I can definitely see a benefit to having a real Notary Public advocacy group, especially in California, but a few questions come to mind... Do you have a Board of Directors yet? (I believe that's a requirement for a 501(c)(6) type of organization.) Will that group be deciding what positions on various issues will be taken up or will there be some kind of membership voting process? Are you planning to do the actual advocating/lobbying yourself or do you have other plans for how that will be handled?
BTW, I was a little bit surprised to see a directory with paid membership included on your site. Isn't that kinda competing with Notary Rotary? (Same thing with a forum.) Seems to me having a directory might risk appearing like just one more of those many other directories that are always trying to get notaries to pay to appear on a site without knowing if any potential hiring entities will ever see it. [Or do you have plans to market this list somewhere? Just curious how that would work.]
After reviewing your site, the primary purpose of the organization seemed to me to be a bit muddled between advocacy and the directory, which I guess is intended to generate some cash flow. Does the organization have any policies or guidelines regarding how decisions will be made re: use of funds generated? It just seems to me that the last of the stated goals on your Mission page (which you quoted in the post above) doesn't seem to fit with all the rest of the Mission and Goals. That goal only fits the directory, which is a separate purpose. I think there’s a disconnect for me there - especially if this site is primarily intended to be used by notaries. They appear to be two separate objectives with two different audiences, unless I'm missing what other "industry groups and business interests" the CLIN might partner with, and how that would help "bring professional and easily accessible notary services to the citizens of California".
I realize it may still be early in the process, but I think many of us would like to see some of these questions addressed before deciding what level of involvement or support we might be interested in.
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