arts alert: Yes You Can - Nonprofits Can Advocate for Ballot Initiative
MCA
Minnesota Citizens for the Arts
2233 University Ave. W. #355
St. Paul, MN 55155
651-251-0868 fax 651-917-3561
staff at mncitizensforthearts.org
www.mncitizensforthearts.org
Arts Action Center
March 28 , 2008
1. The Rules: Nonprofits CAN Advocate for Amendment
2. Interns Wanted
3. Volunteers Needed
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1. The Rules: Nonprofits CAN Advocate for Amendment
YES YOU CAN: Nonprofit Charities Can Advocate For Ballot Measures
I have been asked by many folks in nonprofit arts organizations if they can get involved in the ballot initiative. There is good news! Nonprofits can get very involved in ballot initiatives, although they are not allowed to get involved in candidate campaigns. Below are all the rules and the details you need. If you have any questions, you can contact me or the campaign for more information. -Sheila Smith
A: ACTIVITIES THAT REQUIRE NO REPORTING
AS A 501c3, NONPROFIT CORPORATION, YOU CAN EDUCATE BOARD, STAFF, DONORS AND AUDIENCE MEMBERS AS MUCH AS YOU LIKE ABOUT BALLOT INITIATIVES:
Nonprofits have an unlimited ability to educate their board, staff, audience and members about the constitutional amendment. As long as you don’t include “VOTE FOR” and turn the education effort into advocacy, you can talk about it all you want without reporting anything to anyone.
SAMPLES:
“You should know that in November 2008 you will have an opportunity to vote on a constitutional amendment that will create dedicated funding for conservation and culture. It has the potential to triple funding available for arts and culture activities in every Minnesota county. Here is what you will see on the ballot… ”
“Look for the Great Outdoors and Heritage Amendment at the bottom of your ballot, which could create dedicated funding for land and water conservation. For more information see the campaign’s website at www.YesForMN.org.”
“As a recipient of grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board, our organization could potentially benefit greatly from this amendment if it passes, allowing us to serve many more people in Beltrami County. If you are interested in learning more about it, you can find more information at www.mncitizensforthearts.org”
B. ACTIVITIES THAT MAY REQUIRE EASY REPORTING:
YOU CAN DO ADVOCACY FOR THE AMENDMENT:
Nonprofits can advocate all they want for constitutional amendments, unlike the restrictions on nonprofits working on political candidate campaigns. (Nonprofits are NOT ALLOWED to work on candidate campaigns. They CAN work on ballot issue campaigns). Your non-profit can:
◦ Contribute money to a ballot question campaign.
◦ Donate staff time for collecting signatures, phone calling, or sign holding.
◦ Donate organizational resources such as space, phones, computers, and copiers.
◦ Do a mailing to members or voters.
◦ Contribute use of email or snail mail lists so the campaign can do a mailing.
◦ Endorse the campaign.
◦ Encourage other groups to endorse and to support the campaign.
◦ Post a sign on your building or window supporting the campaign.
You can use nonprofit resources to ask people to vote for the constitutional amendment, because by law it’s considered lobbying rather than campaigning. Asking voters to amend the state’s constitution is treated the same way as asking legislators to amend state laws. Even better, as long as you are working with the campaign and let them know what resources you have used, you don’t have to file reports on your activities to the Campaign Finance Board in Minnesota.
You should report any in-kind donations to the campaign, such as the value of an article in your newsletter urging people to vote for the amendment. It then becomes the responsibility of the campaign to do all of the reporting. The campaign will provide a simple form that you can use to take care of this small requirement.
The key to whether or not you need to report your “lobbying” for the amendment is the amount of money you are spending:
VALUE IS UNDER $20: Not reportable. You can do:
◦ Web links,
◦ board endorsements,
◦ sign in the window,
◦ brief language on your website advocating for the amendment,
◦ emails, etc., worth less than $20, as long as you spend so little staff time on it that the value doesn’t go over $20. You don’t have to report this to anyone.
SAMPLE: A headline on your website that reads: “We at MCA would like to urge you to vote for the Great Outdoors and Heritage Amendment. We believe that it’s very important that this amendment passes! VOTE YES! Click here for more information and to volunteer: www.YesForMN.org”
VALUE IS OVER $20: If you make cash or in-kind donations to the effort that total over $20 in a year, all you have to do is fill out a quick form and send it to the campaign and let them know each time you’ve made the donation. It then becomes the responsibility of the campaign to do all of the reporting. A form will be available to you to make this easy. To get a copy of the form, contact the campaign at 651-644-2088.
There is no dollar limit to how much cash or in-kind donations your non-profit can make to the campaign under Minnesota law. However, there is a federal limit. By collaborating with the ballot campaign, you don’t have to do any state reporting other than letting the campaign know what you’ve done.
C. SOMETHING YOUR ACCOUNTANT MAY HAVE TO DO; FEDERAL TAX RETURN REPORTING
If you decide to go over the $20 threshold, just keep copies of the forms you use to report cash and in-kind donations to the campaign, give them to your accountant when you do your next tax return, and tell them to account for them as lobbying expenses. There are federal limits to how much of a non-profit’s budget can be spent on lobbying (generally 20%), but it’s almost impossible for most nonprofits to spend that much. You may want to figure out how much 20% of your budget is before you begin to make sure you don’t exceed that threshold. (See: TPL’s Memo “Ballot Question Participation by Public Charities” for advice to accountants, available from the campaign).
For more information, contact the Vote Yes Minnesota campaign, 2334 University Ave. #150, St. Paul, MN 55114, 651-644-2088. The campaign website, www.YesForMN.org will be up soon.
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2. Interns Wanted
Minnesota Citizens for the Arts (MCA), a nationally renowned arts advocacy organization that lobbies for state arts funding and the YES For MN campaign seek interns to begin April 2008. The position is part-time and flexible (approximately 20 hours per week).
On November 4, Minnesotans will have a chance to invest in a better life for future generations by voting for a proposed state constitutional amendment to fund Minnesota’s water quality, wildlife, cultural heritage, and natural areas. Vote Yes Minnesota is a nonpartisan statewide ballot campaign comprised of citizens and organizations working together to ensure passage of the amendment.
MCA represents the arts community of Minnesota at the state legislature and lobbies for state funding of the arts, as well as other issues of concern to the non-profit arts community. MCA also does advocacy for the National Endowment for the Arts. To lobby effectively, MCA organizes grassroots advocacy around the state and keeps constituents educated and informed about the political process and the current state of arts funding throughout the year. We have been working on the amendment for many years because it has the potential to triple arts funding.
Duties and projects included in the internship:
• Engaging in direct voter contact through tabling, literature distribution, visibility events, and other activities as assigned by Campaign field staff
• Responding to public inquiries regarding the Campaign and proposed constitutional amendment
• Assisting with logistics for Campaign field events
• Staffing Campaign committee meetings and events
• Miscellaneous research projects, as assignedOffice administration (including, but not limited to answering phones, data entry, and greeting visitors)
Qualified applicants would possess the following skills:
• Understanding of the political process. Past political experience preferred.
• Supportive of the campaign’s mission to pass the statewide amendment to protect water quality, wildlife, cultural heritage, and natural areas. Experience and/or a particular interest in one of these areas is a plus.
• Good communication skills, especially speaking with people on the phone.
• A self-starting, positive, self-motivated personality and a sense of humor.
• Good organizational skills and the ability to perform many tasks simultaneously
• Computer literacy; preferably experience with Microsoft, Macintosh, Microsoft Word & Excel and database systems.
• Independent and creative work habits.
APPLY NOW. Please mail or email résumé and cover letter by April 14, 2008 to: Mark Albers, Minnesota Citizens for the Arts, 2233 University Avenue West, Suite 355, St. Paul, MN 55114, staff at mncitizensforthearts.org
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3. Volunteer for the Amendment Campaign
The campaign to pass the amendment has already begun and you can be a part of it! There are many volunteer opportunities as we organize on a statewide basis to spread the word about how important it is that Minnesota vote “yes.” We urge you to sign up with the Vote Yes Minnesota campaign at: Minnesota2008@gmail.com. Also, the campaign has an office which you can contact at: Vote Yes Minnesota, 2334 University Ave. #150, St. Paul, MN 55114, 651-644-2088.
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Everything MCA does is made possible by our passionate and committed members. Join Today on MCA’s secure web site at: mncitizensforthearts.org/join/membership/individual-memberships/
• Give cool Arts Advocate gifts from MCA’s store at: www.cafepress.com/mnfortheartsJoin MCA’s MySpace Page: www.myspace.com/mncitizensfortheartsView MCA Advocates on YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/Mncitizensforthearts
• Take Action: www.mncitizensforthearts.org at our frequently updated, one-stop site for: information about Minnesota Citizens for the Arts and how you can get involved, an Action Center called the Arts Action Center where you can write a letter to your legislator, or even find out who your legislators are, facts about the arts in Minnesota, the latest on legislative and congressional action on arts issues and more!
Things You Need To Know: MCA values your privacy, and will not sell or distribute your personal information to anyone. MCA is a nonpartisan statewide arts advocacy organization whose mission is to ensure opportunity for all people to have access to and involvement in the arts. MCA organizes the arts community and lobbies the Minnesota State Legislature and Congress on issues pertaining to the nonprofit arts. If you are interested in learning more about how to advocate for the arts, or how to activate people in your arts organization or community to lobby for the arts, please call us at 651-251-0868 or e-mail staff at mncitizensforthearts.org. State arts funding supports access to the arts for all Minnesotans. The state-funded Minnesota State Arts Board and eleven Regional Arts Councils provide grants and services in every Minnesota county for artists, arts organizations, arts projects and school artist residencies. For more information on regional or state grants, go to www.arts.state.mn.us/racs/index.htm.