CLIENT SUCCESSES
Capitol Hill/Charitable Giving Success
UA co-chaired the national coalition that successfully advocated for the including of the Legacy IRA Act to be included in the retirement reform bill, "Secure 2.0," signed into law in December 2022. This provision encourages charitable giving from individual retirement accounts, and experts in the field estimate it will generate an additional $1 billion per year for nonprofits like American Heart Association. This was a four year campaign.
Capitol Hill/Gender-Based Violence Success
UA helped advocate for the successful inclusion of the "SAFER Act" in SECURE 2.0. The SAFER Act enables survivors of domestic violence to make penalty-free withdrawals of up to $10,000 from their traditional retirement plans for one year following domestic violence. It also allows victims to replace the withdrawn funds over a period of three years. Research indicates that financial abuse occurs in 99% of domestic violence cases and was one of the top reasons survivors cited for staying or returning to an abusive partner. In achieving this legislative victory, victims of domestic violence will now be able to access funding that can enable them to find safety from their abuser and restart their lives.
Federal Appropriations
UA's client, YWCA USA, secured a combined total of $30.1 million in FY2023 and FY2024 from Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) projects on behalf of 33 projects across the YWCA network. UA provided 1:1 consultation, technical assistance, legislative meetings, and guidance through the application process.
UA educated the Prevent Child Abuse America policy network on CDS projects which led to three state chapter securing a total of $1.02 million in federal funding for community projects last year.
Capitol Hill/Tax Reform Success
For the American Heart Association, UA successfully lobbied to remove a provision from the final Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that would have taxed passive income from royalties on charities and associations. This action saved the American Heart Association up to $7 million per year.
UA currently serves on the steering committee of the national Charitable Giving Coalition advocating for the Charitable Act that would the renew and expand the universal charitable deduction to help charities of all sizes that rely on private philanthropy..
Grassroots Advocacy
The League of American Orchestras represents a network of approximately 800 orchestras. As part of an effort to strengthen the grassroots capacity and sophistication of their local orchestras, UA edited and updated Playing Your Part: An Orchestra's Guide to Public Policy Advocacy.
Capitol Hill/Stimulus Success
In 2020, Uncorked Advocates helped to successfully lobby to get special pension rules for the March of Dimes' plan in the CARES Act, saving the charity millions of dollars over the next few years to support their mission.
State Policy
On behalf of Futures Without Violence, the largest domestic violence nonprofit, Uncorked Advocates worked to identify key policy leaders from state governments, federal agencies, foundations, and nonprofits. The firm then organized a day-long state policy roundtable discussion in DC for the group around preventing and addressing child trauma. This meeting with 40+ individuals including 14 states, led to the publication of Changing Minds State Policy Guide with recommendations for state regulatory and legislative changes. This discussion also sparked the creation of a federal interagency working group on child trauma led by HHS.