One of the great things about my job as Manager of Corporate Social Responsibility is I get the chance to be out in the community right where the action is. Yesterday I was a social justice facilitator at a historic community conversation called “It’s Time to Talk: Forums on Race.” The event was conceived and hosted by the Akron Urban League, Temple Israel of Akron, and the YWCA Greater Cleveland.

State and Federal Communications President and CEO Elizabeth Bartz and five of the company’s staff participated.

Three hundred and fifty people gathered at Akron’s Quaker Station to begin a dialog about racism, discrimination, and unconscious bias. I found the experience to be life-giving and life-changing.

We were provided five months of training under the leadership of Urban League President and CEO Dr. Sadie Winlock, Rabbi Joshua Brown, and Laurie Zuckerman of Zuckerman Consulting. Keynote speaker Dr. Jerry Sue Thornton set the tone and then the discussion at each table began.

There were feelings of pain, candor, hope and responsibility in the room: “We sit on the shoulders of leaders in our region who have had conversations, shared personal stories and continue to try and understand people and cultures different from their own. Today is one of several luncheons taking place across the country to discover and recover from core hurts and move our society into a cohesive and collaborative space.”

What did this event do for me? I have a new resolve to get out of my comfort zone, to do a whole lot more listening, and to make some intentional friendships with people who are different from me. I am so glad I had the chance to be a small part of it. Thank you, State and Federal Communications for making this possible!

Here is a great article on WKSU describing the event.

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SXSW has been an event I have wanted to attend but I didn’t understand it…And, after being here five days, I don’t know if I understand it because it is huge.

Yes, there is music. There are films. But these are not just walk in opportunities. You need to have the right badge or wristband to attend.

I signed up with the City of Akron as a partner, which meant I had a table in the exhibit booth with the City…And, that is all I could do. I did speak with Libby Wuller and Joshua Hone from Quorum Analytics who gave me advice about signing up for events; but having only 48 hours between the PAC conference and SXSW, I had enough time to pack black slacks. I do thank them for the advice and will put it to better use next year. Also, a special thanks to Apple’s Steve Kester, who sent me a full list of night events. Yeah, after eight hours in the exhibit hall, there was little appetite for night events.

The exhibit booth is huge, and SXSW provides a lot of time for people to walk through. On Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday the booths are open from 10 am to 6 pm and on Wednesday it is open from 10 am to 2 pm. And, similar to NCSL, if you close up early, you are fined.

I did miss Melinda Gates, Elon Musk, the cast of This is Us and Roseanne because I only had the trade show badge. I could buy another one, which I will do for 2019. The big badge is the Platinum badge, which you can buy now for 2019 for $1,100, which is about $700 more than the regular price and you get in everything.

Everything? Impossible to staff the booth, attend events, see movies, get in line to hear Elon Musk, stay hydrated, eat, and do it for five days, at a minimum. The Interactive badge does allow you to attend sessions and the trade show, but not the films and concerts…you just don’t get a deal on that badge price.

So, if you are interested in SXSW, spend the rest of the year reading from the website about the programs and opportunities. If you have something technologically innovative, you should exhibit it.

Two pieces of advice:

1. It is a no tie zone. You won’t look more professional in your professional business attire. You will look out of place. Lots of jeans, boots, and leggings here.
2. Rest before flying into Austin…There is very little time to do so here.

I am available to answer questions if you have any about SXSW. I am hoping the City of Akron does this again because I did learn a lot and want to see more of the programs.

And, of course, it is the hippest place to be and I want to be hip!!

Check out some more of my photos from SXSW:
 

When we ended our three-ring, three volume publication—about 10 years ago—we had paper everywhere and Kinko’s was our best friend. Trust me, the Kinko’s in Fairlawn, Ohio had to have been the highest ranked store in the country with the amount of work we sent to the 24/7 shop.

Now, everything is on our website, www.stateandfed.com, and though we have far less paper and FedEx (formerly Kinko’s) is still in business but not really printing our updates; we have info…a lot of it.

I met with Research Manager Michael Beckett—as I do every year—to review what we included on our website and what is planned for the next year. Here is a brief list of items included to improve your ability to search for information:

1. Added question regarding gifts from lobbyist employers in both our Executive Source Guide on Lobbying and Procurement Lobbying;
2. Clarified whether federal PACs can contribute to state and local candidates in our Executive Source Guide on Political Contributions;
3. You will see additional information regarding a corporate PAC using payroll deductions to collect contributions;
4. We are now capturing social media regulations in the Grassroots section of both our Executive Source Guide on Lobbying and Procurement Lobbying; and
5. You will see we make sure we have indicated when the date the page was last modified.

And, there is more. The Research Department also:

1. Prepared the 2018 Guidebook so you were able to have it at the beginning of the year;
2. Prepared our Tip Sheet Ethics Implications for Expenditures at National Conferences and a second Tip Sheet on Grassroots Lobbying;
3. Published 549 blog posts on lobbycomply.com;
4. Transitioned to a new web-based database;
5. Prepared a guide on Inauguration activities in the states after the November 2017 elections;
6. Added the following new municipalities to the website: Bronx County, New York; Will County, Illinois; Laredo, Texas; Columbia Missouri; Dorchester County, Maryland; Irvine, California; and Coral Gables, Florida; and
7. Created from a blank piece of paper, the inaugural countries to European Compliance—Republic of Ireland; European Union; and United Kingdom.

What will they do in 2018?   Stay tuned for the April edition of Compliance Now.

In the meantime, let us know if you need assistance driving around our website. We would be happy to give you a tour.

State and Federal Communications has a busy February planned! See us at one of these events:

February 5-8 Public Affairs Council Advocacy Conference, Orlando, Florida

February 9 Akron Rubber Ducks Hot Stove Banquet with Roberto Alomar, Akron, Ohio

February 13 15th Annual Friends of National Service Awards, Washington, D.C.

February 13 Akron Press Club State of the Schools with David James, Akron, Ohio

February 15 Akron PRSA–Annual Media Panel Discussion, Akron, Ohio

February 16 Akron Roundtable, Akron, Ohio

February 20 United Way Campaign Celebration, Akron, Ohio

February 23-26 National Governors Association–Winter Meeting, Washington, D.C.

February 23 WGR Governors Reception, Washington, D.C.

February 27 The Business Technology Forecast, Akron, Ohio

February 28 State of the City Address with Mayor Dan Horrigan, Akron, Ohio

Small business owners spend a lot of time thinking of ways to make things happen. We are not expert at everything and nothing grows if staff is not added to help move things along.

Twenty years ago, I was in that position.

We were jumping on the new information superhighway and working with a local company to take all the pages from our publications—which was a multiple binder and loose-leaf behemoth—and put them on our website. Guess what…it was not happening as fast as we wanted for our clients.

What to do?

I spoke with Renold Koozer, my brother-in-law, who at the time was a stay-at-home dad raising his four-year-old son in Alexandria, Virginia. He was looking for work to do either at night or weekends and I knew he was savvy with computers. He was interested, and we made things happen fast!

Do you remember Gateway PCs? The computers that arrived in big cow boxes?

I sent the computer to Ren, made arrangements with DC-based Triad Communications, a company expert at putting items on the Internet, and he began editing our new website text.

After a few years, I found the need for a full-time website person in our Akron office. He and his little family moved, and he began his career here.  Initially, he spent hours dealing with the organization of our website.  As the years went on, he took responsibility for all computers, printers, typewriters, fax machines, and anything else with a cord.  In an office that constantly updated products, the position of an I.T. Manager was necessary.  As time continued he now has a great staff and Ren deals with operational issues at the company and introduces us to programs to help with our work—including our CRM, databases for our consulting work, databases for our online subscribers, coding, and pretty much anything I toss over to him.

I know what I can do…I run a company and the primary marketing person for our consulting services. Everyone has responsibilities to provide quality work for our clients.  But, nothing gets done if we don’t have lightning-fast internet connection, quality computers that can take a beating, updated software, a network to store our compliance and research work, a CRM to market, and a calm Executive Director who gets things done.  We are a team.  He is—as Jean-Luc Picard would say—my #1.

Happy 20th Anniversary with State and Federal Communications, Inc., Ren Koozer.  Your abilities and skills make it easy for everyone on staff and our clients to do the work.

It is a special event when State and Federal Communications introduces a totally new compliance publication to our lineup, as this can take years to research and develop.  The last time that happened is when we introduced Canadian Compliance Laws in 2008 as a complement to our U.S.-based series of publications.

Today we are introducing another compliance publication: I COMPLY European Political Compliance Laws.

For years, our many clients, including a number of multi-national companies with offices and/or separate companies outside of North America, have been inquiring about lobbying and political compliance law reporting, especially in Europe. For many, this is a relatively new area, and although the concept of having to report various advocacy efforts is the same, there are differences and nuances in the European region.

In fact, there are so many compliance rules and regulations being generated and revised regularly in Europe to absolutely warrant that we track and capture these. That is what we do. Wherever we see the need for political compliance reporting, we will focus our efforts to deliver this information to our clients.

Learn more about our new publication or any of our other offerings at stateandfed.com as we continue to strive to provide you unparalleled political compliance services.

State and Federal Communications is hitting the ground running in 2018! Catch us at one of these events in January:

January 8-12 PAC: Public Affairs Institute, Laguna Beach, CA

January 9-13 PLEN Women in Public Policy, Washington, D.C.

January 15 Akron Urban League; Remember Dr. King’s Legacy Breakfast, Akron, OH

January 18 Akron Roundtable, Akron, OH

January 24 Akron Press Club, Akron, OH

January 24-27 US Conference of Mayors Winter Meeting, Washington, D.C.

January 26-27 NCSL Executive Committee Meeting, Charleston, S.C.

Welcome to our 25th year of providing the lobbying and political contributions compliance answers you need. It has been a lot of fun and we thank our valued clients throughout the years. In our Silver Anniversary year, we have (at least) 25 reasons for you to work with State and Federal Communications.

1. Our ALERTS consulting program for additional assistance
2. Our I COMPLY online publications, the foundation of the company
3. Continuing Innovations to help with your work
4. 24/7 website access
5. Very knowledgeable, caring staff
6. Attendance at major events
7. Sponsorship of many events
8. Thoughtful citizen in the community
9. Commitment to helping college interns
10. Webinars
11. White Papers
12. Tip Sheets
13. Compliance NOW®
14. News You Can Use
15. Guidebooks
16. LobbyComply®
17. Social Media news and updates
18. Working with our subscriber directly to answer questions
19. Working with national law firms and government affairs firms
20. 100% time spent on our core subject matters
21. Focus on corporate social responsibility on local, regional, and national levels
22. 25-year member of the Public Affairs Council—first dues paid in first year
23. 18-year member of the State Government Affairs Council—best decision ever
24. 19-year member of the Council on Governmental Ethics Laws (COGEL)
25. Same owner for 25 years…still pounding the drum as the corporate crusader for compliance

We look forward to working with you in 2018 and beyond.

Thank You and Happy New Year.

From all of us at State and Federal Communications, we wish you a happy and safe holiday season. Our offices will be closed from Friday, December 22, through Monday, December 25th, as we celebrate the season.

Thank you so much for being a part of our community. We look forward to continuing to provide you with the unparalleled expertise you’ve come to expect.

We’ve been Stock(ing) the Sleigh with socks for the homeless of Akron. A change of socks is one of the easiest and most profound ways to offer comfort to someone who lives outside and deals with cold, wet feet.

I am thrilled to report we have collected about 300 pairs of socks for the Haven of Rest, which serves hundreds of homeless people in the Akron area.

Thank you to the staff for their generous giving this holiday season!

There are more than 26,000 children in Summit County who experience food insecurity.

We have students in the Akron Public Schools who depend on the school meals for their sustenance and must do without during the holiday break.

The United Way of Summit County is answering that need by collecting food in their Holiday Snack Pack Drive.

We are proud to say we collected 588 individual snacks for those students as our way of sending love to the Akron community this holiday season.

Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in Akron, Ohio has an amazing group offering comfort to some wonderful people in need.

Each month, members of the Women’s Philoptochos Society are creating lovely quilts for the military, special quilts for those in burn units, and for many other people in need! As well as being comfy, these hand-crafted quilts are works of art made with loving care.

State and Federal Communications is proud to do its part by sponsoring the cost of shipping for these precious gifts.

 
We are kicking off the holiday season with our Stock(ing) the Sleigh project for the Akron community.  This year we are collecting socks for the homeless. Our sock drive begins today and ends on Monday, December 18. All donations will benefit the Haven of Rest, which serves hundreds of homeless people in the Akron area.

Also, we are gathering snacks for the children in the Akron Public Schools with United Way’s Holiday Snack Pack Drive! It starts today and runs until Monday, December 11. You can be a champion for a hungry child in the Akron Public Schools by bringing in snack items – you can find the list of snacks here.