PG 16 Editor Note

PNL Volume 16

1984

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

A LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

I should like to begin with an apology for the inordinate and

unacceptable delay in producing and distributing the present volume of

the PNL. Members have every right to want and expect more timely

receipt of this, your publication. The reason for the delay is enmeshed

in a larger set of recent developments which affect the Pisum Genetics

Association.

It is pertinent at the outset to repeat a point made on several

previous occasions: no small part of the cost of producing the PNL at

the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station over the years has

been borne by the department to which the Editor, "clerk", and

secretaries belong. Since the founding of the PGA in 1969 two

departmental mergers have occurred, both designed to enhance departmen-

tal efficiency and reduce administrative expense in the wake of mounting

operational costs and restricted support. The PGA is caught up in this

struggle and, sparing the reader all of the detail, the reality is that

the department will no longer be able to subsidize the publication of

the PNL by making up the difference between the revenues and actual

costs. We must, in short, become self-supporting.

For convenience, I shall characterize PGA expenditures as direct

and indirect, the latter being expressed as the costs of labor which

have heretofore been absorbed by the department. Our current yearly

direct costs are roughly as follows:

Printing - $350

Postage - $250

Miscellaneous (including bank charges and reprinting out-of-print

volumes) - $250 .

Indirect costs include the time required for various bookkeeping

duties associated with collecting, posting, and depositing of membership

dues as well as executing correspondence related to these activities.

However, the time required to type and retype all edited material repre-

sents the most significant indirect cost. In some instances the

articles undergo 3-4 cycles of retyping. Preparation of tables is

especially time-consuming. Preparation of the finished manuscripts and

assembling them prior to printing is estimated to involve about three

weeks of secretarial time. The bookkeeping activities are estimated to

require 3-5 days. Thus, the cost of about one month's secretarial time

is currently absorbed by the department.

Of course, at present the time devoted by Mrs . VanKirk, our

"clerk", and Mrs. Porter field, our typist, to PGA affairs is not con-

centrated into a single period, but instead must be fitted in as time

permits with their primary departmental duties. Therein lies the reason

for the delay in producing the PNL. A reduction in our secretarial

force together with a greater work load have severely limited the time

the aforementioned can devote to PGA affairs.

PNL Volume 16

1984

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

Revenues at present derive from two sources: (1) member dues and

(2) a gift from the National Pea Improvement Association (a U.S. or-

ganization representing public and private researchers and private

industry, e.g. seed firms, processing firms, suppliers, etc.) . Dues

generate approximately $600 yearly and the NPIA contribution amounts to

$250, for a total of approximately $850 -$900. All of our income is used

to meet the direct costs mentioned above, leaving the indirect labor

costs which now must be met by our organization. The latter are es-

timated to range from $1000 to $1500 per year.

To become self-supporting, I propose the. following courses of

action:

(1) Increase dues from the current $3.00 per year to $10.00 for two

years. The annual rate, of course, will be $5.00 but the amount is

couched so as to encourage members to pay their dues for two years

rather than one as a way of reducing handling costs. However, given our

small membership, even the substantial increase in dues from $3.00 to

$5.00 will not generate the revenue needed to survive. Nor does it seem

prudent or advisable, for a number of reasons, to increase dues beyond

$5.00.

(2) Seek out benefactors or sponsors willing to contribute sums

ranging from $200 to $500 on a continuing basis. Inevitably, private

industry is considered the leading candidate to approach for support.

However, this potential source already is beleaguered with requests of

this type and patience may be running thin. Moreover, industry may not

perceive our activities to be of sufficient benefit to warrant its

participation. Still, our fortunes seem to rely on identifying one or

several companies or agencies to provide the funds required to sustain

our organization.

Our future is at stake. I call upon members to help find ways to

solve the problem and ensure our survival. Financial independence will

allow us to devote full time to the task of producing each volume of the

PNL and should permit timely completion and delivery.