Dear District 17 Member:

The ACBL Board of Directors held its face-to-face meetings July 11 through July 14 in Providence, RI in conjunction with the summer NABC. The ACBL Board of Directors, committees and work groups continue to meet regularly through Zoom and conference calls. 

The final table count for the Providence NABC (including the youth NABC) totaled 7,590.75, exceeding expectations. The final table count for the previous NABC held in Reno totaled 6,204. The ACBL Board and management are optimistic that this increase in table count will continue as we move to the next NABC in Phoenix November 24 through December 4. 

This report highlights a new pilot program to increase membership, a motion that protects the integrity of Grand Life Master status and the ACBL Hall of Fame and major improvements to our disciplinary process.

While in Providence, I had the opportunity to meet with new and seasoned players, club owners, teachers and additional ACBL stakeholders. It is of great value to hear the negatives and the positives and to share ideas and strategies essential to the vitality of bridge.

I look forward to seeing you at upcoming D17 sectionals, regionals and at the NABC in Phoenix!

It is a pleasure and a privilege to serve as your representative to the ACBL Board of Directors.

Respectfully, 

Cindy Shoemaker

The Board approved funding for a joint pilot program with the ACBL Educational Foundation aimed at increasing membership and providing support for face-to-face beginning bridge teachers and face-to-face bridge clubs. 

A task force has been formed to develop the process, metrics and timeline.

In Providence, under Item C222-AC01, the Appeals & Charges Committee reported the outcome of its most recent hearings. 

The ACBL Board passed a motion to protect the integrity of the ACBL Hall of Fame and Grand Life Master status. The motion amended the Code of Disciplinary Regulations to include the forfeiture of masterpoints and titles for members found guilty of first-degree ethical violations that result in the expulsion or suspension of the offender for two or more years. Furthermore, those members would be permanently ineligible to be awarded the ACBL rank of Grand Life Master and permanently ineligible to be inducted into the ACBL Hall of Fame. Offenders who are Grand Life Masters and/or are members of the ACBL Hall of Fame would stripped of these distinctions. 

I voted in favor of this motion which carried: 17-3-0. Effective date: July 15, 2022. 

The Office of National Recorder, headed by Jeff Edelstein, has dramatically increased case turnover times due to improvements in methodology, process and practice. It now requires a maximum of 10 days from the time a Player Memo is filed to the time a letter with charges is issued, if necessary. 

Cases have been prioritized, including flagging memories regarding year-old hands, and parties difficulties accessing old records.

In addition to Edelstein, the Office of National Recorder includes Justin Coniglio, assistant national recorder and Sabrina Goley, administrative assistant. 

For disciplinary actions and process, go to: https://www.acbl.org/ethics/

The Communications Task Force puts forth initiatives to improve communication within the Board, between the Board and ACBL Management and the Board and ACBL membership. As Chair, I reported the progress of 11 initiatives, including the revision and implementation of the ACBL Member Response Policy based on the ongoing need to improve customer service. 

A review of the Codification as it relates to communication and communication protocols is complete. 

This review resulted in a motion (Item 222-GV01) to remove Section 4 - Communications and Appendix 4-A3 contained in Part 1 - Governance and Policy, Chapter IV - Board Procedures, A. Administration of the Codification. 

Communications policies and protocols put forth by the Communications Task Force and enacted in 2021 and 2022 eliminate the need to codify communications.

Additional communications procedures will be consolidated and included in the revised Board Member Manual. Governance and the Communications Task Force are working on the revision of the Board Member Manual scheduled for completion in 2022. 

Item 222-GV01 was assigned to the Governance Committee. Motion Carried: 

20-0-0. 

Motion (Item 222-BY01) proposes a change in the governance structure of the ACBL Board of Directors, amending the bylaws to replace the Chairman of the Board with Vice President.

The Chairman of the Board is defined in the current bylaws as the immediate Past President. The selection of the Chairman was not by election, nor was it always automatic. Provisions were made in the bylaws to select another board member in case the previous Past President was no longer on the Board. In recent years, this was often the case.

A Vice President will have most of the same duties as the Chairman, but will always be elected by the full Board of Directors. 

Motion carried: 17-3-0.  I voted in favor of this motion.

Effective upon approval by the ACBL Advisory Council following the second reading of the ACBL Bylaws.

Governance had a light agenda in Providence, with three motions and one non-agenda item. 

Non-agenda item (NA222-01) is the most important motion the Governance Committee reviewed for Providence. It proposed revised Unit formation, transfer and dissolution regulations. In the process of developing this fairly complex motion, it was clear that substantial changes were needed not only to Chapter III—Administration of Operations, A. Units, Section 4, Changes to a Unit Charter, but also to Chapter I—Membership, A. Membership, Section 3, Unit Membership.

The resulting changes to both chapters clarify the responsibilities and entitlements of individual members, groups of members and Units. The intent of these changes was to make it easier for members to understand how to retain the benefits of belonging to a Unit in this current climate of declining membership and the desire of smaller Units to merge or to transfer members. 

Motion (Item 222-GV01). Please see the Communications Section of this report for details. 

Motion (Item 222-GV02) updates and provides consistent procedures for board elected and or appointed positions across the ACBL, the North American Bridge Federation and the World Bridge Federation. Motion carried: 20-0-0.

Motion (Item 222-GV03) proposes that it is appropriate for the Vice President to assume the duties of the Chairman of the Board that are currently referenced in the Codification as a member of the Board Oversight Committee, the Executive Committee and a Tournament Conflicts Committee (as needed). It aligns with the bylaw changes proposed in Item 222-BY01 included in the Bylaws Section of this report.  Motion carried: 20-0-0.

In addition to the motions it reviewed, the Governance Committee began work that will continue through the fall and into 2023.

Understanding governance in the context of the ACBL is key to transitioning to a smaller Board of Directors—it is important to ensure that the Board, Management, the Advisory Council, supporting committees and other stakeholders (the 13 Regions comprising the 25 Districts and 300+ Units, members, teachers, club owners, online partners) are able to work together with clearly defined roles, responsibilities and authorities.

Continuing work by the Governance Committee to streamline the Codification will help make governance understandable to all these groups. In fact, one recognized objective of “good governance” is: “…holding the balance between economic [ACBL Budget] and social goals [Customer Satisfaction] and between individual [players in different districts] and communal goals [what is best for most/on average]..." This objective is a primary consideration in our ongoing work.

Motion (Item 222-BR-01) removes the six-year rotational requirement for NABC site locations from the Codification Part 2 - Bridge Operations, Chapter VIII - North American Bridge Championships, Section 2 and Appendix 8 - A North American Bridge Championships, D. Rotation and Frequency.

The six-year rotational requirement included Orlando, San Francisco, Toronto, Washington, DC, Reno and Las Vegas, and cities in the state of Texas. 

These locations will still be evaluated for future NABCs. Removing the rotational requirement will however, provide greater flexibility to select sites which may lead to better fiscal decisions. Motion carried: 20-0-0. 

Barbara Heller was certified as having been duly elected to the Board of Directors of the American Contract Bridge League to complete the remaining term for Region 6 Director, July 11, 2022 through December 31, 2024.

Online Ethical Oversight Committee 

Cheri Bjerkan, Jordan Chodorow, Ira Chorush, Richard Popper and Rick Rowland were each appointed for a three-year term to the Online Ethical Oversight Committee from the end of the summer 2022 NABC through the end of the summer 2025 NABC.