"My drawings have been described as pre-intentionalist, meaning they were finished before the ideas for them had occurred to me. I shall not argue the point." ~ James Thurber
Fairs Year-round Information	F.Y.I. Volume 8, Issue 11 June 5,1998

IN FOCUS

Sign-Up for CFSA’s Fair Time Inspection Program, Provided at No Extra Charge to All Member Fairs

It’s that time again — fair time. It’s also time, says CFSA’s Safety Administrator Tom Allen, for the Safety Unit’s Fair Time Inspection offered to all CFSA’s members at no additional charge. Before 1995, CFSA provided its members with a facility safety program and a separate inspection program for portable rides.

In 1995, CFSA launched the Fair Time Inspection as pilot program combining ride inspections with many of the other safety and liability issues fairgrounds face as they become a place where hundreds, even thousands of people, plus animals and equipment interact. This program, now on permanent status, recognizes that fair time demands on facility management don’t always allow key fair staff to keep up with the myriad of changes and potential hazards that carnivals, campers, vendors, contractors, exhibitors, volunteers, and temporary staff present. Potential safety issues are never intentionally overlooked, fair time is just plain hectic.

The facility safety portion of the program reviews and assists fairs with their in-house (OSHA) safety programs, along with monitoring the condition and maintenance of each fairgrounds. Because ride safety is one of the many important liability and public relations issues fairs face today, the mobile ride inspection portion provides a detailed mechanical inspection of each ride and attraction.

Under the Fair Time Inspection program, one of CFSA’s safety specialists becomes an on-site extension of your fair staff. He’ll report directly to fair management as often as requested, and will provide a daily list of all safety concerns and issues found.

Here’s a sampling of the many areas CFSA’s safety specialists can assist you:

• Prefair safety orientation for temporary and volunteer staff
• Fair liaison with regulatory agencies
• Fire extinguisher training
• Fork lift certification of temporary staff
• Carnival/midway setup and operational inspection
• Preopening, prefire-marshal facility survey
• Review of concessionaire setup and connections
• Review of concert electrical, staging and rigging of sound and light gear
• Motorized racing and exhibition safety
• Parking lot safety and security, on- and off-site
• Emergency plan review
• In addition, CFSA’s safety specialists are American Red Cross certified in Community CPR, first aid and safety

Questions? Want to set up an inspection? Call Tom Allen at 916/263-6186.

On Tuesday, June 2, CFSA held a regular meeting of its board of directors. Among the topics discussed and decisions made were:

• Resolutions approving the 1998 general liability and workers’ compensation rates:
  • The total general liability fees for 1998 will be assessed at $1,808,208, using the same fair classification method as the previous five years, and reserving for losses at the expected probability level. While total fees collected will be the same reduced amount as last year, individual fairs will notice an increase or decrease in their fees due to the modification ratio based on individual and class loss histories
  • The workers’ compensation rate for 1998 will continue at the reduced rate of 5.7 percent of payroll and volunteer wages, reserving for losses at the expected probability level. If your fee fluctuates from what you paid last year, it’s due to a difference in wages you reported, and/or a change in your modification rate which is based on your fair’s individual loss history incurred for the five year period of January 1, 1992 to December 31, 1996.

While CFSA’s board was able to continue rates at the same reduced level as last year, a further discount could not be awarded due to the number of claims filed in 1997.

•  CFSA and the Division of Fairs and Expositions have agreed that CFSA will continue to provide contracting services (except for contract employees) to California’s DAAs through December 31, 1998. During this time, the two agencies will formulate a permanent solution that will allow DAAs to contract with JPAs beyond the December 31 extension.
• The results are in for CFSA’s random workers’ compensation audit conducted by the California Department of Industrial Relations. Out of 39 statewide audits, CFSA ranked 4th best for Northern California and 5th best statewide. The average number of penalty citations issued per audit subject was 239 and the average total in penalty assessments per audit was $32,548. CFSA, however, received 136 citations (82 of which were for the same form letter omission), with $10,270 in total penalties assessed.

The purpose of the random audit is to ensure injured workers and their dependents (in the event of a worker’s death) receive the compensation to which they’re entitled, promptly and accurately.

All CFSA board meetings are open to the public. The next meeting is Tuesday, August 4.

Applications are being accepted for the position of Secretary-Manager/Chief Executive Officer of the Redwood Empire Fair and Event Center in Ukiah, California.

Under the direction of the DAA’s board of directors, the CEO plans, organizes, implements and administers the day-to-day development and utilization of the fairgrounds, directs its staff, and performs other work as required. Emphasis is on administration and management, financial accounting, planning, facility enhancement, marketing and public relations. Candidates must have working knowledge of the state contracts system and labor agreements, and be willing to work irregular hours and weekends, and participate in community activities and organizations.

A fair residence is available and the CEO may be required to reside there. Salary: $4,464 - $5,306 per month. For a complete job description and application packet, or if you have any questions, contact:

The application deadline has been extended to June 17, 1998, and all applications must be received at the above address no later than 5:00 p.m. Postmarks and facsimiles will not be accepted.

Good and not-so-good weather greeted this season’s first fairs. The Santa Barbara Fair and Expo reports two days of rain, while the Colorado River Country Fair enjoyed cool evenings and 90 degree days, a welcome change from the 100 degree scorchers of last year. Total paid attendance was up 10 percent at the Colorado River Country Fair, says CEO Brian Dunlap, and their junior livestock auction set an all-time record high, topping the fallen record by $50,000.

Three fairs reported in with their total paid attendances, and while numbers are down, everyone’s optimistic 1998 will be an even better year than 1997:

A new tenant has joined CARF, CCA, CFSA and WFA at the office building they share in Sacramento. Enterprise Networking Systems, Inc. (ENS), is a full-service network integrator, offering a complete range of network infrastructure services. They’re moving into the offices vacated by NationsBank.

Attention Fairs! Share your ideas and accomplishments with your friends and fellow fairs in F.Y.I. The Fair Exchange column is dedicated to articles from and about California’s fairs. Simply give Melissa Thurber a call, a fax, or make life really easy for yourself and add her to your fair’s press release mailing list. (She’ll even write the article for you.) Contact her at: