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[AIS Membership Secretary <aismemsec@earthlink.net>]

Let me make sure I have this straight, the "On Line Join" option is designed, to facilitate an increase in memberships (and renewals) to AIS and as a courtesy to the Sections, facilitate their memberships.
 
If this is the case then let's just KIS-keep it simple!  We are making this much more complicated than it needs to be. 
 
AIS has never charged extra for credit card processing and we know that costs too.  The only "policy" I had to work from on credit card acceptance came from Anner Whitehead's very thorough MemSec Procedure Manual.  I checked with all Board members a couple of years ago that the wording of this policy was still acceptable and have sent the information (which was in a  previous e-mail titled:)

"THE AMERICAN IRIS SOCIETY CURRENT AIS MEMBERSHIP OFFICE POLICY CONCERNING ACCEPTING DUES FOR SECTIONS AND COOPERATING SOCIETIES MARCH, 2002b 

to all the Sections for their publications and they regularly publish that statement.

In the last 12 month period I have processed 44 Section and 2 Storefront credit card charges that given the 2.9% + .30 would have equaled $47.53. Other than the ASI all sections have been involved, some more, some less. For arguments sake letbs say the bJoin Buttonb tripled credit card membership payments to the Sections were still talking under $150.00/yr., hardly the stuff of budget busting proportions.

1)	AIS raised dues recently to more accurately reflect the cost of doing business which included Bulletin and renewal mailing and processing.

2)	In the business world, even Commercial Iris Firms, no one charges extra for payments received by CC as opposed to Check or cash.

3)	If we are not charging our consumer for this service, neither should we be charging the Sections or Cooperating Societies.  Or, if the Board thinks it is necessary, they might consider charging the Sections an Annual Processing fee for the CC charges and MemSecbs time to keep records and monthly processing to the Sections (I do not recommend this but state it as an option.)

4)	 I have no real objection (at this time) to an added amount of work for the MemSec office but we really need to keep it simple for the consumer.

Lastly, and I donbt know this for certain but I believe the credit card companies have a line of boilerplate in their merchant contracts that prohibit sellers from charging extra for credit card purchases. Does this apply to PayPal also or are they a third party/facilitator in all of this and not bound by usury laws?

Tom Gormley


Tom Gormley
AIS Membership Secretary
P. O. Box 28
Cedar Hill, MO 63016-0028
636-274-6149

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