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Government Relations |
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 AMTA
2011 National Elections!
Have you
considered participating with fellow members at the National
level? You can choose to run for an elected office for the
National Board of Directors or Commission on Candidacy. Serving
at the national level is a great way to meet some wonderful,
dedicated people in the profession.
You
may find criteria for Board or Commission on Candidacy positions
by visiting our
National Elections website. You may
also be interested in knowing that some elected positions
involve less of a time commitment than other positions.
You may
request a candidate application and must complete the
application process by August 1. The process includes
completing three online courses: About Non-Profit Associations,
Responsibilities and Communications throughout AMTA and Risk
Management for Association.
Once
the courses are completed, you will have access to the online
application packet. After the Commission on Candidacy has
reviewed the application and determined that you meet the
requirements of the position you are seeking, your candidate’s
profile will be posted live on
AMTA’s official election website and
your choice of using social media as a candidate can begin.
If you
are interested in serving, please contact the Commission on
Candidacy via
Gail Friedman, AMTA staff liaison to
the Commission on Candidacy.
The
Commission on Candidacy and Commissioner of Elections welcomes
your questions, comments, and ideas.
Chris Rider,
Commissioner of Elections
Barb Lis, Commission on Candidacy Chair
2011 Commissioners: Michael Blackmore, Christopher Deery,
Jennifer C. Irving, Lucia A. Kaestner, and Shari Mirgon
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2011 Nominations/Elections
Report
by Tamara Felix PhD
LMT 5352It
was my great pleasure to be appointed as Nominations-Elections
Co-Chair this year with Jody Green. Jody had a family emergency
in February, which left Mike Blackmore and I working furiously
at the very end to create your best slate for election of
officers and delegates. Mike and I were delighted that all
positions were filled by dedicated professional members, and
members present at the AMTA-Oregon Annual Convention had a full
slate of officers and delegates to vote on.
First Vice President elected was John Combe. Among other things,
John is a past-President, LMT of the Year, and winner of the
2011 Meritorious award. Mike Blackmore was John's greatest
support during John's Presidency, and John will now be Mike's
greatest support during his presidency. These two men work so
well together, I could not have been more pleased that John
agreed to support Mike in this way. Mike and John are also
co-chairing the AMTA National Convention coming to Portland this
October.
Another Meritorious Award winner, Brandi Walton agreed to
continue, and was re-elected as our Treasurer for another term,
for which I am deeply grateful. Brandi has been our most
dedicated, steadfast, and accurate treasurer in AMTA-Oregon
history, and I am more than delighted Brandi agreed to continue
in this capacity.
Third Vice President elected from the floor was Susan Baer. If
you attended AMTA-Oregon's 2010 Annual Convention, you would
have met her there as an exhibitor and creator of Thumbby. I was
impressed to see Susan take her Thumbby to AMTA National
Convention in Minniappolis, Minnesota, where I found her to have
great enthusiasm about the future of massage therapy. Susan has
been an LMT for more than 20 years, but just joined AMTA at
National Convention in Minnesota. Since joining, she has
attended all of our AMTA-Oregon meetings, and expressed a desire
to help AMTA-Oregon in whatever capacity she could. I felt Susan
would be a great fit with her enthusiasm and drive as Third Vice
President. Please welcome Susan with your support.
I brought a slate of members willing to run for Delegate to the
meeting, but had only four: Judy Cole, Leslie Giese (immediate
Past President), John Combe (Past President), and myself. Mike
agreed to run also so the members would have more than 4 names
to vote for, and at the meeting Susan Baer also agreed to run,
so we had a total of six names to vote on at the meeting.
The Delegate
election was a little different this year. Members voted in
favor of 4 Delegates. The top two names with the most votes were
elected for a 2-year term; the next two names with the second
most votes were elected for a 1-year term; and the two names
with the least votes were elected as the two alternates.
Your elected
Delegates are as follows:
2-Year
Term Delegates:
Mike
Blackmore and Leslie Giese
1-Year Term Delegates:
John Combe
and Tammy Felix
Alternate Delegates:
Judy Cole and
Susan Baer
Congratulations to our elected
officers. Please welcome them all with your support.
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AMTA-OREGON
House of Delegates
The House of Delegates (HOD) is a representative
body of the membership that approves AMTA position
statements, makes recommendations to the National
Board of Directors and hears reports pertinent to
the business of the HOD. The number of Delegates
allotted each Chapter is determined each year
according to National policy. A chapter may not have
more than five (5) delegates. The delegates and
alternates are elected annually at a Chapter meeting
and the term of office is from January 1 - December
31 of the year of the HOD meeting in which s/he is a
representative. The HOD convenes annually at the
National Convention. Every year anyone can propose
an AMTA Position Statement through the HOD. However,
proposals can only be submitted by delegates.
Proposals must be submitted to delegates by February
1 of each year. |
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Nov. 7, 2010
Election Results
Tuesday,
October 26, 2010
By Cindy Robert
AMTA-OR Lobbyist
Election and Legislative Session Lurking
I am both relieved and eager as just one week
remains in this campaign cycle. Two years ago when
we had a presidential election, there was, of
course, excitement, tension and party bickering,
with campaign advertisements and sound bites to
parse. In a non-presidential year things are usually
more mundane, voter turnout lower and the barbs a
little less sharp. Yet, in Oregon and nationally, I
have actually seen a more powerful, arrogant,
biting, scurrying and terrified scramble to the
finish line. As Republicans try to leverage
Americans’ discontent and Democrats defend their
achievements, the intensity of this elections is
somewhat surprising and overwhelming.
Election
I have previously sent you an explanation of the
ballot measures we will be voting on. Click this
ballot measure link in case you are still in need of
a basic, non-partisan overview of each issue. In
this summary, I delve (but not too deeply) into the
statewide and legislative races. While some would
say it is not wise for a lobbyist to make such
forecasts, I will dare to make some general
predictions without revealing my personal
preferences.
Oregon Senate
Last session, Democrats controlled the Senate
with an 18 to 12 margin. Fifteen seats are up for
election, and of these, 13 were held by Democrats
last session. I believe the Democrats will retain
control, but the Republicans will close the gap with
final numbers coming in at 17 Democrats and 13
Republicans.
Oregon House
in 2009, Democrats enjoyed “super majority”
status when it came to raising revenue, which
requires two-thirds approval. I predict the
Democrats will retain control, but their 36 to 24
margin will be narrowed to 34 to 26, dictating that
revenue raising efforts garner bipartisan support.
Governor
With intense “get out the vote” efforts, John
Kitzhaber will win this race. We do not have much
evidence at this point in our vote-by-mail world of
how a unique and new kind of pressure may guide
outcomes. You see, while how you vote is not public,
whether you have voted is, and with vote-by-mail,
the county clerk is able to update those who have
returned their ballots on a daily basis and that
becomes public information. All of the sudden,
having masses of campaign volunteers willing to call
and remind people to vote and even being willing to
collect ballots from like-minded politicos to drop
off at the ballot box can make
a big difference. In the two weeks between arrival
of ballots to election day, this kind of
organization may prove pivotal in the gubernatorial
race as Democrats in Oregon have shown more activism
and creativity in past get out the vote efforts.
The most recent Oregonian poll:
Kitzhaber: 45%
Dudley: 44%
Other: 5%
Don’t Know: 5%
Legislature
I had a conversation with House Speaker Dave
Hunt today which gave me insight as to the structure
of the 2011 Legislative Session. Whether the annual
sessions ballot issue passes or fails, legislative
leadership has already made changes to the next
session with cost savings, time efficiencies and
political expediencies in mind.
We will begin
session on January 10, as our State Constitution
dictates. We will meet for three days in which time
House and Senate rules will be adopted and each
committee will meet once for purposes of
establishing their own rules and foretelling the
major agenda items at hand. We will then temporarily
adjourn until February 1, when the bulk of the
session will truly begin.
Historically,
January is a slow time as we wait for legislative
counsel to finalize bills in introduction form and
as we wait for the next forecast. By leaving, and,
hence, halting legislator per diems (living and
travel expenses) the legislature will save money
and, in turn, legislative counsel has promised that
all bills will be ready for first action by February
15.
And I am lurking
as well...I am always here to answer your questions,
discuss legislation and strategize your next moves.
Never hesitate to call me at any time on any day. I
always look forward to hearing from you –
503-260-3431 Cindy Robert
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