Annual Membership Meeting

The 2011 annual membership meeting will be on Sunday, September 25th from 1:00PM to 6:00PM in Pembroke, NH. There will be a pot-luck luncheon immediately following the membership meeting. Please consider bringing something to eat or drink for all to share. Extra chairs, tables, or coolers are also welcome.

The Board will report on the past year’s events and successes as well as objectives for the upcoming election and legislative seasons. Members are welcome to present their thoughts or suggestions to the Board on how to improve NHLA’s influence and recognition. To RSVP or for more information about the annual meeting, including the venue location, email membership@nhliberty.org.

Prior to the annual membership meeting from 12:00PM to 1:00PM the Board will hold its monthly meeting. As with all Board meetings, any member is welcome to attend.

In keeping with the spirit of private charity, we will be holding a collection for a New Hampshire food pantry. Any non-perishable items you could bring would be welcome.

Civic Action

When the NHLA was founded, one of the five original NHLA Board of Directors positions was the Director of Civic Action. The Board is considering restoring this position after it was previously eliminated in August of 2008. It was also recently discovered that the August 2008 bylaws amendment vote (4-2 in favor) did not meet the four fifths majority required to amend the bylaws. The Board believes that the proper way to correct this oversight and restore the position of Director of Civic Action is to do so through a new bylaws amendment. The language was approved in the September 2nd board meeting and must be approved by four fifths of the Board at a subsequent meeting before taking effect.

Proposed Bylaws Changes

3.2 The Board will consist of seven Directors: a Chairman, a Director of Political Action, a Vice Chairman, a Director of Civic Action, a Director of Membership, a Director of Research, a Secretary and a Treasurer. Specific duties may be assigned to each Director by majority vote of the Board. Effective 08/15/08, the Director of Civic Action shall be replaced with the Vice Chairman. Effective at the end of the Vice Chairman's term in April 2013, or immediately in the case of a vacancy, the Vice Chairman shall be replaced with the Director of Civic Action.

3.5.1 Starting in May 2011 the term of office for each board position shall expire as follows: Odd years: April 30th: vice chairman, civic action, secretary; November 30th: political action, treasurer. Even years: April 30th: membership; November 30th: chairman, research.

3.8 The Directors may, at their option, elect a standing vice-chair from among themselves to fulfill the functions of the Chairman in the event of the Chairman's absence.

Article Four - Officers

4.3 The duties of the Vice Chairman shall include, but not be limited to: fulfilling the functions of the Chairman in the event of the Chairman's absence. Director of Civic Action shall include, but not be limited to: finding appropriate NH residents to receive financial assistance through our Civic Action Fund and scheduling charitable events throughout the year to bring non-governmental assistance to NH residents.

Special Elections Update

GENERAL Election - Hillsborough County District 3 (Greenville, New Ipswich, Peterborough, Sharon) for State Representative. The general election date is September 20, 2011. At this time the NHLA has not received a completed candidate survey that has met the threshold required for the NHLA to endorse a candidate for this office.

Endorsements are based on candidate surveys and/or Liberty Rating scores from previous House incumbency voting records if available.

NHLA Board Elections

Have you ever considered serving on the NHLA Board of Directors? It’s a great way to take a leadership role in promoting liberty in New Hampshire.

The Board has seven positions (Chairman, Vice Chairman, Political Action Director, Treasurer, Membership Director, Research Director, and Secretary) and each position is a two-year term. The Board meets once a month, at a central location, usually in Concord, to plan, organize, and brainstorm ways of promoting the NHLA and pushing liberty forward through legislative activism and public outreach. These all-volunteer positions are very rewarding and do require some time commitment.

In November, the NHLA will be holding elections for Political Action Director and Treasurer. The Political Action Director is responsible for, but not limited to: recruiting candidates for state, city and town offices; training candidates; endorsing candidates for office; determining campaign donations; determining the Legislator of the Year; providing training on the legislative process; providing training for town meetings. The Treasurer is responsible for, but not limited to: submitting monthly financial reports; fundraising (including the annual Liberty Dinner); timely deposit of all received funds and timely payment of all bona fide expenses; possession of inventoried NHLA materials (shirts, pins, membership applications, report cards, etc.). More details about these Board positions and the organization can be found here on our website.

Nominations for these positions are now being accepted. If you know of someone who would make a great addition to the NHLA Board (including yourself) and would like us to speak with them about their (your) possible involvement, please submit their (your) name to chair@nhliberty.org.

The voting dates will soon be announced. Remember, you must be a paid member in order to participate in Board elections. To upgrade to either Full or Lifetime Membership, log in to the website and click on "my account."

2011 Liberty Rating

The 2011 Liberty Rating is now available at http://www.nhliberty.org/2011_Liberty_Rating. The Liberty Rating is an objective evaluation of all 424 New Hampshire state senators and representatives based on 56 roll call votes in the House and 22 in the Senate. Bills have been carefully selected for inclusion based on the NHLA's core values of individual freedom of choice and personal responsibility, recognition of the superiority of freedom over coercion, respect for the citizen’s right of self-ownership, and the promotion of good and transparent government.

Help the NHLA Support Pro-Liberty Candidates with a Monthly Donation

The NHLA website has been updated to enable reoccurring monthly donations to be made to the NHLA Political Action Committee. PAC funds will go toward NHLA endorsed candidates for state office. Endorsements are based on candidate surveys and/or Liberty Rating scores from previous House incumbency voting records if available. The goal of a monthly donation is to start early in building up funds to support pro-liberty candidates come election time. Please visit http://www.nhliberty.org/campaign-fund to help the NHLA make an even bigger impact on future elections.

Jim Dodson of Liberty Books in Concord (75 Allison Street) hosts NHLA’s monthly Board meetings. Please visit this treasure-filled store for books on history, economics, and politics, as well as an unrivaled collection of graphic novels and comic books. You may also visit Jim on the web at http://www.libertybooksnh.net/.

Get NHLA news and alerts fast by joining the NHLA group on Facebook.com. http://facebook.nhliberty.org

Help support the NHLA by making all your Amazon purchases through the NHLA/Amazon.com affiliate program. Go to http://www.nhliberty.org/books_and_videos and click on the “Shop at Amazon.com!” link.