[LTER-All-lter] Registration for the ASM

[Robert Waide]

Dear Colleagues

I was reminded recently that there was some confusion regarding 
reimbursement for the registration fee at the last ASM, and I thought I 
should write and clarify the policy as well as the reasons for it.The 
bulk of the registration fee is used to pay for beverages (including 
alcohol) and food for the mixers.Because alcohol is involved, NSF 
regulations forbid us from reimbursing this expense from grant funds, 
which is the only source of support that the LNO has.Those of you who 
don’t drink alcohol may rightfully wonder why you are being asked to 
support other people’s consumption. Please remember that in our group 
there are also people who don’t consume coffee, soft drinks, or cookies, 
but who are asked to pay the registration fee anyway.

We are also constrained by policies of the YMCA of the Rockies, which 
don’t permit us to utilize a cash bar and restrict consumption of 
alcohol to the venue of the mixers.We respect the policies of the YMCA, 
but they result in us having to purchase beverages and food ahead of 
time, which means we need to collect a registration fee from 
participants.We do our best to keep that fee low.

Please note that if the cost of registration is a burden for you, your 
site may be willing to reimburse you from funds that are not constrained 
by NSF regulations.If that is your situation, please consult with your 
site to see if that is a possibility.

Please let me know if you have any comments or questions.

Regards,

Bob

-- 
Robert B. Waide
Executive Director
Long Term Ecological Research Network Office
MSC03 2020
1 University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM 87131-0001

Phone: 505/277-2649
Fax: 505/277-2541
ResearcherID: 	F-5304-2010

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