Integrating Advocacy into your Direct Service Organization

1. Integrating Advocacy into your Direct Service Organization Using Your Whole Team

2. What do we mean by ‘advocacy’? • Advocare: “to call to aid” • Rally around a cause • Engage stakeholders • Promote social change • Address root causes

4. Building Movement Project’s 5% Shift • Modest changes that can have big impact • Building Community from the Inside Out • Developing the Leadership of Recipients • Asking Powerful Questions • Advancing Community-level Impact • Crossing Organizational Boundaries to Build New Partnerships • Building Movement Project

5. Advocacy and the 501(c)3—Non-legal Advice to Get Started • Advocacy v. lobbying • Advocacy that does not include a ‘call to action’ is not lobbying: educating, tracking bills, leadership development, nonpartisan voter work • 501(c)3 organizations are allowed to lobby. • For “non-electing” organizations, lobbying must be “no substantial part of a charity’s activities.” • This includes expenditures, time and energy devoted by staff and volunteers. • The 501(h) election allows nonprofit organizations to lobby with greater clarity and less worry. • These nonprofits have no limits on their volunteer lobbying activities and can spend up to 20% of the first $500,000 of their annual budget on lobbying (no more than 25% of this can be grassroots lobbying). • Resources to help: • Bolder Advocacy • Center for Lobbying in the Public Interest

6. Safe Activities Public education about policy issues (with a ‘call to action’, it counts as lobbying) Nonpartisan voter registration drives Candidate surveys (with guidance) Lobbying within legal limits Policy analysis without a “call to action” Unsafe Activities Candidate endorsements Campaign contributions Candidate pledges Partisan GOTV Exceeding lobbying limits, or failing to keep track of lobbying activities Failing to distinguish between “grassroots” and “direct” lobbying “Here’s what we can and can’t do”

7. A Broad Advocacy Landscape: One Framework ACTION Litigation Lobbying Community Mobilization Model Legislation Regulatory Feedback Coalition Building WILL Community Organizing Champion Development Media Advocacy Political Will Campaigns Public Will Campaigns OUTCOMES Communications and Messaging Advocacy Capacity Building Public Forums Leadership Development Voter Outreach AWARENESS Demonstration Programs Public Awareness Campaigns DECISION MAKERS Public Polling Policy Analysis/Research INFLUENCERS PUBLIC Influencer Education Public Education Policymaker Education AUDIENCES

8. Where are you working? Where could you, if you used your whole team? ACTION Litigation Lobbying Community Mobilization Model Legislation Regulatory Feedback Coalition Building WILL Community Organizing Champion Development Media Advocacy Political Will Campaigns Public Will Campaigns OUTCOMES Communications and Messaging Advocacy Capacity Building Public Forums Leadership Development Voter Outreach AWARENESS Demonstration Programs Public Awareness Campaigns DECISION MAKERS Public Polling Policy Analysis/Research INFLUENCERS PUBLIC Influencer Education Public Education Policymaker Education AUDIENCES

9. Examples: Building Capacity with your Whole Team • Service Participants • Direct-Service Staff • Volunteers • Donors

10. What do you need to make these shifts? • Board buy-in and how to get it • Technical assistance—around what? • Staff capacity—to do what? How to cultivate it? • Partnerships/mentorships—where are there organizations positioned to guide you?