Brisbane Social Chess

BSC meeting 24/06/2025 version 2.0

Meeting commenced at 19:02
Present (via zoom): Jimmy, Matt, Steve, Rob, John
Apologies: Ben
Business from last meeting:

1. 1. Business cards - Matt advised that he has had 100 business cards created. They are available to members on a needs basis. The cost of this was approximately $50.
   Motion: moved Steve, second Rob: That Matt should be reimbursed for the cost of producing the cards. Unanimously passed.
2. Status of the submission of the Not For Profit report. Matt advised that he had submitted this and the matter is now complete for this year.

Agenda items:

1. Rob: The need for a review of our subscription with meetup.com and consideration of possible lower cost alternatives. Rob submitted a separate email detailing pros and cons; and possible ways forward.

   Initial discussion noted the visibility meetup.com provides to BSC especially for people searching for chess opportunities via the internet. Matt advised that meetup.com has recently significantly increased the cost of subscriptions to $200 US per six months. Until recently chess.com were going to pay for our subscription in return for affiliation however this arrangement has ceased and chess.com are now not retaining any websites. In view of the changed situation the following motion was voted on:

   Motion: That the BSC meetup.com subscription is allowed to expire at the end of the current subscription period on 09/08/2025 and members are contacted in advance of this date to advise of this exit. Moved Rob, seconded Matt. Unanimously passed.

   Matt & John will work on improving our website & exporting member data from meetup.com to provide continued member contact and to manage our on line visibility.

   Steve will contact members via meetup to inform them of the impending change & the reason for this.

2. Matt: Discussions with chess.com

   Matt has been in contact with Judit Sztaray, director of chess club relations with chess.com. While chess.com have ceased support for external websites they have offered BSC a free account on chess.com called "Brisbane Social Chess".

   Motion: That BSC accept and use a chess.com account called Brisbane Social Chess. Moved by Matt, seconded by Rob. Unanimously passed.

   This account will be administered by John.

3. Applications for grants

   Matt advised that he has prepared documentation for grant submissions to:
   The Queensland Country Bank;
   The Brisbane City Council Lord Mayor's Grants;
   The Queensland Gambling Community Benefit Fund.

   It was agreed that all should proceed.

4. Steve: AGM first steps

   Steve suggested that we should start preparation for this year's AGM. First steps could be to choose a date and prepare a Notice of Meeting. Rob noted the need to include a financial report in the Notice so that this can be approved at the AGM. This then requires that annual accounts are completed before the Notice can be submitted. Rob also noted that the Notice must include any resolutions to be considered and could include, for example, committee size. General discussion noted the desirability of including some reporting of BSC committee activity over the last year in the Notice such as some commentary from the President or an indiaction of how many committee meetings and resolutions were had during the year.

   A tentative date for the AGM of Sunday the 31st August 2025 was agreed. Matt will collect the necessary documentation and Rob will prepare the annual financial report when this is done. Steve will draft a Notice of Meeting for committee consideration.

Next meeting: in 1 month

Meeting concluded at 19:33

May 2025 – Committee Meeting

Present: Jimmy, Steve, Rob, Matt
Apologies: Ben

1. Need to either lodge an annual Not For Profit (NFP) self-review return to confirm eligibility for income tax exemption or cancel ABN.
   • Rob advised that this is a statutory requirement.
   • Rob noted that for non-profit organisations the return is fairly easy, an office bearer must lodge and can do so on-line, via mail or by phone. There are a few quirks to the "how to lodge" process.
   • The alternative is to cancel our ABN which could be appropriate as BSC has effectively not engaged in profit making business over the last 12 months.
   • Matt noted that an ABN is required to apply for grants.
   • Matt advised his tax agent is progressing an NFP on behalf of BSC.
   • The committee discussed the pros and cons of continuing the ABN.
   • A vote of the committee unanimously agreed to continue the ABN.
2. Preparation for the Annual General Meeting.
   • Steve suggested that some early preparation for our next AGM would make the process easier.
   • Steve suggested that a list of tasks with identified responsibilities would be useful as would an early forecast of a date.
   • Rob stated that he would prepare accounts again after the end of the financial year.
   • Rob noted that there would need to be a call for nominations to office bearers and suggested that it would be ideal to prepare for actual elections should more than one candidate nominate.
3. Business cards.
   • Matt noted that it is possible to get 250 business cards for about $100.
   • Rob noted the need to decide what goes on the card and that there is no BSC logo or phone number.
   • Matt suggested that contact could be via MeetUp as there are 14 people who can respond.
   • Steve asked if it was appropriate that any of the MeetUp contacts could respond to business enquiries without necessarily knowing the BSC committee view.
   • Matt wondered if we could use email however noted that this then required monitoring of the email account.
   • General discussion considered that business cards were a good idea however some details need to be worked out.
4. General Business.
   • After some issues with payment of membership the status of Ben as a committee member in terms of the BSC constitution was discussed.
   • Matt moved that Ben be re-appointed to the committee, seconded by Steve and unanimously agreed.