Yvette Ramirez Ammerman Associate Director, Western Operations National Association of Community Health Centers 1013 Richmond SE Albuquerque, N.M. 87106 ph (505) 252-0872 Email: yammerman@nachc.com website: NACHC.com twitter.com/yvette r. ammerman facebook.com/yvette.r.ammerman Legislator’s Decisions ARE Important to CHCs: Income Sources for Health Centers Other Grants/ Contracts 10% Medicaid/CHIP 29% Federal 28% Medicare 6% Self Pay 12% Private 2% State 13% Success (and Our Future) Will Depend on the Strength of Our Advocacy Advocacy Needs NUMBERS (and VOTERS)! Growth of Health Center Advocates and Patients Mar-02 Mar-03 Mar-04 Mar-05 Advocates Mar-06 Mar-07 Patients Mar-08 Mar-09 Total Program Funding Mar-10 Mar-11 Mar-12 Legal Basics…… KNOW THE RULES WHEN IN DOUBT – GET ADVICE (see resources on saveourchcs.org) TIMING IS EVERYTHING TRAIN AND RE-TRAIN YOUR STAFF I.R.S. Must be NON-PARTISAN Implicit or Explicit Circumstances…. and Timing Matter What is “Substantial”? Federal 330 Grants…. No part of Federal 330 Grants can be used for Lobbying or Voter Registration, so what health center funds CAN be used to pay for these expenses?  Revenues unrelated to the grant-supported project (and not restricted by other payors);  Unrestricted donations, and investment income;  A health center's fees or premiums, (as identified by the 1996 amendments to Section 330 law);  Third party reimbursements (including Medicaid and Medicare payments) and potentially state, local, and other operational funding. Lobbying, Voter Registration and Education, Advocacy Activity  Lobbying = Face to face, phone call  IRS limits Non-Profits to 5% or email contact with legislator of TOTAL budget (but not 330 asking for action on a specific bill. funds!).  Voter Registration (VR) and Education = Spectrum of activities.  Advocacy/Education = meeting with legislators, or decision-makers to educate them about your Community Health Center.  Must be non-partisan! HRSA PAL encourages CHCs to provide VR (Not 330 funds).  Amount of Advocacy/Education CHCs may provide is UNLIMITED! YES! Your Health Center CAN Register Voters!  Widely known as “Motor Voter,” the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) is designed to encourage voter registration and to remove discriminatory and unfair obstacles to voter registration. Congress enacted NVRA in 1993 to increase the number of citizens who register to vote and subsequently cast ballots in U.S. elections.  Recognizing that the law's "motor voter" provision was unlikely to reach low-income citizens who are less likely to own automobiles, Congress also mandated that voter registration be offered at public assistance agencies. Why Community Health Centers?  We are located in communities with low voter participation. Folks come to us everyday. Traditional voter outreach efforts do not reach our patients; young voters, minority voters, infrequent voters.  Traditional voter campaigns are focused on the immediate voting cycle and outcomes for the immediate elections.  Community Health Centers are trusted resources within their community. By being non-partisan we reinforce that trust. NO, Your Health Center CAN’T!  Don’t endorse or otherwise give a candidate official support. CHCs individual staff members can give personal support, but not in the name of their organization.  Contribute money, time, services or in-kind office space to a candidate.  Coordinate activities with a candidate. Don’t allow political fundraising, distribution of campaign literature, or other campaign activity to occur on the nonprofit’s premises. Local Bi-Partisan Resources CHRISTY FRENCH CHAIRMAN - DONA ANA DEMOCRATIC PARTY PO BOX 16144 LAS CRUCES, NM 88004-6144 CELL: (575) 644-9450 E-MAIL: crittygirl@comcast.net RUSSELL ALLEN CHAIRMAN - DONA ANA REPUBLICAN PARTY 121 WYATT DR SUITE 15-16 LAS CRUCES, NM 88001 W: (575) 526-1332 C: (575) 694-2606 EMAIL: RGALLEN4@GMAIL.COM What is the most important thing to a legislator? RE-ELECTION. Non-partisan Pop Quiz! www.clpi.org Is the activity nonpartisan? High Risk Some Risk Low Risk www.saveourchcs.org Breakouts! www.clpi.org Conclusions…… KNOW THE RULES WHEN IN DOUBT – GET ADVICE (see resources on saveourchcs.org) TIMING IS EVERYTHING TRAIN AND RE-TRAIN YOUR STAFF