We want a seat at the table.
A policy agenda, the coalition to back it, and the compliance to do it safely.
What it looks like from the inside
Policy affects your work every day and you're reacting to it instead of shaping it. You have relationships with legislators but no agenda to bring them. A coalition invited you to join and you weren't sure what you'd be committing to. Someone on the board is nervous that advocacy will jeopardize your tax status. And the local paper ran a story on your issue last month and didn't call you.
What it's costing you
Influence you've earned and aren't using. Nonprofits know more about what's actually happening in their communities than anyone in the room where decisions get made, and when they stay quiet, the decisions get made without that knowledge. It also costs you donors: people give to organizations that are changing the conditions, not just managing the consequences.
What fixed looks like
A policy agenda with three priorities, not thirty. Relationships with the right offices, maintained before you need them. A coalition strategy that's clear about what you give and what you get. Testimony that lands. A grassroots list that will act when you ask. Op-eds under your name. And the 501(h) election filed, so the board can stop worrying about whether advocacy is allowed and start asking whether it's working.
How we work on it
We've served in appointed public roles and led public boards, and we'll tell you plainly if a piece of this is outside what we can deliver. Get a plan: a policy agenda and advocacy strategy. Get it built: the coalition, the campaign, the testimony, the media outreach, the compliance setup. Get a team: ongoing support through a legislative session, with your counsel in the loop on the compliance questions.
- Policy agenda and advocacy strategy
- Coalition and partnership building
- Legislator engagement and testimony preparation
- Grassroots campaigns and action alerts
- Public narrative, op-eds, and media outreach
- Lobbying compliance and the 501(h) election