A motion for a membership fee increase was approved at the Annual Meeting of Members held on July 29, 2023 as below:
The West Carling Association (WCA) currently collects an annual fee of $70 per Primary Member and $25 per Associate Member. We pay the Georgian Bay Association (GBA) the major portion of that fee. Of the $70 membership fee we receive, the WCA keeps $20 per Primary Member. We do not pay the GBA for Associate Members, retaining the full $25 fee.
Georgian Bay Association Fee Increase
In April 2023, the GBA raised its membership fee from $50 to $65 per member largely due to inflation. Their last increase was effective January 2016.
The GBA is very active in its advocate role focusing on issues that our members have identified as being very important to them, (e.g., water quality, species at risk, boating safety, coastal protection and invasive species) working both at a federal and provincial level freeing us up to focus on local concerns.
West Carling Association Increase
Why does WCA need the fee increase?
After we pay the new GBA rate of $65, WCA would retain only $5 per Primary Member from the current rate of $70 resulting in total income from membership fees of approximately $1,500 annually. For 2023, our fixed costs alone to cover insurance ($950), Zoom meetings ($226), and bank charges ($350) total $1526, leaving little room for other expenditures. We receive some additional donations from members but this is not consistent or predictable.
The last fee raise was in 2017. The new fee rate raises the WCA portion of the overall fee from $20 to $35. Inflation alone accounts for a large portion of the fee raise.
Concurrently, the WCA has engaged paid communications services. The communications role was instituted in 2021 in recognition of the need to communicate more frequently and effectively with our members, requiring a time commitment beyond that of a volunteer.
To be able to continue to purchase these services and cover other expenditures necessitates a fee raise of the WCA portion. Not raising our membership fees for 2024 will impair our ability to communicate effectively with our members, fund other projects and cover fixed expenses.
Comparator Organizations
Our Membership Director completed a recent survey of comparator organizations, largely within the umbrella of the GBA. The range of fees for Primary Members runs from a low of $70 (WCA) to a high of $120 for Primary Members and $50 for Associate Members. The average fee for Primary Members in the comparator group is $97.