ARLINGTON, Va.—Today, the Institute for Justice (IJ) sent a letter on behalf of Greater Greater Washington (GGWash) to government officials in Washington, D.C., calling on those officials to allow GGWash to conduct voluntary trainings with local Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners (ANCs) to help navigate city management and provide better representation for their constituents. Not only does this prohibition hinder better governance as a practical matter but, more importantly, banning elected officials from voluntarily attending these trainings is a violation of the First Amendment rights of both GGWash and ANCs.

ANCs are a unique feature of the District’s Home Rule Charter and the first line of representation for residents of the District. They are divided into 46 distinct commissions with about 345 total individual commissioners each representing about 2,000 people. The main job of an ANC is “to be their neighborhood’s official voice in advising the District government (and Federal agencies) on matters that affect their neighborhoods.”

ANCs are an unpaid position, with many, if not most, commissioners holding full- or part-time jobs alongside caregiving responsibilities. To help ANCs navigate the complexities of D.C. government, GGWash wants to provide free, voluntary training sessions to help ANCs better understand the resources available to them and provide a more effective voice for their constituents. In other words, GGWash wants to speak to government officials about how to do their jobs well.

Unfortunately, the D.C. Board of Ethics and Government Accountability (BEGA) currently interprets its regulations to treat these trainings as an illegal gift. But that is unconstitutional.

“These trainings would consist of pure speech to government officials, a right long recognized as protected by the First Amendment,” IJ Attorney Ben Field said. “Apart from the common-sense perspective that helping elected officials know how to do their jobs better can only benefit the public, providing officials with information is a cornerstone of the First Amendment. We ask that the D.C. government amend its regulations to protect First Amendment rights.”

“As a former ANC commissioner myself, I know how steep the learning curve can be when first elected,” said Chelsea Allinger, executive director of GGWash. “GGWash is trying to help ANCs succeed. Our organization, and others who are looking to provide information to our officials, shouldn’t be barred from doing so. A lack of knowledge can only hurt government officials and the people they represent.”

IJ and GGWash now await the District’s response to their letter and are prepared to move forward with litigation if no change is made.

Central to the mission of IJ is reinvigorating the founding principles of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. IJ seeks to defend the free flow of information—information that is indispensable to our democratic form of government.

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To arrange interviews on this subject, journalists may contact Phillip Suderman, IJ’s Communications Project Manager, at [email protected] or (850) 376-4110.