kevin_standlee (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
kevin_standlee) wrote2010-07-02 02:15 pm
kevin_standlee) wrote2010-07-02 02:15 pm
Entry tags:
Just In Case
This afternoon, I asked Kent Bloom (Chairman of this year's Worldcon Business Meeting) if he would be willing to preside in my place at the Westercon Business Meeting on Saturday in the unlikely-but-technically-possible case of Tonopah winning the election. That's because Tonopah did not file a bid and therefore is not an "eligible bid" for ballot purposes.
Westercon rules require that US groups that want to bid must be registered non-profit organizations. I didn't consider it worthwhile to set up a non-profit just for this purpose, and thus used the Oregon LLC I own as our nominal "corporate parent." I think the Westercon "non-profit" rule stupid anyway because it doesn't apply to non-US groups, and besides, why should Westercon's filing rules be more restrictive than Worldcons?
If Tonopah (or None of the Above) polls a majority of the votes cast, then the election goes to the Business Meeting, which can award the bid to any group and is no longer bound by the other restrictions in the Bylaws, so the "registered non-profits only" rule goes away. But the Business Meeting could decide that the voters' whimsy should not be indulged and could award the bid to Seattle (or anyone else) anyway. Since the Business Meeting would have to make a substantive decision about Site Selection, I can't preside — I'm the Treasurer of the Tonopah bid, and the owner of the bid's parent organization.
Note that if the BM were to decide to drop the Tonopah bid onto us, I would chair the convention, and we've pledged to find (or if necessary form) a non-profit organization to run the convention itself.
I find it rather remarkable that so many people have pre-supported the bid and told us that they've voted for Tonopah that I actually find myself having to deal with the (still low-probability) chance of us actually winning the election!
Westercon rules require that US groups that want to bid must be registered non-profit organizations. I didn't consider it worthwhile to set up a non-profit just for this purpose, and thus used the Oregon LLC I own as our nominal "corporate parent." I think the Westercon "non-profit" rule stupid anyway because it doesn't apply to non-US groups, and besides, why should Westercon's filing rules be more restrictive than Worldcons?
If Tonopah (or None of the Above) polls a majority of the votes cast, then the election goes to the Business Meeting, which can award the bid to any group and is no longer bound by the other restrictions in the Bylaws, so the "registered non-profits only" rule goes away. But the Business Meeting could decide that the voters' whimsy should not be indulged and could award the bid to Seattle (or anyone else) anyway. Since the Business Meeting would have to make a substantive decision about Site Selection, I can't preside — I'm the Treasurer of the Tonopah bid, and the owner of the bid's parent organization.
Note that if the BM were to decide to drop the Tonopah bid onto us, I would chair the convention, and we've pledged to find (or if necessary form) a non-profit organization to run the convention itself.
I find it rather remarkable that so many people have pre-supported the bid and told us that they've voted for Tonopah that I actually find myself having to deal with the (still low-probability) chance of us actually winning the election!