Regional Director's Email
November 14, 2009
Don’t Forget to Cast Your ACFA Ballot

Dr. Glen Newton Dr. Glen Newton,
North Central Regional Director

Fellow ACFA North Central Region Members,

One thing that distinguishes ACFA from other cat clubs is that decisions on bylaws, breed standards, and other rules that affect you are ultimately made by the members, not a central governing body. We are now in a period of voting for the 2009 ballot measures, and you have until December 15 for your ballot to be received in the ACFA ballot box. Don’t miss this opportunity to affect the future of your association!

The ballot is included in the October ACFA Bulletin, which you should have received by now, either through email or postal mail.

To make sure your ballot is counted, follow the directions carefully. In particular, follow these rules from the ACFA bylaws:

  • “No identifying marks, names or signatures should be placed on the ballot.
  • Ballot envelopes may contain ONLY ONE BALLOT. Multiple ballots in a single envelope will be declared null and void.
  • The ballot envelope MUST contain the following information for verification of voter eligibility.
    [1] Name and address of member.
    [2] Membership number and Region of residence.
    [3] Breed Section membership[s].”

Note that the ACFA bulletin includes a sample envelope. In contrast to the order of envelope information given in the bylaws, the sample envelope shows the return address like this:

<member number>-NC <breed sections>
Name of member
Address of member

Now for the ballot itself …

The ballot includes three items on which all North Central Region members should vote: 2 nd vice president, revised pay schedule for master clerks, and allowing polydactyl Pixiebobs.

2nd Vice-President: Each of the executive committee members is elected to a three-year term, and their years of election rotate, with the goal of providing some continuity from one set of officers to the next. The two candidates have supplied candidate statements on pages 1-2 of the Bulletin. This is the year to elect the 2nd vice-president. We’ll elect a president in 2010 and a 1st vice-president in 2011. Here’s what the bylaws say about the 2nd vice-president:

Second Vice President. The Second Vice President will act as advisor on Association affairs. In addition, the Second Vice President shall perform such other duties as may be delegated by the Board of Directors or the President.
Succession to Office.
[1] President: In the event of a vacancy in the Office of President, the First Vice President shall succeed to the Office of President, the Second Vice President will succeed to the office of First Vice President.
[2] First Vice President: In the event of a vacancy of the Office of First Vice President, the Second Vice President shall succeed to the office of First Vice President.

Master clerk pay schedule: Today, the ACFA Show Rules say that “an ACFA Licensed Master Clerk will be paid a minimum of the value of two [2] entries by the Club.” The revision was proposed to account for the difference between a one-day and two-day show. If passed, the minimum payment for a one-day show will be 1.5 times an entry fee. The minimum payment for a two-day show will not change, regardless of whether the amendment passes or not.

Polydactyls: Although only the Pixiebob LH/SH are affected, this proposal comes to the entire membership because of a show rule in article IX: General Judging Rules that disqualifies polydactyl purebred cats; note that this particular judging rule does not apply to Household Pets, which are allowed to be polydactyl. A “Yes” vote allows a certain degree of polydactylism in Pixiebobs in ACFA; it does not allow any other purebred polydactyl cats to be shown in ACFA. (See page 6 of the newsletter for the exact wording.) The Pixiebob Breed Committee has a statement in favor of this proposal on page 8 of the September Bulletin. The statement against accepting polydactyl Pixiebobs, on page 2 of the October Bulletin, includes some inaccuracies. If you are undecided about this amendment, you may find it helpful to review some of the related correspondence on the ACFA list, beginning November 1st.

In addition to these items, you can vote for the items for your breed sections. Note that the show rule amendments require a “Yes” from 50% of those voting to pass, whereas breed standard amendments require a 60% majority vote of the votes cast for ratification.

In case you can’t read the blurry text in your ballot, you can find high-resolution copies of the ballot pages on the ACFA North Central Region web site, https://acfanorthcentralregion.org.

Don’t forget to vote!

Sincerely,
Glen Newton
North Central Regional Director

Email me at glennewton@comcast.net or call me at 651-688-9504.