Understanding Government Relations
While the following government relations activities are charitable, they are regulated:
- Public Policy Dialogue and Development (PPDDA)
- Lobbying
- Election advertising
This means that Projects are able to undertake these activities, but there will be regulations to follow. It is important to understand that, ultimately, all government relations activities must support the Project's charitable purpose.
The CRA conducts political activity audits on charities. Organizations that fail an audit can lose their charity status. Because all Projects are part of MakeWay, the actions of each Project affects the others. A Project that violates the rules would lose charitable status for itself, for all other Projects, and for MakeWay.
While these government relations activities are regulated that does not mean you should avoid them entirely. These activities can be an important avenue to pursue to achieve your vision. In addition, surveys have shown that as high as 96% of Canadians believe charities have an important role to play in the development of government policy and procedure.