OF ADVOCACY

Grassroots GovernmentAdvocacy Committee (GGAC)

What We’ll Cover

• “Lobbying” v. “Advocacy”• Staying Out of Trouble

–Email Signatures• Moving an Issue Forward• Identifying “Players” &

Coalition Partners

“Lobbying” v. “Advocacy”

• Laws and regulations vary state to state, jurisdiction to jurisdiction, country to country, so consult the law no matter what

• It is your responsibility to know what can and can’t be done (see the governing documents) – and to convey the same to your chapter chairs

“Lobbying” v. “Advocacy”In Simplest Terms…

Lobbying

Payment for your time

“Lobbying” v. “Advocacy”In Simplest Terms…

Advocacy

No payment for your time

Staying Out of Trouble

It is your responsibility to know what can and can’t be done (see the governing documents) – and to convey the same to your chapter chairs

Staying Out of Trouble• ROB Section 2.433

• MCO Section 2.6• GGAC MOP• GGAC Resource Manual

• GGAC Public Policy Priorities

https://www.ashrae.org/government-affairs/grassroots-government-advocacy

Staying Out of Trouble• Clearinghouse• Technical resource

• Appointment (not election) of members to governmental bodies

Staying Out of Trouble• No conflicts with official ASHRAE policy, documents, standards, MOUs, etc.

• Don’t jeopardize nonprofit [e.g., 501(c)(3)] status

Email Signatures• Signature blocks

specific to ASHRAE – region, chapter, section

• Separate blocks for ASHRAE and corporate emails– No non-ASHRAE

designations (save PE) in ASHRAE signatures

Email SignaturesJeff Gatlin, PEDirector and Regional Chair, ASHRAE Region VII In Care Of:Thompson Engineers, Inc.Etc., Etc.

Jeff Gatlin, PE, LEED AP, CxA Vice President and Co-OwnerThompson Engineers, Inc.Etc., Etc.

Moving an Issue Forward

• Refer to resources–Policy priorities

list–RVCs–Other chapters–Staff liaison–Website

Moving an Issue Forward

Identify a chapter “lead” – it may or may not be the chair – to develop a plan of action and communicate it to the RVC

Moving an Issue Forward• An RVC may

make connections between chapters vis-à-vis regional trends

• The staff liaison can assist the RVC regarding trends from a Society-wide perspective

Identifying “Players”• Engineering

licensure board• Energy

efficiency/codes staff in the state energy office

• Any engineers in the legislature

• Chairs of key committees

Identifying Coalition Partners

Be judicious and strategic when deciding who to partner with•ICC•USGBC

QUESTIONS?