Connecticut Council on Freedom of Information
Annual Meeting Minutes, June 19, 2024
The meeting was at the home of Mitch Pearlman in Glastonbury.
Present: Mike Savino, Tom Scheffey, Jacqueline Smith, Mary Connolly, Jeff Daniels, Michele Jacklin, Karen Florin, Mitch Pearlman, David DesRoches, Chris Powell.
The minutes of the May 15, 2024 regular monthly meeting were accepted.
Treasurer’s report: Smith distributed a detailed report on the cost of the June 12 awards event and a future look at CCFOI financial issues. After the quarterly payment to our lobbyist and the cost of our Hartford Club event, our June balance is $7,184.23.
All offered a warm “thank you” to Dwight Merriam, a member of The Hartford Club and a supporter of FOI, who sponsored our event and that sponsorship saved us $800.
Smith said CCFOI should review the financial structure that allows us to maintain a professional lobbying operation and protect public access to public information. When founded, CCFOI’s finances depended on contributions from individual newspapers. The business climate has changed. While we still receive support from today’s news organizations, we need to expand our community of supporters. Smith said we should promote individual memberships. She suggests the use of regular newsletters, social media and other outreach to recruit new members and build public support for FOI. She suggested the appointment of a subcommittee to study this approach.
Election of officers: After a short discussion, it was unanimously agreed to create a co-presidential structure. The job of president is demanding and the workload is especially intense during the legislative session. The board asked Jacklin, who has served as co-chair of the Legislative Committee, to serve as co-president. She agreed. Other officers agreed to serve another term.
The nominated slate of officers: Co-President Mike Savino, Co-President Michele Jacklin, Vice President Tom Scheffey, Treasurer Jacqueline Smith, Secretary Mary Connolly, and Legislative Committee Chair Jeff Daniels. Directors are Chris Powell, Mitch Pearlman, Jodie Gil, Steve Nevas, David DesRoches and Karen Florin, who will remain chair of the Governance Committee. The Legislative Committee was expanded with the addition of Steve Nevas, Tom Scheffey and David DesRoches.
The slate was elected unanimously. Savino and Jacklin will discuss how to divide responsibilities as co-presidents and report back to the board.
Coordination with FOI advocates: CCFOI, the Connecticut Foundation for Open Government and the Connecticut Society of Professional Journalists are partners within the FOI community. But sometimes we don’t always stay in touch or work in coordination. We agreed a summit of sorts would be useful to all. The co-presidents will bring the suggestion to CFOG and SPJ leaders and report back to the board.
CCFOI website: All agreed Gil is doing a great job updating our website. Profiles and photos of officers and directors will be added.
Lobbying contract: We unanimously agreed to extend our contract with Kozak & Salina for another two years. We agreed our lobbyist, Liz Gemski, has done a great job in a sometimes difficult environment for FOI advocates.
Board recruitment: It was agreed the board should continue to identify FOI advocates who might be interested in joining the CCFOI board. Florin will be the point person for coordinating contacts. We have found it difficult to recruit people at the beginning of their careers because they are juggling so many demands on their time. Florin said better options for recruitment are mid-career or retired FOI advocates.
Looking ahead: The next monthly meeting will be Sept. 18 at 9 a.m. via Zoom.