Changes to the TMA PAC Fiscal Year
10/5/2023
In 2021, TMA changed the name of its political action committee from the well-established IMPACT to TMA PAC to alleviate confusion among lawmakers and increase awareness among TMA members. The outcome was transformational. PAC donations grew by 48% in its first year and legislators began to associate TMA’s political contributions with the organization as intended.
Yet, one remnant of IMPACT that has prevailed through the transition and continues to consternate members is the fiscal year. For many years, the PAC fiscal year has run from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30 to correspond with dues billing. The justification for this was that members could easily donate to the PAC upon renewing their TMA membership in a simple, one-step process. But as more and more TMA members renew through their medical group or hospital, fewer dues bills are collected on an individual basis, making the PAC fiscal year functionally obsolete.
That is why the TMA PAC Committee voted to change the PAC fiscal year to a calendar year beginning in 2024. This will correspond with TMA’s fiscal year of Jan. 1 to Dec. 31 so that both timelines run concurrently. In effect, this means that all donations received from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31 of this year will be counted toward an extended 2022-2023 fiscal year.
In addition to resolving confusion among TMA members about their current status as a TMA PAC member, changing the fiscal year to a calendar year will yield other benefits, including optimizing financial reporting during election years and aligning with seasonal fluctuations of physician net income. The hope is that this change will allow for increased participation in TMA PAC while continuing to strengthen TMA’s political influence with elected officials.
To learn more about the value of TMA PAC, visit tnmed.org/tmapac or make a donation at tnmed.org/donate.