Framingham Democratic Town Committee

Minutes of May 21, 2006

Held at Framingham Green from 7pm to 9pm.

Attendance

Members: Rep. Debby Blumer, Nancy Coville Wallace, Bill Haberman, Donna Howland, Chris Lorant, Tom Mahoney, Stephanie Mercandetti, Terene Micciche, Joan Rastani, Chris Ross, Norma Shulman, Alan Silver, Rochelle Sivan, Parwez Wahid

Associate Members: Elsa Aviza, Farooq Mirza

Recent Associate Members: Steve Robinson

Guests: Hon. Bob Bernstein, Tom Scionti

1..                   Treasurer’s Report

One member still owes dues for 2005-06.

For the current term, there are 12 paid members, 25 owe dues.  There are 6 paid associate members.

Treasurer’s report was accepted.

2..                   Minutes and Attendance

The Minutes of the April meeting were accepted with no corrections.

3..                   Program, Auto Insurance Reform

Hon. Bob Bernstein

Former State Senator Bob Bernstein was introduced by Debbie Blumer.   Bob first ran for office in 1992.  He chaired the committee on insurance.  In describing the current state of the insurance industry he recalled how the Insurance Commissioner once testified “…no one fully understands how cars are insured.”

He related how Massachusetts is the only state with fixed and established auto insurance.  This is based on annual aggregate data fixed by the Commissioner, sort of a “one size fits all” system.  There are approximately 19 companies that write auto insurance in Massachusetts, this is well below the national average.

Current TV and radio ads on insurance reform have given the “He says, she says” impression, leaving consumers bewildered.  While some state that rates have declined and that the system should remain as is, consumers find they are paying more.

Others point to the lack of competition in the state for auto insurance.  All national insurers are not doing business in the state.  Bob Bernstein feels the system is under capitalized, with not enough companies.  Thus fewer companies are assuming more risk.  Fundamentally, this group argues that more competition grows business.

Bob covered 3 major issues regarding auto insurance reform.

1 – Fraud.  While $30 million was recovered in Lawrence, this did not result in savings to that community.  The system does not allow for quick changes.

2 – Introduce Competition.  Allow consumers to shop around.  Have mandatory rate reduction for Step 9 drivers and guaranteed caps as well.  Companies would then compete within this band.

3 – Residual Markets.  These are the bad drivers that no one wants to insure.  This can be done by a cost sharing mechanism where companies share the cost of bad drivers.  Insurance companies would get a percentage of the pool of bad drivers based on their percentage share of the market.

Regarding how cars are insured, Bob stated it was based on where the “car sleeps”.  He cited his own example where he lived in Worcester and commuted 3 miles to work at City Hall.  Because he lived in Worcester, he paid more for insurance than another driver who lived outside the city and commuted 10 miles to the same location at City Hall.  He criticized the system as designed for non-accountability.  While there is also the thought that the Insurance Commissioner should be elected, he thinks it will politicize the debate.

4..                   Selecting candidates for Town Election Board

This item is not needed at present.  Linda Fields was appointed last year by the DTC, her term is for three years.

5..                   Review Proposed Meeting Schedule for 2006-07

A proposed schedule for the 2006-07 meeting dates was distributed for review.  One adjustment was made moving the April 2007 meeting to April 1st.

The 2006-07 Schedule proposed as follows:

17-SEP-2006

15-OCT-2006

12-NOV-2006

(No Dec Meeting)

21-JAN-2007 (subject to caucus)

11-FEB-2007 (subject to caucus)

11-MAR-2007

01-APR-2007

20-MAY-2007

10-JUN-2007 (optional)

6..                   Briefing For Delegates

The “Call To Convention” was issued by the State Party, however some delegates stated they had not received their copy.  Norma Shulman will copy some of the key information for those delegates who did not receive the “Call To Convention”.

Registration opens at 3:00PM on Friday June 2nd.

Credentials will be received about 3-4 days prior to the convention.

All delegates and alternates must have a photo-id as well as their credentials.

Lost credentials will cost $50.

The Second Middlesex Norfolk teller is Bill Dooling.

Speeches start at 9:45AM on Saturday.  Gubernatorial speeches will be last.

All delegates must be checked in before 11AM, otherwise the alternates will be seated.

7..                   Announcements and other new business

Parwez Wahid mentioned that he, Norma Shulman and Rochelle Sivan visited the Sumerville Senior Housing at Farm Pond to view the meeting spaces available.  The DTC would likely continue to hold its meetings at the Framingham Green, however the Farm Pond facility does offer a large dining room where the DTC might consider a holiday party during December.

Parwez also mentioned that the DTC website could use some enhancements to make its appearance more sophisticated.  Parwez received some training from Mat Helman on making website changes two years ago and this was sufficient to keep the DTC website current with items like minutes and agenda.  Parwez is hopeful that someone with greater web design skills can make significant changes to the website.  Elsa Aviza mentioned her son might be available to help.

Norma Shulman mentioned an event by the Natick DTC where they honored their life members.  The even featured some prominent guests such as the State Party Chair and former governor, Mike Dukakis.  She suggested that the Framingham DTC consider doing more events and obtain a banner for display.  The banner could include the DTC’s website address.

Two opportunities for events are the Flag Day celebration and the Concerts on the Green.  (However the Concert series is in jeopardy of cancellation due to lack of funding.)

Joan Rastani will look into setting up a table for the Flag Day celebration on June 11th.

Chris Ross will check into the Concert series and see if the DTC can set up an information table.

Norma Shulman mentioned Victory ’06 Training at Sumerville Senior Housing on Monday May 22nd.  Precinct Captains and Block Captains are needed for the coordinated campaign.  Without appropriate coverage to canvass houses door-to-door it will be difficult for the Democrats to win the Governor’s race.

There will be a summer event hosted by Debby Blumer around the July 4th holiday.

The June 11th meeting can address ballot questions.  Volunteers are needed for the Program Committee to address specific questions that will be appearing on the ballots.

Chris Lorant mentioned that he won a free lunch for 15 at the Tin Alley Grill for May 30th.  He extended invitation to anyone interested.  He also stated that more Town Officials should come to DTC meetings and mentioned several Town meetings for Planning Board and ZBA.

Tom Mahoney mentioned several upcoming Planning Board projects: Sudbury Landing and the old clinic on Rt. 9 would become a branch office for Middlesex Savings Bank.

8..                   Reports From The Hill

Rep. Debby Blumer mentioned that the House budget is completed; the Senate is currently doing its budget.  The Economic Stimulus bill is still in progress as well as bills on property development.  The seat belt bill is going to the Governor’s desk.

Next meeting: June 11th.

Framingham Democratic Town Committee

Minutes of April 9, 2006

Held at Framingham Green from 7pm to 9pm.

Attendance

Members: Rita Blum, Rep. Debby Blumer, Nancy Coville Wallace, Jerry Desilets, Bill Haberman, Esther Hopkins, Donna Howland, Chris Lorant, Waldo Lyon, Dave Magnani, Tom Mahoney, Stephanie Mercandetti, Sarah Micciche, Terene Micciche, Mary Murphy, Chris Ross, Norma Shulman, Alan Silver, Rochelle Sivan, Cheryl Tully Stoll, Parwez Wahid

Associate Members: Elsa Aviza, Carrie Daly, Susan Elwyn, Gerry Heng, Farooq Mirza, Pam Roberts, Steve Robinson

Elected Officials: Rep. Tom Sannicandro, Town Moderator Joel Winett

Guests: Herb Chasan, Chris Gabrieli, Sam Kelley, Michael Sullivan, Jennifer Dever, Laura DiPalo,

• Treasuer’s Report

Treasurer’s report was accepted.

• Minutes and Attendance

The Minutes of the March meeting were accepted with no corrections.

• Program, Candidates for State-Wide offices

Chris Gabrieli, candidate for Governor.

Introduced by Debbie Blumer and Dave Magnani. Chris talked about the concept of community schools that can be used year around or for extended hours rather than just 6 hours per day. He talked of how the cut to local aid has impacted parts of the state including communities like Framingham.

Gabrieli’s parents immigrated to the United States and opted to settle in Buffalo, New York (he quipped on how this showed that his parents knew very little about America!). He does credit the education system in Buffalo but as he grew older he knew that he had no future in Buffalo with its lack of opportunities. He came to Massachusetts for education and became extremely fond of the area. Chris was originally in medical school but had to withdraw to support his family.

In 1983 he founded a company in health care software that did well. He gained support from venture capital funding to start new companies. He worked in Silicon Valley for many years before returning to the Boston area. He companies he helped created generated some 100,000 jobs.

To explore new challenges he became involved in non-profits and think-tanks. He made reference to the recently passed health-care bill as the types of exciting challenges he hoped to contribute towards as a way of giving back. But in referencing the new health-care bill he also stated how its most important sections were passed through a veto-override in the legislature. He felt frustrated at how Massachusetts was under-performing in its capabilities and wants to bring changes in this area.

The task he feels is to explain to voters in the sub-urban areas that a Democratic candidate for governor will be results oriented and not govern under fear of the legislature.

Gabrieli stated that all voters are for jobs, education and health care; he offered as to what this really means. On education he feels that children do not spend enough time in schools, the school-days are too short. Engaging parents is helpful. The 180-day calendar is not enough to give children the skills needed for the 21st century. Better after school programs are needed for middle schools. This will give students more attention in areas where they are struggling and well as enrichment in arts. He acknowledges the many issues in pursuing this such as negotiating with teachers’ unions. As governor his approach would be to understand the problem deeply and bring in people committed to executing the project; he would never engage such efforts on his own.

He talked of jobs creation which is badly needed in Massachusetts. He also mentioned how the state has lost population for 2 years in a row. He cited rising cost of living and lack of jobs as the prime reasons for the lost population. He criticized the Governor who had billed himself as the “Jobs Governor” for failing to create jobs as promised. He found this perplexing given the resources in the state, including some of the finest colleges in the world, which are available to spur job creation.

He admitted that he entered the race late and this has drawn some criticism. When asked by others as to why he would not run as an independent (thus avoiding the need to get 15% at the convention), he replied that he is a Democrat first and foremost and would not consider running outside the party. In February he was called by Democrat friends who voiced there concern over the candidates in the race and felt that the party might be in jeopardy of losing in November. To break the 16 year streak of Republican governorship, he felt compelled to enter the gubernatorial race.

Chris went on to cite the strength of the Republican Party in running election campaigns and warned not to take them lightly. He mentioned how the Republicans were able to make John Kerry’s war record look worse than Bush and Cheney’s non-participation in the military. From his 2002 campaign experience he felt he is the best candidate to take on the Republicans in November.

Sam Kelly, candidate for Lt. Governor.

Dr. Kelly spoke briefly as this was his second visit to the Framingham DTC. Sam Kelly mentioned the progress of his campaign and how he has been doing well in various straw polls. He made a TV appearance to discuss the recent healthcare bill. He also mentioned his event on April 21 hosted by DTC member Shahid Khan.

Michael Sullivan, candidate for Middlesex County Clerk of Magistrate.

Michael is a former Mayor of the City of Cambridge and has been on the Cambridge City Council for 13 years. (His father was Mayor as well). He joked on how people are not often familiar with the position as used to be listed on the backside of the old ballots! The new ballots will list this office on the right side. As Mayor he made it a priority to see that government was responsive to the people and he personally returned all phone calls made to him. While the County Clerk is not a high profile office, Michael stated its importance in being responsive to those who come to seek services from the Clerk. He feels he can bring the human element needed to make the job more user-friendly. He also mentioned the 4-1/2 years he spent in the Attorney General’s office, Consumer Protection Division; he worked there because of the opportunity to truly help people with genuine problems.

Laura DiPalo, of the State Democratic Committee presented the State Party’s plans for Victory ’06. Laura had campaigned in Ohio for John Kerry during 2004 and described how the opposition had managed to nibble away at the Democrats lead by targeting precincts which traditionally do not have large turnouts and getting people in these precincts to vote for Bush. Although the Democrats exceeded all their targets for Ohio the strategy by the Bush team of getting out the vote worked and resulted in Kerry’s defeat. To win in the Governor’s race, Laura stressed that Democrats must knock on doors and reach out to more people. She distributed information on the Victory ’06 that describes how to form precinct captains to get people to come out and vote

• Donation to Framingham Green Tenants Association

Donna Howland recommended that the DTC make a donation to the Framingham Green Tenants Association as the DTC is not charged for use of the community room. A figure of $100 was approved for this donation.

• Formation of Finance Audit Committee

The Finance Audit Committee was formed to conduct the biennial review of the DTC’s financial records. The following members were appointed:

Alan Silver

Bill Haberman

Donna Howland

Nancy Coville Wallace

This committee will present its report at the September meeting.

• DTC Officers Elections

The Nominating Committee submitted a slate of candidates during the March meeting. The floor was opened for additional nominations, no further candidates were nominated. Motion was made and passed to accept the nominees and close nominations.

Give no positions were contested, motion was made and passed for the Chair to submit a single ballot to elect the entire slate of candidates.

The elected DTC officers for the term 2006-08 are:

Chair – Parwez Wahid

Vice Chair – Debby Blumer

Treasurer – Nancy Coville Wallace

Secretary – Rochelle Sivan

Outreach Officer – Chris Ross

Nominating Committee also submitted a recommendation that the newly elected officers begin their term on July 1, 2006. This will allow continuity of leadership through the State Convention in June. Motion was made and passed to accept the recommendation.

• Announcements

Jerry Desilets: Breakfast for convention delegates on April 29th in Holliston, hosted by the Holliston DTCand the MW Alliance. There is a $5 entry. All Primary candidates are expected.

Herb Chasan: Phone banking for out-of-state congressional races.

There was a notice read on the annual Roosevelt Dinner, May 1st in Boston. The event serves as a major fund raiser for the State Democratic Party.

Debby Blumer mentioned plans to set up an election campaign office during the general elections for phone banking and other campaign activities. The office might be setup before the primary.

Norma Shulman mentioned the forum on domestic spying that the DTC will be co-sponsoring with the Dover DTC on May 4th at the Great Hall in Dover.

Norma also read the names of the DTC members who were winners in the 2006 Town Elections:

Tom Mahoney, Planning Board

Nancy Coville Wallace, Library Trustee

Esther Hopkins, Keefe Tech School Committee

Faith Tolson-Pierce, Town Meeting, Precinct 13

Carlos Cunningham, Town Meeting, Precinct 12

Pam Roberts, Town Meeting, Precinct 10

Norma Shulman, Town Meeting, Precinct 5

Chris Lorant, Town Meeting, Precinct 1

• Reports From The Hill

Rep. Debby Blumer stated that any report would be pending the budget that is due later during the week, amendments to the budget must be submitted by April 19th. The budget will be available on-line.

Prior to adjournment, Jerry Desilets asked the Committee to acknowledge the officers for their efforts of the past two years.

Next meeting: May 21st.