Created by: Candace Hollingsworth
Modified on: November 11, 2022
Modified on: November 11, 2022
Lobbying Restrictions
Restrictions on legislative lobbying and partisan politics.
*This document was sent from the CNCS General Counsel to All CNCS Grantees and supporting organizations on 3/10/2014
http://www.nationalservice.gov/Restrictions-Legislative-Lobbying-Partisan-Political-Activity.
*This memorandum is for those overseeing, operating, and serving in, national and community service programs supported
by the Corporation. It covers the rules concerning legislative lobbying and partisan politics.
You should keep in mind the following rule: Grantee staff and program participants may not
- attempt to influence legislation or
- participate in, or endorse, political events or activities, if they are doing so while charging time to a
Corporation-supported program, accumulating service or training hours towards an education award, or otherwise
performing activities supported by the Corporation.
Individuals may exercise their First Amendment rights, including participating in the political process, on their own
initiative, on their own time, and using non-Corporation funds and resources. But in doing so, it is very important to
avoid even a perception that national and community service staff or participants are engaging in political activities
in those capacities. For example, if your organization engages in lobbying activities you must be careful to document
that such activities are outside the scope of your Corporation-funded program. Separate accounting for costs is crucial
on this particular point. As another example, wearing AmeriCorps gear while participating in a political event may
result in an allegation that the AmeriCorps program is supporting political activities, even if that is not the case. If
your organization signs a public petition advocating some legislative action, you should be sure it identifies itself by
its organizational name rather than as an AmeriCorps program. It is paramount that AmeriCorps and all of our national
and community service programs proceed with utmost care to avoid perceptions that Federal resources are being
misdirected to political activities.
Below are frequently asked questions on this topic. If you need additional guidance, please contact your program
officer at the Corporation.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Our program’s annual report shows the value of national and community service and is designed, in part, to
persuade our community to support our program and other programs supported by the Corporation. Is this
permitted?
The restrictions on legislative lobbying do not apply to efforts like this to educate the general public, provided
that the materials are not specifically designed to generate lobbying activities.
What if I provide a factual, technical presentation to a legislator who is visiting our program and at the
end the legislator makes an unexpected announcement that he or she has decided to co-sponsor legislation to
support national service?
There is nothing wrong with hosting an informational site visit by an elected official. If your presentation is
informational and focuses on a topic directly related to your organization’s performance under a grant program, the
fact that a legislator reaches and announces this conclusion spontaneously does not in itself make the presentation
unallowable.
May a local program supervisor visit elected officials in Washington, D.C.?
The threshold question is whether the costs of such a trip would be a reasonable and necessary program expense given
your approved budget and the specific purposes of your grant award. In addition, assuming this first criterion is met,
the OMB Cost Principles for nonprofits and institutions of higher education have an additional requirement: travel,
lodging, and meal costs may be allowed only if they are incurred to offer testimony at a regularly scheduled
Congressional hearing pursuant to a written request for such presentation made by the hearing’s convener. Because such
costs are allowable under very limited circumstances, you should seek guidance from your program officer at the
Corporation ahead of time.
As a program director, I periodically travel to Washington, D.C. to educate our elected officials about our
program’s achievements. What happens if the Corporation determines that the costs of my visits are not
reasonable and necessary expenses of the program?
If the Corporation determines that the costs are not reasonable and necessary, the costs would be disallowed as a
program expense and your organization would not be reimbursed for them.
An elected official who is running for re-election wants to have a campaign publicity event at our service
site. Is this type of site visit permitted?
No, you should steer clear of any event that could appear to be partisan in nature.
While I am in Washington, D.C. attending a program director’s conference, am I prohibited from visiting my
elected officials during a break in the conference?
No so long as such activities are incidental to your primary purpose in traveling to Washington for a training event.
But don’t charge the cab fare to your grant!
I work for a national non-profit organization that receives a grant to operate an AmeriCorps program. My
position is partially funded under the AmeriCorps grant and partially funded by non-federal sources. Can I lobby
on issues related to AmeriCorps when I am not on AmeriCorps time?
The restrictions apply only to the use of Federal grant funds (including matching funds) and to projects and programs
supported by the Corporation. You should be careful to document that any lobbying is done during the time that is not
charged to your Corporation grant and that your lobbying activities are not part of the AmeriCorps program.
I am the executive director of a State Commission. Our Cost Principles say nothing about legislative lobbying
being an unallowable cost. What are the rules for States?
For States that receive grants from the Corporation, the absence of guidance in the OMB Cost Principles requires you to
review your grant award’s provisions. For example, the Corporation has made it a condition of grant awards to State
Commissions that its Subgrantee AmeriCorps programs (including staff and participants) may not engage in any effort to
influence legislation.
This leaves situations when the State Commission is acting solely on its own behalf. If the activity is not charged
to the administrative grant provided to the State Commission by the Corporation, the activity is outside our
oversight authority. If the activity is charged to the Corporation grant, the standard is whether the proposed
activity or cost is reasonable and necessary given your approved budget and the purpose of the grant. You should
direct any specific question on this point to your Corporation program officer.
If a particular activity is not specifically disallowed under the applicable OMB Cost Principles or grant terms,
does that mean it is allowed?
Not necessarily. OMB Cost Principles do not authorize costs or expenditures; they merely limit the allowability of costs
or expenditures. The burden is on the grantee to demonstrate that a particular cost is consistent with the approved
budget and properly chargeable to the grant as reasonable and necessary — not merely that it is not on the list of
disallowed costs. This is ultimately a determination for the Corporation to make.
Doesn’t the Domestic Volunteer Service Act give programs specific statutory authority to lobby concerning
appropriations or authorization legislation?
You are right about the authority in the DVSA, but DVSA programs are currently subject to a superseding proviso in their
annual appropriations statute which prohibits the use of appropriated funds to engage in any activity that is designed
to influence legislation or appropriations pending before the Congress or any State legislature.
May a Corporation-funded program sponsor or endorse an event, such as a debate between candidates, which itself
is not partisan, but which likely will include advocacy for or against political parties, platforms, candidates,
proposed legislation or elected officials?
Corporation-funded programs should avoid any connection with such political events, and individuals enrolled in a
national service program who attend such events should avoid any appearance that they are doing so as part of the
national service program.
Does that mean an organization receiving Corporation funds may not take part in the political process?
No, but an organization that receives Corporation funds may only sponsor or endorse political events if it does so
without using Corporation support, and if it avoids the appearance that it is doing so in its capacity as a Corporation
grantee or that the event has any connection to the Corporation-funded project.
On a conference call designed to get more organizations involved in service, a caller asks how to get volunteers
involved in a legislative lobbying effort. What should we do if we’re hosting the call?
You should remind the participants on the call that its purpose is to get more people and organizations involved in
service addressing community needs and that it would be inappropriate to use the call for any other purpose. TCN has
added the following FAQs from: https://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Lobbying_Restrictions_FAQ%20.pdf..
These frequently asked questions and answers (FAQs) are intended to provide guidance to organizations that receive
assistance from CNCS on how to provide appropriate information about the impact of CNCS’s programs while avoiding
impermissible lobbying.
These FAQs are meant to accompany the Compilation of Restrictions on Lobbying by CNCS Financial Assistance
Recipients. Please note that this document doesn’t discuss the illegality of using federal funds for partisan
political activities.
QUESTIONS APPLICABLE TO ALL CNCS GRANTEES
What is “lobbying” in the context of these restrictions?
For purposes of the restrictions that arise because you accept CNCS funding, “lobbying” generally can refer to—
-request for others to conattempt to influence an agency, Congress, or staff member of Congress on federal awards,
such as a contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement.
In context, these restrictions can be broader or more limited. You can find more detailed information in the Compilation
of Restrictions on Lobbying by CNCS Grantees and Financial Assistance Recipients.
Our organization’s annual report shows the value of national and community service and is designed, in part, to
persuade our community to support our program and other programs supported by CNCS. Is this permitted?
Yes. The restrictions on legislative lobbying do not apply to efforts to educate the general public about national
service programs, provided that the materials do not include a request to affect pending legislation.
We’re hosting a conference call related to our CNCS grant that’s designed to get more organizations involved in
service. During the call, a participant asks how to get volunteers involved in a lobbying effort. How should we
respond?
You should remind the participants of the purpose of the call (i.e., to get more people and organizations involved in
national service addressing community needs) and that it would be inappropriate to use the call to discuss lobbying. You
may suggest that such conversations be handled separately, and remind the participants any such separately held
conversations should not be charged to federal or matching funds.
How can I properly use CNCS funding to interact with elected officials? I am an employee of a CNCS-funded
program and my compensation is directly charged (in whole or in part) to our CNCS grant (as either Federal share or
matching funds).
Your program may host an elected official for informational and educational purposes, such as inviting the elected
official for an informational tour of the project, a coordinated grant announcement, an opportunity to hear
member/volunteer impact stories (but see the specific questions below applicable to AmeriCorps members and Senior
Corps volunteers), or other presentations of factual information related to your program. Your presentation must
remain informational and focus on a topic directly related to your organization’s service under a grant program,
including your community impact. You may not use federal or matching funds to make any legislative requests.
What if, during such a visit by an elected official, the legislator makes an unexpected announcement that he or
she has decided to co-sponsor legislation to support national service?
Again, your organization may properly host an informational site visit for an elected official focusing on topics
directly related to your organization’s service under a CNCS grant program. The fact that the elected official
independently, and without any prompting or prior coordination by you, decided to announce that he or she is
co-sponsoring legislation does not make the presentation unallowable. However, you should not respond to or elaborate on
the announcement during the event.
What if an elected official tells me that he or she wants to arrange a visit to announce their sponsorship or
support of a legislative action that would benefit CNCS-funded programs?
You should advise the elected official of your organization’s need to ensure that it does not engage in prohibited
lobbying activities, and that such a staged announcement may create the impression that your program is engaged in
lobbying. Your organization can participate in the announcement, but no costs can be charged to your grant, and you
may not reference that your organization is a recipient of CNCS funding.
I work for a nonprofit organization or institution of higher education that receives CNCS grant funds. What are
the restrictions on legislative lobbying under our CNCS grant awards? For instance, may I use grant funds to visit
elected officials in Washington, D.C., our State capital or elsewhere?
The threshold question is whether the costs of such a trip would be a reasonable and necessary for the performance of
your CNCS grant award, and be allocable to the award, under OMB Cost Principles (2 C.F.R. Part 200, Subpart E). Any cost
which was specifically included within your approved grant budget has been pre-approved as being reasonable and
necessary.
However, the burden is on the grantee to demonstrate that any particular cost is allowable according to the Cost
Principles, and CNCS makes the final determination. That determination is going to depend on a number of factors,
such as how much it costs to make the trip, and whether or not the trip is in response to a specific invitation.
While a very low-cost trip to a local office of an elected official will likely be allowable, an expensive trip to
Washington, D.C., that was initiated by your organization will almost never be allowable. It’s always best to
discuss any question with your CNCS program officer or grants officer.
Beyond the threshold questions, OMB Cost Principles place extra restrictions on nonprofits and educational institutions.
Those extra restrictions specifically disallow costs for influencing enactment or modification of any pending federal or
state legislation, including legislative liaison activities. See 2 C.F.R. §200.450.
Keep in mind that these restrictions apply generally, not just to travel to visit legislative officials. Excepted
from these restrictions are:
Factual presentations on topics related to the performance of a grant in response to a documented request made by the
Member of Congress or legislative body;(1) Any lobbying in order to influence state legislation in order to directly
reduce the cost, or to avoid material impairment of the nonfederal entity’s authority to perform the grant;
(2) Any activity specifically authorized by statute to be undertaken with funds from the federal award; and Other
activities exempted from the definition of lobbying or influencing legislation, such as
- nonpartisan analysis, study, or research reports, and examinations;
- discussions of broad social, economic and similar problems; or
- information provided upon request by a legislator for “technical advice and assistance”(3).
__________________________
(1) Under this exception, the costs for travel, lodging or meals are unallowable under OMB Cost Principles unless
they are incurred to offer testimony at a regularly scheduled Congressional hearing pursuant to a written request
for such presentation made by the Chairman or Ranking Minority Member of the Committee or Subcommittee conducting
the hearings. See 2 C.F.R. §200.450(c)(2)(i).
(2) However, because of the specific restrictions in the National and Community Service Act of 1990, these activities
cannot be performed by AmeriCorps members.
(3) The term “technical advice and assistance” is specifically defined by section 4911(d)(2) of the Internal Revenue
Code and 26 CFR 56.4911-2(c)(1-(c)(3).
Because costs to visit elected officials are allowable under very limited circumstances, the wise course is to seek
guidance from your CNCS program officer or grants officer in advance.
I work for a state or local government agency that receives CNCS grant funds. What are the restrictions on
legislative lobbying under our CNCS grant awards?
The OMB Cost Principles (2 CFR Part 200, Subpart E) do not explicitly prohibit state and local governments from
charging costs associated with influencing the enactment or modification of any pending federal or state
legislation, or legislative liaison activities. However, costs charged to CNCS grants to state or local agencies are
subject to the same threshold considerations discussed in the context of trips to visit elected officials above. You
should direct any specific question on this point to your CNCS program officer or grants officer.
In addition, you should remember that the broader restrictions on lobbying activities for non-profit organizations and
institutions of higher education will apply to sub-awards that are made by states or local governments.
Finally, there may be laws specific to your State or local government which limit your lobbying activity. You should
check to make sure you are aware of all applicable restrictions.
I periodically travel to Washington, D.C., my state capital, or elsewhere to educate our elected officials about
our organization’s achievements. What happens if CNCS determines that the costs of my visits are not reasonable and
necessary expenses for the performance of our grant award?
If CNCS determines that the costs are not reasonable and necessary under the OMB Cost Principles, the costs would be
disallowed as expenses charged to the grant award, and your organization would not be reimbursed for them. This could
result in your organization having to return funds to CNCS.
While I am in Washington, D.C., attending a grant-related conference, and the cost of the travel is being
charged to my federal grant, can I visit my elected officials during a break in the conference?
Yes, so long as such a visit is incidental to your primary purpose in traveling to Washington, D.C. But don’t charge
the cab fare to your grant!
Can I lobby on issues related to national service and/or CNCS’s programs when I am not on “CNCS time”?
Yes. The restrictions on lobbying only apply to the use of Federal award funds (including matching funds). However, you
must document that any lobbying is done during the time that is not charged to your CNCS grant, and that your lobbying
activities are not part of the CNCS-funded program.
If a particular activity is not specifically disallowed under the OMB Cost Principles (2 C.F.R. Part 200,
Subpart E) or under grant terms, does that mean the cost is allowed?
Not necessarily. While OMB’s Cost Principles (found in 2 C.F.R. Part 200, Subpart E) set both general and certain
specific criteria for when costs are allowable, they do not authorize any specific cost or expenditure; they merely
limit the allowability of types of costs or expenditures. The burden is on the recipient to demonstrate that any
particular cost is allowable according to the factors listed at 2 C.F.R. §200.403. This means that the recipient must be
able to show that the cost is consistent with the approved budget and properly chargeable to the grant as reasonable and
necessary—not merely that it is not on the list of disallowed costs. Allowability is ultimately a determination made by
CNCS.
Can an AmeriCorps member or a Senior Corps volunteer be part of a group that makes a trip for a meeting with
elected officials so long as the member only gives an informational or factual presentation on topics related to the
performance of a grant?
Maybe. Like the other trips discussed above, the threshold issue is whether the costs of the trip would be reasonable
and necessary for the performance of your CNCS award, and be allocable to the award under OMB Cost Principles (2 C.F.R.
Part 200, Subpart E). If the cost of the trip is generally allowable, then an AmeriCorps member or a Senior Corps
volunteer may present information about their programs, projects, and impact stories with elected officials.
However, the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (NCSA) prohibits the “use” of AmeriCorps State and National
members in any attempt to influence legislation, and the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (DVSA) prohibits
AmeriCorps VISTA members and Senior Corps volunteers from being used to influence the passage or defeat of legislation
or proposals. Even if the AmeriCorps member or the Senior Corps volunteer is not on “on duty” (i.e., not accumulating
service or training hours, or not receiving a stipend) and only provides a factual presentation about the impact of
their service, their participation in a meeting where prohibited lobbying activity occurs will be in violation of the
NCSA or the DVSA.
When does “lobbying activity” occur in a meeting with elected officials, and how can I make sure that it does
not happen in a meeting involving AmeriCorps members or Senior Corps Volunteers?
“Lobbying activity” occurs during a meeting if someone presents to an elected official (or the elected official’s staff)
a request to take legislative action or a statement intended to influence a legislative action. It makes no difference
whether the statements are made orally or presented (or left behind) in writing. It also makes no difference whether the
statements are in support of or oppose the legislation at issue.
Can we as an organization have our AmeriCorps members or Senior Corps volunteers describe the importance and
impact of their service and also engage in “lobbying activity” (which is not being charged to the grant) and not
violate the restrictions in the NCSA or DVSA?
As a general rule, your organization cannot direct or arrange for an AmeriCorps member or Senior Corps volunteer to
engage in lobbying activity even if such activity is done in the context of describing the importance and impact of
service and even if the activity is not being charged to the grant. However, CNCS will not consider an AmeriCorps
member or Senior Corps volunteer as having been used to influence legislation (i.e., not engaged in lobbying
activity), if their factual presentations are sufficiently distinct—such as being at separate times or
locations–from any associated lobbying activity that they are not a part of. The facts and circumstances of the
presentations and the lobbying activities must allow a reasonable person to conclude that the factual presentations
by the AmeriCorps members or Senior Corps volunteer were not solely or specifically intended to influence specific
legislative decision-making, and the AmeriCorps members and Senior Corps volunteers did not participate in any
lobbying activity.
As an AmeriCorps member or Senior Corps Volunteer, am I barred from conducting any lobbying whatsoever?
No, you are not. AmeriCorps members and Senior Corps volunteers may exercise their rights as private citizens on
their own time and may ask elected officials to either support or oppose legislative actions. However, you must
engage in those activities at your own initiative, and cannot conduct the activities while performing your service
as a member or volunteer or by using CNCS funds. You should also not wear any AmeriCorps or Senior Corps logo while
doing so.
