 |
|||
 |
|||
 |
|||
 |
|||
 |
|||
 |
|||
 |
|||
 |
|||
 |
|||
 |
|||
|
|||
 |
|||
 |
|||
 |
Public Policy Report - April 10, 2006 Grassroots Lobbying Under Attack By Nathan Burd, Director of International Program & Public Policy Over the past few years, the pro-life and pro-family movement has been able to celebrate many public policy victories in Congress and in Statehouses throughout the country. Unfortunately, our ability to continue to advocate for pro-life and pro-family principles is being threatened by legislation currently moving through Congress. The “Lobbying Transparency and Accountability Act of 2005” is a response to the lobbying scandals that have plagued Congress over the last few years. Its intent is to increase disclosure requirements of lobbying activities on Capitol Hill and to crack down on unethical lobbying practices. Sadly, the bill reaches well beyond its admirable intent by unnecessarily seeking to regulate and discourage grassroots lobbying by individuals and organizations. Portions of this bill would mandate that organizations that encourage grassroots lobbying, like Heartbeat International and our affiliates, would have to notify Congress in advance of any public policy education campaign that we may engage in. We would not be able to launch any grassroots lobbying efforts without giving notice 20 days in advance of our activities. We would also be required to keep and report a detailed list of every legislator and legislative staff member that we have any contact with. These and other provisions of the bill would make grassroots lobbying so burdensome that many organizations may understandably choose to take a pass on the urgent public policy battles of our time. We cannot afford to let that happen. It is imperative that the unnecessary and possibly unconstitutional regulations on grassroots legislative action be removed from the “Lobbying Transparency and Accountability Act of 2005.” Time is short. The U.S. Senate passed the bill and approved the language targeting grassroots lobbying by an overwhelming 90-8 vote. The U.S. House of Representatives has not yet voted on the bill, so there is still a chance to amend the bill and protect grassroots lobbying. Take Action! Please visit www.lobbysense.com to learn more about this issue and to contact your representatives. LobbySense is “a coalition dedicated to preserving free expression for the citizen activist” and they are working hard on Capitol Hill to defend our right to educate the public on policy initiatives. |
|||||||
