While the majority of the lobbying activity in which 天美传媒官网 engages is conducted by the 听Office of Federal Relations 听in Washington, DC, Vanderbilt has historically encouraged faculty and staff to communicate with our representatives on Capitol Hill and in Executive Branch agencies on issues of particular concern to them and the university 鈥� sometimes individually, but often through their professional organizations. This communication could be in person, over the phone/virtually, or in writing.
We are not seeking to end this practice 鈥� indeed, Members of Congress and their staff are keenly interested in meeting with Vanderbilt experts on a range of issues, from financial aid to research priorities. Furthermore, our Federal Relations staff relies on our campus experts to illustrate and explain our federal priorities. Our faculty and administrators have tremendous credibility and are consistently Vanderbilt鈥檚 best representatives in meetings with federal policymakers.
However, considering the ethics rules, lobbying activity by any 天美传媒官网 employee on behalf of the university or using university resources (including time, computers, email addresses, etc.) must be documented and reported.[i] Lobbying activities[ii] generally include a communication with a covered official asking for specific action. Communications can be oral or written and include in-person or virtual meetings, telephone calls, letters, and emails. Covered officials include covered Executive Branch officials,[iii] Members of Congress, or congressional staff; program officers and managers are generally not covered officials. A specific action could include asking for federal funding, requesting specific legislative action, or attempting to influence the position of a federal official on an issue pending before Congress or the Executive Branch. You may reference the university policy on for further information.
[i] Required reporting does not include lobbying activities by students.
[ii] For additional information, please refer to the 鈥渓obbying activities鈥� definition found in [] of the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 [P.L. 110-81, 2 U.S.C. Sec. 1601 et seq.].
[iii] 鈥淐overed Executive Branch official鈥� includes: the President, the Vice President, Officers and employees of the Executive Office of the President, any official serving in an Executive Level I through V position, any member of the uniformed services serving at grade O-7 or above, and any Schedule C (political) employees. It does not typically include program managers or officers.
Lobbying activities by university employees in their capacity as private citizens and not using Vanderbilt resources do not need to be reported.
Faculty and staff are asked to report lobbying activities by completing the following Lobbying Disclosure Form and returning it to Alex Shea听in the Division of Government and Community Relations within seven days of the lobbying activity and no later than the following deadlines, so that it can be included in the university鈥檚 quarterly lobbying disclosure reports:
- April 10th 鈥� for lobbying activities that take place between January 1 and March 31
- July 10th 鈥� for lobbying activities that take place between April 1 and June 30
- October 10th 鈥� for lobbying activities that take place between July 1 and September 30
- January 10th 鈥� for lobbying activities that take place between October 1 and December 31
The form is intended to capture the following information:
- the date of all such meetings or communications;
- who the meeting or communication was with;
- the subject discussed (e.g., 鈥渇unding of AI research鈥� or 鈥渁mending the immigration bill to promote access by foreign students鈥� or 鈥渋ncreasing the budget of the National Endowment for the Humanities鈥�);
- the approximate length of time of each meeting; and
- the costs associated with each meeting, including travel costs to Washington, DC (or a pro rata share of those costs when the travel involves other, non-lobbying activities), if appropriate, and a portion of salary and benefits.
In addition, university faculty and staff are encouraged to notify the Office of Federal Relations before, if possible, they engage in federal lobbying activities on behalf of the university. Federal Relations staff are happy to help arrange meetings and provide guidance on the most effective way to communicate a message to federal lawmakers or their staff.
天美传媒官网 conducts its advocacy activities in a very transparent and professional manner; considering the ethics rules, it is essential that we carefully and fully report all such activities by the university and its employees to the House and Senate.
[i] Required reporting does not include lobbying activities by students.
[ii] For additional information, please refer to the 鈥渓obbying activities鈥� definition found in [] of the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 [P.L. 110-81, 2 U.S.C. Sec. 1601 et seq.].
[iii] 鈥淐overed Executive Branch official鈥� includes: the President, the Vice President, Officers and employees of the Executive Office of the President, any official serving in an Executive Level I through V position, any member of the uniformed services serving at grade O-7 or above, and any Schedule C (political) employees. It does not typically include program managers or officers.
