Coordinating Committee Minutes, on-line vote, February 11-12

Sponsors: Alex Shantz, Sanda Everette

Background and Purpose: On November 17th the Green Party of California Coordinating Committee, for the first time, scheduled a discussion item at the Santa Rosa General Assembly to seek input on the party’s 2014 ballot statement. Input from party members and delegates were compiled together. 
 
On January 26th the Coordinating Committee held its annual retreat and reviewed previous ballot statements and comments from the Santa Rosa General Assembly. After beginning a draft ballot statement the Coordinating Committee continued editing and revising the ballot statement through it’s email list. 
 
The ballot statement which appears within this proposal started out with wide input from party members. It also includes various revisions made by Coordinating Committee members during the retreat and online discussion. And finally, it was posted to the Green Party of California forum email list for last minute feedback from general party members. 
 
Proposal: To approve the following 2014 ballot statement: 
 
The Green Party supports viable solutions to our planet’s toughest problems, from climate change to historic income inequality. We put people and planet first.
 
Currently 55 California Greens hold elected office. Voting Green means rejection of austerity against the poor, and support for equity and sustainability. A Green Party government will mean:
 
ECONOMIC JUSTICE
 
•    Ending poverty through green living wage jobs, affordable housing, single-payer health care, workers rights and food security for all
 
•    A publicly-owned state bank to invest in California instead of Wall Street 
 
•    Education instead of incarceration, and free public college/university tuition, by reforming Proposition 13 and progressive taxation
 
ELECTORAL REFORM
 
•    Eliminating corporate money through publicly-financed elections
 
•    More democracy and fuller representation through proportional representation for state legislature and Congress, and ranked choice voting for statewide executive office
 
•    Overturning Top Two
 
JUSTICE SYSTEM REFORM
 
•   Abolishing the death penalty
 
•   A moratorium on prison construction and an end to private prisons
 
•   Legalizing marijuana 
 
GREEN ENERGY FUTURE
 
•   Closing Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant 
 
•   A Solar California, with energy efficiency, conservation and publicly-owned safe, clean renewable energy
 
•   Fossil fuel taxes, public transit, eco-cities
 
Register Green. Vote Green
 
Implementation/Timeline/Resources: Once approved the ballot statement will be sent to  Liaison to the Secretary of State Jared Laiti to send to the Secretary of State by the February 13th 5pm deadline. 
 
References: Discussion: GPCA ballot statement June 2014 primary: http://www.cagreens.org/ga/2013-11/discuss-ballot-statement
Coordinating Committee Minutes, January 26, 2014 :http://www.cagreens.org/committees/coordinating/minutes/2014-01-26
 

Results:

Yes (11): Ashley, Bernstein, Daniel, Everette, Feinstein, Jean, Karlik, Laidman, Shantz, Yamaguchi, Zitola
No (0): 
Abstain (0):
Not Voting (4): Asrir, Brashares, Moorman, Noble

Quorum: 2/3 attendance required (needed 10/15 and 11 voted)

Proposal approved 11-0-0  (80% approval threshold required)