Have a burning advocacy-related question? Bolder Advocacy offers an "Ask an Expert" service, where you can submit your question and get help from their advocacy coaches. (Alliance for Justice)
nonprofit lobbying
Federal tax laws allow for all charitable nonprofits to engage in legislative lobbying "as long as that activity amounts to only an 'insubstantial' amount of the nonprofit's activities." Learn how to take the 501(h) election and advocate for your cause with legislators while still maintaining your organization's tax exempt status. (National Council of Nonprofits)
This brief chart helps nonprofits to understand what needs to be tracked in terms of time and expenses as related to federal direct lobbying, federal grassroots lobbying, and state lobbying.
Your organization might be wondering how to get involved in elections. It's important to understand what types of election-related activities you can and can't do, as detailed in this excerpt Common Ground.
© North Carolina Center for Nonprofit Organizations, Inc. From Common Ground, a publication of the N.C. Center for Nonprofits
Tips in 13 Ways To Create Good Luck in the Legislature can help you succeed in any state legislative session. You can use the same principles with local elected officials, too.
© 2011 North Carolina Center for Nonprofit Organizations, Inc. From Common Ground, a publication of the N.C. Center for Nonprofits, www.ncnonprofits.org.
- An Essential Role for Nonprofits Why should your nonprofit get involved? It strengthens your nonprofit’s voice. Elected officials know who votes. They pay less attention to communities with low voter turnout. People trust nonprofits. The people served by your nonprofit are more likely to listen to information from you than from any other source. If your nonprofit doesn’t provide them with information about where, when, and why to vote, then they probably won’t sho
This summary of North Carolina's lobbying laws for nonprofits covers state statutes and federal requirements for lobbying registration and reporting, as well as restricted activities such as the lobbyist gift ban.
See also: Lobbying Tracking Guide
Use this Lobbying Tracking template to aid in tracking your nonprofit's lobbying expenses.
Other example lobbying timesheets are available from Bolder Advocacy, including timesheets for 501(c)(3) organizations that have an affiliated 501(c)(4) entity.
The Internal Revenue Service released formal guidance related to nonprofit political activities in "Revenue Ruling 2007-41,' which describes 21 real-life scenarios. It is particularly useful for when nonprofits consider election-related programs and activities, since failure to comply may put at risk a nonprofit organization's tax-exempt status. (IRS)