The deadline for LAB members to sign the petition is coming in a few days. For more details, see this link:
http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/10/12/introducing-lab-board-of-directors-candidates/
On Wed, Sep 29, 2010 at 20:35, Wynn
The League of American Bicyclists (bikeleague.org) is one of the top level cycling organizations in the US and has been taken over by the Bicycle Manufactures Association (BMA). They placed the current executive director that is taking the board of directors out of the hands of the members and being replaced by appointees sympathetic to the BMA.
FFBC is a member of LAB and we pay annual fees to that organization. As an instructor, my dues are also paid to the LAB.
The problem is that a portion of your member dues subsidizes this organization that is not representing you nor providing you with service. Multiply this by the bike clubs and members in the US and you have a lot of money not serving those who are paying for it.
Wynn Kageyama
FFBC member
From: Wynn
To: ffbc mail list
Sent: Wed, September 29, 2010 7:34:21 PM
Subject: [FFBC_List] Fw: News from LAB Reform
Hi All,
It’s been nearly three years since we last sent a message to our friends. Now we have some important news and we need your help.
The LAB board made more changes to the Bylaws this July that further dilute the rights of the membership. They plan to add three members to the board — two appointed and only one elected.
This will make seven appointed and eight elected members. That means reform-minded board members have to capture **every** elected seat in order to take back our League. If we can do this, then when there are vacancies in the appointed seats, we can get more reformers on the board. Once we get a 2/3 majority, we can abolish the appointed seats and return the League to its members.
In this year’s election, there are four seats up for grabs. The board makes it difficult for opponents of the ruling faction to even get on the ballot. The “Governance Committee” would allow only one reformer, Bill Hoffman on the ballot. The GC revealed that it was Bill’s long record of service to LAB that got him a nomination. Still, he got fewer votes in GC’s balloting than several other candidates who were not “approved” but who had impressive resumes. This is proof that Bill is viewed by some on the Board as a threat to the existing order. They’re willing to tolerate one reformer, but not more.
We had proposed three other candidates: John Brooking, Eli Damon, and Khal Spencer who were not accepted by the board. To get on the ballot, they need over 1000 signatures from LAB members. And that’s were we need your help.
The large signature requirement was a deliberate attempt to insulate the board from the membership. Until 2003, 50 signatures were required. The petition process was a “safety valve” to protect the League from a faction that would not operate in members’ interest. The safety valve is now very difficult to use.
John, Eli, and Khal are running for the Board to try to make LAB more responsive to its members, to improve its advocacy focus, and to better defend cyclists’ rights.
This election is a chance to return LAB to its roots, with a primary focus on our nation’s cyclists rather than the bicycle industry and the bikeway planners. It’s critical that LAB become more transparent and responsive to its members. And this may be our last chance.
Our apologies if you receive duplicates of this appeal as it’s going out to all members, affiliated clubs, and the cycling instructors. Time is short, as all petitions must be received by October 20.
We have two requests. (1) Please sign the petition if you are a member. And (2) please forward it to other League members. You’ll find an on-line version at:
http://www.petitiononline.com/0league0/petition.html If you want more information and especially to help us collect signatures, please see http://www.labreform.org/campaign/
After you have signed and returned the petition, please let me know you have done so. It’s a small step toward transparency and accountability.
Balloting will begin on December 1, so please remember to vote for John, Eli, and Khal. Vote to retain Bill Hoffman in his board seat too. They are all cycling advocates, not just bicycle advocates. They have highest regard for our nation’s cyclists and they truly need your support.
In other news, we have added several articles to the website since our last message and we are starting a blog. You can see the latest at http://labreform.org/ and see the blog at http://labreform.org/wordpress/
If we are successful in getting enough petition signatures, and all our candidates win, we likely will have to repeat this process next year to try to win the rest of the elected seats.
Thank you for your help,
Fred Oswald
LAB Reform