Action Alert! Senate Bill 1 Section 220 Requires Urgent Action by All! This is really important people!
This is an URGENT action alert concerning a very dangerous situation in the federal senate. If passed as is, Senate Bill 1 would shut down most grassroots lobbying efforts. There is an amendment that would prevent this and your calls to the U.S. Senators from your state are desperately needed. The contact info is below. Your response is crucial to help change this damaging piece of legislation.
We need you to call your U.S. senators to fight efforts to place federal control over virtually all grassroots lobbying activity. This means that all organizations and groups that encourage people to call their congressmen, including motorized recreation lobbying groups, will be subject to registration and reporting to Congress.
Section 220 of Senate Bill 1 (S. 1), the "Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act of 2007," redefines lobbying to include "paid efforts to stimulate grassroots lobbying." Organizations that engage in grassroots lobbying will have to comply with all federal lobbying disclosure laws, including registration with Congress and the filing of quarterly reports to Congress. Failure to comply would result in a fine of up to $100,000.
Currently, organizations do not need to report grassroots lobbying, which is when they contact their membership and the public or engage in some action that encourages people to call their federally elected officials. However, if Section 220 is included in S. 1, federal lobbying laws would apply to all groups that spend money to reach more than 500 people with a message urging them to contact their elected officials. For example, if UFWDA, a church, homeschool support group, NOHVCC, BRC, or any state association non-profit has a paid employee who emails more than 500 people asking them to call Congress about some issue, or puts an article on the Internet that is likely to reach more than 500 people, that group would be subject to federal lobbying laws. Organizations that engage in grassroots lobbying will have to comply with all federal lobbying disclosure laws, including registration with Congress and the filing of quarterly reports to Congress. Failure to comply would result in a fine of up to $100,000.
Senate Bill 1 is a bipartisan bill and contains much-needed congressional reforms. Section 220, however, is not needed. It is unacceptable for Congress to attempt to require groups that encourage grassroots lobbying to be subject to registration and reporting to Congress.
ACTION REQUESTED
Senator Robert Bennett has introduced an amendment cosponsored by Senator Mitch McConnell to strike section 220 from S. 1. The amendment could come up for a vote on the floor of the Senate as early as next Tuesday. Please call your U.S. senators and urge them to support the Bennett amendment (amendment 20) to S. 1. It is not necessary to identify yourself as a motorized recreation enthusiast.
Your message can be as simple as: "I am very concerned about the grassroots lobbying provisions in section 220 of Senate Bill 1, the 'Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act of 2007.' Please support the Bennett amendment to remove section 220 from S. 1.
Organizations should not have to register with Congress in order to ask citizens to contact their elected officials."
You can reach your U.S. senators by calling the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121, or you can find their local area phone numbers at this site:
http://www.senate.gov/general/contac...nators_cfm.cfm
Thank you for standing for liberty!!!
This is an URGENT action alert concerning a very dangerous situation in the federal senate. If passed as is, Senate Bill 1 would shut down most grassroots lobbying efforts. There is an amendment that would prevent this and your calls to the U.S. Senators from your state are desperately needed. The contact info is below. Your response is crucial to help change this damaging piece of legislation.
We need you to call your U.S. senators to fight efforts to place federal control over virtually all grassroots lobbying activity. This means that all organizations and groups that encourage people to call their congressmen, including motorized recreation lobbying groups, will be subject to registration and reporting to Congress.
Section 220 of Senate Bill 1 (S. 1), the "Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act of 2007," redefines lobbying to include "paid efforts to stimulate grassroots lobbying." Organizations that engage in grassroots lobbying will have to comply with all federal lobbying disclosure laws, including registration with Congress and the filing of quarterly reports to Congress. Failure to comply would result in a fine of up to $100,000.
Currently, organizations do not need to report grassroots lobbying, which is when they contact their membership and the public or engage in some action that encourages people to call their federally elected officials. However, if Section 220 is included in S. 1, federal lobbying laws would apply to all groups that spend money to reach more than 500 people with a message urging them to contact their elected officials. For example, if UFWDA, a church, homeschool support group, NOHVCC, BRC, or any state association non-profit has a paid employee who emails more than 500 people asking them to call Congress about some issue, or puts an article on the Internet that is likely to reach more than 500 people, that group would be subject to federal lobbying laws. Organizations that engage in grassroots lobbying will have to comply with all federal lobbying disclosure laws, including registration with Congress and the filing of quarterly reports to Congress. Failure to comply would result in a fine of up to $100,000.
Senate Bill 1 is a bipartisan bill and contains much-needed congressional reforms. Section 220, however, is not needed. It is unacceptable for Congress to attempt to require groups that encourage grassroots lobbying to be subject to registration and reporting to Congress.
ACTION REQUESTED
Senator Robert Bennett has introduced an amendment cosponsored by Senator Mitch McConnell to strike section 220 from S. 1. The amendment could come up for a vote on the floor of the Senate as early as next Tuesday. Please call your U.S. senators and urge them to support the Bennett amendment (amendment 20) to S. 1. It is not necessary to identify yourself as a motorized recreation enthusiast.
Your message can be as simple as: "I am very concerned about the grassroots lobbying provisions in section 220 of Senate Bill 1, the 'Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act of 2007.' Please support the Bennett amendment to remove section 220 from S. 1.
Organizations should not have to register with Congress in order to ask citizens to contact their elected officials."
You can reach your U.S. senators by calling the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121, or you can find their local area phone numbers at this site:
http://www.senate.gov/general/contac...nators_cfm.cfm
Thank you for standing for liberty!!!
