Minutes August 19, 2001 SCC Meeting.
(The meeting was at the home of Marc Montoni and Dr. Ellissa Tiller)
In attendance:
MV Marianne Volpe, LPVA Secretary
MM Marc Montoni, Chair
SE Scott Elston, Treasurer
CB Chris Barbie, 4th Congressional District member (proxy for Steve Merrill,
4th CD)
DJ Dana Johansen, former Chair
ST Shelley Tamres, Ballot Access Committee Chair
BL Bill Lawry, 11th Congressional District Committee Chair
SA Seth Allen, Fairfax County LP member
AR Anne Rocktashel, 10th Congressional District Committee Chair
DH David Horne, 8th Congressional District Committee Chair
BE Brian Engle, 3rd Congressional District Committee Chair
GW Gary Westmoreland, 5th Congressional District Committee Chair
JL Jim Lark, 9th Congressional District Committee Chair
GR Gary Reams, candidate for Lt. Governor
BR Bill Redpath, candidate for Governor
CM Carol Mitton, 1st Congressional District Committee Chair
JM John Mitton, Vice Chair
JMu John Mullin, 7th Congressional District Committee Chair
BM Ben Malisow, Communications Director
I. 1:01p.m. CALL TO ORDER. There being 12 members or their proxies in attendance, a quorum was met, and the meeting was called to order by Marc Montoni, Chair. Mr. Mullin arrived after the meeting began, and did not sign the attendance sheet. The Secretary failed to recognize him, and he did not vote.)
II. 1:05 p.m. APPROVAL OF MINUTES AND AGENDA GW/BL moved to approve the minutes of the SCC meeting of June 16, 2001, and the minutes were approved without objection.
The agenda was modified to add a resolution by Gary Reams, and without objection, this was moved to item 1, Old Business. Item 2, New Business was moved to item 2, Old Business without objection. A proposal for an RFP for the 2001 Convention was added without objection as item 3, Old Business.
The agenda was approved as amended.
III. 1:09 p.m. REPORTS (Questions and Answers) The following reports were submitted:
-CD Committee Chair Reports. 1st CD, 5th, 8th, 9th CD, 10th CD, 11th CD. Bill Lawry gave a verbal report of the 11th CD. He stated that the 11th CD has a candidate for House of Delegates to support, Jim Simpson, and the affiliate will be supporting a table at the Prince William County Fair. Anne Rocktashel reported that she had created a contact letter for new inquiries, and she is working with the Blue Ridge and Loudoun affiliates. David Horne provided his report on the 8th CD.
-Standing Committee reports. Ballot Access Committee. Shelley Tamres reported on the ACLU lawsuit win. She noted that there was confusion regarding a few of the candidate recruited for HoD races because they were unknown to their local affiliate leaders.
At this time the Chair recognized Gary Reams, candidate for Lt. Governor. GR spoke about his Reeferendum campaign. He explained that he had worked for a year on his campaign, and wanted the party leaders to support his campaign because it is the better campaign. He asked the SCC to consider purchasing a clipping service to capture news items. BL asked if GR had talked to BR. GR said that BR would have to respond; BR stated that he would not run his campaign like GR's.
The SCC returned to the discussion of the reports:
-Ad Hoc Committee reports. Campus Organizing Committee. Jim Lark. There were no questions regarding his report.
Radio Advertising Committee. John Mitton. There were no questions.
Campaigns 2001. David Horne. DH reported that there were three things the SCC needed to do: 1) prepare a state party platform for the 2002 campaigns; 2) raise $200,000 so that we can compete; 3) nominees cannot be expected to arrange their own nominating conventions. BL noted that the LPVA does not have a support structure for candidates.
IV. 1:55 p.m. REVIEW OF ACTION ITEMS FROM PRIOR MEETING.
1. Bill Lawry to prepare a proposal for an SCC meeting outside of the usual meeting that would allow the SCC to have a legally binding vote. Completed. BL emailed the relevant constitutional provision to the SCC, so an electronic meeting is possible with 7 days notice to the SCC members.
V. 2:00 p.m. OLD BUSINESS.
1. Reams Reeferendum Resolution. After a motion to extend the time allotted failed 7 to 4, GR stated that a gubernatorial campaign would obscure his campaign. GR/BL moved the adoption of the resolution. The motion FAILED, 1 aye, 10 nay, 1 abstention.
2. Motion to remove LPVA endorsement of candidate William Redpath. BL. There was no second, so this motion FAILED.
3. Motion to publish a request for proposal (RFP) for the 2002 Regular State Convention to be held at a time that conforms to the LPVA Constitution. MV/JL. The motion PASSED, 7 aye, 4 nay, 1 abstention.
4. Voting for Delegates to National Convention. JM/MV. JL/__ moved to divide the question into 5 parts, and this was adopted without objection. JM/MV moved to postpone discussion of part A while JL prepared language. Part B was amended to add "if any" after "Chair", and was PASSED, 9 aye, 2 nay, 1 abstention. Part C was amended to add "or alternate" after "delegate"; "or provide" after "send"; "the vote at" after "prior to"; and "or as an alternate" at the end of the sentence. As amended, the motion was PASSED, 11 aye, 1 abstention. Part D was amended to add the following language at the end of the sentence: "except by unanimous consent by the delegates to the National Convention." As amended the motion was PASSED, 9 aye, 2 nay, 1 abstention. Part E was amended to add "available to be" after "shall be", and a vote taken, and the motion FAILED, 7 aye, 4 nay, 1 abstention. (Bylaws changes must be passed by a 2/3 vote.)
2. List Rental Agreement. MM.
3. Motion to create subcommittee to review Look.net for LPVA lists. MV The motion was postponed until the end of business.
4. Motion to change Bylaw 4 to prevent the Party from incurring any debt. JL/JM moved the item, and discussion began. DJ noted that this motion would make it easier to incur debt. A vote was taken, and the motion FAILED, 10 nay, 2 abstentions.
5. Motion to change Bylaw 7 to increase the formation of local affiliates. JM/MV moved the item, and discussion began. The Chair requested that the item be withdrawn, and it was WITHDRAWN without opposition.
6. Motion to change Bylaw 8 to prevent grants to any PACs. __/__ moved the item, and after discussion, a vote was taken and the motion was PASSED without objection.
7. Motion to change Bylaw 10 to update officer names. AR/GW moved the item, and discussion began. MV noted that DJ was not an officer, and could not be listed as such. Previously the Vice Chair had been listed as a signatory, and MV suggested that JM be added instead of DJ. The Chair suggested Rance Edwards be added instead, and AR/GW accepted this amendment. After further discussion, AR/GW withdrew the name of Rance Edwards, and MV/AR moved the adoption of JM instead of DJ. Without objection the name of JM was substituted, and a vote taken, but the motion FAILED, 5 aye, 4 nay, 2 abstentions. (Bylaws changes must be passed by a 2/3 vote.)
8. Motion to replace language in Bylaw 14 regarding requirements for business at a Special State Convention. BL/GW moved the item, and discussion began. A vote was taken and the motion PASSED without opposition.
9. Motion to repeal Bylaw 17 because Motion 11 integrates the language of Bylaw 17. MV/JM moved the item, and after a brief discussion, a vote was taken, and the motion was PASSED without opposition.
10. Motion to repeal Bylaw 18, LPVA PAC formation. SE/BL moved the item, and discussion began. DJ noted that after the election, Bill Redpath would be willing to do the necessary paperwork, and suggested that the LPVA wait until after the campaign before repealing Bylaw 18. A vote was taken, and the motion FAILED, 5 aye to 4 nay, 2 abstentions.
11. Motion regarding becoming a state political committee - Reams Reeferendum/Jim Turney. There being no one to move or second the motion, the motion was WITHDRAWN without opposition.
12. Motion to recognize the contributions of certain volunteers. __/__ moved to recognize the contributions of Chris O'Donnell, Chuck Eby, and Dr. Ellissa Tiller. The motions were PASSED without opposition.
VI. 3:25 p.m. NEW BUSINESS.
1. Motion to prevent censorship of posts to the LPVA Forum list. BL/JL moved the item, and discussion began. JM/__ offered an amendment to add "or SCC list", but the motion FAILED, 1 aye, 11 nay.
2. Motion to require candidates to publish a platform or endorse a platform before receiving Party endorsement. BL/JL moved the item, and discussion began. JM/__ offered an amendment to delete the prefatory language that was accepted by the mover. A vote was taken, and the motion FAILED 4 aye, 5 nay, 1 abstention.
3. Motion to create subcommittee to review Look.net for LPVA lists. __/__ MV explained that this motion was offered on behalf of ST. MM reported that Chuck Eby and Jim Turney are looking into this. There may be a problem keeping the lpva.com address if we switched providers. MM reported that he has asked Look.net for weekly back ups of our data. A vote was taken, and the motion FAILED 4 aye, 7 nay, 1 abstention.
4. Motion to certify House of Delegates candidates. DH/ST. ST explained that the SBOE asked for a list of the candidates certified by the SCC to have the label "Libertarian." The motion was read: "Certify the 9 House of Delegates candidates on David Horne's report to the SBOE, provided each is a current dues-paid member of the LPVA, to have the Libertarian Party label on the ballot for the 2001 General Election, with the possible exception of Mr. Robert Stermer. Mr. Stermer will be certified only if Mr. Joe Tremper, Chair of the Peninsula LP affiliate, agrees to support his certification since objections have been raised by members of the affiliate. Upon acceptable conversation with the candidates, the Chair may certify." A vote was taken, and the motion was PASSED without objection.
VII. 4:20 p.m. REVIEW OF NEW ACTION ITEMS FROM THIS MEETING 1. BE to produce a list of events. 2. DH to update the House of Delegates candidate list and post to the SCC list. 3. MV to arrange for reservation of room at Aunt Sarah's Pancake House, 11/18/01 for next SCC meeting.
JL/BL moved to give DJ 10 minutes to discuss his previous objection to the motion passed June 16, 2001 to hire a clerical employee. DJ explained that the motion was a financial move, and per the Bylaws, required a 2/3 vote to approve. The vote on the motion was 5 in favor, 3 opposed. After JL/GW moved to extend discussion 5 minutes, JL/GW moved that the motion of June 15, 2001 to hire a clerical employee be affirmed. A vote was taken, and the motion was PASSED without objection.
VIII. 4:40 p.m. SCHEDULE NEXT MEETING
1. After a short discussion, it was decided without opposition to have the next meeting in Fredericksburg, with the following meeting in Tidewater. The Secretary was given the AI to reserve Aunt Sarah's Pancake House for November 18, Sunday, 12:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
IX. 4:50 p.m. ADJOURNMENT and REMARKS for the GOOD of the PARTY
1. GW/BE moved to adjourn at 4:50. Without opposition the meeting was adjourned.
III. REPORTS
FIRST DISTRICT REPRESENTATIVE'S REPORT
Submitted to: State Central Committee, Libertarian Party of Virginia, Aug. 11, 2001 Submitted by: Carol Mitton
What follows is the 1st CD SCC report for the most recent quarter:
Activity in the 1st CD has been little. The Northern Neck Libertarians canceled their most recent meeting without telling me. This resulted in an angry email from a member who went to the meeting based on our announcement only to find nobody there. After a brief two month surge in attendance to double digits in Fredericksburg, the most recent 2 meetings were attended by 2 people and 5 people respectively. Interest among Fredericksburg area members appears to be waning. While the Peninsula Libertarians have small attendance at meetings, they have several dedicated activists who continue to work hard in the Hampton Roads area. On a positive note, the Fredericksburg Area Libertarians have arranged a series of campaign appearances for Gary Reams on August 15 including a t.v. appearance, a radio interview and a newspaper interview.
Carol Mitton
1st CD rep
JEFFERSON AREA LIBERTARIANS REPORT
Submitted to: State Central Committee, Libertarian Party of Virginia, Aug. 9, 2001
Submitted by: James W. Lark, III
Secretary, Jefferson Area Libertarians
Charlottesville, Virginia
The following report will highlight the efforts during the past two months by the Jefferson Area Libertarians (J.A.L.) to promote the libertarian philosophy and the Party in central Virginia.
June: The third issue (in 2001) of the J.A.L. News was published. On June 2-3, J.A.L. members gathered petition signatures for Bill Redpath and Gary Reams at the Giant grocery store in Charlottesville. On June 8, J.A.L. members served as wine vendors and ID checkers at the "Fridays After Five" event. The J.A.L. held a Happy Hour at the Red Robin restaurant on June 26. The event was attended by eleven people (including a new member); one of the waiters indicated that he was very interested in learning more about the Libertarian Party.
July: On July 4, James Curtis, Jim Lark, Gerhard Schoenthal, Arin Sime, and Gary Westmoreland distributed Libertarian literature on the Downtown Mall at an Independence Day celebration in Charlottesville. The July 4 issue of The Observer ran a feature article (with photograph) about Dr. Lark in his capacity as Libertarian Party chairman. Greg Cunningham serves as a columnist for The Observer; his letter to the editor appeared in the Daily Progress on July 4. On July 10, the J.A.L. held one of its quarterly business meetings; the major topic of the meeting concerned planning for the fall campaign. On July 13, J.A.L. members served as wine vendors and ID checkers at the "Fridays After Five" event. On July 26, Gerhard Schoenthal's letter to the editor was published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
August: The fourth issue (in 2001) of the J.A.L. News was published. Gerhard Schoenthal has been named as the Charlottesville area coordinator for the Reams campaign. Arin Sime's letter to the editor was published in the Daily Progress on Aug. 7. The J.A.L. will hold a Happy Hour at the Red Robin restaurant on Aug. 15. On Aug. 17, J.A.L. members will serve as wine vendors and ID checkers at the "Fridays After Five" event.
EIGHT DISTRICT REPRESENTATIVE'S REPORT
From: David A. Horne, Eighth Congressional District State Central Committee Representative, To: Libertarian Party of Virginia State Central Committee Submitted: August 19, 2001
The Eighth Congressional District has many very active and dedicated LP members but currently does not have any affiliate parties for cities, counties, towns, State Senate Districts, State House Districts or any other political jurisdictions. I hope to begin organizing along those lines after the November elections and after the reapportionment is completed and approved by the Department of Justice for Congressional, State House, and State Senate Districts.
The Fairlandia LP meets every Wednesday and there is Libertarian potluck dinner group that meets on a regular basis that includes many 8th CD members. Fairfax County has an affiliate party that meets regularly but Fairfax County currently includes part of two Congressional Districts in addition to part of the 8th CD.
There are three House of Delegate Candidates running in HoD Districts within the 8th CD. They are:
District 41 Micah C. Gray, Springfield
District 47 Christine Austen, Arlington
District 53 Patton Cooper, Falls Church
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NINTH DISTRICT REPRESENTATIVE'S REPORT
Submitted to: State Central Committee, Libertarian Party of Virginia, Aug. 9, 2001
Submitted by: James W. Lark, III
Ninth District Representative, State Central Committee
The following report will highlight the activities during the past two months to promote the L.P.Va. in the Ninth Congressional District of Virginia.
The New River Libertarians (based in Blacksburg and Montgomery County) continue their activities. Anne Panella and Todd Pukanecz gathered signatures to place Bill Redpath and Gary Reams on the ballot, as did a few other people in the area. Garrett Rose, a recent graduate from Va. Tech, will be a graduate student at the University of Virginia. Mike Porter is trying to rejuvenate the Virginia Highlands Libertarians (based in Abingdon). While we have contacts in the Pearisburg/Narrows area, we have nothing going on in that area. I have heard nothing from our contacts Doug and Adam Light of Pounding Mill (Tazewell County) in nearly two years.
Despite the efforts of many fine activists, the Ninth District remains a district in which we have relatively few members and relatively little activity. As I mentioned in my previous report, by virtue of my current service as L.P. chairman I do not have the time to devote to organizing more activity in the area. I hope that the Redpath and Reams campaigns will provide an opportunity for us to build the party in this district.
BALLOT ACCESS COMMITTEE
STATUS AS OF 8/9/2001
Prepared by Shelley Tamres
PARTY LABELING LAWSUIT
On July 23 the ACLU filed the complaint in U.S. District Court. Plaintiffs are the LPVA, Bill Redpath (candidate for Governor), Gary Reams (candidate for Lt. Governor), Tim Belton (HOD candidate), John Girardeau (HOD candidate), John Buckley (libertarian voter), and Shelley Tamres (LPVA member and libertarian voter).
An agreement is being worked on out-of-court. The SBE has agreed to print labels for our candidates as well as the other minor parties. They've asked for a postponement of a hearing until after the upcoming General Assembly session so they can address this legislatively. This is just fine with us. We will need to follow things closely during the legislative session to ensure the resulting code is to our liking.