ADVOCACY

In a previous career I was a registered lobbyist in Washington for a great cause. I have no compunction about sharing my views with my legislator at the neighborhood block party.

A report by The Center for Civil Society Studies at the Johns Hopkins Institute for Policy Studies makes me think not enough people are raising their voices. In its latest communiqué, “Nonprofit America: A Force for Democracy?,” the Center reports that 48 percent of the groups that reported some advocacy, but no lobbying, said they were worried about violating the law, with some mistakenly believing they were barred from all lobbying.* Federal law prohibits tax-exempt charities from supporting political candidates.** However, it allows them to conduct an unlimited amount of advocacy (promoting an issue or cause unrelated to a candidate’s election) and a limited amount of lobbying (efforts to influence specific pieces of legislation).***

Eighty-four percent of organizations the Center surveyed had little doubt that legislative decisions have important implications for their work. A major factor standing in their way is staffing. One answer is for organizations to partner to fund a dedicated public policy specialist who can provide direct service, while serving as an information clearinghouse and mentoring partner to improve and expand involvement in public policy advocacy.

My experience has been that donors are also glad to be involved in advocacy as part of their engagement with an organization’s program. Such involvement increases their passion and strengthens their attachment.

Certainly, when we are talking about reinvigorating America’s civic spirit, nonprofits, as citizen supported organizations, should lead the way. Advocacy is one important way.

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* 872 organizations were surveyed and 311, or 36 percent, responded.
** Fact Sheet 2006-17 issued by the IRS lays out specific guidelines related to candidates and elections for nonprofit organizations that are tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3).
*** Policy advocacy involves identifying, embracing, and promoting an issue or cause. It aims to influence government policy at the federal, state, or local level and can encompass a range of activities, including conducting research on public problems, writing Op-Ed pieces on issues of public policy, building coalitions, or participating in a group working to formulate a position on a matter of policy. Lobbying is a specific form of advocacy, which involves either (1) stating an organization’s position on specific legislation to legislative officials and/or asking them to support this position (defined as direct lobbying); or (2) stating an organization’s position on specific legislation to the general public and asking them to communicate this position to legislative officials (defined as grassroots lobbying). The key difference between lobbying and other forms of advocacy is that lobbying involves taking and promoting a position on specific legislation.