What does CASAA do?

[kristin]

It is important to remember that "CASAA" is a non-profit organization made up of volunteers; who serve as an administrative board of directors, Regional Representatives and (at the time of this post) nearly 2,600 dedicated members. Each group has very important functions to help achieve CASAA's mission, which is:

...to ensure the availability of effective, affordable and reduced harm alternatives to smoking by increasing public awareness and education; to encourage the testing and development of products to achieve acceptable safety standards and reasonable regulation; and to promote the benefits of reduced harm alternatives.

Members
A huge, active and involved membership is the the most important part of CASAA. Without members who are generous with their time, energy and donations, are educated on the issues, aware of CASAA's activities and willing to step up and speak out, CASAA would not have had all of the the success it has had to date - and would have no future.

Member activities include, but are not limited to:

• Keep up on issues by attending twice-monthly member meetings, listening to the meeting recordings and/or reading the CASAA news via our email newsletter, web site or social media sites
• Donate money either with one-time or monthly reoccurring donations
• Help raise funds via raffles and other fundraising activities
• Donate their time and/or expertise on CASAA projects and activities, such as helping run the store, acting as moderators for the forum and social media, helping with technology issues, watching legislative update databases and updating the forum list andgathering information such as industry and legislative contact information
• Serving on special committees for specific projects.
• Write, call or otherwise contact legislators for Calls to Action both in their areas and in support of members in other areas
• Forward CASAA announcements to the community via email, forums and other social media
• Respond to negative media reports with polite and educated comments on media web sites or letters to editors
• Contact the CASAA board of directors for media counseling prior to participating in interviews
• Give CASAA a "plug" whenever and wherever possible to help build membership
• Participate in local clubs and meets
• Act as CASAA Regional Representatives for their area

Regional Representatives
CASAA members who have the time and motivation to donate even more to CASAA's mission sign up to be Regional Reps. There is no limit to how many people can serve as a Regional Rep in their area.

Regional Rep activities include:

• Watch their designated local area for proposed ordinances or legislation that could jeopardize CASAA's mission
• Alert the board of directors to such activities to initiate a Call to Action
• Help gather information on proposed legislation, upcoming meetings and contact lists
• Help spread the word to other area members about the Call to Action
• Serve as an area contact person for the board of directors
• Possibly act as a local media "voice" for CASAA regarding the Call to Action, under the guidance of the board of directors
• Possibly be part of local or state CASAA "chapters" as membership grows

Board of Directors
If the members are the hard working heart and body and the Regional Reps the eyes and ears of CASAA; the 11-member, volunteer board of directors could be considered the brain. Its purpose is to keep CASAA alive, growing, organized, educated and relevant as an organization.

The board of directors responsibilities and activities have included, but are not limited to:

• Establishing a mission statement and organizational goals
• Maintaining a budget and financial records
• Incorporating CASAA as a non-profit organization
• Maintaining non-profit organization status with the state
• Applying for and maintaining non-profit status with the IRS
• Completing annual tax returns
• Attending in regular, twice-monthly board meetings and additional "emergency" meetings
• Maintaining an online store and web site for fundraising
• Creating and selling t-shirts and other promotional materials for fundraising
• Increasing membership
• Maintaining an organized member database
• Organizing promotional events for members
• Encouraging companies and vendors to actively support CASAA activism and advising them on how to best support the community (their customers) regarding local policies and legislation
• Maintaining a current, informational web site at CASAA - The Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association for members, the public, legislators, medical professionals, researchers and the media
• Maintaining a comprehensive and extensive library of clinical research, lab reports, population studies, scientific opinion articles, legal documents and legislative actions
• Keeping members and the general public informed of current issues via social forums and CASAA's social media accounts with Facebook, Twitter and Google+
• Maintaining and updating CASAA's news blog
• Maintaining CASAA's forum at CASAA Forum - Consumer Advocates for a Smoke-free Alternative Association
• Organizing and holding twice-monthly informative Member Meetings to update membership on board actions taken, financial updates and the status of Calls to Action
• Writing and designing informational materials for members to keep or hand to the media, medical professionals, legislators, employers, smokers and businesses
• Buying, writing and issuing press releases voicing member concern over misleading information released in the media
• Writing and syndicating informative articles and blog posts
• Writing official CASAA letters and contacting, as representatives of our membership, including but not limited to legislators, government organizations, judges, local and state boards of health, editors, journalists, researchers, opponents of tobacco harm reduction and advisory panels
• Gathering information about proposed legislation/ordinances for Calls to Action, which include "talking points" and accurate legislator contact information to make it quicker and easier for members to participate
• Creating and then publicizing Calls to Action via posting on the web site, social media accounts and the contact management email program
• Forming and maintaining relationships with members of the research community, media and other tobacco harm reduction advocates
• Testifying before local, state and federal legislators against unfair policies, regulations, ordinances, laws and excessive taxation of smoke-free products
• Testifying before government and FDA advisory panels
• Supporting and advising scientific researchers
• Attending government, research and tobacco industry meetings, panels and conferences to ensure consumer interests are being considered
• Calling and contacting universities, businesses, organizations and government offices with bad smoke-free policies to gather information, give opinions and educate.
• Keeping informed and educated on all of the latest scientific research
• Keeping informed and educated on the efforts of anti-tobacco harm reduction organizations
• Making Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests
• Participating in the amicus brief for Smoking Everywhere vs. FDA
• Acting as science and policy advisers for projects such as the "We Are Vapers" documentary
• Raising funds for and generating participation in research studies and testing
• Being available for answering questions, advising and educating members and the public via direct email correspondence, forums, social media and media comments
• Counseling members on talking points prior to their contact with the news media
• Attending meetings, hearings, conferences of organizations, government/FDA panels and industry representatives, in an effort to learn more about the politics of tobacco control, deliver the message of tobacco harm reduction and "network" with the movers and shakers to try to give smoke-free users and vapers a "voice" as stakeholders in the discussions.
• Build CASAA into an educated, respected, effective and powerful influence

CASAA NEEDS YOU!! BE A PART OF HISTORY AND JOIN CASAA TODAY AT http://casaa.org/Become_a_Member.html!