(Remember, after the close of the polls next Tuesday at 7pm there are precinct conventions! Not as busy or sexy as the 2008 presidential caucuses but important for the structure of our party. - promoted by Karl-Thomas Musselman)
Big tip of the hat to MarkCamann
Purposes of a resolution 1. To memorialize someone recently deceased.
2. To congratulate a person or group.
3. To amend the Rules of the Texas Democratic Party (TDP).
4. To amend the TDP Platform.
5. To urge Democratic elected officials, especially in the Texas Legislature and the U.S. Congress, to advocate certain positions on policy issues. As the delegates assembled at the state convention are the highest authority within the TDP, such resolutions should carry weight with elected officials as the consensus of the grassroots of the party.
The 2008 Texas Democratic Party Chair's Advisory Committee on the Platform is having its first meeting next Thursday, May 8th at 10:00am at the AFL-CIO at 1106 Lavaca in Austin. State Representative Garnet Coleman, one of our House Democratic Caucus leaders and Chair of the policy-oriented progressive legislative Study Group, is the chair of the committee again this year.
Boyd Richie explained the purpose of the advisory committee in an email to the committee members, "this committee is not an official committee of the Convention. However, because it is virtually impossible to write a coherent and thoughtful platform from scratch on a Saturday at the convention, in years past this Advisory Committee has proven helpful in preparing a working draft that has resulted in platforms vastly superior to the Republicans!"
The official party platform will be drafted and approved by the Platform Committee members who will be elected by the senatorial district caucuses at the state convention. The advisory committee is tasked to draft a working document that the elected Platform Committee uses as a starting point at the convention.
I am one of the members of the advisory committee this year. I live in Austin in SD 14. If any Democrats in Austin or elsewhere would like to make suggestions for the 2008 platform, please send me your ideas by email to scottcobb99@gmail.com, call me at 512-689-1544 or put them in the comments. I would like to see as much grassroots and netroots input as possible into the platform drafting process.
You can also come to the advisory committee meeting yourself next Thursday. In the past when I have been on the committee, anyone who comes to the meetings could participate in the discussions, although if it comes down to a vote on any issue, it could be that only the appointed committee members get to vote.
Tom Blackwell has all the TDP platforms going back to 1996 on his website, so if you are interested in seeing how the platform has changed over the years, visit Tom's site. Thanks for doing that, Tom.
(Mark's got some great work done here to make the process as transparent as possible. We encourage others to read through the resolutions here, share thoughts and concerns, and help everyone think through the best resolutions possible. Additionally, we encourage those from other Senate Districts to post similar posts for their Senate District. We're working on a "County Convention" box where we will help track everything. - promoted by Phillip Martin)
This post constitutes the report of the SD 26 Resolutions Committee. With the permission of the BOR staff, and as chair of the committee, I am posting the SD 26 resolutions here so that:
Everyone will have the opportunity to read and discuss the resolutions before the convention takes place.
Democrats outside of SD 26 are welcome to express their views on these issues of statewide significance. (Our party can withstand healthy discussions on important issues, even when there isn't a consensus of opinion!)
Democrats across Texas will recognize the potential of the resolutions process in amplifying the voice of the grassroots of the party, as we have this opportunity to express our views collectively only once every two years. Because delegates assembled in convention represent the highest level of authority within the Texas Democratic Party, we can expect our elected Democratic representatives in state and federal government to pay attention.
There should be transparency in the actions of our committee. Our intent is to allow good ideas to defy gravity and float to the top, even if they began with only a single precinct.
Purposes of a resolution 1. To memorialize someone recently deceased.
2. To congratulate a person or group.
3. To amend the Rules of the Texas Democratic Party (TDP).
4. To amend the TDP Platform.
5. To urge Democratic elected officials, especially in the Texas Legislature and the U.S. Congress, to advocate certain positions on policy issues. As the delegates assembled at the state convention are the highest authority within the TDP, such resolutions should carry weight with elected officials as the consensus of the grassroots of the party.
Structure of a resolution 1. Give the resolution a title that indicates not merely the topic, but also the position to be advocated (i.e., instead of "Resolution on Vouchers for Texas Schools," it would be better to put "Resolution Opposing Vouchers for Texas Schools").
2. List the reasons for the resolution at the beginning, each reason being in a separate paragraph beginning with the word "whereas" (capitalized, italicized or in boldface).
3. List each action to be taken in separate paragraphs introduced by the words "be it resolved" (capitalized, italicized or in boldface).
4. Use semicolons to separate each paragraph, and avoid periods. A well-written resolution should consist grammatically of a single sentence.
5. Keep the resolution brief. It should fit easily on a single page.
6. At the end of the resolution, write: "Submitted to and Adopted by Precinct ___ in ____ County, Texas, Senatorial District ___, on March 2, 2010" and leave a signature line for the precinct convention secretary, who will sign it if the precinct convention adopts the resolution.
Example of a well-written resolution:
WHEREAS we believe every Texan has the right to participate fully and equally in society and enjoy its benefits and freedoms; and
WHEREAS lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Texans suffer pervasive discrimination in employment, housing, public accommodations, and education because of homophobia and a lack of legal protection; and
WHEREAS non-discrimination laws help to ensure that LGBT people have equal access to the same opportunities and protections granted to others, such as the ability to work in an environment where people are judged by their job performance, not their sexual orientation or gender identity; and
WHEREAS the State of Texas does not have a statewide non-discrimination policy covering sexual orientation and gender identity,
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party supports the passage of comprehensive non-discrimination legislation that would make discrimination based upon sexual orientation and gender identity illegal in employment, housing, education and public accommodations.
Submitted to and Adopted by Precinct 2084 in Bexar County, Texas, Senatorial District 26, on March 7, 2006.
Process by which resolutions move forward 1. Someone has an idea for a resolution and writes it up.
2. Priority is given when the same resolution comes from multiple counties or senatorial districts. It would be a good idea to share your resolution with others who live in different precincts and in other parts of the state. Sponsoring organizations might post a resolution on their website.
3. The resolution is introduced at the precinct convention on the evening of March 2, 2010.
4. If the resolution passes, it will be included in the convention packet that must be delivered to the county chair within three days after the convention.
5. The next level is the county convention (or in the case of counties having multiple senatorial districts such as Bexar County and Travis County, the next level is the senatorial district convention).
6. The Resolutions Committee will meet prior to that convention. They can amend a resolution, combine it with other similar resolutions, or vote it down.
7. The county convention or senatorial district convention will consider all the resolutions recommended by the Resolutions Committee. Those that pass will proceed to the state convention.
8. A Temporary Resolutions Committee will consist of members of the State Democratic Executive Committee (SDEC). They will organize the resolutions submitted for the state convention. They can pull out any resolution they don't like unless it has come from multiple counties or senatorial districts.
9. Resolutions that are not statewide in significance (except for memorial or congratulatory resolutions) will not be considered at the state convention.
10. Resolutions concerning TDP Rules or the TDP Platform will be referred to the Rules Committee or the Platform Committee.
11. At the state convention, each senatorial district elects one member for each of various committees, such as the Permanent Resolutions Committee, the Rules Committee, and the Platform Committee, and others.
12. If the Permanent Resolutions Committee works expediently, they will consider all of the submitted resolutions, combine them with others as possible, and then refer them for a vote on the convention floor. If they waste time, worthy resolutions will fall by the wayside.
13. At the state convention, other resolutions may be introduced that haven't come through a county or senatorial district convention by petition of 20% of the delegates (using the proper form).
14. Resolutions passed by the state convention will be sent by the SDEC to the Democrats elected to the Texas Legislature and U.S. Congress, as appropriate. Hopefully our representatives, whom we work so hard to get elected, will pay attention to us!
(This is your party! - promoted by Karl-Thomas Musselman)
Courtesy of Ms Annatopia crossposted on TexasKos...
I just received a copy of the new Texas Democratic Party Platform. When I mentioned a few days ago that we progressives had made massive gains at the committee level, I was not kidding. Click beneath the fold for the entire text (26 pages, down from 36). As a progressive, I can honestly say I am pleased and suprised to not have any gripes with it. Kudos to the Platform Committee for doing an outstanding job articulating our values. The good stuff, IMO, is the second half.
(If you are interested in the TDP platform, you should attend this meeting. Because it is logisticly impossible for elected Senate District representatives to write an entire platform in 2 days in June, pre-meetings like this are where you need to provide your input. - promoted by Karl-Thomas Musselman)
The 2006 Texas Democratic Party Chair's Advisory Committee on the Platform is having its first meeting this Wednesday, May 17, at 10 AM in the AFL-CIO building in Austin. The official party platform will be drafted and approved by the Platform Committee members who will be elected by the senatorial district caucuses at the state convention in Fort Worth. The advisory committee is tasked to draft a working document that the elected Platform Committee may choose to consider at the convention. As you can imagine, it would be virtually impossible to draft a coherent platform from scratch during the convention between 8 AM on Saturday morning and the time the convention adjourns, so the advisory committee drafts a working document.
My name is Scott Cobb and I have been appointed to the advisory committee. There will probably be around 30 people on the committee, although I haven't seen the final list. I expect the committee will have a diverse membership from across the state. I live in Austin in SD 14. If any Democrats in Austin or elsewhere would like to make suggestions for the 2006 platform, please send me your ideas by email to scottcobb99@gmail.com or put them in the comments. I would like to see as much grassroots and netroots input as possible into the platform drafting process.
You can also come to the meeting next Wednesday. I don't know how it will be organized this year, but in 2004, anyone who came to the meeting could participate in the discussion, although if it came down to a vote on any issue, only the appointed committee members could vote.
