56(84)

ALTERNATE CONFERENCE HOUSING

It is the policy of the Special Libraries Association that units of SLA may not directly or indirectly refer Association members or the general public to non sanctioned hotels or other accommodations for Association annual conferences and other meetings.

The purpose of this policy is to protect the welfare of conference/meeting attendees, to reduce the Association's liability risk for accident or injury to conference/meeting attendees, and to maintain the Association's bargaining position for complimentary and other services available from the

It is the practice and procedure of the Association office or Association units to secure all appropriate housing/hotel accommodations necessary for the annual conference and other SLA sanctioned meetings.

Contractual obligations are entered into by the Association or its units that are directly tied to the number of guest rooms occupied by meeting attendees. These contractual obligations have budgetary implications. Failure to fill an obligated guest room block at a meeting hotel may result in the further expense of having to pay for meeting rooms in an official hotel, and it weakens the Association's bargaining position with that facility on other negotiable conference/meeting-related business.

Fulfilling the contractual obligations increases the Association's or its units' bargaining position with future conference facilities.

Further more, it is the practice of the Association and its units to verify that any facility being used for an Association meeting complies with local and federal laws, i.e., ADA. The Association may also be liable in case of accident or injury to a conference attendee at the non sanctioned hotels if the hotel is listed as such in an Association publication, including publications of Association units.

IV. Responsibility

The Executive Director is responsible for monitoring the compliance with this policy.

Approved: June 1984
Reformatted: October 1997