at 5:02 p.m.