Minutes – Board Meeting, March 2019

Libertarian Party of El Paso County

PO Box 7952

Colorado Springs, CO 80933

MINUTES

Board of Directors Meeting

Date: March 10, 2019

Time: 10 AM Start: 10:40 AM

Location: 2320 Oriole Ave., Colorado Springs, CO 80909

1. Opening/Welcome/Introductions
   1. Voting members in attendance: John Hjersman, Alexis Buschmann, Eric Muma.
   2. Not voting members: Judy Darcy, Randy Schneider
   3. Guests: Leah Hotchkiss
2. Presentation and Adoption of Agenda. John Hjersman motions to adopt the agenda. Alexis Buschmann seconds. Motion passes (unanimous).
3. Minutes from Previous meeting. Not completed.
4. Director/Officer Reports
   1. Chair, Christopher Houtchens – Absent
   2. Vice Chair, Alexis Buschmann– Nothing to report
   3. Secretary, Eric Muma – Nothing to report
   4. Treasurer, John Hjersman – Report is in the cloud. Notable item: Territory Days application submitted with $35 fee.
   5. Affiliate Representative – John Hjersman – Nothing to Report
   6. Director-at-Large-Education, Vacant
      1. Daryl Kuiper was previously nominated and accepted
      2. John Hjersman moves to appoint Daryl Kuiper as Director-at-Large-Education. Eric seconds. Motion passes (unanimous).
   7. Director-at-Large-Outreach – vacant
5. Committee Reports
   1. Bylaws Committee – to be appointed
   2. Platform Committee – to be appointed
   3. Manitou Springs Issues Liaison – to be appointed
   4. Newsletter – to be appointed
6. Unfinished Business
   1. Events Calendar (topics/dates/education and social)
      03/21 – Monthly Meeting – Judy invited a friend from the fire department to attend to discuss Issue 1 over fire unionization. If we can get a speaker, the red flag bill/ERPO will be discussed. Candidate forum will occur and be live streamed. Mayor Don Wilson has been invited to discuss his lawsuit and petition efforts over the National Popular Vote bill that recently passed. Need to hype up the convention.
      04/18 – Monthly Meeting
   2. Pending Board & Committee Appointments
      1. Director-at-Large-Outreach – vacant
      2. Bylaws Committee – vacant
      3. Finance Committee – vacant
      4. Manitou Springs Political Issues Liaison – vacant
      5. Newsletter – vacant
      6. EPC Political Issues Liaison – vacant
      7. Colorado Springs Political Issues Liaison – vacant
      8. Minutes Committee Chair – vacant
      9. Convention Committee Chair – vacant
      10. Volunteer Coordinator – vacant
      11. Social Media Committee Chair – vancant
          1. Judy Darcy was previously nominated and accepted.
          2. Alexis Buschmann motions to appoint Judy Darcy as Social Media Committee Chair. John seconds. Motion passes (unanimous).
      12. Campaigns Committee Chair – vacant
      13. Voter Registration Drive Chair – vacant
      14. Fundraising Committee Chair – vacant
   3. COS Municipal Election Questionnaires
      1. Discuss candidates
         1. Wayne Williams, City Council – His answers appeared to be manufactured to sound like what a non-libertarian believes libertarians want to hear.
         2. Juliette Parker, Mayor – While her answers weren’t 100% congruent with libertarianism, she seems authentic and it is refreshing to hear a politician admit when they don’t have all the answers.
   4. Annual Convention
      1. John Hjersman motions to obtain a $50 table for the annual state convention. Alexis Buschmann seconds. The motion passes (unanimous).
      2. Discussion on needing candidates to nominate for November 2019 elections to avoid having to collect signatures to get on the ballot.
   5. Community Events
      1. Outline a few events we would like to attend
         1. Territory Days has been applied for.
         2. Pridefest – July 13-14
         3. Springs Magazine tells a lot about various events.
      2. Pick one event to have LPCO assist us with
         1. Territory Days if approved
   6. Volunteer Training
      1. Judy is willing to train volunteers as necessary per event as her schedule permits until an outreach director is appointed.
7. New Business
   1. Discussion on issues
      1. Colorado Springs Issue 1 – Collective bargaining for Fire Department Initiative https://ballotpedia.org/Colorado_Springs,_Colorado,_Issue_1,_Collective_Bargaining_for_Fire_Department_Initiative_(April_2019). Judy spoke about her fire fighter friend’s experiences and how Issue 1 will negatively impact him and lead to a loss of freedom for firefighters who do not consent.
      2. Red flag/ERPO, Rally for our Rights, recall elections, and the potential for El Paso County to become a 2^nd Amendment sanctuary open discussion: Randy Schneider says that the Sheriff has decided to approach the impending Red Flag law as a 4^th and 5^th Amendment issue rather than a 2^nd Amendment issue as those on the left are sympathetic to the 4^th and 5^th but not the 2^nd. He intends to fight and possibly not enforce the law on due process grounds of the 5^th Amendment. Randy recommends a legislative strategy of targeting Democrats in the state Senate to vote against the bill, as all that would be needed is two Democrats to flip if all Republicans vote against it. Also, Democrats are looking to ban semiautomatic weapons as well, so targeting Democrats on the Red Flag bill may also help to sway them against a semiauto ban. Leah adds that the best Democrats to target are those in the southern part of the state. Randy says it would be great to have a map that shows the areas that are more pro-gun. Also, bringing in lessons learned from other states/areas that have implemented red flag laws might help appeal to better to both the law enforcement community as well as the general public. Judy adds that those most likely to be affected are vets with PTSD and that in a county with so many vets, this point might be appealing.
8. Announcements
   1. Dues for 2019 are due to remain a Contributing Member & eligible for Board position.
   2. April Board Meeting to be held Sunday, April 14, 2019 at American Tire Exchange.
9. Discussion/Q&A
   1. Topics for Monthly Meetings
      1. Discuss Red Flag/ERPO…Randy Schneider will see about organizing speakers and may speak himself.
      2. Issue 1 Fire Department Collective Bargaining…Judy’s firefighter friend may speak.
      3. Municipal candidates will be invited to speak.
      4. Mayor Don Wilson of Monument will be invited to speak about the popular vote/Electoral College issue.
10. Adjourn 12:37