A Note from the President

Many thanks to Eric Velasco, reporter for The Birmingham News, for his remarks to LWVGB during our September membership meeting. Highlights of his presentation on the inner workings of the Jefferson County Commission are included in this VOTER. Our next unit meeting is set for Thursday, October 27^th. Elaine Witt, formerly with The Birmingham Post Herald, will speak to us about what she learned during 18 years reporting on local affairs. Mark you calendar to attend!

The LWVAL Legislative Study and Consensus materials are now available online at www.lwval.org/legstudy/members/. (Resource information now also includes the LWVAL Consensus Policy.) The deadline for submitting consensus reports to the LWVAL Board of Directors has been extended to April 1, 2006 in order to give local leagues adequate time to hold multiple study sessions. Specific information about LWVGB’s consensus schedule will be forthcoming. Access to the materials will require the same username/password combination as the For Members section of the LWVAL website. Please contact Jean Johnson at jjohnson@brooknet.com or 870-3063 if you need login assistance.

The National League has recently released Local Voices: Citizen Conversations on Civil Liberties and Secure Communities. The report contains findings on the results of public deliberations with a diverse group of citizens across the country on homeland security and civil liberties. View the complete report at www.lwv.org.

Finally ... a gentle reminder ... dues payments for 2005-06 are past due! If you have not yet renewed your membership, please do so today.

-- Yvonne