I'm on the board of directors for a NYS not-for-profit health care institution and, while we receive a per meeting fee, I'm told the strict standard is that none is allowed. However, state auditors allow it in recognition of the challenge in getting effective public oversight participation. (Note that this fee would not pay for an overnight stay in a ICANN class hotel. And I'm certain rules vary by state. )
I looked up the rules for California non-profits the last time this came up. Paying directors is specifically legal, subject to overall rules on reasonability. Regards, John Levine, johnl@iecc.com, Primary Perpetrator of "The Internet for Dummies", Please consider the environment before reading this e-mail. http://jl.ly PS: For how well the NY rules are enforced, see the front page of today's NY Times, about two brothers who paid themselves $1M/yr each running a non-profit for the developmentally disabled.