The suburban chapter spinoff reduced Washington Chapter's membership from 720 to 443 at a stroke, and it has fluctuated around 450 ever since. Many of the most active members went with the new chapters, but new people came to take their place. Overall, the three chapters' membership has grown to about 900, and much of the increment has gone directly into participating members.

Washington was the 16th largest U.S. city in the 1980 census, with 638,000 residents. The metropolitan area was the nation's 7th largest, with 3,060,000 people.1 The first subway lines opened in 1977, and the region was becoming widely envied as being "recession-proof."2

The subway had hardly opened when increasing costs and reluctant riders made public transportation the No.1 issue throughout the area. The district got a new convention center at 9th Street and New York Avenue in January 1983. Marion Barry won a second term as Washington's mayor in 1982.3

. NAA regular membership passed the 85,000 mark in 1982, and total members (including students and retired members) went over 95,000:4 Robert Shultis succeeded Bill Young as NAA Executive Director in 1980, and the Association started a campaign to enhance its professional image and the status of management accountants.

1The population of Prince George's County, Md. (665,000) exceeded Washington's in 1980. Fairfax County, Va. (597,000) and Montgomery County, Md. (579,000) were not far behind. Together with Arlington County, Va. (153,000) and Alexandria, Va. (103,000), they represented over two-thirds of the area's population.

2This section has no summary of national or world events. The history is too recent to assess - even such events as the Iranian Revolution of 1978 (and subsequent doubling of oil prices) and the election of President Ronald Reagan in 1980.

3Washington's "downtown" has gradually been moving to the northwest for a century or so. The location of the Convention Center is one of a number of projects apparently designed to change this trend.

4The dues increase to $50 in 1977 had little effect, but consecutive increases to $60, $65, and $70 in 1980-1982 seem to have inhibited NAA's growth.