The Council on Foundations: Philanthropy’s Voice on Capitol Hill
It’s the time of year when we begin to think about the new Congress and our legislative agenda at the Council on Foundations. To help us get started, I am asking for your support by filling out the Philanthropic Policy Priorities Survey. The responses to the survey will allow the Public Policy Committee and government relations staff to better respond to legislators and professional organizations regarding the impact legislative proposals will have on our philanthropic sector.
As we begin to craft the agenda, I also naturally think about the importance of our Council membership to The Miami Foundation. We could not participate in the legislative arena on our own. That’s why it is essential for us and for you to belong to the membership organization that is considered “Philanthropy’s Voice on Capitol Hill.”
Two experiences in particular remind me of the significance of engaging in public policy with the Council. Following the Haiti earthquake in 2010, the Council hosted a Hill briefing for lawmakers, providing a platform for a number of philanthropic organizations (including The Miami Foundation) to highlight their ongoing Haiti recovery efforts. Shortly after that, I participated in my first Foundations on the Hill (FOTH), an annual two-day legislative conference held in Washington, D.C., where I joined my Florida colleagues in meetings with our elected officials to discuss legislative proposals of relevance to the philanthropic sector.
These types of events help raise the awareness of The Miami Foundations’ work in our nation’s capital, and contribute to maintaining a positive legislative environment for philanthropy by sharing how the sector’s reach and impact stems far beyond the communities in which we are based.
Today, as chair of the Public Policy Committee, I ask you to do your part as a member of the Council by lending your voice to the next legislative agenda. Please fill out the Philanthropic Policy Priorities Survey by 8 p.m. ET on Friday, August 31. From here we will diligently work to ensure that legislative proposals promoting the work of the sector become law.
Javier Alberto Soto is president and CEO of The Miami Foundation.
