I often get emails from members asking me questions about the Federation. Some of these questions are about basic information that I learned from my club officers when I first joined my local club in 2002. This is disappointing because it makes me think that so many of our members, and maybe even some clubs, are not being educated about our organization. Educating yourself about our organization helps to make you a more effective and involved member. The first step to learning more about the Federation is to read and understand the Bylaws, Standing Rules, Policies, & Procedures.
We are the largest State Federation. As such, there are many layers to our organization, almost like a corporation, that might make it difficult to stay informed. However, when we all work together to help educate our members, we have a stronger and more informed organization. Another way to educate yourself is by attending Board of Directors meetings or conferences. CFRW holds 3 Board of Directors meetings a year, one in each of the 3 divisions. We don’t expect every member of every club to attend, but we do count on members from the specific division we hold the meeting in to attend. Not only do you hear informative speakers, but you also have the opportunity to engage in hands on workshops on many topics, including President’s Roundtables. Further, you have the opportunity to network with Republican women from across California, ask questions, share ideas or common problems, learn from each other, and help mentor each other to do an even better job! So many clubs have their own scholarship programs, which are helpful in those specific communities, but CFRW and NFRW also have many excellent scholarship opportunities that do not cost local clubs any money out of pocket! Unfortunately, we have very few applicants for these outstanding programs. Educating our members, then, is also important when it comes to this aspect, as clubs might consider taking advantage of these scholarlships, and thus send members to meetings in order to report back to the club on what they learned. Yes we are all busy, but we seem to make the time for the things we want to do!
One of the most important things we do is help educate the voters, and even more importantly, the students, our future, about good governance. On April 20 & 21, we will host our 40th Annual Student Advocacy in Sacramento. This is a great opportunity to bring students to learn more about good governance. This is also a perfect opportunity for members to attend and learn more about our Federation. We have a hands-on workshop being held April 20th on the new data base, which will give you the chance to ask the hard questions and see for yourself how it works! This year, we gave each division information on contacting charter schools and home schoolers in an effort to reach out to more students! What if there was no longer a student Advocacy Program? This might be your last chance to help Educate Tomorrow’s Leaders.
God Bless America
Thank you for all you do,
Roseann
Working Together To Make A difference
Illegal Immigration Legislation
Immigrant rights activists have pushed for acceptance of illegal immigrants for some time now. Recently, a bill was passed that allows illegal immigrants to apply for driver’s licenses. Currently, half a million illegal immigrants have already applied for drivers licenses, which is already a third of the total DMV estimate that was supposed to play out in a timespan of 3 years. That is, in just 3 months, thousands of illegal immigrants have taken a step towards integration, aided by laws like this one. The DMV’s gross underestimation proves that California may have bitten off more than it can chew when it comes to the issue of illegal immigration.
Now, Democratic legislators hope to take this a step further by introducing a bill package that would bring immigrants “out of the shadows.” This package would include ten bills designed to provide immigrants with avenues into the economic mainstream, providing them with opportunities for further integration. With so many other problems plaguing our state, our priorities need to be realigned. The Democrats’ continued focus on helping illegals should be shifted towards actual Californians in need.
Senator Andy Vidak has been moving in the right direction in terms of immigration reform. He recently announced that Senate Joint Resolution 2 has passed both houses of the legislature. SJR 2, which has strong bipartisan support, urges Congress and President Obama to work together in an effort to create a comprehensive and feasible approach for reforming our immigration system.
Assisted Death Bill Passes
A bill that would give terminally ill Californians access to lethal drugs recently passed the Senate Judiciary Committee. SB 128 (Wolk, D) is an extremely dangerous bill with many unforeseeable or unintended consequences. CFRW OPPOSES this bill. SB 128 will advance next to the Senate Appropriations Committee. We will keep you updated on the status of the bill, and will notify you when the bill is scheduled to be heard. We urge you to call your committee members when the time comes and ask them to VOTE NO on SB 128!
Minimum Wage Bill Passes
As we mentioned last week, SB 3 (Leno, D) is a bill that would increase the minimum wage in California to $11 per hour beginning in January 2016, $13 per hour in July 2017, and beginning in January 2019, annually based on the rate of inflation. SB 3 has unfortunately passed out of the Labor and Industrial Relations Committee. This bill is likely to hinder economic growth, overwhelm already struggling businesses, and even cause California businesses to leave the state in an effort to avoid these mandatory wage increases. CFRW OPPOSES this bill. We will keep you updated on the status of the bill, and on any action we might take to prevent this bill from becoming law!
Baby Liam Is Here!
Liam Wesley Olson arrived at 12:50 PM on Easter Sunday weighing just 5 pounds and 14 ounces. He is happy and healthy! Mommy Allison and daddy Rob were thrilled to meet their perfect Easter bunny, though big brother Rowan was NOT amused. Baby Liam might even make an appearance at Advocacy! Thank you for your well wishes and prayers.
Advocacy Workshop
Our 40th Annual Advocacy Workshop is right around the corner! Join us, April 20th & 21st in Sacramento for and exciting and educational workshop! We need our clubs to go out and sponsor as many high school students as you can, because we have an amazing opportunity for our student guests! The student’s session will have a private showing of Dinesh D’Souza’s movie, AMERICA. But it is not the movie you’ve all seen- it is a special, educational cut that Dinesh created specifically for high school students! After the movie we are working on a skype interview with Dinesh himself! Our students will also have the opportunity to participate in a legislative committee hearing at the Capitol! For our members, we have the opportunity to hear from our amazing new Republican legislators, our luncheon speaker is CRP Vice Chair Harmeet Dhillon, and afterwards an informative program on Women in Politics by GrassRoots Lab. Be sure to get your registration in by April 13th to avoid a late fee. Remember to fill out the form completely, even the lunch preference portion! Please also be sure to make your hotel reservation by April 7 to get the special room rate of $119 a night. The Holiday Inn Express is not set up to do online reservations so please call the number on the registration form in Call to Advocacy or here (877-408-0083). Be sure to tell the reservations agent you are with the California Federation of Republican Women (CFRW) to get the special rate of $119. Remember to sign up for the Hands on Workshop for the New NFRW Data Base on Tuesday, April 21st, with NFRW Membership Chair, Frederika Verhulst! We look forward to seeing you April 20 & 21 in Sacramento. ◼ CLICK HERE for the Call to Advocacy!
Disclaimer: The Capitol Update is an activity of the CFRW Advocate's Office. The update is for information only. CFRW official positions on legislation are stated immediately preceding the stated legislation or immediately following the stated legislation in this report.
