Agenda

Times are approximate and subject to change at the Chair’s discretion.

Meeting Minutes

Chair: Anthony L.

Secretary: Minnie

Call to order at 7:07pm

• Roy motions to adopt the agenda. None opposed, agenda is adopted.
• Adoption of the last meeting’s minutes – Minnie will amend the minutes to reflect what SC members confirmed regarding their votes at the last meeting which I had to ask about. Minnie moves to adopt, none opposed. Minutes are adopted. 

Check In & Grounding – Nathaniel encourages SC members to check in since we haven’t had the chance to spend much time together and we have to immediately start working together. The invitation is to share a practice that you use in order to stay grounded. What practices do you use to stay grounded? What do you need us to know to be able to work together and engage here this evening? 

• Sarah – Would like to share some things about how to interact with me because of my sleep schedule. I will start checking things at 12pm. If you need something from me in a timely manner, please call me! I get chemo brain and sometimes lose my train of thought. If you notice that happen, if you can say the last few words that will help. Hopes we can all give each other the benefit of the doubt.
• Shaun – Excited for the new SC. I have big shoes to fill please bear with me in Member Engagement! Shout out to Roy to answer things in a timely fashion. I’m just excited.
• Anthony – What I look like when I’m not grounded, I get impulsive. That’s what it looks like. I’m proud of the progress I’ve made. To help me, I lean on the support of Minnie and Aimee’s help. Last year, Tiffany, but now probably Roy. What also helps me is “What do the members actually care about?” Sometimes it’s maybe not as important as we think. 
• Minnie – Perspective about why we are here keeps her grounded. Her family and meditation help. She hasn’t felt too grounded so far, and she’s feeling a bit overwhelmed, especially with technology-related items. Asks for grace from others as she adjusts to her new role. 
• Roy – This past week has been a bit overwhelming with a lot going on behind the scenes. 
• Nathaniel – I appreciate folks sharing. It’s a place to share from the heart. Joining a new organization or working group, we all bring assumptions and prior experiences into a new space with all having a shared goal. I am coming into a space with my own lens. I care a lot about process. I want to do my best to practice the good faith of all  comrades coming into the space with their own perspectives and lenses. Wanting to be cognizant of that and getting to know each other better.
• Natasha – Doesn’t feel comfortable sharing right now.
• Aimee – unable to speak during this period

Portfolio Reports

• Anthony: As Chair, has been working to keep members informed of voting procedures. Will be using Slack’s reminder features to have votes open/close on time. For Security and to support Roy, reviewed BitWarden and updated everyone’s access. See this spreadsheet for details. Will be talking to Minnie about reorganizing the Google Drive so that folders can be grouped based on their security level, and then shared appropriately. He also looked up information on some new members to identify any red flags but found none.
  • There was a suggestion to provide all SC members Zoom and Canva, which he is in favor of. None are opposed.
• Sarah –  Generally learning about SC and bylaws and resolutions. As far as inventory/merch, will connect with Tiffany and Minnie offered help.
• Sean Young provided a written report since he is unable to attend tonight’s meeting: Poli Ed is preparing to re-run the Direct Action presentation on Thursday 28th. Will get some graphics up to be used on socials
• Minnie – Learning to take notes and participate at the same time. Met with Tiffany to transfer some items and knowledge, such as info about managing member lists and uploading to Action Network. Has been collecting SC contact info for national. Updating the website with SC minutes.
• Natasha – Has worked with Mike, sent emails, made social posts. Will keep doing what she’s doing.
• Nathaniel – I’ve made a little more progress than I hoped. Good conversations with a few comrades like Jose S who is  a less involved member, also with Amaya (sp?) from LV Indian Center and Fifth Sun. Jose did a great presentation on the framing of a Just Transition and I think it would be really interesting to our Cultivate Desert Power priority. I would propose that he do that while tailoring it towards a just transition and tools and grounding and localized framing. Not sure what he might present but I think he would be great. Reached out to Laura M about my concerns that we could all benefit from training related to anti-oppression, anti-racism and anti-sexism. Laura has experience doing that. PLAN has led this work in NV before. They’ve done Undoing Racism and Decolonization Training. She was glad to offer whatever that may look like. Those are conversations that I’ve had. These are experiences and resources I’d like to share and cultivate with our members.  Q from Anthony – Especially for Yes on Neighborhood Stability – I think there’s going to need to be a training on structured organizing conversations in the next month  for door to door canvasses. Can you fit that in? Nathaniel – Yes, absolutely. 
• Shaun – I will be more active in the next couple of weeks. Next MEWG meeting coming up soon and NMO. I reached out to Rahima to help with some events. Aaron is also interested in helping. Trying to keep those who ran for SC close and involved. Will try to update member contacts and go through slack if people moved, etc.
• Roy – Digital management portfolio. I’ve made a number of events that have to go through zoom, website, calendar, slack integration. Thanks to Tiffany for setting that up. I think I owe some people some events. I’ll be reaching out to SC members who were involved in drafting priority campaigns to get more info for the website. 
• Aimee – Updated list of officers with the state. Didn’t include this in the budget will need to amend it as this cost $50. This happens any time we change officers and our annual business license. Transitioning away from the lvdsatreasury email. Helps keep us accountable if everything is coming through the main account. Don’t need a separate Treasurer’s email. Started working on putting the budget into Money Minder. After that, I can really get this accounting software up and running. Aimee gives description of current accounts and will provide a written report for linking. We haven’t spent much except around convention. Describes current expenses. Overpaid the Nunnery by $50 by accident. Will be shutting down Venmo in alignment with national DSA policies. 

Miscellaneous Tasks

• Translation team – Roy offers to take this on
• National coordination – Roy can add these to the calendar. Kara can take on a lot of this too. Kara can give updates from national. Minnie says anyone can go to the monthly SW Regional meetings. 
• Worker Power Wednesday – hosted a space monthly to talk about labor organizing, a virtual hangout – should we keep it? Q from Nathaniel – how was the turnout?  Anthony – if we did mobilizing, then we would get people, but often only 3. Roy – we could maybe let it die for the moment. Back in Seattle we had these every Weds. Sometimes no one, sometimes 5 people. The people who hosted them were professional organizers. Maybe we can shelve it for awhile and find a member who is interested in getting more involved and have them get this off the ground. Sarah – in chat, I think we should keep it if we can find a way to use it to build power. Would be good to have a member who isn’t in a leadership position take it on. If it’s not helping us, then we don’t need to make it a high priority. Anthony – let it go, if someone outside of this group wants to do it, then we should encourage them. No opposition to letting WPW go for now until a member steps forward to take it on. 

Proposed Fiscal Policy – presented by Aimee

• Would like to have this prepped and ready to show to membership so they can understand how we intend to manage our finances this year. Will need ⅔ vote of SC to approve.
• Fiscal/calendar year – national has suggested that we align our fiscal and calendar years. Our fiscal year should be Jan-Dec. They will walk us through it. Aimee is unclear why we should do this? Our fiscal year is March 1 to Feb 28th. If we align our calendar year with this, it gets messed up because of convention. This was a suggestion. But it seems like a mess. 
• Is there anyone who would like to chat with me or discuss these issues? Minnie volunteers
• Q from Minnie – how does this work with our current fiscal policy. Answer – this is a policy not a resolution. This has to be approved by us as a SC. Our purchasing resolution will continue on. 
• Anthony – our resolution fits in this fiscal policy under authorizations. 
• Q from Roy – does national make us submit financial reports? Aimee – not that I know of. We filed our taxes. She thinks this is a problem. Kara mentions in chat that national staff that deal with financials are overwhelmed. 
• Q from Zach, guest – Why does our fiscal year run a quarter fast? Aimee – I don’t know. It was like that once we started. 
• Q from Tiffany – when it defines our fiscal year, why does it end on 2/28 of the same year? Aimee – I will look at it and adjust the dates.
• Aimee will schedule some zoom time for anyone who wants to help work through this. Everyone is welcome, please get on the doc and make any suggestions. 

Possible statement in support of Erika B

• Anthony – Erika B made a comment from the bench about not wanting to be around police as a Black woman. Police union, Joe Lombardo, Adam Laxalt  have called for her resignation. Lots of heat from the right wing. NAACP is releasing a statement tonight. Clark County Black Caucus is also releasing a statement. I would like to see us put out a statement. In the past, we’ve generally made some agreements about the messaging and then pass it over to Comms. We take a look at it and then send it out.
• Natasha – I’ve already gotten some suggestions. Please continue to suggest things here and in slack and I can condense things.
• Shaun – at the Mass Lib meeting they mentioned it is now national news. People have continued to try to silence her even from the time she was a public defender with a Black Lives Matter pin. Insanely wild that they are calling for the resignation of a democratically elected official.  
• Natasha – everyone can join the Comms channel and join in discussion of crafting the statement. Please give input, it will be appreciated.

Approve Working Groups

• Anthony – We didn’t follow this closely last year. But according to bylaws, the SC should approve all kinds of formations described in the bylaws.
• Anthony makes the following motion: Motion to create a working group for each of the following: Communications, Member Engagement, and Political Education. Each Working Group will be overseen by the Steering Committee member with the corresponding portfolio. The Working Groups will be assigned no budget. The Working Groups will be reassessed by the next Steering Committee within 30 days of the close of Convention. Sarah seconds. 8 in favor, 1 absent. Motion passes.
• Question about share/mutual events working group. Anthony motions that we table this until the next meeting. Natasha seconds. Aimee asks about timing if we delay since next SunSol is in less than two weeks. Would have to proceed without funds, without venmo. Tamara planned on canceling Hendershare this month. 6 in favor, 0 opposed, 2 abstentions. 

Executive Session

Meeting adjourned at 10:01pm