ODSA Membership and Government Affairs Pledge
Full pledge terms
1. Who is committing
This pledge is made by the driving school named on the membership application ("the Member") to the Ohio Driving School Association ("ODSA"). The person submitting it confirms they are authorized to bind the company.
2. What the Member pays
Annual dues — $200. Due at enrollment and on each anniversary. The full amount supports ODSA operations and its government affairs program. No portion is remitted to any other organization.
Membership in the American Driver and Traffic Safety Education Association (ADTSEA) is available to ODSA members at a discounted institutional rate. It is optional, purchased separately, and is not part of these dues. If ODSA later enters a dual membership agreement with ADTSEA, dues will change accordingly and members will be notified under Section 6.
Advocacy assessment — $1.00 per certificate. The Member pays $1.00 for each behind-the-wheel driver training certificate issued by the Member during the billing period.
3. How the assessment is calculated
The assessment is calculated from certificate totals published by the Ohio Department of Public Safety, attributed to the enterprise number or numbers the Member lists on the membership application. Members operating under more than one enterprise number must list all of them; the assessment covers the combined total.
ODSA does not ask members to self-report volume. Using the state's published figures means every member can verify that every other member is being assessed on the same basis.
4. Billing
Assessments are invoiced quarterly in arrears, within thirty days of ODSA receiving the applicable Department of Public Safety figures. Invoices are due thirty days from issue.
If the Department's figures for a period are delayed or unavailable, ODSA may invoice an estimate based on the Member's most recent published quarter, and will reconcile the difference — in either direction — on the next invoice after the actual figures are released.
5. Correcting an error
A Member who believes an invoice misstates their certificate count may notify ODSA in writing within thirty days. ODSA will compare the invoice against the published state figures and issue a correction if one is warranted. Enterprise numbers added, closed, or transferred during a period should be reported to ODSA promptly so that billing follows the change.
6. Term
This pledge runs for two years from the date of enrollment. ODSA's government affairs program depends on a monthly retainer that cannot be funded on year-to-year commitments, which is why the term is two years rather than one.
After the initial term, membership and the assessment continue annually unless the Member gives written notice at least thirty days before the anniversary date.
A Member may withdraw during the initial term on ninety days' written notice. Dues and assessments accrued before the withdrawal date remain payable. ODSA may suspend or terminate a membership that remains unpaid more than sixty days past due.
7. What the money is used for
Dues and assessments fund ODSA's operations and its government affairs program, including the retention of a registered legislative agent, advocacy before the Ohio General Assembly and state agencies, and related legal, accounting, and administrative costs.
ODSA will report its budget and actual expenditures to the membership annually.
8. Tax treatment
Amounts paid to ODSA are not charitable contributions. Under Internal Revenue Code §162(e), the portion of dues and assessments attributable to lobbying is not deductible as a business expense. ODSA will notify members annually of the nondeductible percentage. Members should consult their own tax advisor.
9. Who may join
ODSA membership is open to any driving school licensed by the State of Ohio and in good standing that is not operated by, or as a division or program of, a public school district, educational service center, joint vocational school district, career center, community school, or other political subdivision or publicly funded educational entity.
A privately owned licensed school remains eligible when it delivers driver education under contract to a school district or other public entity. Eligibility follows the license holder.
Within that class, membership is open to any school that pays the dues and assessment described here. It is not restricted by size, location, ownership, or any school's position on any issue.
ODSA is an advocacy organization. It does not set, recommend, or discuss prices, instructor compensation, customer allocation, or territories, and no member is asked or expected to coordinate on any of those subjects as a condition of membership or participation.
10. No guaranteed outcome
ODSA advocates for the interests of Ohio driving schools. No legislative or regulatory result is promised, and payment of dues or assessments does not entitle any member to a particular outcome or to direct ODSA's positions.
