North Carolina Interpreter/ Transliterator Licensing Board Meeting
DHHS,  1100 Navaho Dr.
Raleigh, NC      
9:00am  
DATE:  01-28-11

Board Members Present:
Connie Jo Lewis -  Chair  (resigned as chair effective 9:30am 1-28-11)
Valerie McMillan -  Vice-Chair (Presided over meeting from 9:30am-12:30pm; Elected as chair at 1:00pm)
Danette Steelman-Bridges – Secretary
Jane Dolan – Treasurer (Elected as also vice-chair at 1:00pm)
Ashley Benton
Robert Taylor
Jan Withers
Keith Cagle

Board Member Absent:
Wayne Giese
Staff Present:
Jim Wellons – Attorney
Laurie Shaw – Executive Secretary

Interpreters:
Jennifer Johnson
Liz Belk
Lee Williamson
Karen Magoon

Visitors:
Dana Barr
Amanda Colombo
Diane Green

Call to Order:  (5 members present at 9:09am; quorum. 6 members present at 9:30am. 7 members present by 11:00am.)   Connie Jo presided over the meeting until Valerie (vice-chair) arrived to preside. (Connie Jo had already notified the Board via email that her resignation as chair would be effective at the beginning of today’s meeting.)

Conflict of Interest Statement: “Does any member have any known conflict of interest or appearance of conflict with respect to any matters listed on this agenda?”   None  stated.

Welcome/Announcements:
Introduction of visitors
Introduction of Board members and interpreters
Election of Chair – will be held after lunch so all Board members can participate

Previous Meeting Minutes:
Corrections: (Jane Dolan was listed as present and absent.  Correction made:  she was absent.)   Robert made a motion to approve the minutes; seconded by Connie Jo.  The minutes for 11-5-10 and 11-18-10 were approved as corrected.

Action Items:  discussed 

Financial Report:
Jane presented the financial report in written form for the final quarter at the last meeting. No further discussion. 
Proposed budget for Oct 2010 – Sept 2011:   Used actual budget numbers from last year to project a budget for this year.               $112, 221 Current balance.  Paid the attorney and audit bills.  

Laurie’s request:  Current filing cabinets at Central Office are full;   needs 2 additional filing cabinets.  (Jane suggested putting $500 in that line item for the cabinets.)   Board agreed.
Keith: I would suggest that we reimburse at the $0.51 instead of the $0.25 current rate.
Danette:  What other increases in expenses will we have this year ?
Jane:  Possible increase in the Management Concepts costs and also a possible increase in the website costs.
Ashley: How does the public view our financial surplus?   Should we discuss decreasing fees ?
Connie Jo: Until the RFP process is complete, maybe we should hold off on discussing a change in licensure fees since we don’t know how that decision will affect our budget.

Keith (amended by Jim): I move that the Board pay the maximum rate for mileage reimbursement that the State Budget Office allows which will be effective January 2011.
Connie Jo: Second                     MOTION: PASSED	

Rob: I move that the Board adopt the proposed budget for Oct 2010-Sept 2011 with an increase in Furniture & Office Equipment of $0.00 to $500 and increase in Board Member Travel from $775.00 to $1,750.00.
Connie Jo: Second                     MOTION:  PASSED

Licensing Review Committee Report: Danette Steelman-Bridges, Committee Chair 
Only one pending complaint remaining to be resolved.  All other complaints/ investigations have been completed.

Central Office Report:    Laurie Shaw
1.	 It has been very difficult getting the webmaster to do the tasks we ask for.
Rob: Suggested giving the webmaster a task list AND a deadline to complete these tasks.  If he does the work, then pay him.  If not, then we find a new webmaster.
Jim: If we only “pay as we go”, then we don’t owe anything at this point.  Do we have a written contract with him and does the contract provide for termination?   Does the webmaster feel he owns the website?  If so, then we would have to hire someone to create a new website for us.
Keith: We should have a back-up plan if we do need to terminate our agreement with this webmaster.
2.	  Management Concepts Inc. will be relocating to 111 West Main, Garner, NC.  It is close to the current location.  
3.	Audit completed
4.	Annual newsletter: Board agreed for Laurie to send it mid-April.
5.	Per Laurie’s request, Board agreed she could remove the statement on the application: “Seal of notary must be partially on attached photograph.”  (more details on Laurie’s report)
6.	# of 1-yr extensions granted for Prov Lic = 7. One licensee became RID-certified and changed to Full status.
7.	New licenses issued since 11-5-10:  Full=2, Prov=13.    5 applications are on-hold due to being incomplete.

Chair Report:    None
Attorney Report:  Jim Wellons
Rule-making.  Rules Review Commission will be meeting in February.  He will submit the paperwork on “outstanding fines due” for licensees.
Suggestion:  The array of options needs to be broadened regarding the number and types of sanctions available to the Board and the Licensing Review Committee  (e.g. written sanction, verbal sanction, requiring a mentor, getting additional training in a specific area, etc).  Currently, the only sanctions permitted in the Lic law are monetary sanctions and denying/suspending/revoking/refusing a license.  This needs to be added to the suggested amendments to the lic law. Currently, in the law there is no avenue in the lic law to issue a written or verbal warnings. 

RFP Process: Jim will finish writing the RFP by Feb 25, 2011.

Old Business:
1.	Finding a legislative sponsor for Amendments to Licensure Law 
Connie Jo called Martha Alexander’s office on Wed, Jan 26 and sent her an email with a copy of Jan’s email outlining the suggested amendments to the lic law (see attached copy).
2.	Email Protocol and Group Norms – This was distributed by Connie Jo which she got off the RID website.  She suggested that we put this copy of “Email Protocol and Group Norms” in our individual Board handbooks.
3.	Barriers to Licensure
Results (hard copy) of this survey  were distributed to the Board.  Laurie mailed the survey to licensees with lapsed licenses.  Jan Withers presented the results of the survey. 

New Business:  
1.	Question from Rachael Ragin regarding a specific licensee and an issue as an educational interpreter – Connie Jo
The school system where the interpreter works is requiring the interpreter to clock in and out but the interpreter is saying that “licensure rules prevents her from doing that.  Robert’s response as a public school administrator:  Under Fair Labor Standards,  if you work over 40 hours then you should be paid overtime.  Salaried employees do not fall into this category. An hourly employee (like this interpreter) must have a record of the actual number of hours worked so that the school system can accurately reflect the # of hours worked.  This sounds like a personnel issue for the interpreter and school system.

The Board asked:  How does the Licensure Law apply in this situation?

2.	Orientation Training – Keith
Keith presented printed copies of a handout he developed for: “Orientation Materials for a New Board Member”.   Connie Jo suggested that new Board members be paired with a current Board member as “buddy” to assist with orientation to the Board. Jim: other Boards offer new Board members an orientation session so this idea would probably benefit this Board as well. Keith: Include the state ethics training during the orientation session.

3.	Template draft for By-Laws (tabled until next meeting)

4.	Appoint Ad Hoc Committee for Orientation Training.
Ashley suggested having 2 or 3 people on the committee to develop the “meat” of the orientation outline presented by Keith. 
Laurie: 3 people have terms expiring in June 2011.  Rob has completed 2 full terms and the statutes only allow for 2 terms of Board members. Danette and Valerie can decide (per licensure law) to serve 1 additional term.
Jim:  The ethics training is required to be a face-to-face session and  the new member can  also go through the orientation with their Board “buddy” or “mentor”.
Valerie: An orientation session is needed regardless if it is only provided for 1 person or several during the session.  
Valerie and Danette:  We would have benefitted from an orientation session when we came on the Board.
Jim:  New Board members definitely need to meet Laurie since she is such a valuable asset to the Board.
Jim: Any Board member who wants to serve a 2nd term should contact the appointing agency.

AD HOC Orientation Committee appointed by Valerie: Keith and Laurie .   This committee will make sure that all the necessary information is included in the Board member’s handbook.

5.	NBDA 2011 Conference in Charlotte, NC – Valerie
There will be several out-of-state interpreters at this conference who will be working at this conference. Laurie can be informed (dates they will be here & copies of their certification) so that permission may be granted for them to interpret in NC for the conference.  Valerie is Interpreter Coordinator for the conference and will send all that information to Laurie on behalf of these interpreters. {per 90D-4(b)(6) and 21 NCAC 25.0210(a-c)}

6.	Video Remote Interpreting 
Jim: If the interpreter is physically in the state of NC, then the GS90-D applies to that interpreter.  If the consumer of the interpreting service is physically in the state of NC, but the interpreter providing the service is physically outside the state of NC, then GS 90-D does not apply to the interpreter.

7.	By-laws Draft -  Jan (tabled until next meeting)

8.	Keith announced that his re-appointment letter has been received and a copy given to L.Shaw for his file.

9.	Keith and Jim discussed Keith’s training session set for April 8 at 9:00am.  The Board meeting will be from 10am -2:00pm on April 8th.

10.	Discussion of the Board’s video teleconference call on 11-18-10.  Valerie wanted to know if that type of meeting was successful.  Most agreed it was a good way to meet if a face-to-face meeting was not possible.

11.	ELECTION
Connie Jo:  Read a prepared statement to the Board stating that she has personal reasons for resigning as chair and that she not been as effective as chair as she intended ;  has often been the oppositional voice on the Board.
Board thanked  Connie Jo for her leadership of  the Board.

Keith nominated Valerie for the chair position.   Jan nominated Danette for the chair position.  
Valerie elected by secret ballot as the new chair of the Board.
Jane and Jan were nominated to the position of vice-chair.  Vote taken by secret ballot and Jane elected as vice-chair.  She will now serve as vice-chair/treasurer.

12.	As chair, Valerie appointed Robert to serve as a member of the Licensing Review Committee.  Jim discussed the reasons for the rationale for NOT having the chair serve on the LRC; if a decision of the LRC is appealed by a licensee, then the appeal is heard by the full Board.  Thus, the Board chair will need to preside over this appeal process. (It would be a conflict of interest if the Board chair also served on the LRC committee.)

13.	Jan briefly discussed the rationale for establishing a set of by-laws for a Board such as ours.  (More details at the next meeting.)
  
Adjourned:
 1:58 pm

Meetings for 2011:   (at DHHS @ 9:00am - 2:00pm)
April 8  (10:00am ;   Jim/Keith will meet at 9:00am for Ethics training.)
Aug 5
Nov 4