Read the Official Tax Proposal – It’s Much Worse Than Expected

#SaveNorCalLeagues has obtained a copy of the official proposal of the Facility Use Fee. And it turns out the intentions of those nine Board members are so much worse than any of us would have dared to imagine. In fact, the proposal is so outrageous, you will have to excuse the sarcasm and snarkiness in some of the bullets below.
A verbatim copy of the proposal, including the names of all presenters, is copied below so you can read it for yourself.

What’s especially telling is that the Board’s letter to players in response to our movement was convoluted and without providing any specifics, yet the proposal itself thought of every possible scenario that could minimize the money flowing into the pockets of those private clubs. It shows you how little these nine Board members care about us players or their fiduciary duty to USTA NorCal, and how much they care about their own wallets. 

Here are the most egregious excerpts from the proposal along with #SaveNorCalLeagues’ remarks:

• “Contractors that do not own the Tennis courts will not be allowed to share in the revenue.” #SaveNorCalLeagues’ interpretation: This potentially excludes virtually all public facilities, including those operated by Lifetime such as Walnut Creek, Sunnyvale or Pleasanton.
• “Each school will have to have its own Member Org listing if the particular school wants to share in the revenue program.” Again, another exclusion and discrimination against public facilities - our schools! - to make sure that most of the money flows into private club pockets.
• “This fee will begin to be charged all players beginning with the Adult League season of 2020.” The Board was planning to implement this tax just in time for the largest season of the year that, again, would generate the most money for their clubs. Why the change? Probably because the Board simply couldn’t figure out how to implement or collect or calculate or distribute or articulate or justify the fee.
• “Business can’t survive by delivery of goods and services below cost.” Bingo! (There must be some economics PhDs on the Board…) That’s why you do a business analysis and increase the membership costs for your own members to generate more revenue.
• “[This fee would] compensate [organizations] for the years of donated facilities.” The Board believes that they have donated their courts to us players for the past 30 years. Does that make us League players a charity?
• “The revenue program” The Board says it throughout the entire proposal: They want to abuse us League players to generate “revenue” for their own private clubs.
• “Staff Comments:        ” None.
• “Presenters: Jason Scalese, Kevin Craig, Jim Swansinger, Anoosh Davoudzadeh, ” Well, we’re in for even more fun: Jason Scalese is the new president-elect of the Board and will replace Kevin Pope come 2021. Kevin Craig is the new Executive Director of USTA NorCal, appointed by Kevin Pope and replacing Steve Leube, who was a strong opponent of the tax and who, maybe for that reason, was secretly removed by the Board last fall in a hush-hush operation. Jim Swansinger and Anoosh Davoudzadeh were appointed to the Adult League Committee by Kevin Pope.
• “It’s time that Norcal understand this fact and make sure players now absorb the cost of their own participation.” Dear Board: It’s time that Board members understand the fact that this is the most discriminatory and fraudulent proposal in the history of USTA NorCal and make sure that those Board members now absorb the full responsibilities of their own actions.

If you were on the cusp of deciding whether or not to #BoycottLeagues now or wait until the next season, please read the proposal and think again. We have to act now! We cannot wait until April!

We have to continue to stand up together as a team right now to #SaveNorCalLeagues from this greedy group of private clubs! We have to fight together and make our voices heard! So: 

1. NEW: Let’s take #SaveNorCalLeagues to the next level. Follow @SaveNCalLeagues on Twitter and help us get a following so we can get the attention of those in power, influencers and the media.
2. #BoycottLeagues: Pull your Adult 18 & Over team out of the season. Yes, a grievance could be filed, but what’s the absolute worst that could happen? Possibly a short suspension, but you won't’ be playing anyway, right?
3. Email the Board members directly and demand an immediate revocation of this tax! Here is an email template you may use and instructions on how to get the board member’s email addresses. Let’s fill up their inboxes!
4. Sign this online petition! We’re almost at 5,000 but every signature counts, so please keep sharing this link with your network.

#BoycottLeagues to #SaveNorCalLeagues

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Here is the proposal:

Month Year: December 2019

Title: USTA Proposal for Facility Use Fee

Presenter(s): Jason Scalese, Spencer Travalino, Bryn Powell, Kevin Craig, Jim Swansinger, Anoosh Davoudzadeh, Sandy Tompkins, Joshua M. Conlin, Keith Wheeler

Statement of Action Item:
There will be a $25 per player Facility Use Fee to play in any USTA NorCal League for Adults. This fee is in addition to the current USTA NorCal league fee. This fee will begin to be charged all [sic] players beginning with the Adult League season of 2020 and for all subsequent leagues. 

Player fees would be collected by NorCal and then distributed back to the Member Orgs in proportion to the number of home matches they host. Example: A Member Org that hosts 5 home matches would receive more revenue than a Member Org that hosts 4 home matches on a proportional basis. 

Fees will be distributed back to only ‘Member Organizations’ as defined by the USTA NorCal By-Laws. A Facility that is not a Member Org will not share in the revenue program. Revenue collected from players at a facility that is not a Member Org will be shared with the facilities that are Member Orgs. All revenue collected for a given league will be distributed back to the Member Orgs that participated in that league on a proportional basis. 

Contractors that do not own the Tennis courts will not be allowed to share in the revenue. A Facility must own the tennis courts as described in the USTA NorCal By-laws and be a Member Org to participate in the Facility Use Fee revenue program. 

Member Orgs such as a particular school will need to have each school named as Member Org to participate in the program. A school district may not include all schools under one Member Org classification to cover all schools in the district. Each school will have to have its own Member Org listing if the particular school wants to share in the revenue program.

Rationale for Action: 

To offset costs and compensate Member Orgs for hosting USTA League matches. For players not to pay the cost of their participation will only lead long term destruction of the League program because Member Orgs will not want to participate. That will ultimately lead to a drop in participation. Business can’t survive by delivery of goods and services below cost. Currently the USTA NorCal makes 100% of the profit on a league at the expense of the Member Org facilities. Member Orgs were more than willing to participate in this program when it started about 30 years ago with the idea that tennis would grow. If there was growth, it could lead to an increase in the financial wellbeing of the Orgs and compensate for the years of donated facilities. Unfortunately, that did not occur, and Member Orgs can’t continue providing facilities and services at no cost. Compared to costs for other programs such as tournaments, even with this increase in the League fee this program is still at a much lower cost per match.
Member Orgs have participated and supported the USTA Norcal for all these years and clearly growth in tennis did not occur, so it’s time that Norcal understand this fact and make sure players now absorb the cost of their own participation.

Fiscal Impact:

There will be cost for computer programming and implementation which will be absorbed by the NorCal section. Costs of implementation and programming will be taken from the first-year proceeds of the Facility Use Fee. Mike Friedman will be hired to complete the programming and implementation. 

If the programming is not complete by the end of the first league season when the fee is being collected, the revenue will be held as an accrued expense to be paid to the member Orgs once they programming is complete. 

Staff Comments: