Fraternal Order of Police: Municipal Officers' Lodge #9

Meetings notes October 11, 2007.

Meeting called to order by President Lee Donaldson at 1945 hours.

Board Members in Attendance:
President Lee Donaldson
Secretary Swen Thompson
Treasurer Peter Jensen
State Trustee Frank Borelli
Sergeant At Arms David Thompson
Parliamentarian Marc Butler

Excused members:
1st Vice President Dan Enig
Brother Dave Fraley
Sister Kathy Perez
Retired out-of-state members

All other members absent without excuse.

Preliminary discussions:
Brother Davis from Bladensburg mentioned that the city is buying the 3 Captains (bar). Discussion was had as to whether or not the lodge would be interested in leasing it (cheap) for our use. General consensus was that we ARE interested. Brother Davis was asked to keep us informed.

First order of business:
President Donaldson brought up the matter of prorating dues by the quarter for new members. Discussion was had. Parliamentarian Butler brought up the suggestion that we raise the annual dues to $100 making the amounts of prorated quarters easier to figure out. Discussion was had.

On the matter of prorating dues by the fiscal quarter for new members, the motion was made by State Trustee Borelli and seconded by Brother Madero. It was voted on by the membership present and unanimously passed.

On the matter of increasing annual dues to $100, the motion was made by Brother Lyew and seconded by Sergeant At Arms Thompson. Per the bylaws, this topic will remain tabled and will be brought forward for discussion again at the November meeting before proceeding to a vote as appropriate at the December meeting.

Second order of business:
President Donaldson indicated that the lodge had received eight new member applications. Those applicants named were:
David Powers, Edmonston PD
Kenneth Richardson, Glen Arden PD
Robert Middleton, Capital Heights PD
John Richardson, Capital Heights PD
George Sullivan, Edmonston PD
Jason Thomas, Bowie PD
German Miranda, Landover Hills PD
Paul Hammond, WSSC PD

Discussion was held to determine suitability of the applicants for membership. By unanimous vote of the membership present, all eight applicants were voted into the Lodge.

Third Order of Business:
Topic of discussion was FOP tags. Concern was voiced about the DC FOP being able to authorize MD FOP tags. This is apparently a concern not only of Lodge 9 but also of the county (Lodge 89) and MD State Lodges. Discussion was completed with no action necessary on our Lodge's behalf.

Fourth order of business:
Treasurer Jensen announced that Lodge Counsel Terry McGrath will be making a presentation at the November meeting regarding LEOBR. Discussion was held about potential conflict of interest when multiple FOP members want to use the same lawyer or law firm in a disciplinary action. Explanation was given that there are at a minimum eighteen attorneys available through the legal plan so all conflict of interest issues can be avoided.

Fifth order of business:
State Trustee Borelli requested a finance report be given by Treasurer Jensen. Treasurer Jensen was unable to comply at that time, but promised a full financial report at the November meeting.

Sixth order of business:
State Trustee Borelli re-announced the creation of the Lodge's new web presence, http://www.mdfop9.com. The site is up and running and approval from the state and national lodge's will be pursued. All Lodge #9 board members have email addresses provided by the Lodge. Discussion was held about managing Lodge related email. Board members were provided directions on how to access and use the web-based email service.

Seventh order of business:
State Trustee Borelli nominated Brother Vince Lyew to fill the vacant Chaplain's position.
Brother Madero seconded the nomination.
Brother Lyew accepted the nomination.
By unanimous vote of the members present, Brother Lyew was elected to be Lodge #9's Chaplain. State Trustee Borelli is seeking appropriate Chaplain's training for Chaplain Lyew.
President Donaldson noted that all current board member positions come up for election in November of 2008.

With no further business, motion was made by Brother Madero at 2115 hours to adjourn. Motion was seconded by Sergeant At Arms Thompson.
Chaplain Lyew offered a closing prayer.
Motion to adjourn was voted on and passed unanimously.