Some more Umpire info from the Softball Ontario point of view

Umpires Task Force meets with Board of Directors

NORTH YORK, ONTARIO - On Sunday December 17, 2006, Softball Ontario’s Board of Directors met with the Umpires Task Force to discuss their report regarding the Fast Pitch Umpires Program. The Task Force Report included strong recommendations to improve the program as a whole and the Umpires relationship with the Softball community.

The Umpires Task Force recommended the following, which was approved by the Softball Ontario Board of Directors:
· All positions, including the Fast Pitch Provincial Umpire in Chief(FP PUIC), Fast Pitch Umpires Committee (FPUC), and Zone Umpires in Chiefs(ZUIC) will be filled through the application process. The deadline for applications will be extended, and all umpires will be notified as soon as the extended deadline is set.
· The selection of a Provincial Umpires in Chief will continue to follow the current procedure; however, a representative of the Zone Umpire in Chiefs will be added to the selection committee.
· The Fast Pitch Umpires Committee will appoint a Financial Administrator chosen from the membership at large to oversee all financial aspects of the Fast Pitch Umpires Program. The Financial Administrator will sit on the Finance Committee with full voting privileges, and will report to the Fast Pitch Umpire in Chief as well as the Fast Pitch Umpires Committee.
· Canadian Championship Appointments will continue as per current policy; however, these policies are to be reviewed, revised and clarified, if applicable, before the 2007 appointments are forwarded to and approved by Softball Ontario’s Board of Directors as per Softball Canada directives.
· Discipline of Umpire personnel will remain the same until Sport and Law completes its review of Softball Ontario’s Discipline Policies.
· The Fast Pitch Provincial Umpire in Chief, in consultation with the Fast Pitch Umpires Program Financial Administrator, will prepare a draft Letter of Understanding and proposed fee structure to Softball Ontario’s Member Association Treasurers. The letter and fee structure will be discussed and negotiated at the appropriate Finance Committee Meeting.
· The present appointment of the Fast Pitch ProvincialUmpire-in-Chief and Slo-Pitch Provincial Umpire-in-Chief to the Board as ex-officio members with no voting power be changed to ex-officio members with all voting powers and privileges.
· Discipline by Member Associations will be decided upon within two weeks of receipt of an incident report, if possible. Softball Ontario has hired Sport and Law to recommend changes to Softball Ontario and Member Association Discipline Policies.
· The Fast Pitch Umpires Financial Administrator, along with the Fast Pitch Umpire in Chief and the Fast Pitch Umpires Committee, will review the Umpires registration fees for 2007.

All of the above-mentioned recommendations were approved by Softball Ontario’s Board of Directors pending discussion with Sport and Law, who is currently reviewing Softball Ontario’s Risk Management policies and by-laws for ratification at the Softball Ontario Annual General Meeting.

The Task Force did not recommend or support the formation of a separate Umpires’ Association, including the scheduling of an Annual General Meeting, the Development of a Constitution and By-Laws, and the election of Board and Committee Members. The Softball Ontario Board agreed with the Task Force that they do not support a separate Association, but acknowledged that they could not stop anyone from forming their own organization.

The Umpires Task Force was created in mid-October to improve relations between the Fast Pitch Umpires and Softball Ontario. Additional information regarding the Umpires Task Force and the Umpires Program in general can be found online at www.softballontario.ca.

Any questions regarding Softball Ontario’s FastPitch Umpires Program or the Umpires Task Force should be directed to Umpires Program Coordinator Stephanie Sutton at (416) 426-7150 or ssutton@softballontario.ca.