Speak Up for Children Pete Manzo, President & CEO

United Ways of California!February 24, 2014

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“It is justice, not charity, that is wanting in this world.”

– Mary Wollstonecraft

Everyone deserves a chance to build a good life

Health: In order to care for selves and family

Education: Opportunities to learn in order to sustain themselves and their families

Financial Stability: Pathways to earn a decent living and provide a stable environment for their families

Why United Way advocates

We cannot social-service or grant our way to our goals

We need to change the environment, to catalyze social and cultural change to better support human development and self-sufficiency

Advocating for change and mobilizing communities to push for it is therefore central to our mission

Catalyzing change is the highest impact philanthropy can achieve

4 levels of strategic philanthropy

4. Change the environment

3. Improve effectiveness of organizations you support

2. Attract others to support those you support

1. Support the best organizations

How we advocate

• Large challenges require involvement of all sectors – government, private sector, nonprofits

• We work at the intersection of all those sectors

• Mobilize our volunteers, donors and stakeholders to speak up, they are the most effective advocates

Health coverage for all children

• Health coverage

• Access to care, including preventive care

• Healthy options

Education: All children should…

• Enter school ready to learn

• Read at grade Level by 3rd grade (Reading to Learn)

• Successfully transition to middle school then high school

• Graduate high school ready for college or career

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Financial stability

• Support or increase income

• Promote asset building

• Foster smart financial choices

Build community capacity

• Expand and improve 2-1-1

• Protect charitable deduction

– Helder Camara

“When I give food to the poor they call me a saint.When I ask why the poor have no food, they call me a communist.”

Advocacy is absolutely appropriate for nonprofits

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Every great social change in US history has grown from roots in the nonprofit sector, from the abolition of slavery and child labor, to civil rights, women’s rights, access for people with disabilities

“Lobbying” is narrow subset of advocacy

Under IRS regulations, “lobbying” is defined as: • A communication • To legislators • Intended to influence specific legislation (pending

or proposed)

Most advocacy is not lobbying

• Executive, judicial and administrative agencies (including school and zoning boards and other special purpose bodies) are not legislative bodies and do not create legislation when they act.

• Urging an agency such as the Department of Children and Family Services to change its policies, therefore, would not be considered lobbying.

Examples of advocacy that is not lobbying:

Changing people’s attitudes, beliefs and practices is absolutely not lobbying

• Making available the results of nonpartisan analysis, study, or research;

• Discussing broad social issues, without mentioning specific legislation; and

• Communicating with members

Exceptions to lobbying

• Testimony: Advice or assistance to a government body, or to its committee or other subdivision, in response to a written request from the chair of the legislative body or committee.

• Self-defense communications • E.g., community organizing groups could oppose a bill

to remove their eligibility for tax-deductible contributions

Lobbying must be “insubstantial”

• 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations can lobby to are “an insubstantial degree.”

• Choose how you want to be judged: • The “insubstantiality” test: No clear guidance,

includes volunteer time and effort, in-kind, etc. • Section 501(h) expenditures test: Clear dollar

limits, only measures expenses !

Limits are more than you’ll need

• An organization with a $2 million budget could spend $250,000 on lobbying under these limits.

• Organizations electing 501(h) rules could dedicate one or more staff to lobbying efforts, full-time, and still maintain their tax exemption.

Elections – Ballot Initiatives

Laws & Initiatives > Good; People > Bad • Ballot Initiatives and Referenda OK

• Absolutely appropriate for nonprofits to support or oppose. • With initiatives and referenda, the voters act as legislators, so urging voters

to approve or reject an initiative or referendum is “direct” lobbying. • Remember election law: IRS rules govern your organization’s exempt status,

but federal and state election laws may also come into play.

• Supporting/Opposing Candidates Forbidden • IRS regulations strictly forbid 501(c)(3) nonprofits from engaging in “political

activity.”

Alternatives during elections

• Consider Issue Advocacy: If your goal is to influence voters, issue advocacy is safer and likely the most effective way • Take advantage of opportunities to publicize your concerns during an

election, so long as the advocacy does not steer audience toward or away from particular candidates.

• Influencing Candidates: Private exchanges, forums, questionnaires or issue briefings with candidates may be an excellent way to raise their awareness of your organization

Grants and advocacy

• Public foundations can expressly support lobbying • Community foundations, United Way and other publicly supported grantors

may make grants for lobbying, whether restricted or general support, so long as they abide by IRS lobbying limits on their expenditures, like any other 501(c)(3) nonprofit.

• Private foundations prohibited from funding lobbying knowingly • Subject to strict tax on lobbying activities, which include making grants of

funds “earmarked” to be used by grantees for lobbying.

Ways private foundations can support advocacy

• Fund neutral communications urging voters, legislators to study an issue carefully

• Fund nonpartisan analysis, even though it may conclude in support or opposition of a measure

• Fund policy research and education

• Provide general support funds

• Provide restricted grant funds to non-lobbying portion of a project involving lobbying

Preparing to Advocate

Be non-partisan, but not neutral

• Take a stand

• Mobilize those who care most about your cause

• But, speak also to those inclined to disagree with you

• Engage early, take the long view

• Look for allies and partners

Don’t be shy about what you know

Everychild Foundation and its donors know a great deal about issues affecting children

Issues too important to be left only to “experts”, think tanks, advocacy groups

Develop relationships with people and organizations you trust who are experts in the issue, rely on them

Your involvement brings credibility, influence that can be invaluable

Set your course

• What result do you want?

• Who can decide your issue?

• Who can influence those deciders?

• What do you know about them?

• What does your audience care about?

• What role can you play?

Identify decision makers and how to reach them

Elected officials primarily attuned to money and votes

Department heads, agency leaders attuned to their elected supervisors, but also can be more receptive to good policy arguments

Appeal to Values

Address moral foundations

• Care/Harm

• Liberty/Oppression

• Fairness/Cheating

• Loyalty/Betrayal

• Authority/Subversion

• Sanctity/Degradation

MESSAGE BOX

Value Message

The Ask

Visi

on M

essa

ge Barrier M

essage

Mobilize your advocates

Tools for shaping messages, motivating people to act

Web Resources

• United Way - www.unitedway.org/pages/public-policy & www.unitedwaysca.org/knowledge-center

• Spitfire Strategies - www.spitfirestrategies.com/

• Center for Community Change - www.communitychange.org

• Center for Lobbying in the Public Interest - www.clpi.org

• OMB Watch - www.npaction.org

Publications

• Worry-Free Lobbying for Nonprofits (Washington, D.C.: Alliance for Justice, 2000)

• Harmon, Gail M., Ladd, Jessica A., and Evans, Eleanor A. Being a Player: A Guide to the IRS Lobbying Regulations for Advocacy Charities (Washington, D.C.: Alliance for Justice, 1991, 1995)

• Colvin, Gregory L., and Finley, Lowell. The Rules of the Game: An Election Year Legal Guide for Nonprofit Organizations (Washington, D.C.: Alliance for Justice, 1996)

• Colvin, Gregory L., and Finley, Lowell. Seize the Initiative (Washington, D.C.: Alliance for Justice, 1996)

• Schadler, B. Holly. The Connection: Strategies for Creating and Operating 501(c)(3)s, 501(c)(4)s, and PACs (Washington, D.C.: Alliance for Justice 1998)

• Smucker, Bob. The Nonprofit Lobbying Guide (Washington, D.C.: Independent Sector, 1999)

• Avner, Marcia. The Lobbying and Advocacy Handbook for Nonprofit Organizations, (Amherst H. Wilder Foundation)

www.unitedwaysCA.org

United Ways of California

Pete Manzo President & CEO United Ways of California pmanzo@unitedwaysCA.org !Judy Darnell Director of Public Policy United Ways of California jdarnell@unitedwaysCA.org !1107 Fair Oaks Avenue, #12 South Pasadena, CA 91030 www.unitedwaysca.org

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–Martin Luther King, Jr., Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution, Sermon delivered on Passion Sunday, Mar. 31, 1968

“On some positions, cowardice asks the question, is it expedient? And then expedience comes along and asks the question, is it politic? Vanity asks the question, is it popular? Conscience asks the question, is it right?There comes a time when one must take the position that is neither safe nor politic nor popular, but he must do it because conscience tells him it is right.”

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