The Federal Election is ON: What Charities & NFPs Need to Know
With the Federal Election now in full swing, charities and not-for-profits need to navigate the fine line between advocacy and lobbying. In our recent webcast, "Advocacy vs Lobbying: Legal Boundaries in an Election Year," experts Gautam Raju, Jo Scard, and Law Squared Founder and CEO, Demetrio Zema, shared critical insights on staying compliant while making your voice heard. Here’s a quick rundown of their key takeaways for NFPs during this election period.
The webcast"Advocacy vs Lobbying: Legal Boundaries in an Election Year" is now available to watch on-demand here.
Not-for-profit (NFP) organisations often face an uphill battle. For NFPs, it’s challenging to secure funding, advocate effectively for the charitable cause, and manage the day-to-day operations of the organisation, all while adhering to compliance and regulations.
2025, an election year, brings new hurdles for NFPs. Scrutiny may be higher than ever and there’s increased pressure to secure funding, but there are also opportunities to be had for those who understand how to advocate effectively.
Here we’re covering ways to better advocate for your organisation, secure the best outcomes, and move your cause forward, while staying aligned with all legal regulations.
The NFP sector is critical in Australian society
The not-for-profit (NFP) sector is larger than many might think. NFPs play a crucial role in every sector of society including healthcare, education, social services, defence, and arts and culture.
Collectively, NFPs make an estimated $156 billion contribution to the economy, making up 7.8% of Australia’s GDP, and adding roughly 4.8% value to the Australian economy [1] ––a size that’s comparable to the retail sector.
Engaging with government is essential for NFPs
Government engagement for NFPs is rarely a nice-to-have, but typically a necessity to gain the funding required to fulfil the charitable purpose. Engagement with the government is also an essential aspect of democracy––helping to drive society toward better outcomes for all.
Gautam Raju, Movember, said, “Without a strong civil society, one that is advocating and pushing and influencing government, we won’t have a healthy democracy.”
The engagement between NFPs and the government, through advocacy and lobbying, helps drive forward essential causes and raise key issues, to ensure that policy and funding allocations reflect essential aspects of society.
Balancing the inherent risks in advocacy and lobbying
Although advocacy is critical, many organisations fear potential repercussions. Whether it’s legal issues, loss of potential funding from opposing parties, the potential for alienating stakeholders, or, the risk of reputation damage.
The Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) [2] has broad powers by which they can manage breaches of regulations, for example.
However, reputation may be the largest concern. Demetrio Zema, Law Squared, said, “The biggest risk is around reputational risk. We’ve seen multiple examples of this, unfortunately.”
Risk or not, advocacy is still essential––without government support, NFPs are unlikely to move the needle. Some best practices can help balance those risks while fulfilling the charitable purpose.
Make advocacy meaningful and relevant
Advocacy requires passionate persuasion to help others see how your cause will benefit Australian society. That means purely making submissions and public consultations likely won’t be enough.
Gautam Raju, Movember, recommends being in Canberra and seeing people in person to make meaningful connections. Showing up, knocking on doors, and making sure your ask is relevant to MPs.
“If you get in front of that MP and find a personal connection with them, that can really change the game for you,” he said. “[Remember] persistence, persistence, persistence and don’t get demotivated by ‘no’”.
Consider how your organisation benefits government
To sell in your ideas, you need to show the potential benefit to government. MPs typically want to see evidence, logic, impact and potential savings to put funding behind a cause.
To have maximum impact, consider the overall benefit to society. Jo Scard, Fifty Acres, says it’s essential to be clear about goals, objectives and potential outcomes and be able to communicate those effectively.
“We have to have really meaningful discussions with people about what it is we’re doing, what we’re achieving. That’s what people are wanting to know,” she said.
Jo Scard recommends considering these questions to facilitate meaningful discussions:
What is your NFP doing?
Why should the government support your organisation?
What happens if this isn’t done?
Where are the savings that government might gain if they support your cause?
Mitigate potential legal risks
To reduce legal risk, your organisation must align with the rules and regulations set out by The ACNC.
As part of risk mitigation, it’s good practice for NFPs to:
Remain bipartisan by not aligning with, or endorsing, a particular party or candidate.
Get clear on what the charitable purpose is - this should be laid out in the charity’s constitution.
Ensure all of the actions are linked to the charitable purpose.
Have a strong election strategy that clearly sets out what can and can’t be said. The execution of this should be understood by the entire organisation.
Finally, it’s important to have an in-house legal team that can help maintain compliance and ensure the organisation sticks to all regulations.
For support this Election period
If you missed out, or would like to watch again, the webcast is now available to watch on-demand here.
And if your NFP needs help to navigate the legal complexities of Election 2025, including providing advice and guidance to your Board on general governance matters, the team at Law Squared can certainty assist.
Beyond the Election Campaign, our Employment + Workplace Relations Team, Corporate + Commercial Teams, as well as our Disputes + Litigation practice work closely with many NFP's ensuring they're obtaining clear, practical and cost certain advice. Reach out here