September PHL DSA AMERICA SOCIALISTS of DEMOCRATIC

General Meeting September General Meeting Agenda Sept 14, 2019 | 12:30-4:00 PM | First Unitarian Church | 2125 Chestnut St. Call to Order 1:00 PM Guest Speaker 1:00-1:15 PM Marty Harrison rank-and-file nurse on the closure of Hahnemann Committee Reports 1:15-2:00 PM Treasurer's Report Steering Committee Report Bernie Sanders Campaign Report Recess 2:00-2:10 PM

Candidate Interviews 2:10-2:40 PM Kendra Brooks and Nicolas O’Rourke to answer questions from the membership. Standing Rules Discussion 2:40-3:00 PM Bylaws and Resolutions 3:00-3:30 PM Introduction to Rules by the Chair Bylaws Amendment for Article XII, Section 2 ...... Bylaws Amendment 2019:09:01 To Establish A Temporary Green New Deal Strategy Committee ...... Resolution 2019:09:01 Endorse Kendra Brooks for City Council At-Large ...... Resolution 2019:09:02 Endorse Nicolas O’Rourke for City Council At-Large ...... Resolution 2019:09:03 Announcements 3:30 PM Report from National Convention Fundraising for Bernie Campaign Adjourn 4:00 PM

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Resolutions and Bylaws Amendments

Bylaws Amendment 2019:09:01 to Article XII, Section 2 Authors: Eamon Caddigan, Sam Chenkin 1 Endorsements: Eamon Caddigan, Sam Chenkin, Adam Schlesinger, Ronald Joseph, Austin Binns, 2 Jesse G Kudler, Anlin Wang, Jason Oscar, Dave Backer, Mitchell Broesder, Khalil Manns, Sophie 3 Song, Samuel Schwartz, Henry Steinberg, Sarah Jones, Mark Blaho, Andrew Moskowitz, Garett 4 Miller, Conor Geiger, Michele Rossi, Dan Kauder, William Markham, Mitch Chanin, Matt Chewning, 5 Roncy, Daniel Parker, Shelly Ronen, Maxime Delafosse-Brown, Jason Linderman, Tarig Robinson, 6 Bianca Adams, Sus Volz 7 8 Resolved that the following text be added to the end of Article XII, Section 2: 9 Consolidated and updated Standing Rules, Policies and Procedures of the Local will be 10 maintained by the Communications Committee and made available to the membership through the 11 organization's website. Additions and changes will be annotated with dates and links to any 12 Originating materials. 13

Resolution 2019.06.00: Establish A Temporary Green New Deal Strategy Committee Authors: Matt L, Jason L, Alex N, Mary M, David M Co-Sponsors: David S, Ben S, Bill S, Pearl M, Eric M, Melissa N 14 15 Whereas, our current rate of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is an existential threat to humanity; 16 and

17 Whereas, GHG emission rates must go negative this century to guarantee a liveable climate; and

18 Whereas, the transition to a zero-emissions economy, let alone a negative-emissions economy, is 19 progressing at an inadequate pace because of the political clout of fossil fuel incumbents; and

20 Whereas, the monumental task of transitioning to a negative-emissions economy now requires a 21 massive green jobs program that could employ millions of Americans; and

22 Whereas, the untapped power of organized labor is needed to win such a program; and

23 Whereas, a green jobs program that ensured a tighter labor market and transferred massive amounts 24 of wealth from capitalists to workers would strengthen organized labor;

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1 Therefore be it resolved, that Philadelphia DSA create a temporary committee to write a strategy 2 document to guide campaign work around a local Green New Deal policy that prioritizes green jobs 3 and working in coalition with organized labor; and

4 Be it further resolved, that the committee shall submit the strategy document for approval by Philly 5 DSA’s general membership by the last General Meeting of 2019; and

6 Be it further resolved, t hat the strategy document’s recommendations emphasize how Green New 7 Deal campaign work can be undertaken by the chapter’s existing committees; and

8 Be it further resolved, that the committee’s strategy document outline canvassing, legislative 9 pressure, policy advocacy and other tactics for Philly DSA to utilize in advancing the Green New Deal 10 in the Philadelphia area; and

11 Be it finally resolved, that the committee consist of Matt L (Chair), Jason L, David M, and Mary M, 12 plus up to three additional members to be appointed by the co-Chairs of the chapter, in consultation 13 with the chair of the committee, before the first meeting.

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Resolution 2019:09:01: Endorse Kendra Brooks for City Council At-Large Authors: Ron Joseph, Austin Binns, Anlin Wang Cosponsors: Michele Rossi, Seth Kulick 15 16 Whereas, t he 2019 National DSA Convention voted to prioritize Democratic Socialist electoral efforts 17 and prioritize class struggle elections that build working class power;

18 Whereas, t he 2019 electoral cycle presents strategic opportunities for our Local to advance 19 Democratic Socialist politics and program at the municipal level;

20 Whereas, the 2019 municipal elections present strategic opportunities to advance the democratic 21 socialist agenda, in particular the Domestic Worker Bill of Rights, fully-funded public education, an 22 end to the tax abatement, and a Green New Deal for Philadelphia;

23 Whereas, t his election presents an historic opportunity to defeat incumbent Republicans in 24 Philadelphia City Council who currently hold the at-large seats dedicated to minority parties;

25 Whereas, a victory by Kendra Brooks on the Working Families Party ballot line can help develop an 26 independent working class political alternative to the Republican and Democratic party machines in 27 Philadelphia;

28 Whereas, K endra Brooks has a demonstrated record of activism in support of the values embodied 29 by Philly DSA; and,

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1 Whereas, K endra Brooks’ answers to Philly DSA’s endorsement questionnaire demonstrate a 2 commitment to advancing a legislative agenda in line with Philly DSA’s values;

3 Therefore be it resolved, that Philly DSA will endorse Kendra Brooks for the At-Large seats in the 4 Philadelphia City Council;

5 Be it further resolved, that Philly DSA will support Kendra Brooks’ campaign through regular 6 canvassing, phone and text banking, and media outreach.

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Resolution 2019:09:02: Endorse Nicolas O’Rourke for City Council At-Large Authors: Ron Joseph, Austin Binns, Anlin Wang Cosponsors: Michele Rossi, Seth Kulick 8 9 Whereas, the 2019 National DSA Convention voted to prioritize Democratic Socialist electoral efforts 10 and prioritize class struggle elections that build working class power;

11 Whereas, the 2019 electoral cycle presents strategic opportunities for our Local to advance 12 Democratic Socialist politics and program at the municipal level;

13 Whereas, the 2019 municipal elections present strategic opportunities to advance the democratic 14 socialist agenda, in particular the Domestic Worker Bill of Rights, fully-funded public education, an 15 end to the tax abatement, and a Green New Deal for Philadelphia;

16 Whereas, this election presents an historic opportunity to defeat incumbent Republicans in 17 Philadelphia City Council who currently hold the at-large seats dedicated to minority parties;

18 Whereas, a victory by Nicolas O’Rourke on the Working Families Party ballot line can help develop 19 an independent working class political alternative to the Republican and Democratic party machines in 20 Philadelphia;

21 Whereas, N icolas O’Rourke has a demonstrated record of activism in support of the values embodied 22 by Philly DSA; and,

23 Whereas, Nicolas O’Rourke’s answers to Philly DSA’s endorsement questionnaire demonstrate a 24 commitment to advancing a legislative agenda in line with Philly DSA’s values;

25 Therefore be it resolved, t hat Philly DSA will endorse Nicolas O’Rourke for the At-Large seat in the 26 Philadelphia City Council;

27 Be it further resolved, that Philly DSA will support Nicolas O’Rourke’s campaign through regular 28 canvassing, phone and text banking, and media outreach.

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Appendix I: Standing Rules Standing Rules Philly DSA General Meetings

Resolution and Amendment Submission 1 1. All resolutions up for debate at a general meeting must be submitted to the resolutions 2 commission of the steering committee at least [3] weeks prior to the meeting. The resolutions 3 commission will make sure that the resolution is in order with Roberts Rules, the Philly DSA 4 Bylaws, and the Philly DSA Standing Rules. 5 2. All amendments to resolutions must be submitted to the resolutions commission of the 6 steering committee at least [1] week prior to the meeting. The resolutions commission will 7 make sure that the resolution is in order with Roberts Rules, the Philly DSA Bylaws, and the 8 Philly DSA Standing Rules. Motivation and Debate 9 1. During debate members are asked to be respectful and comradely towards each other. Please 10 confine comments to the merits of the matter being discussed. 11 2. The chair will introduce resolutions to be debated as laid out by the order of the agenda with 12 full title and number so that members may follow along in the packet. The chair will introduce a 13 new resolution as a main motion and introduce an author of the resolution to talk about its 14 content. The author will then have 3 minutes of speaking time. After this the body will move 15 into debating the resolution. 16 3. All speakers whether in debate or from the floor should state their name. 17 4. In the event that there is an amendment to the resolution, immediately after the main 18 resolution is introduced, the chair will call up an author of the amendment to speak about its 19 content. The author will have 2 minutes to introduce their amendment. The body will then 20 move directly into debating the amendment. After a vote is taken on the amendment, the body 21 will move directly into debating the main motion. 22 5. Any motion that requires debate will be allowed to have 2 speakers for and against. After 2 23 speakers for each side, the chair will ask for points or motions, at which time members can 24 motion to extend speakers for and against (by a definite number of speakers, eg 1 more 25 speaker for and against), can call the question, etc. 26 6. If the meeting is approaching the scheduled adjournment time, the chair will ask the 27 membership if it would like to refer agenda items to the steering committee for a vote. Order of the Agenda 28 1. The order of items on the new business agenda will be determined by the following: 29 a. Resolutions relating to the political priorities determined by Philly DSA’s latest local 30 convention 31 b. Resolutions relating to external campaign work

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1 c. Resolutions establishing new bodies of the local 2 d. Resolutions relating to administrative matters of the local 3 e. Any other resolutions Sub-Bodies of the Local - Committees, Commissions, Auxiliary Bodies

Committee Online Voting Policy Online voting should be avoided and used only for noncontroversial matters that require a rapid response. When a decision is raised in committee for a vote online, members have at least 24 hours to respond. If during that time two or more members of the committee request via email to hold off on the vote pending further deliberation and/or online discussion, the online vote is null and void, even if a majority of the committee has already voted. Committee Membership 4 1. Committees must have at least 3 members and can have no more than 12 official members, 5 with the exception of the steering committee whose membership is laid out in the bylaws of the 6 chapter and selected at biannual local conventions. 7 2. Chairs of committees may set standards for membership on the committee, including but not 8 limited to - committee meeting attendance, attendance at events organized by the committee, 9 and continued active participation in the committee. These standards must be made clear and 10 be easily accessible for committee members to review. If a member of a committee violates 11 one of these standards, the chair of the committee must contact the chair of the chapter and 12 notify them of member removal. 13 3. Chairs may (as laid out in the bylaws and standing rules) appoint additional or replacement 14 members to their committee on a rolling basis, provided the committee never exceeds the 15 maximum number of official members. 16 4. Committees may create additional internal positions, including but not limited to a vice-chair or 17 secretary, as suits their organizational needs. Committee Reporting Requirements 18 1. Meetings of temporary committees are public and should be advertised in the bulletin and on 19 the Philly DSA website 20 2. Meeting minutes of temporary committees should be submitted to the secretary of the chapter 21 no later than 2 months after regular meetings 22 3. Temporary committees must submit quarterly written reports to the secretary of the chapter Committee Budgets 23 Each year and/or within three months of the committee’s establishment, the committee chair will meet 24 with the chapter treasurer to discuss their anticipated budgetary needs. The treasurer will then 25 deliberate with the steering committee, which will vote to determine the committee’s annual budget.

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Temporary Committees 1 1. The scope of temporary committees may be one of the following 2 a. Organizing a campaign or tactic 3 b. Carrying out a specific task within the local not yet delegated to another body, 4 committee, or commission 5 c. Studying a specific political question 6 d. Issuing recommendations pertinent to a current or potential task in the local 7 2. Upon proposal, temporary committee resolutions should specify who will chair the committee 8 and how many members can sit on the committee at any point. The rest of the committee 9 members will be appointed by the chair and vice chair of the chapter, in consultation with the 10 chair of the temporary committee. 11 3. The committee chair will be responsible for ensuring that the committee: 12 a. Follows the chapters internal reporting standards 13 b. Effectively carries out its activities 14 c. Remains within the mandate given to it by the membership Non-Deliberative and Auxiliary Groups 15 1. Meetings of non-deliberative and auxiliary groups will be advertised if they obtain approval 16 from the steering committee 17 2. Any events organized by non-deliberative and auxiliary groups must obtain approval either 18 from the general membership (at a general meeting) or the steering committee in order to 19 officially be considered a Philly DSA event, entitled to using the chapter name, getting online 20 advertising from the chapter, and getting support from chapter committees 21 3. Non-deliberative and auxiliary groups cannot have social media accounts (facebook, twitter, 22 instagram, etc) representing themselves as official bodies of Philly DSA unless they seek and 23 obtain approval from the steering committee Steering Committee

Ad Hoc Action Approval 24 1. Requests to endorse/advertise/co-sponsor/participate in other group’s actions or events 25 should be sent to the chair and vice chair at p [email protected] 26 2. Chairs should present requests to the steering committee no later than the following regular 27 steering committee meeting. If the request must be responded to before the next regular 28 meeting, the steering committee should make a decision via email or virtual call. 29 3. Requests about ad hoc actions should be evaluated based on: 30 a. The criteria laid out in resolution 1 1:18:05 31 b. The priorities established at our local convention 32 c. Philly DSA’s active campaign work 33 d. Whether or not any official coalition partners are involved

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Steering Committee Communications Policy 1 1. Any requests to the chairs or steering committee of Philly DSA must be sent to the official 2 chapter gmail p [email protected]. A response to the email will be issued within 72 hours. 3 2. Requests for agenda items: A member can request to add an item to the steering committee 4 agenda. Such requests must be sent no less than 72 hours ahead of the steering committee 5 meeting or they are not guaranteed consideration. A member of the steering committee must 6 then request that the item be added to the agenda. 7 3. Requests to endorse, co-sponsor, promote an outside event must be sent at least a week in 8 advance. Requests sent in less than a week in advance may still be considered but the 9 steering committee may not have enough time to discuss and make a decision. Upon 10 approving Philly DSA’s participation in an outside event, the steering committee will appoint 11 one of its members to serve as a point person to help coordinate any outreach as well as other 12 event needs. They may also choose to appoint additional people to help from the chapter writ 13 large. Campaigns 14 1. The chair of the local may appoint a coordinating committee of up to three (3) members for 15 any platform priority

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