Advocating for the advocates
As the leading voice for California’s nonprofit sector, we work with lawmakers, advocates, and nonprofit leaders to advance the health, stability, and effectiveness of our state’s nonprofits. This includes responding to proposed rules and regulations, organizing coalitions to support policies that protect and strengthen the nonprofit sector, and sponsoring legislation that strengthens our sector as a whole.
We focus on the issues that impact all California nonprofits so that leaders can focus on their own important causes – from housing and homelessness to food insecurity, the arts, equity, social justice and beyond. We have a lobbyist in Sacramento and a policy expert on staff dedicated to maintaining a strong nonprofit ecosystem so that all nonprofits can thrive.
Current Work
We stay attuned to what’s happening in our sector and scan the political landscape for issues ahead that could impact nonprofits. We work with legislators and nonprofit coalitions to develop legislation that helps nonprofits thrive, and we offer tools and information to encourage nonprofits to engage in advocacy.
Keep up with the legislation we’re sponsoring and supporting with our leg tracker.
Our Framework
Our work in the policy arena is focused on protecting and enhancing the ability of California’s nonprofit organizations to serve our communities and our state. Our framework outlines six policy priorities that define and advance our work and describes the criteria we use to prioritize our advocacy efforts.
The specific policy efforts we take on are determined by our board on a case-by-case basis, using this framework.
Advocacy Tools
All nonprofits have a vital role to play in our democracy. For 501(c)(3) public charities, that role does include lobbying. Nonprofits have every right to advocate on behalf of policies they believe in. Still, there are limits that come into play when this advocacy deals with specific legislation.
We hope that with more knowledge, information, and resources, you’ll be more confident in your ability to reach out to legislators, encourage voting within your communities, and raise your voice for the causes you care about.
