Nat 1 Publishing Board of Directors Meeting
Present: Brandan Roberts, Michaela Butler, Dahlia Thomas, Jennifer Weigel, Kathleen Locke, Cal Tripp
Absent: Jason Willard (excused)
Others Present: n/a
Old Business: As discussed in the final NAT 1, LLC board meeting, Roberts has notified all the authors affected by the schedule and publication changes about how their works were affected and given the option to extend their contracts or cancel them without penalty. No discussion.
New Business: Nat 1 Publishing has been approved by the State of Maine as a nonprofit, officially nullifying the NAT 1, LLC bylaws and replacing them with the Nat 1 Publishing nonprofit bylaws.
Roberts is finalizing the author contracts to better correspond with the language of our bylaws. No discussion.
Motion by Roberts: The organization’s next step should be to apply to the federal government to be a 501(c)(3) organization. Roberts recommends we do this the week of June 2-8, as it can take several months to be approved. The cost for filing a 1023-EZ with the IRS is $275, which can be paid from Nat 1 Publishing’s first-quarter earnings. Passed without dissent.
Motion by Roberts: Asked the Board to add the following provision into the bylaws to help facilitate our acceptance as a 501(c)(3) and clarify our purpose:
Charity. When possible, to further the purpose outlined in Article 2(a), Nat 1 Publishing will donate excess funds acquired above the annual expenses and other monetary obligations to programs and organizations that aim to give voice and/or support to underrepresented authors. Such donations shall only be made if doing so will not harm the company’s growth or integrity.
The provision would be added as Article 2(b), which will change the current 2(b) to 2(c). Because the purpose or organization of the company does not change, it will not require the board to sign the bylaws and send the revision to the State of Maine. If voted in favor (requires a unanimous vote from the voting board members), the document will be immediately updated and uploaded to the website. The revised document would also be used for the 1023-EZ. Passed without dissent.
Meeting Adjourned: The next Board meeting is scheduled for the week of August 18-24.
Minutes Submitted by Brandan Roberts, 6/5/2024.