Steering Committee Meeting October 23rd, 2022

https://docs.google.com/document/d/16BP-dB3FkXLyK-wgO_C4ZcbHMmMvtIohLODfpyBG7cc/edit

East Bay DSA 

Steering Committee Meeting Agenda

October 23rd, 2022

10am-12pm

Zoom link: 

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82672171030?pwd=wEcJ3vtLWn7B7fa0Ki6dqih3Kn4bCM.1

Meeting ID: 826 7217 1030

Passcode: 466367

Steering Committee Agenda

1. Settle in 10:00AM-10:05AM [5 min] 
2. Shane R
3. Maddy GW
4. Michael S
5. Max M
6. Yari G
7. Matthew L
8. Renee P
9. Graham D 

1. Kabir K
2. Kat O
3. Ella T

1. Approval of Agenda 10:05AM-10:10AM [5 min]

1. Consent Agenda 10:10AM-10:15 [5 min]
2. Resolution to Delay the GM by 1 Week [Matthew]

• Motivated by: Matthew L
• “BE IT RESOLVED that the November 13 regular membership meeting is rescheduled to November 20.”

1. Reports 10:15AM-10:20AM [5 min]
2. EBLS [Maddy Grace]
3. Electoral [Shane and Matthew] HIGHLIGHTS:

• 10 people canvass a week with OUSD candidate's own people [5-10], hoping to get more as the opponent. Nikki’s campaign is on the back burner. Several leaders are taking a step back to prevent/recover from burnout. 
• Berkeley rent board dipped in turn out, and needs more funds for some of the candidates
• Q: Chapter can have up to 4 chairs

1. Anti-Imperialist Subcommittee [Mike]

• NOT HERE

1. Discussion 10:20AM-11:00AM [40 min]
2. Better SC Meetings [Yari]

• Approving of minutes?
• Formal or informal structure? I.e. with/without resolutions?
• Meeting in person/hybrid; and a social among leadership?
• Robert's rules are essential to maintaining bodies [working group, committees, etc.]
• Alternative to Robert’s [makers try to prevent it from being in public domain]? Rusty’s rules?

1. Poli Ed [Max and Shane]

• Increasing depoliticized events, low turnout. Reduce the number of events? 
• Night school/Barnstorms?
• Leadership committee/training/buzz topic?
• Less poli ed stuff?
• Too much stuff happening?

1. Replacing Manger for Nov/Dec [Shane and Ella]

1. New Business 11:00AM-12:00PM [1 hour]
2. Resolution to Authorize Staffer to Support Recruitment and Leadership Development Efforts for our Electoral Campaigns [Shane]

• Q&A
• Debate

1. One of the worries was that the position would become politicized and was one of the reasons people were against staffing. 
2. The electoral stuff needs support, if its things we’ve already agreed to do. This is about developing leaders. 
3. Q: A good opportunity to engage members during the election [only two more weeks] and can see this working for labor strike support.
4. 
   

• Vote: PASSES 6 yes 1 no 2 abstains

1. Resolution to Authorize a Budget to Provide Food at Events for East Bay DSA’s Endorsed Campaigns in Berkeley [Matthew]

• Facilitated by Shane
• Q&A
• Debate
•  Vote: 6 yes; 1 no 1 abstain

1. Resolution to Create an Interim Process so East Bay DSA Can
2. Effectively Use Social Media Through the Current Election [Matthew]
3. Substitution Amendment 
4. WITHDRAWN

D. Resolution to Update Chapter Social Media Credentials and Share Them Securely

• Q&A
• MOtion for friendly amendment to specify chapter co-chairs and vice chairs. PASSED via acclimation
• Debate
• Vote: PASSES unanimously 9 yes, 0 no
• MATTHEW withdraws resolution C in response

E. Spoke

MOtivated by Kat O

Q&A

Motion to amend by Renee - 

Debate

Vote: Passes 7 yes

F. Resolution to Delay the GM by 1 Week [Matthew]

1. Motivated by: Matthew L
2. Motion to extend meeting by 15 mins
3. Motion vote PASSES unanimously
4. “BE IT RESOLVED that the November 13 regular membership meeting is rescheduled to November 20.”
5. Q&A
6. Debate
7. Resolution WITHDRAWN

G. Executive Session: Office Negotiations

• ***WILL NOT BE POSTED***
• 
  
• Update by Max

1. We voted to considered Omni
2. Last thursday the Omni council meeting approved the rent
3. One objected
4. Wanted to increase the rent 2000
5. Room is worth 1100
6. Settled for 1600
7. Corny tax
8. A red flag; probably shouldn’t entangle with someone
9. Shouldn’t get into the internal politics; too much going on. We could check the place now that we have more funds. 
10. Would not be part of the member collective
11. They keep increasing the rent
12. Still no guarantee there’ll be around in a couple of months.
13. “We’re not paying a corny tax”
14. Only one person recommended raising the price. 
15. A second space might be preferred
16. Pursue a more commercial rent relationship with Omni
17. This was likely politically motivated
18. PROPOSAL: pursue other office spaces besides Omni and the inform the Omni we were surprised that the rent increase
19. What are the terms that we’d accept the Omni??

• MOTION to Exten time to 12:30

1. PASSES - 6 Yes 2 no

• Should we consider being an Omni tenant under any conditions?

1. Debate
2. Pro: a community run space in the temescal area
3. Con: playing games, don’t appear to take us seriously
4. Vote
5. Proposal - VOTE: 4 yes 5 no
6. Negotiation continues

1. Return to 1250/month and 2 free GMs/year AND pursue other options
2. Amendment: “we will identify it as an unprincipled move and will ask for a plan to prevent this from happening in the future”

Consent Agenda

Resolution to Delay the GM by 1 Week  

Submitted by Matthew L.

BE IT RESOLVED, that the November 13 regular membership meeting is rescheduled to November 20.

NEW BUSINESS

 Resolution to Authorize Staffer to Support Recruitment and Leadership Development Efforts for our Electoral Campaigns

[full text]

Submitted by Shane R.

Whereas, electoral campaigns have been a potent tool for recruitment and development of member skills,

Whereas, the chapter and volunteers needs support in administering, recruiting, and developing leaders from our current 3 electoral campaigns (RPA, Berkeley, OUSD),

Whereas, all three of our electoral chairs have taken a step back in their leadership positions in the past several weeks,

Whereas, we should experiment with the staffer developing members leadership for future campaigns, 

Therefore be it resolved, we authorize Ella T to support phonebanks, textbanks, and member communication for the RPA, Berkeley, and OUSD campaigns,

Therefore be it resolved, Ella T will work with point people from each campaign to ensure that these campaigns continue to be member-run,

Therefore, be it resolved that Ella T will work with existing leaders of these campaigns to develop new leaders through 1-on-1s and group trainings

Authorizing a Budget to Provide Food at Events for

East Bay DSA’s Endorsed Campaigns in Berkeley

[full text]

Submitted by Matthew L.

WHEREAS, East Bay DSA has endorsed the Right to Housing Slate (Soli Alpert, Negeene Mosaed, Ida Martinac, Nathan Mizell, and Vanessa Danielle Marrero) for Berkeley Rent Board; and

WHEREAS, because the Berkeley Rent Board is elected citywide, the Right to Housing Slate is able to do all of their campaigning together; and

WHEREAS, East Bay DSA has also endorsed YES on Berkeley Measure M (vacancy tax); and

WHEREAS, all or virtually all of the Right to Housing Slate’s campaign events have also supported YES on Measure M; and

WHEREAS, this means that resources spent by East Bay DSA in support of the Right to Housing Slate are essentially supporting six East Bay DSA-endorsed campaigns (five Rent Board candidates and a ballot measure position); and

WHEREAS, this will likely be the one of the closest elections for Berkeley Rent Board in the approximately 3 decades since the creation of the Berkeley Rent Board Convention; and

WHEREAS, the Right to Housing Slate’s campaign has determined that being able to advertise free food at events would be helpful to increasing volunteer turnout; and

WHEREAS, providing free food at events is unfortunately not something the Right to Housing Slate can afford to prioritize. The Right to Housing Slate is operating on an extremely tight budget and needs to pinch every penny to pay for expenses like canvassing literature and mailers. While the Slate’s opponents can finance their campaigns through unethical methods like $7,500 self-financing donations, the Slate is using public financing, which caps donations at $60 per person; and

WHEREAS, Berkeley Municipal Code 2.12.440 prohibits East Bay DSA from making “contributions” to candidates for Berkeley office; and

WHEREAS, Berkeley Municipal Code 2.12.100 provides that “The term "contribution" shall not include… food and beverages the value of which for any one event is no more than fifty dollars;” and

WHEREAS, this means that East Bay DSA may provide up to $50 worth of food and beverages to the Rent Board Slate at each of their events; and

WHEREAS, the East Bay DSA Treasurer has requested that a specific budget be approved for any such expenses; and

WHEREAS, the Right to Housing Slate would like to have free food for volunteers for at least six canvasses/literature drops and two phonebanks; and

WHEREAS, $400 total for food comes out to only $80 per East Bay DSA-endorsed candidate (or less than $67 if you also include the sixth endorsed campaign, YES on Measure M); and

WHEREAS, at the last Steering Committee meeting, we voted to contribute $2,400 to our endorsed candidates for Oakland Unified School District Board (i.e. $800 per candidate);

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that East Bay DSA authorizes spending up to $400 to provide food and beverages at events for the Right to Housing Slate; 

PROVIDED that, notwithstanding anything to the contrary, the value of food and beverages provided by East Bay DSA at any one event for the Right to Housing Slate shall be no more than fifty dollars.

Creating an Interim Process so East Bay DSA Can

Effectively Use Social Media Through the Current Election

[full text]

Submitted by Matthew L.

WHEREAS, submissions to the East Bay DSA request form for social media have gone unanswered for a long time;,

WHEREAS, members who wish to have something put on social media are told to post in the “Meme Coop” WhatsApp group and someone in the group chat will post it; and

WHEREAS, multiple requests in the “Meme Coop” to publish social media promoting official East Bay DSA canvasses have gone without any kind of response; and

WHEREAS, even members of the Chapter’s Steering Committee - the chapter’s highest body - have no idea who has access to the Chapter’s social media or how to have posts in support of the Chapter’s official work published on social media; and

WHEREAS, there is effectively no way for Chapter leaders to get things published on social media; and

WHEREAS, East Bay DSA wisely intends in the medium-term to develop permanent processes to effectively use social media; and

WHEREAS, however, that will not be done before the ongoing election; and

WHEREAS, it is not reasonable for the Chapter to largely be unable to effectively use social media at all during an ongoing election; such a situation hampers our ability to effectively campaign for endorsed candidates and ballot measure positions; and

WHEREAS, it is therefore necessary to create an interim process that lasts through the election;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that East Bay DSA adopts the following interim social media process:

___________ is appointed as the interim Social Media Point Person. The Social Media Point Person shall be granted access to all of the chapter’s social media accounts and shall be in charge of publishing requested social media in support of official East Bay DSA events and campaigns (e.g. canvasses and phonebanks). (For the avoidance of confusion, the Social Media Point Person is not required to publish all requested social media; they are expected to exercise sound and reasonable judgment in prioritizing and approving requests.)

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the process laid out above shall expire on November 28, 2022; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that nothing in this resolution shall be construed as weighing in on what should be the chapter’s permanent processes for social media.