PRSA, recovering from years of recession and helped by a $30 dues hike (13.3%) to $255, posted revenues of $11,083,420 for 2012, up 4% over 2011 and close to the $11,426,867 that it recorded in 2006.

Dues rose 9.9% to $5,133,776. Expenses were $10,688,213 for an operating profit of $395,207. Profit in the previous year was $11,330.

fasbNet assets rose to $4,153,951 from $3,524,847. The Society's unorthodox bookkeeping provides only $301,710 for deferred dues income. Usual accounting practice, although not mandatory, is for associations to book dues month-by-month as they are earned. That is the practice followed by medical, legal and CPA associations. Net assets would only be about $1.6M if that practice were followed.

[Section 958-605-25-1 of the Financial Accounting Standards Board
says that dues of an association are to be booked over the period covered by the dues, which is one year in the case of the Society. FASB does not enforce any of its rules, leaving this to CPA firms. Current CPA of the Society is PKF O’Connor Davies, a division of O’Connor Davies, New York. Up until about ten years ago, the Society had as outside CPAs Ernst & Young and Deloitte & Touche, two of the "Big Four." Booking dues as cash is "acceptable," the Society has claimed, although it advocates "best practices" elsewhere.]

Helping the Society's cash position is that it did not pay the first year's rent at 33 Maiden Lane in 2004. That is kept on the books as a "deferred rent" liability of $507,837. CPAs call that an unusual practice.

Seminar/webinar income plummeted 31% to $576,568, a decline of $262,741. Free webinars worth up to $2,000 were promised to members in return for accepting the dues hike. There were fears that loss of members and loss of webinar income might make the dues hike a wash. But a net gain of $200K appears to have been made.

The Society's website refers to membership as being "21,000." It was 20,266 in 2000. Members are dropped if their dues are not paid within 30 days of expiration.

No leadership statements accompany the financial report that was posted on the website May 20.

Accreditation program income declined 13% to $161,933. Costs were about the same at $149,319 for 2012 and $146,973 for 2011.

Seminar expenses declined to $423,447 from $463,080.

Society has $2.4M in Stocks, Bonds

FPRA
L-R: Jeff Nall, president, Florida PR Assn.; Jami Ray, president, Northwest Florida Coast Chapter, and Mickey Nall, chair, PR Society of America. Nall spoke to 50 members of the group yesterday, advocating the use of social media in all PR activities. Jeff and Mickey Nall are not related.
Photo:Kay Phelan
The Society had common stocks worth $1,389,723 as of Dec. 31, 2012 and corporate bonds and preferred stock of $1,012,160 as of that date.

The fair value of the investments was $283,854 more than their cost as of Dec. 31.

Investments included consumer industry stocks worth $246,106; hedge investments, $109,284; power & energy industry, $23,299; information tech, $128,857; healthcare, $65,244; financial industry, $36,530; international, $60,620; U.S. mutual funds, $339,901, and international mutual funds, $195,304.

Total investments, including U.S. government bonds and certificates of deposits, were $3,900,883.

The Society collects revenues for the PRSA Foundation with which it has "interrelated directors" and with which it shares "common facilities." It charged the Foundation $28,750 for management fees in 2012 and $30,000 in 2011. As of Dec. 31, 2012, $110,714 was due to the Foundation. In the previous year, $12,177 was due to the Foundation.

Salaries/Fringes Dip 2.1% to $5.3M

Salaries and fringes for the Society declined 2.1% to $5,305,447.

Pay packages of the seven highest paid staffers are not in the audit but are in IRS Form 990 that the Society in recent years has withheld until November and after the Assembly. With the audit having been completed, CPAs say there is no excuse for not filing the 990 whose first deadline was May 15.

The Society refuses requests to put its IRS Form 990 on its website, instead saying it is only available to those who come to h.q. or who send in a written request for it.

The PRSA Foundation this week posted its audit and 990 on its website.

Media relations costs rose to $619,552 from $593,134.

Ethics spending rose to $5,290 from $1,406.