By Holly Martin, High Plains Publisher Inc.

Ever have a stock tank that had a leak? One that ended up being bigger than you wanted but allowed you to water the cows until you could get it fixed? That’s the AAEA Professional Improvement Fund financial statement at this point. See, I’m a farm girl and financial stuff needs a good farm analogy.

In 2017, PIF investments have brought in nearly $40,000 in investment income and over $16,000 in operating income. During the same period, PIF expenses have totaled $60,000. By comparison, PIF had $54,064.20 in income in 2016, which includes $30,753.57 in investment income, and $100,390.90 in expenses in 2016. Part of the differences in 2016-2017 are changes in bookkeeping systems from G&G to ASG, plus the Cuba mission program which represented a significant investment ($40,000) from PIF.

Traditionally, a good chunk of PIF’s income has come from the profit of the Ag Media Summit, distributed to the foundation through the AAEA board. That number was down significantly to $5,000. In 2014, income from AMS was $35,000 and $25,000 in 2015.

In addition, each member’s contribution on their membership renewal dropped from $15 to $10, making their contributions total $3,900. Overall corporate donations and individual donations are down as well.

Fortunately, PIF has significant investments (a big stock tank) to help us weather a short term drop in investments. Year to date investments are $380,000 and the good news is this: PIF board members have worked on a plan to increase revenue going forward. In the coming weeks, you’ll hear about those plans, as well as where we spend our money and why.