Montgomery News

City of Rockville Board of Supervisors of Elections met July 24.

Here is the minutes provided by the Board:

Board members Present: Sabrina Dawson, Melissa Jackowski, Graham Johnson, and Stephen Weiner, Chair Lois Neuman arrived later at 6:42 p.m.

City Staff Present : City Clerk/Director of Council Operations Kathleen Conway, Deputy City Clerk Sara Taylor-Ferrell, City Attorney Debra Daniel, Sr. Assistant City Attorney Jodi Schulz, Executive Assistant Mary Grace Sabol, Director of Communication Marylou Berg and Web and Digital Manager Tatum Walker

Motion: to appoint Board member Weiner as Chair Pro Tem

Moved by Boardmember Johnson, second by Board member Jackowski and approved unanimously.

Convene and Welcome

Chair Pro Tem Weiner convened the meeting at 6:07 PM and welcomed all those present.

Approval of Minutes:

Motion: to approve the minutes of June 6, 2018 as amended.

Moved by Boardmember Johnson, seconded by Board member Jackowski and approved unanimously.

Questions to the Board:

There were no questions to the Board.

Campaign Fund Report

Board member Jackowski reported on the status of the vendor for the Campaign Fund Reports online. She suggested before moving forward, the Board have another meeting with vendor to discuss cost and clear understanding of what is needed to proceed.

Note: Chair Neuman arrived at 6:42 p.m. and took over as Chair

Communications:

Director of Communication Mary Lou Berg provided the following suggestions of how the Board may assist with communicating to the public about the upcoming Vote By Mail election:

• Use existing channels; recruit volunteers

• City Ambassador; Outreach

• Special Events; City Events

• Business Groups

• Clubs and Schools

Ms. Berg said her office is identifying partners through the Chamber of Commerce for outreach purposes. She also would like to develop materials for events and businesses. She further recommended that the Board create posters, literature, giveaways, and other items to get the information out.

The Board discussed with Ms. Berg and Ms. Walker the pros and cons of creating a separate website. Ms. Walker recommended that the Board use the City’s website since the City’s website was 1) available at no cost; 2) already up and running; and 3) enjoyed a level of credibility as a.gov website. The Board decided to go with Ms. Walker’s recommendation. It was also discussed that any information regarding the election must be completely separate from any information provided about the candidates themselves. Ms. Berg explained that no substantive information on the candidates would be provided on the City’s.gov website.

Ms. Berg requested a copy of the 2019 election calendar for deadline dates for mailings and outreach. The

Board indicated that once the calendar was completed, it would provide Ms. Berg with a copy.

Standard Operating Procedures:

Board member Weiner provided copies of draft standard operating procedures to the Board for review.The Board decided not to discuss the drafts at this meeting and will bring them back for discussion at their next meeting.

Note: Ms. Berg and Ms. Walker left the meeting at 7:45 p.m.

Follow-up Action items – 2019 Election:

The Board requested that Ms. Conway email a draft of the Election Calendar with the campaign fund report filing dates and a draft of the Election Plan for 2019 to the Board by August 6 for review and discussion at the Board’s next meeting of August 9. Chair Neuman and the Board members made clear to Ms. Conway that the Election Plan needs to be done within the next 30 days, so it can be sent to the Montgomery County Board of Elections, the State of Maryland and the Vendors. The Election Plan is the necessary first step in planning the 2019 City Election.

In addition, Ms. Conway agreed to reach out to the Region Postmaster for availability to schedule a meeting with the Board and further agreed to coordinate the Board’s availability.

Board member Dawson will follow-up with ideas for media, outreach and volunteers.

Appointment of Chair:

Chair Neuman was reappointed Chair for the upcoming year.

Motion: to reappoint Chair Neuman as Chair

Moved by Boardmember Weiner, second by Boardmember Johnson and approved 3 to 2 with Board members Jackowski and Dawson voting against the motion.

Future Meetings:

The Board scheduled the next meeting for Thursday, August 9, 2018 - (6:00-8:00 p.m.) Tuesday, September 25, 2018 – BSE Meeting – (6:00-8:00 p.m.)

Adjournment:

The meeting adjourned at 8:08 p.m.

Motion: to adjourn

Moved by Boardmember Dawson, seconded by Boardmember Jackowski and approved unanimously.

http://www.rockvillemd.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_07242018-2305