30th BIENNIAL CONVENTION LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF IDAHO Red Lion Canyon Springs Hotel Twin Falls, IDAHO May 2-3, 2009

Call to order Co-Presidents Maxine Miller and Virginia Foote called the meeting to order at 9:35 a.m. on May 2, 2009.

Marge Slotten extended greetings from the Member-at-Large Unit from Twin Falls. Slotten welcomed Twin Falls Mayor Lance Clow and Norman Turrill representing LWVUS. Foote thanked Slotten and the Twin Falls MAL for hosting this convention.

Organization of Convention Foote appointed the committees for convention: Credentials: Kathryn Bonzo, Moscow, Judy Edwards, Kootenai and Bonnie Douglas, Kootenai Minutes: Marilee Fuller, Boise, Secretary/Treasurer LWVID Minutes Committee: Chris Stokes, TV MAL, and Bonnie Douglas, Kootenai Action Motion: Adele Plouffe, LC Valley Elections: Cathy Frischman, Pocatello

MSC Winter that we adopt the Council Rules as presented. Plouffe seconds. MSC Bonzo that we adopt the Order of Business as printed with the addition of Resolutions to section on Program and Position Review. Edwards seconds.

Guest Speaker from LWVUS Foote introduced Norman Turrill (LWVUS Board member from Portland, OR) who brought greetings from national.

Roll Call of Leagues and MAL Units and PMP

Leagues & MAL Units Representation PMPs Bingham County No representation No PMPs Boise Marilee Fuller No PMPs Kootenai County Judy Edwards $560.00 Bonnie Douglas Roberta Larsen Lewiston-Clarkson Valley Adele Plouffe $270.00 Robynhawk Wilson Maxine Miller Virginia Foote Moscow Kathryn Bonzo

No PMPs Pocatello Cathy Frischman $430.00 Muriel Roberts Twin Falls MAL Unit Betty Valentine $170.00 Marge Slotten Betty Slifer Treasure Valley MAL Unit Kip Winter N/A Chris Stokes * for the remainder of the minutes, each representative will be referred to by their last name only

Notes: Bingham League may be disbanding.

Bylaw change

Correction in Article VII, Section 2. Composition, to date— should be January 31 (not January 1).

Break 10:00 to 10:20 am

Presentation: Update on National League Issues by Norman Turrill 1. National Popular Vote: Consensus response deadline was May 1, with enough leagues already participating (300 to 400 out of 800 total)for the Board to make a recommendation on the position. 2. Virtual League: sites like www.freeconferencecall.com make it easier to communicate without burdensome and expensive travel. Virtual Council will be held this year with help of Adobe Acrobat Connect. Two delegates per state are allowed to participate, though additional members may attend at the two official sites. League Easy Web (LEW)is a product developed by the LWV of California that allows development of league websites with a consistent look and feel. LWVUS hopes to purchase rights to this product to make available to all leagues. 3. Idaho Legislature Home Page has excellent functionality. Turrill recommends that a legislative chair be appointed to advocate for league positions. League is not just about voter services. (Out of time, Turrill will return for the rest of his presentation later in the session.)

Local League/MAL Reports Boise: No report.

Kootenai County: Edwards reports that Kootenai has a website (www.lwvkc.org ) and produced a voter guide. They helped with mock elections and had a booth at festival prior to election ’08. They’ve also been active with the Kootenai Co. comp plan revision and have an active land use committee. They collaborated with the Idaho Humanities Coouncil and the library to sponsor a Smithsonian exhibit, “Between Fences”, including a panel discussion, “Both sides of the fence” on planning issues, with 90 in attendance.

Treasure Valley MAL Unit: Chris Stokes reports that they held their organizational meeting in September. Subsequently they participated in the “Vote by Mail” study, set a budget, and adopted national principles. They’ve prioritized member interest in legislation and followed bills. They have investigated outreach to new citizens and have committed to developing a flyer on registering to vote to be inserted in packets given to new citizens at naturalization. TV Mal has published its first newsletter and has plans to study league history and evaluate legislation in light of league positions. They hope to maintain a presence at the Idaho Legislature next session.

Lewiston-Clarkston Valley: Plouffe reports that LC Valley collected voter registrations for both Idaho and Washington at the county fair. Helped register college students and Head Start parents. Provided assistance in the college student body election—a fundraiser for the league. They conducted candidate forums which were televised by LC State College, and also a forum in Asotin Co., WA. The league developed a voters’ guide to elected officials and participated in the vote by Mail Study, where they included input from the Circles Initiative (advocate for low income families).

Pocatello: Frischman reports that they conducted candidate forums for local races and will host a forum next week for school board races. They provided speakers for church, women’s and college groups, and conducted voter registration. The league came to consensus on the Vote by Mail Study and had David Adler speak in a joint event with the Idaho Humanities Council. They produced a voters’ guide to elected officials and acted as ballot counters for city elections. They are working on women’s issues for the world’s newest country.

Moscow: Bonzo reported that the league has 60 plus strong members. They continue to hold noon programs and recently received a bequest from a former member.

Twin Falls MAL: Valentine reported that the TF MAL published “Facts for Voters”, conducted voter registration at the fair and had an annual meeting with a speaker. They shut down their web site, but are looking at LEW as a replacement. They were at the Buhl Health Fair and conducted consensus on Vote by Mail.

State: Co-presidents Foote and Miller reported successfully conducting the 2008 Council via telephone conference, with more leagues in attendance than ever, as well as two board meetings via conference call. A third board meeting was held in Portland where most board members were attending LWVUS conference. The Portland conference had a revitalizing effect on the board.

MSC Fuller moves that the LWVID recommend to LWVUS the recognition of the League of Women Voters of Treasure Valley. Edwards seconds.

A grant of $300 is presented to the newly forming Treasure Valley league by the LWVID board. Recess Recess for lunch 12:00pm, to reconvene at 1:00pm. During the luncheon Co-presidents Foote and Miller spoke about the League Member of the Year award to be presented to Joyce Bergen for her stellar work on the Vote by Mail Study. Joyce was unable to attend due to illness so the award will be presented again in Kootenai.

First Credentials Report 1:00 First Credentials Report was made, 13 delegates are eligible to vote and all are here, Bonzo reported.

Nominating Committee Report

Adele Plouffe, chair of the nominating committee, respectfully recommended slate of officers for the period from Convention 2009 to Convention 2011.

Co-President Kathryn Bonzo, Moscow Co-President Susan Steele, Moscow Vice President Bonnie Douglas, Kootenai Co. Director Roberta Larsen, Kootenai Co Secretary Robynhawk Wilson, LC Valley Nominating Committee Judi Hanna, Kootenai Co. Chair Nominating Committee Betty Slifer, Twin Falls MAL Member

Those officers now on the board and remaining until Council in 2010 are: Treasurer: Marilee Fuller, Boise Director: Henry Willmes, Moscow Director: Aly Lamar, Moscow

Note: Robynhawk Wilson of Moscow stepped forward during convention as nominee to fill the secretary position.

MSC Larsen moved that the slate of officers be approved unanimously. Frischman seconds.

Program and Position Review Two resolutions were presented. Douglas requests the convention approve the following: “Resolved that the League of Women Voters of Idaho urges that:  The LWVUS actively support the principle of single- payer national health insurance by vigorously advocating that a single-payer legislative proposal be included in deliberations of health care reform by Congress and the Administration; and that  Side-by-side comparative analysis of single-payer proposals with other proposals for health care reform be part of these deliberations.”

Roberts requests approval of the following: “Resolved that the League of Women Voters of Idaho Convention of 2009 send messages of thanks to Representative George Sayler, who championed day care licensing legislation for five years, and Senator Tim Corder, whose support in the Senate was instrumental in the passage of S1112a.”

State board recommends that the Vote by Mail consensus be adopted as a Position by the LWVID.

Existing positions were reviewed by the Kootenai County League and their recommendations were presented to the convention and discussed. Based on the discussion, the following positions were recommended “retain”: Judicial Selection Child Care Charter Schools

The following positions were recommended retain and edit: Energy—needs deletion of “and continues to be” in last paragraph. Health Care—needs addition of date.

The following were recommended for review: Reapportionment—Stokes and Bonzo will review recent law change and determine by Sunday if the new legislation will require an update to the position. Columbia Basin—Douglas will chair a committee to review and update as necessary. Hazardous Materials—Douglas will review historical records on this position. Land Use Planning-Edwards and Larsen will review. Endowment Lands—Wilson will research 1994 court decision to see how it might affect the position. Sentence beginning “League members will continue to monitor…” will be struck. MSC Larsen moves to table discussion of positions on Education, Tax Structure and Rehabilitative Programs until Sunday. Plouffe seconds.

Treasurer’s Report Treasurer’s Report: LWVID has $16,223 in checking, savings and bond account. Of the $9900 in the bond account, $1,328 is in a restricted fund, “United We Stand”, and can only be used for voter education. There was discussion of the Elise Torbert fund which is what remains of an unrestricted gift from back in the 1970’s. Slotten requested that the board develop guidelines for use of these funds and a format for local leagues to request funding for special projects. Budget Report: The 2008-09 Year-to-date budget was reviewed. The 2009-10 proposed budget was discussed and adjustments made.

Break 3:00 meeting breaks until 3:20

Vote by Mail Study Report Meeting resumed at 3:20 Larsen presented the results of the Vote by Mail Study and consensus. In the discussion she indicated that the position recommends that if voting by mail is adopted it should be county-option and that at least one polling place should remain open in every county.

MSC It was moved that approval of the Vote by Mail Position be brought to a vote on Sunday. Plouffe seconds.

Implementing Membership Recruitment Initiative in Idaho Norman Turrill presents a slide show—“360 Degree View of 365 Days”-emphasizing the importance of calendaring, not only for conducting league business but for member retention and recruitment.

Turrill’s presentation was followed by discussion of Elise Torbert and United We Stand (Ross Perot)funds, including Torbert fund’s history from a 1993 document.

MSC Winter that the LWVID Board develop a grant application for local leagues to apply for these funds. Larsen seconds. Report on CAFO Betty Slifer presented information on the toxic properties of the current practices in confined animal feeding operations in the Magic Valley. She offered a tour to show examples and to show how the operations are affecting the Minidoka Confinement Camp Historic Area.

Recess until 8:00am tomorrow, Sunday, May 3, 2009.

Guest speaker at dinner, Dr. David Adler, is an author and professor at Idaho State University. His speech on the imperial presidency attracted a large audience from the public, with over 50 people signing in.

Call to order Virginia Foote called meeting to order at 8:00am.

Credentials Report Bonzo reported that with 13 delegates we have a quorum.

Positions MSC Larsen to remove Programs from the table. Wilson seconds. After discussion on the Education Position, conclusion is to keep position as is, without the suggested addition from the Kootenai League.

MSC Bonzo to retain the Education Position as it is. Plouffe seconds.

MSC Plouffe to retain Charter School Position without suggested revision.

MSC Larsen to retain the Health Care Position with the addition of dates. Bonzo seconds.

MSC Plouffe to revise the Tax Structure Position to reflect current Idaho law. Frischman seconds.

MSC Bonzo to retain the Rehabilitative Programs Position with the addition of dates.

The discussion on the Reapportionment Position, having been postponed from Saturday to allow research, continues. Bonzo and Stokes found that legislation affecting the Idaho Reapportionment Commission had been signed into law. After exploring the possible effect of the new language, it was decided that the current position is adequate to allow the league to comment on the actions of the commission.

MSC Bonzo moves to retain the current position on Reapportionment with the addition of the term, “redistricting” as a cross reference. Winter seconds.

Resolutions

MSC Edwards moves to accept the resolution from Kootenai Co. on single payer insurance. Frischman seconds. Discussion indicated that the intention is to send the resolution to all members of the LWVUS Board.

MSC It was moved and seconded to accept the resolution to give thanks from LWVID to Rep. George Sayler and Sen. Tim Corder for their work on day care licensing. Discussion indicates that the intention is to send letters of thanks on LWVID letterhead, along with press releases.

Other Motions MSC Plouffe moves that the revised budget be accepted. Bonzo seconds. There was further discussion about the need for the board to establish guidelines for the use of excess funds, including the dedicated fund, along with forms for local leagues to use in requesting those funds.

MSC Miller to adopt the proposal to study Vote by Mail in Idaho. Bonzo seconds.

Previous motions on the by-law change and election of officers pass. Note: the new board will appoint one person from the board to the Nominating Committee

Directions to state board: 1. Lobbying—take advantage of the TV League’s desire to work at the legislature, including providing funding for their efforts. 2. All local calendars shown at state web site 3. Member recruitment 4. Create Action chair to track legislation. 5. Create template for press releases. Write op ed pieces and letters to the editor. 6. Voter to continue to be distributed via email to those with addresses in the LWVUS database, otherwise snail mail. 7. Bonzo to send out press release on convention. Larsen to send press release on the acceptance of Vote by Mail position and notify all Idaho County Clerks on the position. 8. Investigate acquiring League Easy Web (LEW) right away —purchase if necessary, if there is a delay in LWVUS providing tool to all league. 9. Bonzo to report Single-Payer Resolution approval to LWVUS Board members. 10. Board to develop guidelines for local leagues to request funds from restricted fund and other unallocated funds.

Election of LWVUS council delegates: Kathryn Bonzo and Susan Steele will be LWVID’s delegates to Virtual Council in June. There will be two sites, one in Moscow and the other in Kootenai.

Invitation to LWVID council 2010 Board will need to hold council by virtual means again—date to be determined later.

Presentation of Certificates Turrill presented Certificates of Appreciation to Maxine Miller and Virginia Foote for their service to the League.

Announcement: Slotten announces that at least 50 members of the public signed in at Dr. Adler’s lecture Saturday evening. It is recommended that Dr. Adler be presented with a honorary league membership.

Action Items: Action Motion committee reported on the following action items: 1. Add resolution procedure to convention rules—Miller 2. Change “Pledge” to “PMP” in convention documents—Foote 3. Deliver historical documentation on positions to Gardner—Miller/Foote 4. Review Land Use Position—Kootenai League 5. Research facts from Endowment Land Position—Wilson 6. Revise Tax Structure Position to reflect current law— Fuller 7. Request UVI and IWN newsletters—Douglas 8. Present honorary membership to Dr. Adler. 9. See also items from instructions to the board.

It was moved and seconded to adjourn; motion carried. Meeting adjourned 11:00 am.