Point of View: Post-election, nonprofits will need a seat at the table

It was only 35 years ago when many of us didn’t wear seatbelts. Car seats for babies and children weren’t the norm. We laugh about the days when family road trips included riding in the rears of station wagons untethered. America had a problem — high death rates in accidents. Safety was a big issue. And the only solution was to get people to wear their seatbelts.

It was the nonprofit sector that came together to challenge policymakers to enact laws that protected people, particularly our children. Just think, without nonprofits, people would likely still be smoking in offices and we would not have the Americans with Disabilities Act. Today, every nonprofit in Oklahoma could have a “seatbelt story.” Whether that is strengthening laws to protect families from domestic violence or ensuring every child has access to food, health and education services, nonprofits have the power to create lasting change.

But these “seatbelt stories” don’t come without work or seats at the table to create this important change.

This election, especially in Oklahoma, means that like our recent past, our legislative composition, budget issues and policy challenges will remain. Therefore, the nonprofit sector continues to need a bigger seat at the table. We are an incredibly large employment and business sector, yet we often continue to be unheard at these tables — even when we pull up our folding chairs. I’m urging our Legislature and governor to invite us wholeheartedly to the table, and to please listen and consider the importance of our sector in decision-making.

While we will welcome a number of new and eager policymakers, the challenges we face at the state level — particularly with regard to the state budget — will dominate the work of nonprofits in the next year. I always tell nonprofits that the time to meet with legislators is not when we are in the middle of a session or facing a crisis. I urge all nonprofit leaders and particularly board members to reach out to current and newly elected members of the House and Senate now. Introduce yourself if you haven’t already. And most of all, fill them in on what your nonprofit is doing and why it is so critical to the needs of your community and our state. Establish yourself as the expert on your mission. Legislators will rely on you for your stories and impact data.

On the federal level, central Oklahoma will have a new congresswoman in state Sen. Stephanie Bice. The Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits worked with U.S. Rep. Kendra Horn on nonprofit issues the past two years and we look forward to working with Bice. Additionally, we expect to also work closely with Sen. James Lankford and his staff on stimulus for nonprofits and furthering charitable giving incentives.

Finally, I am asking nonprofits — particularly board members and leadership — to put politics aside and to engage in real policy work. We will come to the table together and be vocal on the issues and policy positions that we stand for as a sector. This is our time to be leaders. This is our time to create those “seatbelt stories.” This is our time to be bold and effect change in Oklahoma.

Build relationships. Advocate. Change the future. This is a perfect time for all of us to work hand-in-hand to create the lasting change that Oklahoma needs. To all of our hardworking nonprofits and the people who empower them through leadership, volunteerism and philanthropy, I say thank you.

Now it’s time to get to work.

Taylor is president and CEO of the Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits, and is chair-elect of the board of directors of the National Council of Nonprofits.