STATE LEAGUE NOTICES

(formerly State Board Update)

March 2024

Local League To Do’s (email: lwvny@lwvny.org )

• Submit data tracking form to LWVNYS by April 10 (and the 10^th of each month) at: https://forms.gle/jvvf1kFwbGC8QDsX7
• Order 2024 Voter Guide Part I using form here; guides are now available
• Complete your local League update listing all officers and board members by June 30 at: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Urpi8DuoocPl5-HjZFzsR3Ynwxo3913eqo-3iOYcuP4/edit
• Send Laura@lwvny.org the names of delegates attending LWVUS Convention for your local League

Calendar

May 7            State League Advocacy Day (Albany) – more info coming!

May 19-22 Students Inside Albany

June 11 LWVNYS Council Meeting (Zoom)

June 27-30 LWVUS Convention, Washington, DC

President's Report

Nancy Rosenthal - nancyrosenthal9@gmail.com

Those regional trainings were so gratifyingly chalk full of information! Over 250 members attended the four regional trainings! Special thanks to those who made these trainings possible: our League staff who traveled incredibly long distances plus all the preparations and to board members who presented!   Check out https://lwvny.org/regional-training/ for posting of all the valuable materials shared at the trainings! 

LWV’s new membership system will launch in January 2025, powered by ChapterSpot. Right now, someone should be identified as the ChapterSpot point of contact for each League through the current Roster Manager Portal. This person does not need to fill any particular role at their League, but they should be someone who is well-positioned to share communication as they receive it. Additional step by step guidance will be coming from LWVUS with limited input required from Leagues before the November election. This is a busy time for Leagues, and League efforts will be focused on the mission work, particularly in the fall.

On the recent President’s call, Nora Pullen and Kevin Ringkamp, staff from LWVUS, shared their knowledge of changes to come and what local Leagues can do now to prepare for the new membership platform. The recording from the zoom is https://youtu.be/TW4WeNESR78.  Great questions were asked and answered on the call or afterwards and can be found here. And with all of this there will need to be changes in local League By Laws. Information about how local leagues should be revising their bylaws for the new system are explained at https://www.lwv.org/sites/default/files/2024-02/Bylaws%20Guidance.pdf And sample bylaws can be viewed at https://www.lwv.org/league-management/bylaws/sample-bylaws-template.

Mark your calendars for Council by zoom at 5:30pm Tuesday June 11^th . We will adopt the League budget for 2024-2025. Watch for more information as the date gets closer.

The LWVUS convention is in Washington, DC from Thursday June 27^th through Sunday June 30^th. All information related to National Convention, including registration and hotel bookings, can be found here. 



Your monthly donations to League add up and help the Board and staff provide all the numerous services that help your local League do its’ work. One such service is Vote411.org which will be coordinated by the State League office this year for all National and NY State offices up for election. Support this work by signing up to make that monthly donation to LWVNY here: https://secure.lglforms.com/form_engine/s/4DOYe-xOvWJuG5rdjJxe6Q

or a monthly tax deductible donation to LWVNYEF here:  https://secure.lglforms.com/form_engine/s/ai-Wav_MMuwE6lJy8s8rBg   

Vote 411: We Need Your Help

Lesley Sigall, vote411@lwvny.org

I will be organizing the Vote 411 website for the state League during this election season. We have created a new email address, vote411@lwvny.org, if you have questions or need assistance in your local League. We also are looking for your help to make Vote 411 the best it can be.

While the state League is responsible for setting up the national and state races, we cannot do it without your help. We want to increase the participation rate of candidates in Vote 411 and we need your help. With over 400 candidates on the ballot in the general election, we need local League representatives who can find candidate email addresses by calling or visiting local campaign offices and then urge candidates to complete their Vote411 profiles. Constituent pressure to participate if much more effective than from the state League.

We also need help in more actively promoting Vote 411 when the election gets closer. We provide templates for Letters to the Editors, social media posts and more, but we need local Leagues to submit them to their own local media outlets and also post more on their local League social media accounts.

To assist the state League in these Vote 411 activities, we’re asking each local League to identify one person to be their representative on Vote 411 efforts. The state League will be setting up Vote 411 for the national and state races – we’re not asking you all to do that. But, we need your help to increase participation by contacting candidates and promoting Vote 411.

We hope you’ll find someone willing to be your contact with the state League for Vote 411. Please send their name and contact info to me at vote411@lwvny.org. Let’s make Vote 411 THE place for all candidate and election info for the public.

Issues and Advocacy

Sally Robinson, VP for Issues and Advocacy sally.s.robinson@gmail.com

Redistricting Redux

You could say that the long post 2020 census redistricting saga in New York state ended with a whimper not a bang on February 28 when the state legislature passed a new congressional map that did not significantly shift the lines drawn by a special master used in 2022. This came after a lengthy and expensive litigation brought by the national Democratic party last year on procedural grounds to force the IRC to redraw the lines in the hopes that ultimately the legislature could make major changes to shift the competitive balance in New York back more strongly toward Democrats. The legislature did reject a compromise proposal passed by the IRC (unlike in 2022 when the IRC deadlocked on a second proposal), but in the end it made less significant changes to the competitive balance between Democrats and Republicans than widely expected (other than in Syracuse). Republicans who had been threatening for months to sue recognized that the new map advantaged Democrats but accepted that it could have been much worse. 

LWVNYS Statement: https://lwvny.org/league-of-women-voters-of-nys-statement-on-new-congressional-districts-adopted-by-nys-legislature/

Pre-Budget Lobby Packet

We released the pre-budget lobby packet on February 20. Read the pre-budget packet here. If you’re interested in lobbying on the topics included in the packet then please reach out to your local League President or Advocacy Chair to advocate as a part of your local League.

NYS Equal Rights Amendment Taskforce

The New Yorkers for Equal Rights Coalition had a hard launch of the campaign across the state on March 21^st with an anchor event down in NYC. Our LWVNYS ERA Taskforce has continued to grow, and members are very engaged. Our local Leagues hosted 10 of the estimated 35 kickoff events across the state.

Day of Advocacy - Register HERE!

On May 7, 2023 the State League will host an in-person advocacy day from 9:30-4:00pm. Members will be invited to do the following

• Learn about important legislative issues and how to advocate for them 
• Meet new league members from across the state 
• Lobby your representative at the Capitol 
• Enjoy lunch provided by LWVNYS 

League members are asked to make their own appointments with legislators and schedule them for 1:30 pm at the earliest. We will walk up to the Capitol after lunch. Those without appointments may try to visit their legislators or join the state League staff in the galleries watching session. 

Voter Service

Kathy Meany, VP for Voter Services

kzmeany@gmail.com

PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY

Tuesday, April 2

Early Voting Days March 23-30

Register in Person by March 23

Register by Mail - Must be Received by BOE by March 23

Apply for absentee or early vote by mail ballot in person by April 1

Apply for absentee or early vote by mail ballot by mail/online

Must be Received by BOE by March 23

Deliver ballot in person by close of polls April 2 to poll site or BOE

Deliver ballot by mail - Must be postmarked by April 2 and must be received by April 9

NYS Attorney General office is again organizing an Election Hotline for voters who encountered problems or issues when voting. See the chart below and share with voters. The hotline is at 866-390-2992.

The 2024 Voter Guide Part I are NOW available. This brochure includes important information about how to register to vote and how to vote in NYS. It also includes the dates and deadlines for all of those activities. Use this brochure at voter registration drives, candidate events and anything related to election activities. Order copies for your local League here. They are also posted on the Voting page of the state website.

Spring Voter Service Survey Coming!

Each local League should be collecting data on their voter service events - how many people are you registering, how many people took registration forms or absentee ballots, etc. The state League will be sending out a Spring Voter Service Survey in the next month. We thought it would easier to ask you for the data on your spring activities now rather than in November when we usually issue the Voter Service Survey. We'll still have a survey due in November but that will cover all activities from July to the election in November. Let's gather the data this spring on all of the great work you are doing now. Click here to see last year's survey so you know what you should be collecting now - a slightly revised survey will be available soon! And click here to obtain a tally sheet to use at registration drives!

Need ASL or dynamic Closed Captioning for your Candidate Events?

Then partner with Disability Rights New York!

Disability Rights New York (DRNY) is a non-profit law office that advocates for the rights of people with disabilities. DRNY’s Voting Access program advocates for election accessibility, helps ensure that people with disabilities are included in the election process, and educates voters with disabilities about their right to vote.

DRNY has successfully partnered with several LWV chapters to provide American Sign Language interpretation and live Closed Captioning during candidate forums, among other events. If your chapter is hosting a candidate forum or other event and would like to partner with DRNY to provide these accessibility features, please contact Helen Hellmuth at helen.hellmuth@drny.org. DRNY will review each request to partner based on resource limitations and scheduling availability, so it is helpful to contact early. There is no cost to local Leagues. 

State Office

Laura Ladd Bierman, LWVNYS Executive Director

laura@lwvny.org

NYCET and Access to VAN Data

We are organizing a training workshop (on zoom) for those of you who would like to learn how to access and use the VAN data. This data will allow you to identify areas in your service area that have low voter turnout - so you can target GOTV activities in those areas. We all want to help increase voter turnout so come learn how!

A zoom meeting was held recently to introduce you all to NYCET and the tools they offer. See the recording of the meeting here. Watch for the date of the training specifically on using data from VAN! Training on the other tools will be scheduled later.

Local League Updates

All of your local Leagues are holding their annual meetings in the next few months and possibly electing new officers and board members. WE NEED TO KNOW WHO THEY ARE. As soon as you have the new leaders, please complete the Local League Update form online at: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Urpi8DuoocPl5-HjZFzsR3Ynwxo3913eqo-3iOYcuP4/edit . Please complete the form by June 30, 2024. These contacts are how we distribute key information from the state League to your local League.

LWVUS Convention, June 27-30, 2024, Washington DC

See the information below about registering for the LWVUS Convention in June. If your local League is sending delegates, please send me their names and contact info (and if they are attending in-person or virtually). We will hold a zoom event for all delegates from NYS prior to the Convention.

New Law to Encourage Young People to Vote

In September 2023, Governor Hochul signed a bill that establishes school voter registration and pre-registration programs. This law requires local boards of education, BOCES, charter schools, and non-public schools to adopt policies that promote student voter registration and pre-registration, including providing access to voter registration and pre-registration applications during the school year and informing students of the state requirements for voter registration. 

The NYS School Boards Association (NYSSBA) has drafted a sample policy that school districts can customize to implement this program. Local Leagues are encouraged to urge their school boards to adopt a policy for their district. See the sample policy here.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) 

Regina Tillman, VP for DEI

rmt370@gmail.com

View the March 5, 2024, LWVUS DEI webinar, “Transformation - Are You Ready to Move the League Forward?”

In this month’s Voter, I made a point of identifying what can happen when an organization does not change at its core or over time. Staying the same is not sustainable as our own member statistics demonstrate. To grow in our capacity such that it allows us to continue to follow our mission past the first 100 hundred years, requires us to get on-board with the League’s Transformational Roadmap as first articulated in 2018.

We lag if local Leagues have not yet addressed how to make their League more inclusive. And the first step is learning what that means as leaders since the accountability for adopting DEI principles rests with organizational leaders at all levels.

Thus, my emphasis in the March 2024 Voter was on “learning” as the first step… especially important for leaders in order to begin articulating what DEI means to you personally, and what it could mean for your League… to begin to identify the questions that need to be asked… and to plan your own roadmaps - or action plans - to increase organizational capacity through inclusivity and equity, as applied to your location. Do we even know what that means, or what that could look like?

The good news is that a few of our local chapters have begun to envision the changes needed and how to put DEI into practice. There is also help available since there is the realization that many local League leaders struggle with the weight of current obligations.

Let us all begin with acquiring the information that, if shared within your Boards and with your membership, will allow DEI to move away from being considered the “Flavor of the Month” to that of being a major and permanent shift in how we conduct ourselves… with the communities we represent, with fellow members of our Boards or management teams, and with our members.

LWVUS Convention: June 27-30, 2024 Washington, DC

LWVUS Convention is coming. See all info on their website here. Register now here and reserve a hotel room at the Washington Hilton here. All local Leagues and MAL Units are entitled to one delegate and then one more for each 50 members (as of the Jan. 31 US database) thereafter.

Chapter Spot Resources

New tools on our upcoming membership system changes are available on the ChapterSpot Resources page under “Communicating with Members.” These resources include sample text for newsletters or emails sent to members, as well as an additional document that provides more context, particularly for Leagues looking to prepare their members to vote on bylaws changes. 

League of Women Voters of New York State

1 Steuben Place

Albany, NY 12207

lwvny.org