(Approved 1998-11-21)
Chair | John Brown | present |
Vice Chair | Richard Kerr, M.D. | absent |
Treasurer | John Sturgeon | present |
Secretary | David Wallace Croft | present |
1st District Chair | Bob Jones | present |
2nd District Chair | Karl Swisher | absent |
3rd District Chair | Wallace Johnson, M.D. | present |
VP/Membership | Greg Henshall | present |
VP/Campaigns | Joseph Whelan, M.D. | absent |
VP/Public Relations | Allan Handleman | present |
VP/Finance | Michael Todd, M.D. | present |
Historian | Larry Durrette | present |
LPWV 1/1/98 thru 8/28/98
Payments | $4,301.51 | ||
Deposits | $4,542.15 | ||
LNC-Memberships | $270.00 | ||
Bell Atlantic-WV | $248.17 | ||
LDDS - Long Distance | $0.00 | ||
Printing & Mailing | $857.98 | ||
Room Rentals | $0.00 | ||
Advertising | $0.00 | ||
Press Releases | $0.00 | ||
P.O. Box | $40.00 | ||
Convention | $2,384.36 | ||
Account Credits | $501.00 | ||
Total Expenses | $4,301.51 |
Mr. Henshall stated that 1/4th of 1% gives 80% of the money to political campaigns. Mrs. Johnson suggested that we should focus on the repeat donors in WV. Mr. Henshall brought up the Public Interest Research Group. Dr. Todd proposed soliticing out-of-state funds for races in which a Libertarian is running against a Democrat without a Republican candidate.
Dr. Todd recommended a campaign to write one letter to the editor a month. Mr. Bartlett confirmed that at least one of Dr. Kerr's letters to editor has proven effective. Mr. Brown stated that there have been more letters to the editor generated in the last 6 weeks by the LPWV than ever before.
Mr. Durrette proposed a greater use of online chat. Dr. Todd suggested ICQ which will alert users when others are online and available for chat. Ms. Johnson stated that she did not have ready access to the Internet and that the Internet encouraged push-button mentality without careful thought. Mr. Handleman described the advantages of the Internet. Mr. Jones cautioned that the Internet was not a saturated medium and advocated the continued use of regular mail. Dr. Todd agreed that it would never replace a convention but felt that the Internet was useful.
Mr. Croft provided copies of the constitution as amended at the convention and then requested approval on the interpretation. He recommended that future amendments state explicitly where and how they should be inserted into the document. He stated that there was some confusion because the constitution and bylaws had previously been treated as a combined document despite the different voting requirements for constitutional amendments vs. the bylaws. To avoid future confusion, he recommended keeping all unratified and ratified bylaws passed after the convention within a document separate and apart from the constitution.
Mr. Brown recommended moving the newly adopted Statement of Principles to the top of the Constitution as a preamble. Mr. Jones asked whether there had ever been a constitutional committee. Mr. Brown responded that Mr. Fritz had put the constitution together early on. Mr. Henshall was requested to form and lead a new committee to recommend updates to the constitution and bylaws. Mr. Henshall made an open invitation to all to submit recommendations. The Executive Committee approved the updated constitution with the recommended change.
Mr. Bartlett suggested that our primaries should be open to independents as well.
Mr. Croft moved to create a special committee to recommend the manner in which Initiative, Referendum, and Recall (IR&R) for the LPWV members could be introduced into the constitution and bylaws. The motion was withdrawn in light of the earlier formation of the special committee on the constitution and bylaws.
Election activities were discussed. Dr. Kerr was campaigning that day at a local wine festival. Mr. Brown suggested holding a function and presentation in Charleston to introduce area residents to the LPWV. It was mentioned that some LPWV candidates have websites.
The newsletter is two months late on its quarterly schedule. $700 is available for the publication. The format is limited to 4 pages due to the cost. The mailing cost is covered by a bulk rate permit. Mr. Brown, Mr. Handleman, and Mr. Durrette will be working to put the next issue out. Mr. Bartlett suggested sending copies to non-LPWV members but Mr. Brown cautioned that resources were limited.
Mr. Croft was invited by Mr. Brown to introduce his motion at that time on the renaming of the Executive Committee to an Executive Board. Mr. Croft declined but stated that such that the formation of a separate Executive Board may be necessary in the future to provide oversight of the Executive Committee, especially with regard to the expenditure of funds.
The place and time of the next meeting was discussed. The fact that the current meeting in Wheeling was not advertised was mentioned. There was a discussion of whether the beginning of the meetings could be closed to the public. Mr. Croft raised the issue of the newly adopted constitutional requirement to keep all Executive Committee meetings open to the public but conceded that there was no requirement to publicly advertise such meetings. It was suggested that an open forum for after the meeting could be advertised to the public to discuss or debate local topics such as mountaintop removal.
The next meeting was set for 13:00, Saturday, November 21st, 1998 at the Raleigh County Courthouse, Beckley. Dr. Johnson volunteered to make the reservation.
Mr. Brown announced that he had transferred the lpwv.org domain name to Mr. Handleman's Internet Service Provider (ISP). Mr. Croft questioned whether Mr. Brown had the independent authority to obligate the LPWV to expenditures such as the website. Mr. Brown questioned whether Mr. Croft had acted inappropriately by independently initiating the purchase of an lpwv.org website account on behalf of the LPWV. A discussion ensued which culminated in the Executive Committee unanimously passing motions to authorize the disbursement of funds to support the website, post office box, newsletter, and toll free phone number.
HISTORIAN'S REPORT LPWV - 09-12-98 I. Projects currently under way A. Development of Media Directory for LPWV members/candidates 1. Estimated completion date 10-01-98 2. Distribution to all active candidates in WV B. Hardcopy Filing System 1. Historical data on local, state and national issues 2. Editorial letters II. Projects planned A. Web site of historical data (work with David and Alan) B. Spreadsheet of Election '98 results by county C. Spreadsheet of Election '98 results by state III. Other/Suggestions A. Use of LPWV chat room 1. Special meetings 2. ExeCom meetings (particularly in Winter)