The Committee For A More Responsible Local 47

10/24/17
I. MEMBERSHIP MEETING
II. MUSICIANS FOR PENSION SECURITY Update
III. DAVID’S QUILT
IV. EVENTS

…Absolutely guaranteed anonymity – Former Musician’s Union officer

…The one voice of reason in a sea of insanity – Nashville ‘first call’
scoring musician
…Allows us to speak our minds without fear of reprisal – L.A. Symphonic musician

…Reporting issues the Musicians Union doesn’t dare to mention – National touring musician

 

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I. MEMBERSHIP MEETING

LOCAL 47 Meeting 10/23/17
Called to order at 7:39 by Pres. Acosta
Quorum reached.

Building not quite completed.
1) AFM Offices are in place.
2) Credit Union will be in the building as well
3) RMA Offices are in place.

Roll taken – most of board in attendance.
No 50 year pins to give out
Minutes: Approved
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Recognize departed members – Secretary
has list, About 12.
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PRESIDENT’S REPORT
Since last meeting:

Aug. 19th – Concert for viable tax credit.
(Will only benefit RMA. BUYOUTS are
the only solution, but that will never happen.)

Used empty “solidarity” arguments for why
non-recording folks should support it.

Acosta went to represent unions in China and
to understand unions in China.

Then to Canada – international executive board
meeting.

Settled charge with collective media guild.
The union prevailed. (so they say)

Some agreements renewed.
LA Phil nego done – $156,000 starting salary
Some still in process.
Some committees to be formed for the future.

Organizing report given:
1) Member survey results – 1030 responded.
A bit less than a fifth of the membership.
Will update soon.
2) Non-Union Orchestras – what would it
take to make them union.
3) Working with orch committees: Budgets
are not going to musicians, but to
facilities, administration and conductors.
4) Video tape agreement being nego. –
streaming revenue discussed.
5) Tax credit campaign – bill is 2 year bill,
must be re-upped in January.
6) Next Thursday will be a meeting about
tax credit 1pm, Nov. 2nd.
7) Want to try to show a united front.

Lalo Schifrin concert was a big success.
Has been disconnect with Composers he wants
to fix it.
Brought back VG score from England.
Low budget agreement.

Thanked VP and Secretary for their work
on the move.

Question: Russ Ripinsky has worked for
us for years. Will he still be here?
A: Not an employee, but is a researcher
and are open to having him back.
Statement: He’s found money for us
we’d not have otherwise.

VP REPORT

Re: Ripinsky – Moving company is holding
our archive. Being kept safe.
2,400 sq. foot area for archive.
74 filing cabinets of contracts.

Introduced film of John Williams celebrating Lalo.

MOVE: Sept 11-12 final stuff was moved
to new building. Everything that was in the old
building is now in the new building.

Oct 16th –golf tournament happened.
Dec. 11th – 15th – round 4 of live tv nego.
Very contentious negotiation.
Spoke at Cal State Long Beach – class of
35 composers.

SECRETARY REPORT

2nd quarter review – revenues $2,535,573 /
expenses $2,319,067
excess of 216,506 dollars
AFM47.org/radio – all union radio station.
Check overture for ongoing events.

Media Awards –Won 3rd place general ex;
2nd place for Local 47 Beat; 1st place writing
for electronic media; 1st Place: design award
for overture.

Now have paypal portal,.. can pay dues there.
Also take MC, Visa, Discover or AMEX through
Paypal

MUSICIANS CLUB.

Revenue $130,829 Expenses $321,747
$190,918 oss
$142,492 Legal
$182506 Lease back 94,011

Improvements to building – $5,110,138

Over 2 million in fixed income through
Merrill Lynch
Over 2 million in stocks etc. through
Merrill Lynch

OLD BUSINESS

MEMBER:
Resolution I – carried over from many
meetings earlier
Change way COLA is done. No Quorum
for the previous meetings.

Motion to amend is not an incidental or
privileged motion. It was not done properly.
Should have been called out of order but
was not. Ex. board should rescind decision.

Parliamentarian; says committee made
motion properly and can amend it themselves.

Member: Can work with a quorum, but
CANNOT work without a quorum. Exec.
Board meeting, NOT membership meeting.
It’s a special way to deal with a resolution.

Parle: Committee is not a member, they
present the motion.

Member: You’re wrong.
Backpedaling by Parle. ensued.

Minutes said particular member presented
it (cannot be done by particular member,
only committee, and it is not appropriate.

Executive board kept making decisions when
there was no quorum.

Twice it was pub. Twice gen. membership meeting
didn’t happen.
They are making decisions about COLA that they
should not.
They are having a say over their own income.
Inside dealing.

Parle: Once a bylaw is amended it can only be
amended by another bylaw amendment.

Membership can repeal the bylaw amendment.
With a 2/3’s vote.

One of the RMA Leaders tried to point out quorum
was lost to shut down the member. Oops,… only 48 –
no quorum, cannot have a vote,…
HOW CONVENIENT!
Member shut down.

New Business
Downey Sym will feature Brad Dutz – Jan 20th

Meeting Adjourned at 8:47 PM

 

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II. Important update from “MUSICIANS FOR PENSION SECURITY”

Important Developments in Washington DC

As you may know, several proposals have been made in
Washington DC to address the crisis in the multi-employer
pension sector. These proposals would impact not only the
AFM-EPF plan but also the Teamsters pension plan and
dozens of others that are chronically underfunded.

Below, we will review the four most talked about proposals.
Of the four, only the third (Rob Portman’s proposal) has
been introduced as legislation. But policymakers are actively
reviewing all four and we would not be surprised to see
legislation introduced in the near future that incorporate
some of the ideas outlined below.

The UPS Proposal

United Parcel Service, which is a large employer of Teamsters,
could be liable for up to $4 billion of pension plan liability if the
Teamsters pension plan becomes insolvent. It has made a
proposal to address the pension crisis. Under the UPS proposal,
the federal government would provide 30 -year loans at 1% to
troubled pension plans to cover their cash flow shortages.

The problem with the UPS proposal is those benefit payments
would be reduced up to 20% for all participants immediately,
and UPS is also calling for increased PBGC premiums,
employer surcharges, employee membership fees and union
surcharges.

The Teamsters Proposal

The Teamsters proposal calls for low-interest long-term
government loans to underfunded plans. The government
would sell bonds to investors to fund the loans. The troubled
pension plans would be required to invest in the loan
proceeds conservatively, such as purchasing a group annuity.

The Teamsters proposal involves no cuts to accrued benefits.
However, it does contemplate a new benefit design for future
service accruals that would minimize future underfunding.
This could take the form of a variable annuity plan or an
adjustable pension plan.

Senator Portman’s Pension Accountability Act

Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) has proposed that any cuts in
accrued benefits be put to a fair vote of the plan membership.
No cuts could be made unless a majority of plan participants
who cast a vote approve the benefit cuts. Currently, the way
the law is written, a majority of all plan participants, whether
they vote or not, must reject the benefit cuts in order to
prevent cuts from being made. The recent experience of the
NY Teamsters illustrates why Portman’s proposal is necessary.
There, the proposed cuts were voted down by a margin of
2-1, but the cuts were made anyway. This is because a
majority of the membership didn’t vote.

The Portman Bill would also eliminate the authority of the
Department of the Treasury in the case of systemically
important plans to override votes of plan participants to
reject benefit cuts. (A plan is “systemically important”
if projected financial assistance to the plan will exceed
$1 billion if benefit cuts are not implemented.)

NCCMP Proposal

The NCCMP is a trade group of multi-employer plans in
Washington DC. AFM-EPF is a dues-paying member,
and two of our trustees sit on various boards and
committees of the NCCMP.

NCCMP is the group that wrote MPRA and got it passed
by Congress in 2014. MPRA contains numerous
provisions that are deeply prejudicial to our interests,
including a provision that deprives pension beneficiaries
of any real say in whether they are to receive cuts or
not, and a provision that deprives the right of pensioners
to have judicial review of the cuts.

MPRA is a law that takes vested property rights away
from us, and NCCMP is trying to pass more legislation
that would take even more rights away from us. Currently,
the NCCMP is lobbying for its proposal regarding
Composite Plans. Under the NCCMP proposal, the
Composite Plan would be required to be funded to a
ridiculously high 120% funded ratio over the next 15
years. Any funding shortfall would prompt benefit cuts.
The trustees would not have to go to the United States
government for any approval to get benefit cuts, and
benefits would not be insured by the PBGC. Luckily,
right now, the Composite Plan proposal would not
apply to AFM-EPF. But it easily could.

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III. DAVID’S QUILT

The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music and the Max
Hellman Institute will present the world premiere of
“David’s Quilt,” an original oratorio about biblical King
David. David’s Quilt is the result of 15 very different
composers joining together to tell the story of David
through their own artistic lens. The Quilt explores
different episodes of David’s life, composed in a
variety of musical idioms.

Sunday, November 5, 2017
7:00 — 9:00pm
Stephen S Wise Temple

FREE ADMISSION. RSVP at bit.ly/DavidsQuilt

The new work by 15 Los Angeles-based composers,
including school of music faculty and students, will be
performed by UCLA students and alumni including the
Chamber Singers.

The concert at Stephen S. Wise Temple is presented
by The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music, in collaboration
with the Max Helfman Institute for New Jewish Music.
Funding is provided by the school of music’s Lowell
Milken Fund for American Jewish Music and the David
and Irmgard Dobrow Fund, as well as the Max Helfman
Institute.

The concert will also serve as the opening event of a
two-day conference that will bring together renowned
experts, historians, composers and artists to discuss
the past, present and future of “American Culture and
the Jewish Experience in Music.”
“American Culture and the Jewish Experience in Music” Conference.

Conference, Day 1:
Monday, Nov. 6, 2017 | UCLA Luskin Conference Center
UCLA Luskin Conference Center

Conference, Day 2:
Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2017 | Room 314, Royce Hall, UCLA

For a full schedule of conference activities, please click here.
 

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IV. EVENTS
DEAN AND RICHARD
are now at Culver City Elks the first 
Friday of 
every month.
7:30pm-10:30pm,
11160 Washington Pl.
Culver City, 90232
310-839-8891

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10/26/17

Tall & Small 11 piece Band NW: New Frontier Lounge

featuring:
Pete Christlieb & Linda Small
October 26, 2017, Thursday 8 PM – 10 PM

New Frontier Lounge

301 E 25th St, Tacoma, Washington 98421
(253) 572-4020

Presented by The B Sharp Music Society, dedicated
to the presentation and promotion of live music:
Pete Christlieb and Linda Small

The Tall and Small 11 Piece Band NW

featuring: Pete Christlieb saxophones and
Linda Small trombone

saxophones: Travis Ranney, Jeff Kashiwa,
Jack Klitzman, Bill Ramsay

trumpets: Kevin Seely, Ollie Groenewald

piano: David Deacon Joyner bass: Michael
Glynn drums: Tim Malland

cover $10. two for $15

TICKETS

Directions

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10/30/17

KAIROS MUSICAL SOIREES
Montgomery Arts House for Music & Architecture 2017

MAHMA’S
“Spooky Sonorities”
…a chilling Chamber Music Event
Monday, October 30th, 2017
…at 7:30 pm

A candlelit night of
macabre music & silent cinema…

Monday, October 30th, 2017 at 7:30 pm
Join us for Wine & Cheese
and the evocative artwork of
Christine O’Grady Martin at
7:00 pm ~ just prior to the concert

For Reservations click:
www.malibufriendsofmusic.org

Or Call MAHMA’s Reservation Line at:
(310) 589-0295

 

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11/1/17

A CONCERT WITH THE MASONS

GLENDALE NOON CONCERTS
CALICO WINDS:
Works by Daniel Gregory MASON, Lowell MASON & William MASON
12:10-12:40 pm at the Free Admission

Info about upcoming programs through MAY 2018
at the Free Admission Glendale Noon Concerts series
(concerts every first & third Wednesday at 12:10-12:40 pm)
are listed at http://www.glendalenoonconcerts.blogspot.com

Thank you!
Jacqueline Suzuki
Curator, Glendale Noon Concerts
818-249-5108

 

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11/12/17

DOCTOR WU at VITELLO’S
Sunday, November 12th, 2017

If you love the music of Steely Dan, please join us for this
special night as The Doctor Wu Band returns to Vitello’s
(upstairs) for another great show.  This is a beautiful listening
room with delicious Italian cuisine. With the passing of the
great Walter Becker, co-founder of Steely Dan, shortly after
our last show, we are honored to be back and playing this
timeless music for you once again.

** Table reservations/Advanced Tickets are $10 and strongly
recommended. Click here to make your reservation:
http://www.vitellosrestaurant.com/purchase-tickets

Please note: Vitello’s recently implemented a $10 increase
in the cover at the door on the day of the show so be sure
to reserve in advance **

818.769.0905
4349 Tujunga Ave
Studio City, California 91604
Valet or street parking

About the The Doctor Wu Band:
Steely Dan produced an amazing number of recognizable
radio hits well known to all.  The Doctor Wu Band’s recreations
of this astonishing string of chart-toppers and album favorites
have thrilled fans all over Southern California for over a decade!
With a full line-up that includes a 4-piece horn section, this
talented group of professional players love to have fun and
share the joy of performing the music of Steely Dan.

Members of Doctor Wu have performed and recorded with the
likes of Chicago, Dave Benoit, Echo & the Bunnymen, Stanley
Clarke, UB40, Dionne Warwick, Chaka Khan, Poncho Sanchez,
The Temptations, Jay Graydon and more.

Line up:
Tony Egan: Lead Vocals
Leigh DeMarche & Lauri Reimer: background vocals
Gil Ayan: Guitar
Steve Bias: Bass and backgorund vocals
Mark Harrison: Keyboards
Roch Bordenave: Trombone
Jeff Dellisanti: Saxophones
Frank Villafranca: Saxophones
Kurt Walther: Drums
Andy Weiner: Trumpet

 

We look forward to seeing you there!
The Doctor Wu Band
http://www.doctorwuband.com/
https://www.facebook.com/doctorwuband

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UNTIL NEXT TIME,

THE COMMITTEE FOR A MORE RESPONSIBLE LOCAL 47

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