Individuals who signed up at the $10 level for 2024 were sent the following email on March 10th:
Per the email that was sent on March 10th (Subject line: "Welcome and Clarification of Dues Structure for Membership"), you need to REPLY TO THIS EMAIL (from [email protected]) with one of the following statements:
"I misunderstood the dues levels and/or incorrectly registered for membership at the Student/Limited Income Level, but I (or my head of household) have now paid the remaining balance on my dues."
(** Please pay balance here before replying with the above **)
OR
"I confirm that I am a student or living on a limited/low income and it would be a financial hardship for me to pay the Individual (or Family) membership dues."
Please reply (and pay balance due, if applicable) no later than 11:59pm on Sunday, March 17, or you will not be considered a dues-paying member and will be unable to vote at the March 21 Regular Membership Meeting.
Thank you,
Hunter Brown (he/him)
Chair, 46th Legislative District Democrats
All members were sent this email with subject line: Welcome and Clarification of Dues Structure for Membership on March 10th
I’d like to welcome the 132 new people who have joined us since the beginning of the year looking to become members. I am excited to get to know you, and to work with you. We always look to new members to bring an influx of energy and talents to build up our organization. Welcome and thank you for joining us!
That being said, I was saddened to learn that someone launched a campaign, which intentionally encouraged people to join our organization at the $10 level, while knowingly withholding the fact that the $10 membership level is only for students and those living on a limited/low income.
Therefore, we need everyone who paid $10 towards joining our organization, to either pay the remaining dues that are owed, or to affirm that they meet the standard of being a student or are living on a limited/low income, such that paying the Individual or Family membership dues would present a significant financial hardship on the individual or family.
OUR ASK:
Everyone who incorrectly signed up for membership at the Student/Limited Income rate needs to pay their remaining balance owed, to get to the correct dues level, in order to become a member of our organization. This means that individuals need to pay the remaining balance of $30 to reach the Individual dues level of $40. Likewise, if you paid for multiple family members living in the same household, each at the $10 level, the head of household will need to pay the remaining balance, to get your family to the $60 Family level.
If you are a student, or if paying the Individual (or Family) dues would have presented a significant financial hardship, you need to email [email protected] to let our Membership Chair know that you are signed up at the appropriate level.
WHAT TO EXPECT:
If you signed up at the $10 level for 2024, you will receive a separate email with instructions and a link to a specific Act Blue donation page. In that email, you will be instructed to affirm that you have paid the balance owed, OR affirm that you’ve joined at the correct level. If an affirmation is not received by 11:59pm on Sunday, March 17, you will not be considered a dues-paying member and will be unable to vote at the March 21 Regular Membership Meeting.
Membership dues are like taxes. They fund our organization, which allows us to hold meetings, forums, events, and most importantly, to print and distribute our endorsement list throughout our Legislative District, to help us defeat Republicans and keep our LD and State Blue. That being said, the Democratic Party believes in progressive taxation and feels that those who can afford to pay, should, and those who cannot afford to pay, shouldn’t. Eliminating barriers to political participation is a foundational value shared at the local, state, and national level.
The Student/Limited Income membership level was created to reduce barriers for students and other limited-income people, who wish to participate in our organization. While we don’t ask our members to prove whether they are in fact students and/or have limited-income abilities, we do perform checks to make sure that our progressive dues structure is not being abused, as well as to verify residence in our Legislative District. Please note that we have also updated our website with language that should hopefully prevent individuals from being misled in the future.
WHERE DO YOUR DUES GO:
Each year, our organization works to inform our community of important ballot initiatives, signature gathering opportunities, and to mobilize our PCOs and provide them with endorsements to distribute and remind our neighbors to vote. We also organize phone-banking and text-banking events, provide educational programs for our members, hold forums with candidates in upcoming elections, and invite subject matter experts to educate our members and provide opportunities for our members to hear from our elected representatives. All this good work requires funding, and that’s why we recently voted to increase our Membership dues, so we can expand opportunities for our members, and reach more voters.
Once again, if you signed up to join at the $10 level for 2024, you must affirm that you have paid the balance owed, or affirm that you’ve joined at the correct level, and if an affirmation is not received by 11:59pm on Sunday, March 17, you will not be considered a dues-paying member and will be unable to vote at the March 21 Regular Membership Meeting.
Thank you for assisting us in protecting the integrity of our progressive dues structure and ensuring that we may continue to offer the Student/Limited Income level moving forward.