{news} proposed agenda item for the 2-27-07 SCC meeting of the Green Party of CT

[Charlie Pillsbury]

>From the National Committee Listserv:

We are still awaiting a return of state party questionnaires from the
following 21 states.  We have received responses from 23 states.  (6 states
are unaffiliated and 1 state is completely inactive.)

In some cases there may have been contact about the questionnaire being
forthcoming, but in most cases, we have not heard anything.  So if you are
in one of these 21 states, please look into getting the questionnaire in to
us.  If you have any questions, please email me.

Alabama
Alaska
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawai'i
Indiana
Louisiana
Mississippi
Nebraska
Nevada
New Mexico
North Carolina
Oklahoma
Oregon
Tennessee
Washington

Phil Huckelberry
Illinois Green Party
Co-Chair, PCSC
Co-Chair, BAC


QUESTIONNAIRE FOR STATE GREEN PARTIES

This questionnaire has been prepared based on the input of three standing
committees  Coordinated Campaign Committee (CCC), Presidential Campaign
Support Committee (PCSC), and Ballot Access Committee (BAC)  and GPUS
staff.  Our intention is to use the information gathered in this
questionnaire to update party records and to provide the basis for much of
our campaign work through the 2008 election cycle.

IT IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT that state parties return this questionnaire as
soon as is feasible, and as thoroughly as is possible.  It is understood
that it may require the input of several people to answer all of the
questions, and so we understand that it may take some time to get all of
the questionnaires back.  Still, we must ask that the state parties please
make a top priority of returning this questionnaire.  Members of the PCSC
are intending to follow up with state parties shortly after the
questionnaire is circulated by email.

Initially this questionnaire will be sent on the National Committee list to
the delegates from the various states.  In some cases, the delegates may be
able to handle the questionnaire themselves.  In other cases, it will be
officers of the state party; and in some cases, it will require a group of
people working together.  Delegates, we ask that you please forward this
message immediately upon receipt to any relevant individuals or groups
within your state party.

As you will see from the questions asked, this information will largely
provide the basis for much of our electoral work in 2007, especially
regarding ballot access and aspects of early presidential campaign
support.  There is a common belief that one of the biggest failings from
the 2004 election cycle was the lack of information about state party
processes and the lack of communication between state parties and GPUS.  We
believe that this questionnaire will go a long way to opening those lanes
of communication.

GENERAL REMARKS ON FILLING OUT THE QUESTIONNAIRE

Some of the questions may not seem relevant to your state party, or may
seem like commonly known information.  Please consider the questionnaire as
serving the purpose not only of informing our electoral committees and
staff today, but also as providing vitally necessary institutional memory
into the future, and answer all questions that can be answered.  If a
question does not at all apply to your state party, please specify as much.

For each question asking for a name of a person, please include appropriate
contact information  especially email and phone  so we can have an up to
date contact list available.

For ease of reading, we ask that you either copy and paste the text of the
questionnaire into a separate file and then copy and paste back into a
fresh email, or attach a clean file to an email, rather than hitting reply
and leaving in reply marks.  The questionnaire is available in both .txt
and .rtf format upon request from Phil Huckelberry (phil at mcgreens.org).

PLEASE RETURN THE QUESTIONNAIRE BY WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, by emailing your
completed questionnaire, either in the body of a message or as an
attachment, to all four of the following individuals:

Emily Citkowski (emily at gp.org)  GPUS Operations Director
Brent McMillan (brent at gp.org)  GPUS Political Director
Greg Gerritt (gerritt at mindspring.com)  Co-Chair, CCC
Phil Huckelberry (phil at mcgreens.org)  Co-Chair, PCSC & BAC

If at any time you have any questions or need any clarification, please
contact Phil Huckelberry.

OFFICE QUESTIONS

What is the formal name of your state party?  (e.g. Green Party of
California, Illinois Green Party, etc.)

What is the formal contact address and phone number for your state party;
is the phone number a party office, a voicemail line, or a private phone
belonging to a member of the party; and, if not a PO Box, is the contact
address a party office or a home address for a member of the party?

What is the best way to route phone calls for general inquiries and
volunteers to your state?

What is the URL of your state party's website, and what is the contact
email address for general questions?

Does your state party maintain a list of local contacts online?

Does your party have compensated staff and/or contractors; and, if so, who
are they and what are their titles?

Who are the officers of your state party, potentially including, but not
limited to, co-chairs, secretary, treasurer?

Besides staff, contractors, and officers, most state parties have key
people in roles such as media coordinator, fundraising coordinator,
membership coordinator, outreach coordinator, webmaster, and potentially
several others.  Who are your other key people in such roles and what are
their titles?

Who are the current members of your state party's delegation to the Green
National Committee (including alternates)?

To whom in your state party should questions be directed regarding the
status of members of your state's GNC delegation and representatives from
your state to various GPUS committees?

To whom in your state party should volunteer information be sent?

To whom in your state party should Green Party Card information be sent?

To whom in your state party should donation sharing information be sent?

To where should state sharing checks be sent?

Does your state party have a standing order for Green Pages?

To where should Green Pages bundles be sent?

To where should invoices for Green Pages and other merchandise be sent?


BALLOT ACCESS COMMITTEE QUESTIONS

The Ballot Access Committee (BAC) exists to promote Green Party
organizations' and candidates' efforts to attain petition signature goals,
reduce excessive petition signature requirements, help state parties attain
and retain ballot access where possible, and promote fair ballot access laws.

Who in your state party is the primary contact for questions regarding
ballot access?

Does your state party currently have a guaranteed ballot line for 2008?  If
so, how was the ballot line secured?

If your state party does not have a ballot line for 2008, what will be
required to secure this ballot line?  Include all known information,
including but not limited to:  alternative ballot access methods; signature
requirements; signature deadlines.

Will your state party be participating in a state-administered primary
election in 2008, and if so, on what date?

Often state parties facing high signature requirements look to neighboring
states for help collecting signatures.  Would your state party be able to
recruit volunteers to visit neighboring states to help on signature drives?


COORDINATED CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE QUESTIONS

The Coordinated Campaign Committee (CCC) is a standing committee consisting
of ten elected members which cooperates with state and local chapters in
the support of federal, state, and local Green Party electoral
campaigns.  See http://www.gp.org/committees/campaign/ for more information
on the committee's activities.

One of the CCC's projects is to assist state parties in conducting regional
campaign schools where experienced Greens can lead seminars on aspects of
running campaigns, recruiting candidates, etc.

Is your state party interested in hosting a regional campaign school?

Does your state party have a campaign committee, candidates committees, or
something similar, and if so, who are the contacts and what is the function
of the group?

Does your state party actively recruit local candidates?

Does your state party need some help in figuring out how to recruit candidates?


PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN SUPPORT COMMITTEE QUESTIONS

The Presidential Campaign Support Committee (PCSC) is the committee of GPUS
that, among other things, coordinates communication with Green presidential
candidates.  It also serves as a communications point regarding the
presidential campaign for other committees and for state parties and
caucuses.  Among its other delineated tasks, the PCSC is responsible for
some aspects of helping state parties through the preference/nomination
process.

In April 2006, the Green National Committee approved by a wide margin a
resolution declaring GPUS's intention to "run electoral campaigns full out.
including running in all states possible as actively and as eagerly as
possible, running on all Green Party ballot lines possible, participating
in Green Party primary elections wherever possible, and running for all
levels of public office for which the party is able to find credible
candidates to run as Greens and sustain Green Party campaigns."  Based on
this mandate, PCSC is working to assemble the information necessary to
follow through on the party's commitment to running a "full out" campaign
for President in 2008.

PCSC would like to have a list of Initial Points of Contact (IPCs) in each
state - the people within a state party that prospective presidential
candidates would first approach with questions about ballot requirements
for the state, etc.

Who in your state party will be the Initial Point of Contact?

If your state has a candidates/campaign committee, does its scope include
the presidential campaign?  Or does your state have a separate group in
place to deal specifically with the presidential campaign, and if so, who
are the contacts and what is the function of the group?

The PCSC is also compiling information about the primary/preference
processes that will be used in each state for the 2008 nomination
process.  It is understood that some state parties will not have answers
for several of these questions at this time, and it is important to know
this as well.

What process will your state party use to poll its membership on their
preference for a presidential nominee?

What process will your state party use to select its convention delegation?

What process will your state party use for directing its delegation as to
how to vote at the national convention?

In 2004 several state parties expressed that they really did not know what
sort of process they should be using and as a result several states used
somewhat arbitrary processes.  In some cases the preference vote took place
at a state convention and the processes were not even approved until that
state convention, not only giving candidates but even state party members
no advance notice as to what methods would be employed.  Would your state
party like assistance from PCSC in developing the above processes?

In a best-case scenario, what would your start party be able and willing to
do to support the presidential ticket?

Based on an evaluation of the current strength and sentiment within your
state party, what is your state party likely to be able and willing to do
to support the presidential ticket?

What kinds of resources that GPUS might be able to provide would enhance
the ability of your state party to support the presidential ticket?

Are there any specific factors unique to your state or state party that
PCSC should be aware of?  Examples might include:  availability of ballot
line fusion, internal state party rules governing disposition of ballot
lines, highly unusual statutory procedures and/or paperwork requirements
relative to ballot lines, etc.
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