Tidbits, 03/07
March, 2007, Joan Lund
After I return from a UUA Board of Trustees (BOT)meeting there is so much I want to write in the report submitted for the District webpage (check it out) and monthly packet but there is never enough room. One of the topics I have not written about is how the UUA publishes our positions on social justice issues. The way they are written now is cumbersome requiring reviewing numerous statements in different locations. The current process of having to find and digest an assortment of statements to discern the UUA?s position is not efficient or an effective approach to public witness. With thanks to information from Rob Keithan, Director of the Washington Office for Advocacy the development of a new Public Policy Statement (PPS) process will make our social justice policies widely accessible to UUs.
PPS will allow the Association, the general public, and the press to readily determine the UUA?s policy on a given issue. The process being proposed will assemble information in a simple, accessible format, and be drafted by the UUA staff and approved by the BOT to ensure that they are appropriately represent the statements from which they are drawn, without creating new policy. Since PPSs summarize exiting statements rather than create new policies the BOT determined their creation did not require bylaw changes or General Assembly (GA) action.
The creation of PPSs was recommended by the Social Witness Review Panel in April 2004 and approved by the BOT in October 2004. The new process will involve Staff submitting PPS to the UUA BOT to include the proposed PPS draft, with a cover letter reviewing the themes/process relevant to that PPS and links to where the supporting texts can be found (Actions of Immediate Witness, Statements of Conscience, etc.). The BOT?s responsibility will be to review and affirm adoption of a UUA PPS, based on actions of previous GAs thus permitting staff to rely on, and use it publicly. Or the BOT may not affirm the PPS, which would require referring it back to staff for further work as directed. Also if not affirmed the Social Witness Review Panel may offer another option and the BOT could refer the PPS statement directly to the GA assembly. It would be voted up or down. It will be recommended that the BOT not exercise the last option until or unless an effective process for this exists, because this option would require considerable collaboration with the CSW and Moderator as well as education of GA delegates.
For complete versions of the PPSs that have been approved by the UUA GA and BOT you can see www.uua.org/actions. As you know you can always contact me at jlund@uua.org or 813-931-9727. Hope you are all staying warm and well during our cooler weather. I am always grateful I live in Florida at this time of year.
After I return from a UUA Board of Trustees (BOT)meeting there is so much I want to write in the report submitted for the District webpage (check it out) and monthly packet but there is never enough room. One of the topics I have not written about is how the UUA publishes our positions on social justice issues. The way they are written now is cumbersome requiring reviewing numerous statements in different locations. The current process of having to find and digest an assortment of statements to discern the UUA?s position is not efficient or an effective approach to public witness. With thanks to information from Rob Keithan, Director of the Washington Office for Advocacy the development of a new Public Policy Statement (PPS) process will make our social justice policies widely accessible to UUs.
PPS will allow the Association, the general public, and the press to readily determine the UUA?s policy on a given issue. The process being proposed will assemble information in a simple, accessible format, and be drafted by the UUA staff and approved by the BOT to ensure that they are appropriately represent the statements from which they are drawn, without creating new policy. Since PPSs summarize exiting statements rather than create new policies the BOT determined their creation did not require bylaw changes or General Assembly (GA) action.
The creation of PPSs was recommended by the Social Witness Review Panel in April 2004 and approved by the BOT in October 2004. The new process will involve Staff submitting PPS to the UUA BOT to include the proposed PPS draft, with a cover letter reviewing the themes/process relevant to that PPS and links to where the supporting texts can be found (Actions of Immediate Witness, Statements of Conscience, etc.). The BOT?s responsibility will be to review and affirm adoption of a UUA PPS, based on actions of previous GAs thus permitting staff to rely on, and use it publicly. Or the BOT may not affirm the PPS, which would require referring it back to staff for further work as directed. Also if not affirmed the Social Witness Review Panel may offer another option and the BOT could refer the PPS statement directly to the GA assembly. It would be voted up or down. It will be recommended that the BOT not exercise the last option until or unless an effective process for this exists, because this option would require considerable collaboration with the CSW and Moderator as well as education of GA delegates.
For complete versions of the PPSs that have been approved by the UUA GA and BOT you can see www.uua.org/actions. As you know you can always contact me at jlund@uua.org or 813-931-9727. Hope you are all staying warm and well during our cooler weather. I am always grateful I live in Florida at this time of year.
