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| Path: Main Street : Resources & Library : Research Articles : Feature Article |
Why legislative monitoring matters
By Mark Buzan
October 5, 2009
In June, Parliament enacted a major reform that will affect thousands of nonprofits from across Canada. Those organizations who are federally incorporated will need to re-register their incorporation and follow new transparency guidelines. After reviewing the documentation over the course of the summer, I must admit that, directly speaking, Bill C-4 is not overly political. However, it will have very broad-based impact on numerous associations and charities across Canada. Using this bill, here is just one example of how not monitoring the goings on of Ottawa could potentially place an NPO in hot water:
Not being aware of these factors could spell trouble for an NPO board and executive! With such broad-based impact, Bill C-4 shows the value of legislative monitoring, but more often than not, NPOs don't have the on-staff bandwidth to be aware of every possible piece of legislation or government regulation.
- The bill requires all federally incorporated nonprofits, associations, and charities to re-register their incorporation.
- It also imposes important new requirements to demonstrate transparency to members and donors: C-4 establishes new rights for members and donors to have more access to the proceedings of their organization. Equally interesting, NPOs will have to give consideration of new forms and classes of members/supporters. Moreover, the new law will also mean that NPOs will have to account for their members' new rights to be able to participate in decisions via electronic means...again emphasizing the need for more transparency.
Engaging a consultant to assist in the process of monitoring allows for identifying and prioritizing challenges and opportunities for the NPO. By doing so, organizations are given a hospitable environment to grow. Excellent information and perspective are at the heart of any successful state and local government affairs program. Anything less is a handicap.
As part of a legislative monitoring system, consultants read each regulation, bill, and amendment to identify relevant client issues, avoiding the critical errors that can plague services limited to keyword searches. These professionals perform bill tracking until final disposition, providing political perspective, or "outlook," for each piece of proposed legislation.
Generally, legislative monitoring involves identifying the:
Other aspects can be identified, as well, depending on an organization's needs.
- Bill Sponsor (name and party affiliation)
- Summary of Major Provisions (emphasizing provisions of interest to the client)
- Status (report of past and upcoming actions)
- Outlook (a political assessment)
- Hyperlink to the full text of Bills/Amendments (when available)
Mark Buzan is principal and chief magnifier in Action Strategies, a full service strategic communications, public relations and public affairs consultancy for nonprofits and associations. Contact him for advice on reaching audiences you may or may not have yet considered in your marketing communications and PR campaigns. You can view his website at www.actionstrategies.ca.
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