The Voter

By Lynn Frazier

Dear Alachua County,

There is a lot going on as we move through these dog days of summer. Are you aware that you may need to update your voter registration? Kim Barton, our Supervisor of Elections, is being proactive in encouraging us to update our voter registration. Recently passed Senate Bill 90 requires us to verify either our SSN or Florida Driver License/Florida ID number to request a mail ballot. Many of us registered to vote prior to current requirements. Now you must provide the last four digits of your SSN or your driver’s license number or your Florida ID number when you register to vote. When you update your registration information online at RegistertoVoteFlorida.gov, the signature the SOE office receives from the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles becomes your signature of record. By updating your voter registration, you guarantee that your voter record will have both pieces of information that can be used for verification. Please make the effort and update your voter registration at RegistertoVoteFlorida.gov. This is important.

Sadly, with the beginning of the school year, we are also in a period of rapid rise of COVID. This has, once again, brought conflict between our Governor and our School Board. This time the issue is the masking of children. Governor DeSantis’s recent emergency executive order threatens the loss of funds in an attempt to take away the authority of local governments to require face masks in schools. LWV of Florida urges Gov. DeSantis to allow local control of COVID-19 mitigation in Public Schools. League is a supporter of Home Rule. Policymakers within local school districts must be able to make safety decisions in our local schools. We applaud the Alachua County School Board decision that the safety of our children is greater than the threatened loss of funds from the State and is requiring masking for at least the first two weeks of school. The State of Florida’s role moving forward should be to provide school districts, teachers, and parents clear and accurate data.

In another response to recent legislation, LWVAC signed a letter of support along with many local leaders and community organizations to voice support for authorizing litigation by the city to challenge the Combating Violence, Disorder, and Looting and Law Enforcement Protection Act, also known as HB1. You may review the content of the letter of support here. League took a strong stand against HB1 for many reasons including the ability of the State to overrule nonpartisan local budgets and community budgeting efforts that reduce law enforcement budgets to invest public dollars in other public safety programs. As you know, League is a strong supporter of Home Rule.

Stay safe and become involved,

Lynn

elgfrazier@gmail.com

Education

Karen McCann

I joined the league in 2018, the same year that I retired after a 40 year career in education as a teacher, school counselor and local union president. My passion is public school education. I saw the work that members of the league are doing to further inform the public about education issues and that inspired me to get involved. I served as education committee co-chair in 2019 and am currently the chair. It’s a pleasure to work with this talented group of people and an added bonus of being a league member is becoming better informed in areas outside my own expertise.

Local Issues

Natural Resources

Roberta Gastmeyer

As a native Floridian who grew up roaming the “wilds” of South Florida (yes, it was a long time ago), I watched as those special places were replaced with roads, houses and strip malls with little concern for water, air, wildlife. I attended UF in the late 70’s and was impressed by the effective advocacy of the local environmentalists. I joined Sierra Club and started on my volunteer activist journey which I am excited to continue as part of the Natural Resources Committee team.

Jay Rosenbek

I retired from U.F. in 2014. I joined the LWVAC in 2017 and became Co-Chair of the Natural Resources Committee shortly thereafter. I joined the League because it valued evidence. I joined Natural Resources because I wanted to do more to preserve a habitable environment than merely bringing reusable bags to the grocery store and remembering not to put dirty pizza delivery boxes in the recycling  bin. League membership and NR leadership have provided experiences every bit as rich as my 47-year career as a speech-language pathologist.

Social & Criminal Justice

Bennett Brummer

I have dedicated my life to service to the public, especially to the poor. I served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Venezuela, a supervisor at Legal Services of Greater Miami, and dedicated 40 years to the Miami-Dade Public Defender’s Office, 32 years as the elected public defender. I have been a member of the League of Women Voters for more than 50 years. I am also a member of the LWVAC Natural Resources Committee and the Electric Vehicle Leader for Sierra Club and LWVAC.

Voter Services

Courtney Pyche

I’m brand new to the League this year and am the chair of Voter Services. I joined because I appreciate the League’s commitment to being nonpartisan and supporting everyone’s right to vote. I graduated from the University of Florida and Florida State University and am presently employed full-time as a Youth Services Librarian at the Alachua County Library District. I’m from the area and enjoy reading a good YA novel and traveling as often as possible. 

Communications

Connie Nicklin

I joined the League in 2017 to participate in Voter Services activities – registering and educating voters. In 2018, I was elected to the board as an at-large director. In 2021, I became Communications Chair. I am also on the board of a local animal rescue, my other passion. In my prior career, I was a research tech, quality assurance manager, and eventually an administrative director at UF. I am currently working as a remote virtual assistant and preparing to RV full time beginning in 2022.