PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE  TO 
THE MEMBERSHIP
By Mack Smith
December 2002

I want to thank everyone for the opportunity to serve as your president.  Donna is a hard act to follow, so I will appreciate all the help I can get!  I realize just how bad state finances are across the country, but I hope to see as many of you as possible in New Orleans, Louisiana for CLEAR's Mid-Year Meeting, January 9-11, 2003.  The Le Pavillon Hotel is a great site with an excellent location.  For those of you unfamiliar with the mid-year meeting, CLEAR committees get together to work on programs for the 2003 convention-which will be held in Toronto Canada on September 11-13.  The Mid-Year Meeting truly is a working meeting, but it gives you a chance to help with the planning of the Annual Meeting.  The Program Committee is already hard at work via conference calls.  The theme for the 2003 Conference will be:  "Pushing the Boundaries of Regulation," and it is time for you to submit program proposals for the committee's consideration at the upcoming mid-year meeting.  All proposals should be received by the CLEAR office by no later than December 23, 2002, and you can locate a program submission form on the CLEAR web site.  Members of the full program committee will meet for most of the day on Thursday, January 9, 2003 in New Orleans.  The many different CLEAR committees will meet on Friday, January 10th followed by a board meeting (open to all) from 9:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, January 11th.  A complete agenda for the Mid-Year Meeting can also be found online.   Please feel free to call Sharon Burke at the CLEAR office: (859)269-1601 if you have any questions or if we can be of any assistance.  If you have not yet requested the opportunity to serve on a CLEAR committee, it's never too late to do so.  Current committee rosters are also available for viewing on the web site.  

For those of you who are members of CLEAR's Associated Regulatory Investigators (ARI), you should have received an e-mail regarding renewal of membership.  ARI membership expires on December 31, so annual dues of $25 are due by that time.  Annual dues are very reasonable ($25) and can even be paid via PayPal on line if you desire.  If you have not yet checked out ARI, I suggest you do so through the CLEAR web site or by going directly to the ARI home page.  During the week of January 14, 2003, those members who have renewed their memberships will receive new passwords so they can continue to enjoy ARI.  Further questions can be directed to Janet Horne at the CLEAR office:  (859) 269-1401.

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