Program Planning

Program Planning

As a grass roots organization, the League looks to its members for guidance on how best to use our time and energy and allocate our resources.  "Program" refers to the issues we choose for study, education and action at local, state and national levels. The "Program Planning" process occurs every two years in advance of our State Convention.  It starts with our local League's Program Planning Meeting, where we decide on our League's recommendations to the State for the top three issues to prioritize over the next two years.  We also choose our local priorities at the same time.

Program Priorities 2023-2024 for the LWV of Santa Maria Valley, serving all of North Santa Barbara County

At our January 11, 2023 Program Planning Meeting, members voted for our league's local priority issues of:

  • Housing including homelessness and mental health, 
  • Language Justice, First Generation Voters,
  • IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equality, Accessibility),
  • Get Out The Vote, and Voter Ed (including voter misinformation).  

We discussed the issues of Criminal/Juvenile Justice, Health Care Equity, and Climate Change as well.

In addition to local priorities, members voted to recommend the State (LWVC) prioritize these three issues:

  • Housing/Homelessness,
  • Climate change with emphasis on water
  • "Making Democracy Work":  including 1st generation voting,  voting accessibility/facilities, and reaching young voters

"Making Democracy Work", which is core to League work, and has been identified by LWV US as a national priority, will also continue to be one of our state program priorities for 2023-25. In 2016 the League of Women Voters launched the League-wide Campaign for Making Democracy Work®. This comprehensive program engages Leagues nationwide in advancing core democracy issues.  This includes Voting Rights, Campaign Finance, Redistricting, Direct Election of the President by Popular Vote.
LWVC Board will make these recommendations at convention in May where the Program planning process culminates in the delegates’ adoption of the statewide program.