The City’s Delayed Nonprofit Lobbying Ordinance Must Be Amended

The City of Chicago has announced a three-month delay before broad and burdensome new rules requiring nonprofit employees to register as lobbyists take effect.

The delayed ordinance, passed in July by City Council as part of Mayor Lightfoot’s ethics reform package, would require nonprofit employees and any organizers or leaders who are paid a stipend to register as lobbyists with the City, or else risk being fined thousands of dollars per day.

The ACLU of Illinois, Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and the Shriver Center on Poverty Law have written multiple letters to the mayor and ethics board about the new rules. Those letters can be found here.

Today, Chicago Lawyers’ Committee and Shriver Center on Poverty Law released a joint statement:

“Despite good intentions, this legal requirement would erect a political barrier for the very communities that good government policies should protect - those without the power, clout, or money to access the political system. Some advocates including youth organizers, immigrant activists, and volunteer leaders with small stipends might have to discontinue their work. The new rules would hurt rather than help those who should be shielded by a transparent political process, particularly communities of color.

While we are pleased that this new ordinance will be delayed, we believe that these problems will need to be addressed by amending the ordinance itself and not just through training, clarifications, and advisory opinions. The problems in the law are too large to be addressed without an amendment.

We insist that any amendment process must involve meaningful engagement with the people most impacted, and we’re committed to working with community organizations to ensure that they are represented in a process to address the core problems in this law. We look forward to working with the City to ensure that the law does not silence the voices of small grassroots organizations that advocate for people - especially those representing communities of color. It is vital that the City meaningfully engage those communities in the process of reforming the law.”