February 12, 2020 – Hall at Fauntleroy
6:30 Potluck Social Time
7:02 Call to Order
Opening Ceremonies
- Gina welcomed the attendees and reminded everyone of our code of conduct and our goal of being a safe and welcoming place.
- The Pledge of Allegiance was led by 1st Vice Chair Rachel Glass.
VIP Acknowledgements
- Councilwoman Herbold was recognized and provided updates on council activities and goals for the year.
- Superior Court Judge David Keenan was recognized and announced he is running for reelection.
- Joe McDermott was recognized and spoke about the low income bus passes program. There is a newly adopted no-income fare. There will be a free fare for those who are at 80% of poverty. Program will be implemented by summer.
- Natasha Scarupa – field director for Pramila Jayapal – was recognized and spoke about the Canadian border issues of the past weeks. A lot has been accomplished in the House since Democrats won the majority in 2018.
- Gina recognized newcomers in the room.
7:20 Program: Eyes on Immigrations, organized by Ben Reilly, treasurer.
Rich Stolz of OneAmerica, Joanne Kalas of Foster Garvey PC, Louise Bush from the Seattle Clemency Project. Maria Kolby-Wolfe of NWIRP (NW Immigrant Rights Project) and Bunthay Cheam of the Khmer Anti-Deportation Advocacy Group provided updates on the immigration and refugee crisis in Washington and beyond. Discussion points included highlighting the Trump administration’s tactics for punishing immigrants, the deportations that are happening in our own communities, and state legislation aimed at stopping the targeting of our immigrant communities.
8:20 Review and Approval of the Minutes and Agenda
Approval of the Minutes – a motion to approve the minutes was made and seconded, and the minutes were unanimously approved as submitted.
Adoption of the Agenda – a motion to approve the agenda was made and seconded, and the agenda was unanimously approved as submitted.
8:22 Report of Officers and Standing Committees
Communication Committee – Carla made 4 announcements. Check out our new 2020 Election Headquarters page on the website found at 34dems.org/caucus. We are also looking for the button-maker once used by the 34th. We also would like to get in touch with the Biden and Klobochar campaigns for Caucus purposes. We are also looking for a technical resource to help with a problem on the wordpress site. Contact Carla at secretary@34dems.org.
Treasurer’s Report and 2020 Budget – Ben provided the treasurer’s report and proposed budget for 2020. The proposed budget was shared and questions were answered. An error was made on the printed copy, it should be the 2020 budget. A motion was made and seconded to approve the budget with non-substantive corrections. Budget was approved unanimously.
Legislative Action Committee – Jordan presented his Legislative Tracker, which can be found on the website home page.
Ann Martin provided a quick update from the state committee meeting.
Bunny Hatcher (pyewacket@comcast.net) provided an update on the King County Platform committee. She requested that anyone with input on the platform send her an email with details.
PCO Committee – Nick introduced 7 new PCO chair candidates. All candidates were approved by PCO vote. Nick also shared a PCO committee update regarding the upcoming Primary canvassing efforts. He also reminded PCOs of the February 22 meeting at Kenyon Hall.
8:42 New Business
Election of Second Vice Chair – Due to the resignation of Councilmember Sofia Aragon (2nd Vice Chair), we held an election for her open position. Ben Reilly nominated Jesse Greene for 2nd Vice Chair. Ann Martin made a motion for an affirmation vote. Jesse was elected unanimously.
Code of Conduct Discussion – Chris shared the history of our Code of Conduct. The remaining attendees discussed the current and proposed CoC. A motion was made and seconded to consider the proposed code of conduct but table reviewing of the substance of the proposed code of conduct until the next membership meeting. This will allow for amendments to be written for submission. The motion passed by the majority.
Bylaws Discussion and Proposed Update – Gina presented the Bylaws changes. A motion was made to approve the changes as submitted. The Bylaws were approved unanimously.
9:14 Good of the Order
Chris Porter thanked everyone for supporting him in his election for KC Conservation.
Marcee Stone-Vecich and David Bartlett gave shout outs to our legislators.
Rachel Glass announced the Organizing Academy on Feb 22. Info on our website.
Jesse Greene recognized Jordan Crawley for his Legislative Tracker..
9:18 Adjourn to Endolyne Joe’s