Public Policy Adoption Process & Form (rev. 3/06)

Introduction

The PA Chapter of NASW believes in advocacy as an essential strategy in building communities. An effective tactic for advocating mobilizes the power of our collective voice as an agent for social change by asserting our public support for social policy that emanates outside the Chapter. To advocate in this way, requires strategic reflection and action to ensure that our public support for social policy always advances or is at least consistent with the Chapter’s mission, values and goals.

Guidelines & Principles

NASW-PA uses the following guidelines and principles to determine its support for social policy:

  1. Requestor
  2. Relevancy
  3. Type of Support
  4. Resource Requirements
  5. Legal Prohibitions
  6. Racism & Sexism Impact
  7. Feasibility

Process

  1. The Executive Director or Board Chair proposes support of the issue to the Chapter Board of Directors or its designee (i.e. Executive Committee, Board Policy Committee).
  2. The Board or its designee deliberates on the analysis submitted by the requestor (i.e., items 1-8 on the form) or conducts the actual analysis.
  3. A motion is made on whether or not to support the issue as presented. A majority (i.e., two-thirds) vote is required for the motion to carry.
  4. The Board determines an expiration date (e.g., one year) for its public support to ensure the Chapter is always timely and informed about the social policies it supports.

Policy Adoption Form

Requestor: ______

Date: ______

Phone/Email: ______

To request NASW-PA consideration of a policy, please submit a statement or white paper describing the social policy and the following form to Rebecca Myers at or via fax (717) 232-4140.

Guidelines & Principles / Check
  1. Requestor: Categorize the source of the request for public support.
(Please check one of the following)
Member-initiated: A member of the Chapter requests the support
Strategic partner: An individual or organization with whom the Chapter has or has had an alliance or partnership
Past recipient: An individual or organization for whom the Chapter has declared its public support in the past
New request: An individual or organization with whom the Chapter has not had experience or involvement
  1. Relevancy: Determine the meaning of public support in relation to NASW’s (national and chapter) core values and goals.
(Please check one of the following)
Tier #1: The policy advances our core values and goals.
Tier #2: The policy is consistent with core values and goals
Tier #3: The policy is not contrary to core values and goals
  1. Type of Support: Describe the type of public support the Requestor is seeking from the Chapter.
NOTE: The support measures are listed in order of increasing involvement and commitment.
(Please check all that apply)
Use of the Chapter name/logo on documents (electronic or paper) published or produced by the Requestor
Letter to our membership, other individual or group, or the general public
Position statement issued by the Chapter to the public
Participation, appearance or attendance from Chapter leadership (board and chief staff) at an event hosted or sponsored by the Requestor (i.e. program, media conference) during which the Chapter offers public support
Other (list):
  1. Resource Requirements: Identify the resources the Requestor wants the Chapter to invest in articulating public support.
(Please check all that apply)
Words: written or spoken
In-kind: staff or board time, shared office or equipment (i.e. photocopies, postage)
Identify:
Materials: merchandise (e.g. Chapter coffee mug), physical assets (e.g. old desk)
Identify:
Financial: cash or securities contribution (if not prohibited by law)
Identify:
Staff time
Estimate the number of hours:
Volunteer time
Estimate the number of hours:
Lobbyist time
Estimate the number of hours:
Other (list):
  1. Legal Prohibitions. Is there any prohibition or potential conflict of interest from our bylaws, national charter, federal or state law that prevent or discourage the Chapter from offering public support for this social policy?
If so, please identify: / YES
NO
(Circle one)
6. Political Considerations. Before committing to public support of social policy that originates outside the Chapter the following issues need to be addressed:
Current or anticipated support:
  • Who is expected to offer public support?
  • Who is not expected to offer public support? Why?

Political “costs” of Chapter support:
What are likely to be thefavorable and negative costs (e.g., reputational, backlash, ramifications, impact) of Chapter support in terms of our ability to:
  • Serve our members–
  • Raise money–
  • Enhance our public/community stature and credibility–
  • Advocate for other social policy–

7. Racism & Sexism Impact. The Chapter needs to assume that there are substantial racial implications for every social policy and uses the following criteria to assess how its support impacts racism.
  • How does this social policy frame issues in racial and gender terms? Specifically, does it build support – either explicitly or covertly - for an upper class or male-dominated agenda?
  • Does this social policyerode or minimize prior gains made on racial and gender grounds?
  • Does it create opportunity or resources to do that?

To be completed by NASW-PA review committee

Feasibility. Given all of the information and analysis above, is it feasible for the Chapter to offer public support for this social policy.
  1. Relevancy: Degree to which the Chapter’s core values & goals are advanced, or at least not contradicted
/ YES NO
  1. Type of support: Type of support is appropriate and consistent with Chapter practices or the broader “best practices” of advocacy
/ YES NO
  1. Resource requirement: Extent to which public support will draw on our staff, volunteer and financial resources is reasonable
/ YES NO
  1. Legal prohibitions: Public support is not conflict with the laws or organizational expectations to which the Chapter must be accountable
/ YES NO
  1. Political considerations: Chapter support will demonstrate leadership, courage and proactive participation in areas of social policy that build community and enable us to advance or achieve Chapter goals
/ YES NO
  1. Racism impact: Chapter support will reduce or counter the impact of racism.
/ YES NO
Support of the social policy: YES NO
Expiration date of support/Review to recommit date:
Signature of Reviewer:______Date:______

References

Board Café, CompassPoint, April 2005,

Center for Lobbying in the Public Interest,

Uprooting Racism, How White People can Work for Racial Justice, Paul Kivel, New Society Publishers, 1996

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