Nonprofits Should Focus More on State Lawmakers, Speaker Says

Engaging with state governments can help nonprofits achieve their goals, but many groups don’t take advantage of this powerful opportunity, Bernadette Downey, associate director of government relations and advocacy at Share Our Strength, told participants here at the Upswell gathering, organized by Independent Sector.

Downey said that her organization achieved remarkable success when it turned its attention away from federal lawmakers and instead targeted state legislators.

Downey works with state legislatures to promote the goals of the group’s No Kid Hungry campaign which aims to make sure children who need free or reduced-price breakfasts and lunches in schools receive them. She said that 13 million children live with food insecurity, which affects their education, health, and well-being. “It’s a problem that is very much solvable,” she told attendees.

Flying to State Capitals

Ensuring that children have access to school-meal programs can be a complex endeavor. The programs are affected by federal policy and funding, state laws and agencies, local school districts, and even school principals. The campaign had been focused on working with federal policy makers. But, Downey said, when she started with the organization in 2015, she noticed that local partners were working with state governments and needed support.

Downey often flies to state capitals and meets with legislators, but the group also hires lobbyists who have a deep understanding of the ins and outs of state governments.

“State legislative sessions can be 60 days long,” she said. “You need someone who can dedicate the time and energy and capacity to be there every single one of those 60 days and then go out to dinner that night or go to a reception that night and bump into the right person in line — and who knows everywhere to go, knows everyone to talk to.”

Finding Entry Points

In a data-intensive process, the group analyzed which state policies have been the most effective to make sure that they were advocating for changes that would lead to the most kids receiving meals.

Lobbying state government requires time and resources, but that does not always mean a big organizational change. Targeted efforts can go a long way. Associations represent elected officials across the country and can be a very good entry point for getting the attention of politicians, Downey explained. Associations of governors, lieutenant governors, and mayors hold events that can be easy places to meet officials.

Downey also tries to speak with the spouses of governors, an increasingly powerful group that can be easier to access.

“Spouses don’t just sit around and tend to the governor’s mansion like they used to. They’re not giving fancy tea parties. They are professionals,” she said. “And for the most part, they are doing things they want to be taken seriously.”

Share Our Strength’s state push has led to concrete results. Downey said that from 2010 to 2014, when the group was doing little with states, four pieces of legislation passed related to food security for children. Since 2015, 18 pieces of legislation and budget measures have passed.

States that have passed laws have seen quick results. After Nevada passed a law requiring high schools to serve breakfast after the bell rings for school to begin, participation in breakfast programs increased 27 percent in one year. The state invested $2 million over two years but got $8 million back in federal reimbursements. After a similar bill passed in Colorado, its national ranking jumped from 20th to 11th in the share of low-income children who participating in school-breakfast programs.

More children are fed more quickly by making changes at the state level compared with going school district by school district, Downey said.

Start Small

Downey urged participants to take small steps like inviting lawmakers to events to educate them and develop relationships. She pointed out that some state lawmakers later move on to important federal positions. President Obama, for example, was once a state legislator, and Congress has 244 former state legislators.

There can be big payoffs, but it takes time and patience. “You do have to get the buy-in and the investment of time and resources from the decision makers in your organizations,” Downey said. “But again, the [return on investment] is huge.”