Info District dispatch: On lobbying
TL;DR To pass an ordinance or petition for a referendum you need to lobby someone. The Community Information Cooperative’s 501(c)(3) incorporation means that no more than 20 percent of our budget can be spent on lobbying. At first, we saw this as a limitation, but we’ve realized it is a direction for our work.
Info District dispatches are brief, public updates on community information districts, an initiative of The Community Information Cooperative. Also known as info districts, they are hyperlocal public funding mechanisms for local news and information. You can read more about them at infodistricts.org.
To put up an info district, someone needs to lobby someone. The IRS defines two kinds of lobbying: direct and grassroots.
Direct lobbying is attempting to influence a legislator or legislature to act on particular legislation in any particular way. In the case of a referendum petition, the general public counts as a legislative body.
Grassroots lobbying is attempting to influence legislation by communicating a particular view on the legislation to the public and encouraging them to contact their legislators.
For the most part, The Community Info Coop cannot be the lobbyist.
There are a couple of types of non-profit incorporation and each comes with different lobbying rules. The Community Info Coop is incorporating as a 501c3 and that comes with restrictive rules. These rules are also vague. 501c3 nonprofits can only dedicate an “insubstantial” amount of its efforts to lobbying. Because that’s so subjective, 501c3 nonprofits can elect to be judged by how they spend their money instead of how they spend their time.
That election — called a 501h election — means that only 20 percent of our budget can be spent on lobbying.
At first this felt like a restraint. With such a significant limitation, how could The Community Info Coop establish an info district? But it isn’t a restraint — it’s guidance. We shouldn’t be convincing folks they need an info district. That’s not the point. Our role is to provide guidance to local partners and help them facilitate community dialogue and design to establish info districts in their communities. Locals should be the ones lobbying locals.
The Community Information Cooperative was launched thanks to the generosity of 63 backers on Kickstarter. It receives operating support from Reynolds Journalism Institute and pro bono legal support from Pro Bono Partnership. Learn more at infodistricts.org.
