Feel Confident About Advocating for Legislation and Lobbying Government Officials

From the Alliance for Justice

Lobbying leads to success stories.

Some of the most extraordinary achievements in recent decades – for the environment, social justice, community renewal, consumer protection, public safety, and civil rights- have come about because nonprofits were willing to take their rightful place at the policymaking table.

• The Council of Senior Centers and Services of New York City preserved $15 million in threatened funding for senior centers and weekend meal programs with a lobbying effort that included bringing 5,000 seniors to city hall.
• Concerned with the high rate of lead poisoning among Milwaukee children, the Wisconsin Citizen Action Fund (WCAF) recruited and trained a task force of parents to advocate for lead-safe housing in their neighborhoods. Those efforts resulted in a city ordinance requiring landlords to certify their property as lead-safe.

Lobbying by nonprofits ensures that people have a voice in shaping the policies that affect them. It makes government accountable to the common good.

So what’s stopping you?

Don’t hold back.

Too many nonprofits believe that lobbying activities will jeopardize their organization’s tax-exempt status. On the contrary: If you’re not lobbying, you’re not exercising your full rights under the tax laws.

The IRS actually encourages nonprofits to engage in lobbying and other advocacy activities, as long as they adhere to some broad spending limitations. The guidelines are easy to follow.

• Based on their overall expenditures, most charities can spend as much as 20 percent of their budget on direct lobbying activities intended to influence legislation.
• You can use these generous limits by filing a simple, one-page form with the IRS to make the “501(h) election.”
• Because the limits are based on money you spend, there are no limits on volunteer efforts and other cost-free activities.
• Likewise there are no limits on other kinds of public policy work, such as litigation, research, public education, and attempting to influence decisions by administrative agencies.

Lobbying by nonprofits isn’t just legal- it’s important, powerful, and fundamental to democracy.