It's important that you make the distinction between legislative activity and political activity.
The
following 4 things are key in having a full on government affairs program for
your chamber.
The first two fall under the legislative activity category and the last two are clearly political activities.
The first two fall under the legislative activity category and the last two are clearly political activities.
1.
Lobbying
2.
Grassroots
3.
PAC's
4.
Endorsements
Lobbying
I've
talked about this before HERE and in a nutshell this is where you and your
members are having direct contact with your legislative leaders. Preferrably
a one-on-one meeting with the member or his or her staff.
Grassroots
This
is where you may engage your entire membership in a letter writing campaign or
a phone call campaign. Don’t forget the
letter-to-the-editor grassroots tactic.
It can be very productive.
PAC's
This
is a separate entity and designated fund that your members can contribute
personal money to, which in turn, allows you to can make direct contributions to
candidates.
Endorsements
This
is where you go on record and endorse a specific candidate for elected office.
While you may not make everybody happy when you make endorsements it's an
effective tool in your government affairs toolbox. It's important that
you use a clear set of criteria to measure candidates so you can decide on
endorsing pro-business candidates or incumbents in an open and transparent way.
Remember,
the key to making the above four activities successful is having a strong
government affairs committee that can vet the above and make recommendations to
your full chamber board for consideration and action.
Good
luck!
