Food Export USA - Northeast

“The executive committee shall consist of the president who shall serve as chairman, the vice president, the secretary-treasurer and one additional member of the board of trustees as selected by the board of trustees. The executive committee shall act for and on behalf of the board in the interim of annual or special meetings, and shall carry out such other duties as designated by the board. The executive committee may not amend, repeal, or replace the governing documents.”

“The organization has an agreement with food export association of the midwest usa, an unrelated irc sec 501(c)(5) organization, to provide shared services, including but not limited to : supervising exempt operatation, planning/executing budgets and finanical operations, as well as hiring, terminating, and supervising personnel. Food export of the midwest usa was paid $510,000 for management services. Brendan wilson served as executive director / ceo of food export usa northeast as part of the management services agreement with food export association of the midwst usa.”

“The bylaws were updated as of november 2024. The changes to the bylaws include clarifying roles of members vs. Board, this change differentiates the responsibilities and meeting structure between the general membership and the board of directors. Previous bylaws stated that regular membership of the organization shall be limited to the state departments of agriculture and initial regular membership was limited to the ten northeastern states of maine, new hampshire, vermont, new york, massachusetts, rhode island, connecticut, new jersey, pennsylvania and delaware. The new bylaws state that regular membership of the organization is limited to the state departments of agriculture of the ten northeastern states (listed above)and that regular members shall be permitted to hold office and serve on all committees of the organization. The new bylaws highlight meetings of the members, not mentioned in the previous bylaws. The 2024 bylaws state that regular meetings of the members of the organization shall be held at least once per year. Special meetings of the regular members may be called either by the president, majority of the board, or not less than one-third of the regular members. Additionally, changes were made to board and officer vacancies to ensure seamless transitions during routine changes in board or officer positions. The new bylaws state that current board members who are not the heads of the department of agriculture from that state may continue to serve on the board until such time as their seat may be transferred to the head of that state's department of agriculture. The previous bylaws stated that the board of directors shall be comprised of the heads of the participating state departments of agriculture. Finally, changes were made to the executive directors' role. The executive director has been added as a nonvoting, ex officio board member to align with common practice. In the previous bylaws, the executive director was not considered a nonvoting, ex officio board member.”

“There shall be one voting class of members: regular members. Regular membership shall be limited to state departments of agriculture. The initial members were limited to the ten northeastern states: maine, new hampshire, vermont, new york, massachusetts, rhode island, connecticut, new jersey, pennsylvania and delaware. Other entities desiring regular membership must apply to the board of directors, approval by two-thirds of the directors is required to become a regular member.”

“The board shall be comprised of the heads of the participating state departments of agriculture.”

“The preparation and review process of the form 990 begins with a fiscal audit, and is prepared using audited financials. An independent accounting firm is engaged to take information from financial statements, along with other compiled data, and prepare a form 990 and all other supplemental schedules and returns, to comply with government requirements. The draft form 990 is reviewed by organization management and a copy is sent to the board. The documents are then filed and maintained for a period of no less than ten years.”

“The organization's staff is required to review the employee handbook annually, which details the organization's policies for ethical business conduct and conflict of interest. All staff are required to provide written acknowledgement that they have read, understand and will comply with organization policies. Board directors are required to complete an annual questionnaire that addresses conflicts of interest and discloses any potential conflicts. Should a conflict be identified, the board of directors, in consultation with the executive director, will determine a course of action to resolve the conflict (i.e. Recusal).”

“The food export usa - northeast's finanical statements, governing documents, and conflict of interest policy are made available to the public by electronic or mailed communication upon request.”