In order to get the discussion to a place where we can reach some conclusions, it might be worthwhile to try to take the discussion to a bit higher level.
The IASA model of finances, as presented in the BCP, is this one:
Money comes from a number of places, which can be grouped roughly as:
A - Money from meeting fees B - Money from designated donations C - Money from ISOC funds D - Money left in IASA account at end of previous year
Similarly, the money goes to just a few places
X - Money spent in support of the IETF Y - Money left by the end of the year (positive balance)
By the end of the year, A + B + C + D = X + Y (by the theory of accounts)
At the beginning of the year, we have a budget that estimates each of those - set by the IASA to cover the IETF's needs, approved and committed to by ISOC. At the moment, the assumption is X > A + B, A+B+C = X, Y=0 (we are not budgeting for fund-building in IASA, and we need support from ISOC income not specifically earmarked for the IASA).
This is accounted for using "divisional accounting", which has nothing to do with which bank accounts the cash balance is kept in. It's all books.
We all agree that money coming in as A and B and not spent on X is kept on an IASA account. So we have agreed that IASA can carry a positive balance - we do not require that Y is zero.
Disagreements surfacing as tickets:
- #737: How should donations be designated for IETF (that is, marked as B rather than C)? Currently, only Platinum sponsors' yearly dues may be marked in the "B" category; the BCP mentions the possibility of having other types of donation (smaller sums, non-yearly sums) designated as such.
- #748: At what times of the year is the C money put on the books? Alternatives are:
- At budgeting/beginning of year
- On a regular schedule
- As bills are paid
- At the end of the year
This really only affects two things: The numbers in the monthly report and the possibility of reducing C during the year. Money DOES NOT MOVE between real physical accounts because of this.
- Also #748: How are budget changes during the year handled? Who approves them, and how do changes in X affect changes to C? If X goes up, C goes up. If X goes down, or A and B go up - is C changed (making more money available to ISOC's other activities), or does C stay unchanged (accumulating money that comes in from C in the IASA account)?
- #722: What happens (in particular, what happens to C) if we split?
- #740: When ISOC holds reserves in case of emergency (outside of the group D money above), how is that shown in the reports on the IASA?
- #732: Raising money costs money. Are those costs skimmed off before money arrives from ISOC (reduction in C) and/or charged against designated donations (reducing B), or carried as an extra expense item?
- #721: How do we describe the fact that IASA can request audits, and say what it wants to audit for?
- #745, 749, 750: How much detail should the BCP give on the sync/discussion between IASA budgeting and ISOC budgeting?
So far, it's mainly a summary of what's in the BCP now. So let's see if it's possible to extract some more / clearer information at the principles level.... what follows is my personal thoughts about what these principles are, and how we need the BCP to reflect them.
Reserves
--------
Stepping back a bit, I think there are two kinds of reserves we need to consider:
- The money (let's call this the "backstop") that allow us to operate for a while if there is an unexpected shortfall of income. The reason for having that reserve is prudent contingency planning, and the BCP says that this financial capacity is provided by ISOC, by whatever means that ISOC wishes to provide it.
- The funds that consist of money earmarked for IETF work, but not yet spent (let's call this the "balance"). The reason for the existence of these is a question of fairness and proper accounting, not planning - when money is given to support the IETF, it needs to be clearly shown that it is retained for that purpose only.
The balance may form part of the backstop, but not the other way around - if ISOC provides a reserve out of non-designated money, using the ISOC line of credit or by other means, that money still isn't designated for IETF use in the absence of a crisis.
In the case of a split (should that ever be a reasonable thing to do), it's reasonably clear that the balance stays with the IETF-controlled entity, while what to do about the "backstop" reserve will depend on a number of factors, and certainly we can't describe all of them in this document.
I think that's what the document currently says. But I may have read it too many times.... some changes to make it even clearer suggested later.
Separable income
----------------
It's a relatively consistent message from the IETF community throughout the IASA discussions that "if people want to give money to support the IETF, then they should be able to do so - and see that this happens". There have been no requests for designating the funds more specifically than that.
This is a transparency issue, not a way to increase or decrease overall numbers. We have had the request from the community, and we need to answer it.
The overhead of this single separation should be reasonably low (I'd like to have ISOC estimate a cost in terms of "X dollars for the program and Y dollars per donation"), and the procedures fairly standard.
This needs to remain, IMHO.
We do have an issue with the fact that there are many activities that one could imagine ISOC doing that will be "grey" - not strictly IETF, but strongly linked to the IETF. I think we have to take this as it comes - the existence of "grey" does not remove the need to handle "black" and "white" in a transparent manner.
Where "cost of fundraising" is concerned - I think it's simplest in terms of showing people where the money goes if the cost of fundraising for the IETF is charged to the IASA, and a portion of the cost of fundraising for ISOC in general is charged to the IASA. But the important factor, the one that should get into the BCP, is that the cost of fundraising is reported.
Budgeting process -----------------
I thnk we must allow ourselves to "learn to walk" here - the IASA and the rest of ISOC need to be allowed to work out these procedures together. The absolute requirement should be on the openness of the process - that the IETF community is able to see and understand who makes the decisions, at what time, and who's responsible for approving or changing them.
In that spirit, I think the best way forward on the tickets that deal with this process may be to say less, not more - give the freedom to work this out in a way that works in practice.
I think that this applies also to the question of changes in the allocation of money during the year. I'll just add one point here... if a large chunk of ISOC's unlabelled resources come from people who think that they are giving that in part for supporting the IETF, ISOC may find itself well served by allocating that money to the "committed IETF-designated funds", even though it does not have to. It makes things much easier to explain.
The exception to my "say less" injunction is the requirement for transparency - here, it seems reasonable to state that the transparency is needed, and that if the IAOC suspects that it does not get the right information, it can take steps (like a special audit) to do something about it.
Specific suggestion for text changes ====================================
Reserves -------- Section 2.2 bullet 7, current:
8. The IASA shall establish a target for a reserve fund to cover
normal operating expenses and meeting expenses in accordance with
prudent planning, and ISOC shall work with the IASA to build up
and maintain the reserve.Under the principle of "state principles, not mechanisms", change to:
8. The IASA, in cooperation with ISOC, shall ensure that sufficient
reserves exist to keep the IETF operational in the case of
unexpected events such as income shortfalls.All other details should be in section 5.6. In section 5.6, change:
Rather than having the IASA attempt to build that reserve in its separate accounts, the IASA looks to ISOC to build and provide that operational reserve, through whatever mechanisms ISOC deems appropriate: line of credit, financial reserves, meeting cancellation insurance, and so forth. Such reserves do not appear instantaneously; the goal is to reach this level of reserves within 3 years after the creation of the IASA. Such funds shall be held in reserve for use by IASA for use in the event of IETF meeting cancellation or other unexpected fiscal emergencies. These reserves shall only be spent on IETF support functions.
to:
The IASA expects ISOC to build and provide that operational reserve, through whatever mechanisms ISOC deems appropriate: line of credit, financial reserves, meeting cancellation insurance, and so forth. Long term, financial reserves are preferred; it should be a goal for ISOC to reach this level of reserves within 3 years after the creation of the IASA.
If the IASA account accumulates a surplus, ISOC may count that as part of the reserve.
IASA accounts ------------- In section 7 (Removability), change:
Any accrued funds, any IETF-specific intellectual property rights,
and any IETF-specific data and tools shall also transition to the
new entity.to
Any IASA account balance, any IETF-specific intellectual
property rights, and any IETF-specific data and tools shall also
transition to the new entity. Other terms of removal shall be
negotiated between the non-ISOC members of the IAOC and ISOC.(the last point is an afterthought. It seems strange to have ISOC members negotiating with ISOC in the case of a separation. While I don't expect to have to use that paragraph, many have argued that it's better to get it written properly while we're starting than to wait until we need it.)
This is just the text for addressing the funds stuff - I'll write up a couple of other notes for the other issues, if the general description/method/view finds favour on the IETF list.
Comments?
Harald
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