An image from the May 15, 2010 inaugural meeting of the League of Bike Voters Los Angeles.

Minutes from the First Meeting of the League of Bicycling Voters Los Angeles

Taken by Carter Rubin

Meeting commenced on Saturday, May 15, 2010 at 11:30AM

Minutes:

-Group introductions; Ted Rogers acted as meeting facilitator

-Independent Congressional candidate Benjamin DeGroot addresses the group

-Vote to accept simple majority for adoption of a motion – passed

-Adopt Roberts Rules of Order – passed

-Motion to Adopt preliminary agenda – passed

-Motion to adopt the name League of Bicycling Voters Los Angeles, abbreviated as LBVLA – passed

-Motion to proceed to incorporate as a 501c4 – passed

-Motion to have Ted Rogers contact an attorney who volunteered to assist with incorporation process – passed

-Discussion of membership requirements, and the possibility of collecting dues

• Ted emphatic on one person one vote
• Patrick: consult other groups for best practices
• 501c4 status helps distinguish us from other advocacy groups in LA

-Motion to defer issue of dues to relevant committee – passed; discussed need to keep base dues low to encourage membership

-Discussed drafting of the Acting Mission Statement; motion to adopt the following as written – passed

Mission Statement:

The League of Bicycling Voters LA promotes active transportation issues in the political arena by supporting candidates, lobbying legislators, and educating voters in order to create a safe and welcoming environment for bicyclists in LA.

-Motions made and adopted to select a steering committee and committee chair persons to serve in place of a board of directors and elected officers until formal elections can be held at the next meeting. The following were elected to serve through the next meeting:

Steering Committee:

• Carter Rubin
• Marco Leal
• Anya van Leeuwen
• George Wolfberg
• Eric Bruins
• Patrick Pascal
• Michael Cahn
• Ted Rogers
• Dan Mick
• Josef Bray-Ali
• James Haygood
• Roadblock

Committee chairs were selected from the members of the Steering Committee:

• Bylaws – George Wolfberg
• Communications – Anya van Leeuwen
• Political Outreach ­­– Carter Rubin
• Technology – Dan Mick
• Policy – Eric Bruins
• Fund Raising – Josef Bray-Ali
• Nominations and Elections – Ted Rogers
• Membership – Patrick Pascal

In addition, Patrick volunteered to look into dues paid at similar non-profits organizations, and Josef will work with Dan to develop a secure online meeting and voting system to minimize the need for onsite meetings.

-Motion to co-sponsor a campaign to increase penalties for hit-and-run – passed

-Decided to elect officers at the next board meeting, to be held at a date to be determined in the second half of June

-Outreach and Policy Committees to review upcoming ballot measures

Meeting adjourned at 1:30PM

This meeting will start the process of transforming the League into a fully functioning political organization, including the election of a board and officers, forming committees and writing bylaws. Anyone who bikes and is eligible to votes in the County of Los Angeles is encouraged to attend.

Directions:
The Law School is located on the East Side of Campus, adjacent to Hillgard Ave. If you’re coming towards campus on Westwood Blvd, turn right on Le Conte, then left at Tiverton Drive to enter the campus. Go
past the Botanical Garden on your right and the Dentistry School on your left, then turn right into Charles E Young Drive. You’ll pass Parking Structure 2 (contributing it’s share to UCLA’s total of 22,000
car parking spaces), followed by Faculty Center and Murphy Hall on your right, placing you at the core of the campus. You’ll see Royce Hall on your left, and Law School will be on your right. (It’s easier
than it sounds.)

As an alternative, take Hilgard Ave north from Westwood Blvd (Hilgard is one block above Wishire Blvd), or south from Sunset Blvd. Then turn into campus at Wyton Drive, and left onto Circle Drive E to the Law
School.

Room 1347 is accessible from the courtyard between Dodd Hall and the Law School. Free bicycle parking is marked on this map; car parking is expensive. UCLA is also served by the Metro and Santa
Monica bus systems.

Which means that roughly 400,000 voters in Los Angeles ride bikes; maybe more, maybe less. But lets be conservative, and put the number at over 300,000.

[T]here are more cyclists registered to vote in Los Angeles than the total number of people who voted for all the candidates for mayor combined.

Now consider this.

In the city’s last mayoral election, only 17.9% of registered voters cast ballots; that’s just 285,000 people. In other words, even by the most conservative estimate, there are more cyclists registered to vote in Los Angeles than the total number people who voted for all the candidates for mayor combined.

Which makes bicyclists one of the largest voter blocks in Los Angeles — and potentially one of the most powerful, capable of deciding who governs our city, our county and our state.

That’s the purpose we envision for the League of Bicycling Voters Los Angeles.

A countywide organization dedicated to harnessing the power of the cycling community to influence the electoral process. An organization that will host forums and debates to get candidates on the record for their stands on biking issues, endorse and support bike-friendly candidates and propositions, and hold elected officials accountable for keeping their promises.

[An] organization dedicated to harnessing the power of the cycling community to influence the electoral process.

This group is not liberal or conservative, Democrat or Republican. It does not represent any one group or style of cycling. It represents you, and thousands of other bicyclists in Los Angeles County, to help ensure safer streets and a more bike-friendly community for all us.

Click here to join the conversation of the Google Group and help us form the new League of Bicycling Voters LA. See our introductory announcement and join our Facebook group to stay in the loop and spread the word.