Public Policy Advocate

Work at the Budget & Tax Center

At the North Carolina Budget & Tax Center, we envision a state where every person can reach their full potential and achieve well-being through the support of trustworthy, anti-racist institutions and systems that we all participate in building.

The NC Budget & Tax Center is a non-partisan, non-profit organization that works to document fiscal and economic conditions in communities to support the work of people, organizations, and government to advance solutions to poverty and pursue racial equity.  

The Public Policy Advocate Role

The Public Policy Advocate supports the legislative strategy of the organization to increase policymaker understanding and will for a state budget, state tax code and public policies that reduce poverty and advance well-being in collaboration with partners from aligned organizations, communities and individuals engaged in our work. 

The PublicPolicy Advocate will manage and schedule legislative meetings, support advocacy trainings and events, monitor legislative activity and produce analysis of legislative proposals to build understanding of the policy impacts in order to develop legislative champions, strengthen connections across issues our partners work on and mobilize people to engage in the legislative process. 

The Public Policy Advocates will support the coordination and alignment of trusting partnerships with organizations and individuals through coalition meetings, presentations, and shared work specifically around the state budget.

The PublicPolicy Advocate will work on a variety of projects, depending on the emerging needs of the organization. Likely areas of work in the near-term include: 

• Supporting the implementation of a statewide policy campaign focused on stopping income tax cuts and ensuring the state budget advances well-being;
• Building the membership and increasing engagement in the People’s Budget Coalition;
• Deepening the understanding and will of policymakers at the state and local level to a positive, proactive vision for public policy informed by people directly impacted.

The Policy Advocate is supervised by the Legislative Advocacy & Campaigns Manager, who sets the strategic direction and prioritization for the work. 

Core Job Responsibilities:

• Build policymaker understanding and will for public policies that advance well-being, equitable outcomes and connect more people to the legislative policy process. A Senior Public Policy Advocate will be responsible for greater ownership of relationship building and programming that builds the capacity of people to connect to the policy process;
• Monitor legislative activity through management of bill tracking database and legislative calendar, along with coverage of legislative committees and floor debates.
• Support the development and implementation of policy campaigns focused on BTC policy priorities.  A Senior Public Policy Advocate will own special campaigns with significant responsibility for coordinating, building, and maintaining partnerships, planning and internal communication to align internal and external stakeholders to shared goals.
• Build and deepen partnerships with organizations and local leaders and our networks to connect more people to the policy process and center solutions and experiences of people directly impacted by policy choices. A Senior Public Policy Advocate will have responsibility for stewarding partnerships and coalition spaces to alignment and action on policy priorities;
• Support analysis of legislative proposals, production of materials for legislative or other policymaker audiences to build understanding and will to act on policy priorities. A Senior Public Policy Advocate will have responsibility for independent drafting of analysis of legislative proposals, identification of materials needed to support policymaker understanding and analysis and timely coordination to support creation and dissemination of communications to all stakeholders. 
• Collaborate with colleagues to respond to requests and advance shared goals around state fiscal policy, general state budget priorities, and taxation, when and as needed.

• Actively participate in team activities including those related to planning and program execution, staff development, partner support or other topics as they arise and as appropriate. and advancing racial equity at the organization. A Senior Public Policy Advocate can supervise interns.

   

What we’re looking for

To be considered for this role, candidates must have demonstrated experience in effective advocacy and policy campaigning that builds public and policymaker understanding, partner alignment to and legislative will to advance public policy proposals through relevant work, volunteer or formal training.

This can include for a Public Policy Advocate:

• A master’s degree and at least one year of relevant work or volunteer experience
• A bachelor’s degree and at least two years of relevant work or volunteer experience
• At least three years of work or volunteer experience in an advocate, legislative or policy campaign role

For a Senior Public Policy Advocate:

• A Master’s degree and three or more years of professional experience
• A Bachelor’s degree and five or more years of work experience
• Or at least six years of experience 

To be successful in this role, you are:

• Passionate about making North Carolina a place where public policy advances the well-being of all people and communities, as well as trustworthy, anti-racist institutions.
• Interested in the policy areas that our organization works on, including state taxes and public policies that support people with low and moderate incomes. 
• Flexible and can adjust your plans to meet emerging needs and manage multiple projects to timelines and strategic goals
• Committed to authentic and equitable collaboration with co-workers and external partners.

Key skills and experience

We recognize that candidates may not be equally strong in all skill areas and may have additional qualifications that aren’t listed here. If you are excited about this position, we encourage you to apply and to tell us in your cover letter why you think you’re a great candidate. 

• You have demonstrated skills in public policy campaign development and implementation, including a track record of partnership building and advocacy with policymakers and the policymaking process at the local or state level.
• You have relevant issue area policy expertise and demonstrated attention to policy detail, that includes an understanding of legislative procedure and rules, analysis of legislation and practice in power analysis and partnership building across issues.
• You have command of effective project management and balancing multiple tasks and prioritizing work that has the greatest impact for the goal.
• You are very organized and pay close attention to detail. You have experience prioritizing tasks to meet competing deadlines. 
• You are an excellent written and verbal communicator and can distill complex policy analysis into meaningful and actionable findings. 

Please also let us know if you have:

• Familiarity with the North Carolina legislative and budget process and knowledge of the landscape of organizations working on economic, social and racial justice in our state.