Voter Services/Observer Corps and Program - The Core of the League
The two core functions of the League of Women Voters are Voter Services/Observer Corps and Program. Most League activities fall under one of these two areas.
What is Voter Services?
Voter Services is a year-round activity to help citizens be politically effective and to encourage their participation in the political process. Registering voters and presenting factual, nonpartisan information on candidates and election issues are basic voter services activities, i.e., all election related projects and activities. Voter Services can be thought of as voter education and empowerment. Examples of Voter Services activities we have performed include voter registration, Pros & Cons for ballot measures, candidate forums, and VOTE411 (personalized voter information).
What is Observer Corps?
Observer Corps is a group of LWVML members who monitor local government agencies to learn what local issues are being addressed, how they are being addressed, and to ensure their actions and decisions are transparent. We attend meetings in person and identify ourselves as League of Women Voters Observers. Observer Corps is about accountability in local government.
Find out more about Voter Services and Observer Corps on the Our Committees Page.
What is Program Planning?
Program Planning is one of the important ways we focus our grassroots work to align ourselves with our mission and the priorities set forth by LWV National and State, as well as identify and serve local goals.
Program is the set of selected governmental issues chosen by members at the local, state and national levels for research and action. You can think of Program as our Action Agenda. The Program Committee researches local issues, becomes familiar with current LWV positions, informs membership and the community of issues, guides local League consensus and adoption of positions, and develops and proposes advocacy and action plans. Find out about the Program meetings and committees on the Our Committees Page.
Note: Program is NOT the same as Programs, which plans for speakers, discussion or other activities for League meetings.
The first step in developing Program is Study.
LWVML Housing and Homelessness Study
Undertaking a study for our League was a three-year process. In February 2021, we polled our LWVML membership about issues that should be considered a priority for research and advocacy for our rural counties. Housing and homelessness were chosen as a top “critical priority” and fire and forest management were a close second.
The Study Group brainstormed many ideas and questions and discussed what areas to consider for studying homelessness. How many people in each county are homeless? What age groups are homeless? What are concerns about youth and senior homeless? Why do people become homeless? What are county governments, local agencies, and service providers doing? Why is homelessness a significant county, state & national problem? What are the League positions on this issue?
Following the League of Women Voter guides on how to conduct a League study, we started our research. We reviewed the League of Women Voters of California (LWVC) Homelessness Action Policy and Local League Toolkit, LWVC Program Planning kit, legislative updates, and state and national League positions on homelessness and related issues. We investigated if other Leagues in California studied rural homelessness.
The study committee quickly learned that both Tuolumne and Calaveras counties had five-year action plans (a state requirement, for reducing homeless numbers). Two funding homelessness services and affordable housing projects were contingent upon local counties showing efforts on reducing homelessness and reporting numbers of sheltered and unsheltered homeless. Both plans contained valuable information regarding county resources and data. These plans included service and outreach challenges, 3 partnerships, providers, services, shelters, affordable housing, funding, solutions, resources, and plans to reduce homelessness.
In 2023, our study committee observed numerous changes and a lot of progress with how Calaveras and Tuolumne counties are working to reduce homeless numbers. While both counties and community organizations are doing a lot to support and help our unsheltered citizens, there is much more that needs to be done. Based on our research, we learned that there are myths about the face of the homeless. The data in both counties show a severe lack of affordable housing and emergency shelters. While citizens want to help the homeless, our communities do not want unsheltered programs in their neighborhoods. Our findings lead to a LWVML Position Statement which was approved by our Board and published in “The Voter” in May 2023.
We also learned how rural homelessness is unique with solutions, resources, and funding. There are many similarities to what Tuolumne and Calaveras counties are experiencing in trying to reduce the numbers of unsheltered citizens. There are also many differences, unique to each county, as to how each is working to provide emergency shelters, more affordable housing, and wrap-around services especially for those with mental illness and addiction problems.
