How did you hear about the bylaws amendments that will give videographers the right to vote in the NCRA? Most folks that we’ve heard from say they found out from their state association, a fellow court reporter, or even perhaps this very blog. But where almost no one seems to have first heard about it is from NCRA itself. Of course, you would think that an organization — whose members have to produce readable transcripts every day — would know better than to use super small microtype to “publicize” the bylaws amendments on its Website. Then, again, maybe the whole point of the microtype was for the changes to go virtually unnoticed.
But thank goodness NCRA is still a democratic association and this change must be put to a vote!
So, whether or not you wish that the board was more forthcoming with their very important proposal to change the bylaws, the amendments ultimately have to come out into the sunshine for a vote!
Bylaws are the roadmap to our association. They tell the board and staff how we, the membership, want to see OUR association run. Back in 2010, when the roadmap was amended by a landslide vote of membership, the words “verbatim stenographic reporters” were added six times in Article III, Sections b) and c), the “Privileges” section — the very section that the board is wanting to change. That landslide vote was a “shout-out” of membership to the board and staff that NCRA’s membership wanted the National Court Reporters Association to focus on VERBATIM STENOGRAPHIC REPORTERS exclusively!!!
Another issue that we have in the proposed Article III, Section c) is that it allows the board of directors to “define” whether a videographer “maintains his/her certifications.” We fear that a future board could somehow change and skew those definitions with clever wordsmithing, lowering the standards for videographers even further. (Upon further research, videographers don’t even need to spend $880 to get certified. The only mandatory day they need to attend is the Saturday event for $550!)
It is so very clear that membership voted that it wanted NCRA to remain an organization focused on Verbatim Stenographic Reporters only in 2010, and adding all of the videographer verbiage in Article III sounds exactly like the afterthought that it is.
Let’s all have another SHOUT-OUT VOTE, and not put a fork in the roadmap of NCRA.
Wake up, NCRA!!!
Please send www.wakeupncra.com to at least ten reporters to get out the vote on July 30th.
Frank N. Sense
P.S. We’ve included Amendment #2 for your perusal – in a larger font than on NCRA’s Website. The proposed changes are italicized in red.
Amendment #2
Article III-Membership
Section 7–Associate Members
c) Any person seeking to become or who has been certified by the Association as a Certified Legal Video Specialist (CLVS) shall be eligible to become an Associate Member.
e) Associate Members shall not vote, except as allowed for in Article III, Section 9 b).
Article III-Membership
Section 9–Privileges
a) All classes of Members shall enjoy the privileges of the Association except where certain privileges are specifically restricted to a specific class of Member in this Constitution and Bylaws.
b) All Members may attend meetings of the Members and participate in any debates at such meetings. Only Participating Members who are verbatim stenographic reporters and Registered Members who are verbatim stenographic reporters, as well as Retired Lifetime Members and Honorary Members who have been verbatim stenographic reporters, and Certified Legal Video Specialist Associate Members in good standing, upon payment of the equivalent of Participating Member dues, shall be eligible to vote and/or make or second motions at such meetings or to vote by electronic mail or other means of electronic transmission as specifically authorized under Article IX (“Voting Members”).
c) Only Registered Members who are verbatim stenographic reporters or Retired Lifetime Members who have been verbatim stenographic reporters or Honorary Members who have been verbatim stenographic reporters shall be eligible to hold an elective office of the Association.
d) Only Members in good standing holding NCRA certifications, who maintain their certifications as required by the Board of Directors, may use the NCRA certification designations associated with his/her certifications. The only exception is nonmember Certified Legal Video Specialists who have maintained his/her certification as defined by the Board of Directors.
Rationale:
Proposal 1) is to add the formal name of the CLVS certification. Regarding 2) and 3), the Board of Directors charged the Constitution and Bylaws Committee with exploring the possibility of allowing voting rights by Certified Legal Video Specialists who are NCRA members, without changing the Associate Member category.
Proposal 4), Section 9, subsection d), is a revision of current Article III, Section 10, subsection b), which more appropriately belongs in Section 9.