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Friend, 

Happy February, League leaders!

This past Tuesday, President Biden addressed Congress in his third State of the Union address. As the president of an organization that believes in the power of women to create a more perfect democracy, I was pleased to hear the President address two issues critical to the work Leagues are doing right now: voting rights and protecting reproductive health care for all. We call on our legislatures to defend reproductive justice and echo President Biden’s message on voting rights: “We must protect the right to vote, not suppress that fundamental right. Democracy must not be a partisan issue, it’s an American issue.” Read my statement on www.lwv.org. 

Additionally, February is Black History Month! Throughout the month, we will be honoring the Black activists who paved the way for progress and who continue to power our democracy. We encourage you to also seek ways to acknowledge the Black members of your communities who work every day to build and support our nation, even in the face of discrimination. I hope you’ll join me in celebrating this month! Access blogs, graphics, and more Black History Month resources on the League Management Site.

I cannot wait to celebrate the League’s 103rd birthday next Tuesday! On February 14, I will be joining your fellow League leaders and our CEO, Virginia Kase Solomón, for our virtual birthday pep rally. If you have not already registered, you can sign up here. The rally will also be livestreamed on our Facebook page at 11am ET. I hope to see you there! 

In conjunction with our virtual celebration, Leagues will commemorate our history through a “People Powered League” Day of Action. Learn more about how Leagues across the country are celebrating our 103-year legacy, and share your League’s plans here. Leagues celebrating with us can find guidance around organizing, pre-made social media graphics, and more on the League Management Site. 

In other League news, I am pleased to announce the new phase of our transformation journey: Framing the Future. The blueprint has been created and the plan has been developed — now it is time to start building the frame! Therefore, it is time for all of us to roll up our sleeves and go to work. Starting now, applications will be accepted for four key working groups. These groups will answer vital questions to guide the next phase of the work: the Business Model Working Group, the Data Working Group, the Functional Specification Working Group, and the League Capacity Working Group. Applications are open from now until February 24. Learn more about each group by clicking its link, and please consider applying and/or encouraging others in your League to apply.

Finally, we know this is an important season for Leagues building their biennial budgets. Leagues should please build your budgets as you normally would. Systems change takes time, which is why the bylaws amendments were approved to allow for a period of transition. See more specific guidance on PMP, Convention 2024, and bylaws in the business section below. 

Working with you and for you every day.

In League,

Deborah

See the full list of upcoming events on the League Management Site.

• Legislative Outlook: 118th Congress

• Action Alert: Tell Congress That Equality Belongs in the Constitution

Celebrate the League’s 103rd birthday with us on Feb. 14 with a national day of action! Through storytelling, digital actions, local events, and advocacy, we will flex the breadth of our League people power and advance our priorities. We will have a marquee event with featured speakers livestreamed on our Facebook page at 11am ET on the day of the event. 

Whether you utilize our relational organizing tools, plan an event in your community, or share your story, there are a variety of ways for Leagues to get involved, take action, and celebrate with us. Register your event here. Leagues can find resources, including event templates, for this day of action in our toolkit. 

The LWVUS litigation team needs your help! If you are a League leader, please fill out this short survey on your experience working with legal partners on state and federal litigation over the last few years. This survey will help LWVUS support your League in future litigation. Please reach out to Caren Short (cshort@lwv.org) with any questions.

• Blog: We Need Local Climate Action Plans

The LWVUS board adopted legislative priorities for the year ahead in the 118th Congress. These priorities cover work on the Campaign for Making Democracy Work® (CMDW) and responding strategically on watchlist issues that fall outside of CMDW. Learn more about legislative priorities on the League Management Site.

We need your input on the next phase of our transformation journey!

We encourage Leagues to apply to a working group. These groups will generate feedback as we implement the Transformation Plan. Working groups will have up to 10 members, and meetings will occur virtually between March and April 2023. Applications for these working groups are now open until Friday, Feb. 24. Applications are open to state and local League leaders, as well as League members. Click the links below to learn more about each group and apply: 

• Business Model Working Group 
• Data Model Group 
• Functional Specification Working Group 
• League Capacity Working Group 

For questions, please email transformation@lwv.org.

All Leagues that receive less than $50,000 in income must file an e-Postcard return (also known as Form 990N) every year, with only a few exceptions. The IRS will revoke the tax-exempt status of any League that doesn't file for three consecutive years. More info can be found on the League Management Site. If your League hasn’t filed the online form yet for the tax year ending June 30, 2022, please do so immediately. This search tool on the IRS website allows you to check on your League’s tax-exempt status and Form 990N (e-Postcard) filings. 

If you find that your League has not recently filed its Form 990N, please do so immediately. It should only take a few minutes to complete for most Leagues. If your League has inadvertently lost its tax-exempt status due to not filing Form 990N for three consecutive years, please work to remedy the situation as soon as you can. The IRS has a free webinar on the subject. You can also contact your state League or LWVUS at governance@lwv.org for help finding additional resources.

LWVUS has received some questions about whether state and local Leagues need to update their bylaws since the LWVUS bylaws were amended at the Convention in June, particularly regarding the new unified membership system that will take effect at a future date. The short answer is “no.” With the provisos in the LWVUS bylaws, the changes adopted at Convention do not go into effect until the national board votes to put them into effect. (Per the provisos, the LWVUS board will set a date once the new membership system is in place and no sooner than 2024). Until then, the current LWVUS bylaws remain in force. 

Therefore, state and local Leagues do not make any changes to their bylaws until the national board notifies them of the effective date of the bylaws amendments that were passed with provisos. At that time, LWVUS will also provide state and local Leagues with guidance on how they should conform their bylaws to LWVUS’ bylaws. 

For questions about the bylaws process, contact governance@lwv.org. For updates on the new membership mechanics (in development) and transformation journey, please visit www.lwv.org/structure. 

Planning is ongoing for Convention 2024, scheduled to take place in June in Washington, DC. More information will be posted starting the summer. As Leagues budget for next year, we can share that, as of now, Convention registration costs will be close to the 2022 registration costs, with a similar structure of a base cost and optional add-ons. If you have detailed questions, please contact Christina Davis at cdavis@lwv.org.

• Letter: LWVUS Joins Coalition Letter in Support of DC Autonomy

• The League of Women Voters of Long Beach, CA, held their annual art contest. The League asked high school students to submit artwork around the theme “My Vote, My Voice.” Learn more: Check out the art Long Beach students submitted to League of Women Voters contest.
• The League of Women Voters of Kentucky welcomed a new local chapter and discussed their commitment to empower voters and defend democracy. Read the profile: ‘We want to be a voice.’ League of Women Voters starts local chapter.
• Erica Smitka from the League of Women Voters of New York spoke to local news about the importance of the state’s Equal Rights Amendment, which New York voters will see on their ballot in 2024. Watch now: Amendment support: “Equality will be on the ballot” in 2024.

Special Notifications: To help keep members informed, LWVUS sends this bi-weekly, internal email newsletter to state and local League presidents, as well as other highly engaged League members. The League Update includes important announcements about upcoming trainings and webinars, grant opportunities, messaging resources, stories from Leagues nationwide, and surveys to help LWVUS serve Leagues better. This newsletter is curated for League members specifically and is not intended for public consumption or distribution. 

Do you know a League member who wants to receive this email? Members can subscribe to receive the League Update here. Please do not reply to this message. To unsubscribe, please click the “unsubscribe” button at the bottom of this email.