Regular Club Meeting

  Tuesday, January 27

6:00 p.m.

Zion Presbyterian Church

545 Ashbury Ave

Happy New Year!

The next Club meeting will be on Tuesday, January 27. We have packed agenda for our first meeting of 2015. We’ll be discussing Club goals for the year, the annual budget, electing executive board members and discussing the meeting calendar for the year. Please see the proposed 2015 budget within the newsletter.

Please join the El Cerrito Democratic Club at the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration Parade and Program on Monday, January 19. Club members will be walking together. Meet at the El Cerrito DMV parking lot at 6400 Manilla Ave at 8:45 a.m. to then walk to El Cerrito High School for the MLK Day program.

Election years are always busy for the El Cerrito Democratic Club but 2014 was a whirlwind. The Club organized four endorsement forums, walked pounds of literature for endorsed candidates and a ballot initiative and had many great speakers and interesting topics presented at our regular Club meetings.  Our Club members were very active volunteering on multiple campaigns and got out the vote in June and November. I want to thank the executive board-Greg Lyman, Gabe Qunito, Mister Phillips and Scott Lyons for their hard work this year.

What are we going to do in 2015 (a non-election year)? The main focus we want to have this year is increasing and diversifying our membership. The executive board brainstormed a few ideas on how to make that happen and would like the Club’s feedback and ideas at the January meeting:

• ECDC-lead initiatives

o    Enact a Living Wage Ordinance in the City of El Cerrito

o    Convert all El Cerrito voters to vote-by-mail/absentee ballots

• Increase partnerships by organizing and hosting events with other Democratic Clubs in the area (West County Dems, Hercules Dems, East Bay Young Dems, Contra Costa Young Dems)
• By-law updates and changes to streamline membership renewal

The following resolution (proposed by Club members Al and Barbara Miller) will be considered by the Club at the January meeting:

WHEREAS, Both Governor Jerry Brown and UC President Janet Napolitano have proposed major tuition increases for students at the University of California, further limiting the overwhelming majoring of California’s students from access to the University; and

WHEREAS, The driving force behind all tuition increases in California Higher Education is the cumulative financial shortfall caused by the under taxation of commercial and industrial property resulting from Prop 13; and

WHEREAS, There is an urgent need to place reform of Prop 13, in order to close commercial property loopholes and require annual reassessment of commercial properties, on the November 2016 ballot;

BE IT RESOLVED: That the El Cerrito Democratic Club requests that Senator Loni Hancock, Assembly member Rob Bonta and Assembly member Tony Thurmond publicly:

1. Oppose any further increases in California Higher Education
2. Support placing Prop 13 reform on the November 2016 ballot

Executive Board Candidates

• Carla Hansen-President and VP of Publications
• Greg Lyman-Executive Vice President and Treasurer
• Gabe Quinto-VP of Programs
• Scott Lyons-Immediate Past President
• Igor Tregub-VP of Membership

The executive board has many vacancies and needs volunteers to fill those rolls. If you’re interested in joining the board, please contact Carla Hansen ecdc.pres@gmail.com 

 Programming ideas for 2015

Here are options for meeting topics for 2015:

• Assembly member Tony Thurmond-Legislative Priorities
• West Contra Costa School District 2015 Priorities
• Police and Racial Bias
• Election Reform
• Keeping it Local- City Budget, San Pablo Ave Specific Plan, Affordable Housing, Smoking Ordinance
• Charter vs. Public School Debate
• Food and Water Watch
• Legalizing Marijuana
• Cancel June and July meetings

Club members are welcome to provide their own ideas for meetings and feedback on these ideas at the January meeting.