Certainly, it's possible: lobbying can be funded via the Wikimedia Grants
Program, and the process is precisely the same as with any other type of
activity.
Detailed instructions at:
Asaf
On Apr 20, 2013 3:38 AM, "Samuel Klein" <meta.sj(a)gmail.com> wrote:
I believe the WMF can spend $1M a year on lobbying
(per Doug's
comments, our budget, and our current choice to use the 'expenditure
test'). We currently spend almost none of this -- which I think is
too little.
http://www.irs.gov/Charities-&-Non-Profits/Measuring-Lobbying-Activity:…
Also worth noting: some related activity is not considered lobbying.
If you are unsure about whether a project that you think is important
would include lobbying, it is worth asking for specific advice.
http://www.clpi.org/images/pdf/Exclusions%20from%20Lobbying%20Color.qxp.pdf
I would like to see a discussion (on the Grants talk page) on how a
group might apply specifically for a lobbying grant. That would at
least let the WMF calculate how much was being spent in lobbying
across all of its [lobbying grants] for the year. Is this possible?
I don't know if there are further restrictions on funds spent on
international lobbying.
SJ
On Fri, Apr 19, 2013 at 9:17 PM, J Alexandr Ledbury-Romanov
<alexandrdmitriromanov(a)gmail.com> wrote:
Forwarding a reply from a non member of the
list.
Alex
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: rexx <rexx(a)blueyonder.co.uk>
To: Wikimedia Chapters general discussions - closed list <
chapters(a)wikimedia.ch>
Cc: Wikimedia Mailing List <wikimedia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
Date: Fri, 19 Apr 2013 18:04:45 +0100
Subject: Re: [Chapters] Question: How do we define lobbying?
I was aware that in the USA non-profits can lobby, but there are limits
on
how much they can spend on it. The most
restricted type of non-profit is
a
503(c) and such an organisation may choose to
spend up to 20% of their
first $500,000 of annual expenditure on lobbying - the maximum any 503(c)
may spend on lobbying in a year is $1,000,000.
I assume that the WMF would need some mechanism to ensure that the grants
it makes do not become used for lobbying in such a way that the total
exceeds the $1M total - which would jeopardise their tax-free status. It
is
therefore perfectly understandable that WMF may
decide that the easiest
way
to be certain is to bar the use of granted funds
for lobbying completely.
If we wanted to move away from that, each grantee would probably need a
more complex accounting system to be able to reassure the WMF that
spending
on lobying was strictly limited. I'm not
suggesting such a system would
be
impossible, only that it would require some
negotiation between Chapters
and WMF.
Some quick Google results for background reading:
http://www.clpi.org/the-law/faq
http://apps.americanbar.org/buslaw/blt/2009-03-04/mehta.shtml
http://www.asaecenter.org/Resources/whitepaperdetail.cfm?ItemNumber=12202
Cheers
--
Doug Taylor
On 19 April 2013 16:37, Fae <faewik(a)gmail.com> wrote:
In a workshop in the Milan conference, there was
a break-out
discussion led by Iolanda (WMIT) on lobbying. There is a lot of
interest in finding ways of supporting change in copyright legislation
and open knowledge access in as many countries as possible.
One of the interesting features of the WMF agreement when providing
funds under the FDC process is that this money should not be used for
lobbying. During the coffee break I had a quick chat with Garfield
(the WMF CFO) about a possible clarification. My understanding from
that chat was that if there were valid reasons for lobbying in support
of our cause, this should be a separate grant for traceability
reasons, it is not intended to imply a blanket ban, but traceability
is needed to satisfy the IRS. If a chapter has separate income from
the WMF, then there is no concern as this is a matter for the
individual chapter board and membership to worry about.
I think this is a useful clarification, and this ought to be followed
up as an action from our workshop.
I would welcome any comments from the wider community on what sorts of
lobbying as a movement that we definitely want to support, encourage
and possibly provide funds for, and if we could come to a clearer
definition of what lobbying is (such as political protest) and things
we do as a community that is not quite lobbying, even though it may
relate to government legislation (such as publishing a white paper
with our summary of the benefits of changes in copyright law).
Cheers,
Fae
--
faewik(a)gmail.com
http://j.mp/faewm
Guide to email tags:
http://j.mp/mfae
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