SOCO
Sheet
Official quarterly newsletter of the AFM Southern
Conference of Locals
Sharon Montgomery,
President --Madison Harding, VP -- Jeffrey Apana,
Secretary-Treasurer and Editor and Publisher
Aaron Pino and Laura Ross, Directors
2025Q3
Conference Updates
Committee reports, minutes, and staff presentations from this summer's
meeting are now available online at
https://afmsoco.org/news/2025update.html
The next virtual meeting will be on Monday, September 15, 2025 at
12 noon Eastern/11 AM Central and will feature the AFM's Legislative
Director Ben Kessler. Links will be emailed to all delegates a few days in advance. Mark your calendars now!
SOCO now has a Facebook page! The page follows the pages of all of the
Locals of the Conference, and shares their posts, so you can view the
feeds of all of the Locals of the south by visiting our page at http://facebook.com/afmsoco
AFM News/Reminders
Officer's Edge Live
The next Zoom session of Officer's Edge Live will take place on
Tuesday, August 19 at 12 noon Pacific / 3 pm Eastern. This month,
they’ll cover two topics:Local Elections and Business Agents. Included
will be information on complying with Department of Labor election
regulations and connecting with musicians in the community in ways
other than as "union
cops." If you don't already have a link, contact Dave Shelton at the
AFM.
Contract Updates
Please note that the AFM has released an updated LS-1 contract
form and has increased the minimum rate for Limited Pressing
recordings. Please make sure your members are using the new contract
form and that any limited pressing sessions are at the new minimum rate.
AFM Convention
Please note that the 2026 AFM Convention will be in Canada. If you do
not already have a passport, now is the time to get one! And if your
passport is expiring in 2026, now is the time to renew it.
The President's Dispatch
Siblings of the Southern Conference,
I’ll just admit that I am both excited and terrified as I step into the
role of SOCO President. I’m honored for this opportunity, but I know
that I have some mighty big shoes to fill. I’ll be leaning heavily on
the incredibly wise, gifted, and experienced officers sharing this
board— on our past President and new Southern IR Aaron Lack (oh, he’s
gonna be FANTASTIC!)--and of course, on YOU, the officers and members
of the locals that make up this conference—to help me along. It will be
most welcome! Please let me know what’s on your mind and what you’d
like to see addressed as we move forward.
Foremost on my mind (yes, I do live in Texas) is the legislative
nightmare we’re all living through these days. As I write, our
Democratic representatives in the Texas house have fled the state in
order to deny a quorum in the vote for a clearly fascist redistricting
plan. Undocumented people are suffering in Florida’s Alligator
Alcatraz—in extreme heat and humidity with limited access to running
water and toilet facilities and zero daylight. Government funding for
disaster recovery is being summarily withheld from “blue” states. The
President of this nation has threatened to “take over” the government of
Washington DC. And in local news, the livelihoods of creative people
everywhere are being threatened by the uncontrolled rise of AI.
It seems like a miracle to me, but our fantastic voice on Capitol Hill,
Ben Kessler, has agreed to attend our September 15 SOCO Zoom check-in!!!
(Of course, assuming his schedule still permits as the date nears…) He
won’t be able to calm my mind regarding Texas redistricting, but he
WILL be able to answer your questions and give us specific calls to
action for our concerns as musicians. PLEASE mark your calendars and
make it a priority to join us that day! Of course the ever- amazing
Jeff Apana will keep you posted.
In solidarity, love, and light— as we try to heal this world with music,
Sharon Montgomery, SOCO President & AFM Local 65-699 Houston Sec/Treas
Local Activities
Local 655 (Miami) just won its
first appeal of a musician dismissed from Palm Beach Opera for musical
deficiency. While management continued to insist that it alone
determine the procedures for the appeals committee and was intent on
keeping the Local from speaking on behalf of the dismissed musician,
Local officers stood strong in their right to represent their musicians
and ultimately convinced the appeals committee that the firing was
unjust.
Local 65-699 (Houston) is
celebrating the 75th anniversary of Local 699. Houston colored Local
699 was chartered in 1950. It merged with Local 65 in 1966 and the
Houston Local was eventually renamed Local 65-699 in 1982.
Local 257 (Nashville) is hosting Jazz Nights on the first Wednesday of the month. The events are free and open to the public.
Local 427-721 (Tampa) is now on
YouTube! Find them @FLGulfCoastMusicians. Their website was also
updated this year with Freelance co-funding and the AFM's GoPro
Hosting. Check it out at https://afm427-721.org
Local 72-147 (Dallas) recently
reached agreement on a successor CBA with the Fort Worth Symphony. It
is a three-year deal with 11-12% raises over the term, with the salary
reaching $70,000 by the third year. They have also reached
agreement on a new Waco Symphony agreement and are in negotiations with
the Wichita Falls Symphony. They are also gearing up for the Denton
Arts and Jazz festival in October, and are in the planning stages for a
new series of MPTF-sponsored livestreams.
Email the Secretary-Treasurer to have your news included here!
Tips for Locals
Newsletter Sharing
Please send your newsletter to newsletter@afmsoco.org so we can
share them with the rest of the conference! If you would like to be on
the mailing list to receive these newsletters, please contact the
Secretary-Treasurer.
Action Network
Action Network does not allow you to edit your mailing lists but you
can upload new copies and your data will be updated. One way to remove
former members from your mailing list is to include a custom
field with membership status. When you send newsletters, meeting
notices, etc. you can add a filter for just "active" members, and your
members with updated status of resigned, etc. will not be included in
those mailings.
Do you have a tip for Local officers? Please send your tips to the Secretary-Treasurer for inclusion in future issues!
From the IR
Dear Southern Conference Colleagues,
I'm your new AFM International Representative for The Southern
Region, Aaron Lack. You may remember me as the former President of The
Southern Conference and of Local 433 in Austin TX, as of just a few
months ago. I still live and work in Austin Texas. I've emailed all
Local Offices in the Southern Conference in the last few weeks and had
phone conversations and video meetings with many already.
If we haven't met yet, I want to speak with you right away. If we
have met at recent AFM Southern Conference meetings or the AFM
Convention, I'd love to catch up!
You may ask, "What is an International Representative for?"
Conceptually, it is to represent the AFM International Office in The South.
Practically, the function of an International Representative or IR is
to assist Local Offices with operational compliance with AFM Bylaws
(especially Article 5, Sections 1-18, Minimum Operational Requirements)
and with accessing the considerable resources that musicians have
created through collective action and which are available to all Local
Unions through our International Union. This is accomplished with day
to day communications by phone, email, and video meetings. I will
also occasionally visit your Local Office in person to conduct an
Operational Compliance Review to help keep your Local on track and to
reduce the likelihood of an audit by The US Dept of Labor or The IRS.
These visits will be planned well in advance and can include meetings
with your Officer Teams, Executive Board, Committees, and other groups
of your members, if you'd like.
Aaron Lack, International Representative for the Southeast
alack@afm.org