yes, sorry:o

All officials in amateur sports work as independent contractors and it is very important to keep it that way.

Yes, I agree. I was just curious since mileage and hotel rooms were mentioned.

In the slow pitch arena in our area the amount of new umpires is low mainly because, I think, the leagues prefer to only pay for one umpire a game. The pay is not bad, but the resposibliity of running the game alone and making calls over the entire field of play is somewhat daunting to new offiicials.

I dont think increasing the pay, alone, would bring an influx of new blood.