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League of Women Voters of Butte County Board Meeting Minutes August 9, 2022 5:30 pm Zoom |
Members Present: Mahalley Allen, Sandra Flake, Caroline Aldrich-Langen, Marcia Moore, Toni Reid, Satsie Veith
Guests Present: Jane Wanderer
- Call to Order
Meeting called to order at 5:30 pm.
2. Approve Meeting Minutes
The minutes for the June board meeting were approved.
Mahalley informed the board that her work commitments prevent her from continuing to take minutes. Board members discussed options. The plan is for Mahalley to stay on the board as secretary until a new secretary is recruited, but other board members will fill in taking minutes.
3. Financial Report
Sandra gave an update about the profit and loss budget vs. actuals. Instead of having to take out less than $1,000 from reserves, we ended the fiscal year by taking $2,092 from cash reserves. We had budgeted to take $8,163 out of reserves, so we came in well under budget for the fiscal year.
The LWVBC's education fund at the North Valley Community Foundation had a starting balance for the year of $51,870.33 and an ending balance of $45,224,74 due to stock market declines. Sandra is confident the fund balance will increase again over time as the stock market turns around.
The LWVBC's balance in the TriCounties bank account as of June 30th was $30,288.72.
Motion:
Marcia moved and Caroline seconded a motion to approve the budget report. Motion passed unanimously.
4. 501c3 Transition Update
Sandra provided background context that LWVBC was incorrectly classified by the Secretary of State at the time of incorporation as a mutual benefit corporation and should have been classified as a public benefit corporation under California nonprofit law. We have been advised that we can correct this by having our membership pass a motion for the correct classification.
There are several advantages of becoming a 501c3, such as becoming a charitable corporation and also membership dues, contributions made directly to the league, and in-kind contributions would become tax deductible. The limitations of becoming a 501c3 are that LWVBC would be limited to spending only a certain percentage of its income on direct lobbying and LWVBC could not endorse political candidates. Neither of those limitations are concerns for our league.
In order to properly classify LWVBC as a public benefit corporation and also to become a 501c3, we would need a membership meeting and membership votes.
Motion:
Toni moved and Marcia seconded a motion to endorse making the transition to becoming a 501c3 and to move forward on this motion through a membership meeting. Motion passed unanimously.
Motion:
Sandra moved and Marcia seconded a motion to endorse working to correct the LWVBC's classification to public benefit corporation and to move forward on this motion through a membership meeting. Motion passed unanimously.
5. Candidate Forums Update
Linda MacMichael has been working on a possible candidate forum for the water district. Satsie has received a good response from people interested in working on in-person candidate forums this fall.
6. Membership Update
Marcia updated board members about her successful membership recruitment efforts. She suggested ideas for having current league members interact with new members at meetings. We have 26 new members since July 1st, and our membership numbers will be over 150.
Marcia contacted Ann Schulte at Chico State about connecting on student membership.
7. Ballot Measure Presentation Update
Toni is working with Carol Burr about pros/cons. AAUW is interested in having a ballot measure presentation this fall.
8. Voter Registration Update
Roxanne Ferry and Marvey Mueller will staff a voter registration table at an event on October 2nd. Janet is discussing with her social policy committee members about doing voter registration outreach to people who are homeless.
9. Purchase of Easy Voter Guides from LWVC
We have the opportunity to purchase easy voter guides from LWVC for $16 per 50 guides, plus tax and handling. The guides would go over state ballot propositions, different offices up for election, and how to vote. Board members agreed to Satsie purchasing 100 guides. Satsie will ask Roxanne and Marvey about the usefulness of also purchasing guides in Spanish.
10. Voter Outreach for 2024
Jane updated board members about a presentation from the LWVUS convention, "Using Social Marketing to Increase Voter Turnout "Democracy Starts at Home Campaign."" The presentation was about using behavior change marketing or social marketing to help with voter turnout. Marketing can be a helpful framework for identifying specific audiences with low voter turnout and developing a strategic plan for increasing voter turnout. Are there audiences in our community where LWVBC might use some of these strategies to increase voter turnout? Jane reached out to Keaton Denlay about compiling information on voter turnout by voting precinct. She suggested thinking about getting together a group of interested members who want to work on these types of projects. Board members discussed hosting a Zoom event for interested people to view the presentation from the convention.
11. Committee Updates as Needed
Natural Resources Committee:
Toni updated board members that the Natural Resources Committee is planning for a November 3rd presentation on Zoom tentatively titled, "Water Conservation in Butte County. What is Happening Now and What Can You Do."
Butte Environmental Council is hosting a water program later in August. Perhaps we can share information about their event with LWVBC members on our social media platforms.
12. Communications Protocol
Without a current board member responsible for communications, we may need a communications protocol about who is responsible for various related tasks. Committee members would be responsible for tasks like graphics and presentation titles, and the communications protocol point person would be responsible for doing the press release and sharing information with Helen and Jane for the website and social media platforms.
13. Appointments to Nominating Committee
According to the bylaws, we need two board members for the nominating committee. Please consider and let Satsie know if you are interested.
14. Tasks We Need People For
Tabled to next meeting.
15. Newsletter
The next newsletter will come out at the end of August. The deadline for submissions is Thursday, August 18th. Lori Fuentes has kindly agreed to do the layout for the newsletter again.
16. Adjourn
Meeting adjourned at 7:01 pm. The next board meeting will be Tuesday, September 13th at 5:30 pm on Zoom.
According to the bylaws, we need two board members for the nominating committee. Please consider and let Satsie know if you are interested.
14. Tasks We Need People For
Tabled to next meeting.
15. Newsletter
The next newsletter will come out at the end of August. The deadline for submissions is Thursday, August 18th. Lori Fuentes has kindly agreed to do the layout for the newsletter again.
16. Adjourn
Meeting adjourned at 7:01 pm. The next board meeting will be Tuesday, September 13th at 5:30 pm on Zoom.
