For the Iowa School Nurse Organization (ISNO) to accomplish its goals, individual members must get involved and contact elected officials! If you have knowledge regarding legislative issues or inside contacts, please let us know. We welcome your input!
Executive Director
Sharon Guthrie, PhD, ARNP, CPNP, NCSN, RN-BC
ISNO Legislative Chair
Teri Schloss, MSN, RN, NCSN
Advocacy: (noun) the act of pleading for, supporting, or recommending
Lobbying: (verb) to try to influence the actions of (public officials, especially legislators)
Federal Hatch Act: Enacted in 1939, the Hatch Act (5 U.S.C.A. 7324) curbs the political activities of employees in federal, state, and local governments. The law’s goal is to enforce political neutrality among civil servants. While engaging in political activities employees must be acting in their personal capacity, not their official capacity. For example, they should not identify their official title when engaging in political activities. All advocacy must occur away from the workplace, off the clock hours, and out of uniform (clothing, ID badges, insignia that identifies work place).
A note of caution—an employee’s conduct is also subject to the laws of the state and the regulations of the employing agency.
Recommended Reading: From Silence to Voice: What Nurses Know and Must Communicate to the Public (The Culture and Politics of Health Care Work) by Bernice Buresh & Suzanne Gordon