About OMB Watch

"About the
only issues
we share,
issues that
would be
interesting
to everyone,
are tax
issues,
Istook
issues and
things like
protecting
nonprofit
mailing
rates, labor/
employment
issues, etc.
It has to be
something
that is
needed -
you’ll never
make an
alliance you
don’t need."
privatization issues (59%); and what is charity today (53%). A large number
of other subjects were also suggested. These are roughly categorized below:
Funding, Networking and Capacity Building Issues — Included
fundraising, technical assistance, governance, citizen mobilization, program
evaluation, workplace giving, economic contributions and impact of nonprofits
as an industry segment, networking with other nonprofits, integrating/effecting
for-profit/nonprofit partnerships, membership campaigns, and
grant-writing workshops.
Advocacy/Lobbying/Organizing — Included advocacy, public policy
state issues, limitation on “lobbying,” “lobbying” definitions, public relations/
media — how to improve use of this for advocacy purposes, understanding
the role of states in the local/national matrix of public policy, marketing,
grassroots building, organizing, transforming public perception, volunteer
recruitment, and coalition building.
Ethics and Accountability — Included conflicts of interest, accountability,
ethics, phony solicitation schemes, and action and willingness to promote
women into positions of authority.
Tax Issues — Included tax free ownership of property, charitable deduction
and charity issues, nonprofit regulatory requirements, nonprofits and
the IRS, and judicial issues and justification for special treatment, exemptions,
deductions, etc.
Policy issue discussions — Included health, insurance (medical), managed
care, education, race, democracy, gender, the environmental movement,
legal services for the poor, labor market/economic development/access,
making information available and affordable to all in the information
age, freedom of expression, population, child and family health matters,
welfare reform, daycare need, affordable housing, child welfare, progressive
public policy agenda, food security, access to information, helping
people in poverty, deregulation, environmental justice, and generation of
public values.
Other— Included nonprofit management issues, efficiency and effectiveness
and how they are measured, stabilization issues when new realities in
public funding and corporate downsizing create work groups, maintaining
profitability/stability, program/service development, trends in community
needs, collaboration, brainstorming, inter-sector relations, unfair competition
between for-profit and nonprofit, nonprofit status and government contracts,
balancing the civic, political and economic arenas, program initiatives
contemplated by federal government agencies, and inaccurate information
being disseminated by politicians and others.
A few of interviewees were skeptical that nonprofits would participate
(and therefore did not support the idea). These comments focused on issues
of time and the lack of “practical implications.” As one CBO noted, "we
don't have time for chat groups." Even those who were supportive wondered
if there were enough "common ground among nonprofits" to support
such discussions.
OMB Watch — May 1997
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