Compliance Specialist

Location: Remote, USA

Reports to: Director, Compliance

FLSA Status: Exempt

Union Status: Union (SEIU Local 1021)

Supervisor: No

Compensation: $75,000 - $108,000

Organization Description

Beyond Impact (formerly Tides Advocacy) supports fearless leaders and organizations to build power and advance progressive policies that center equity and justice in our democracy and daily lives. Founded in 1992 as a California-based 501(c)(4) social welfare organization, we leverage transformational fiscal sponsorship, impactful grantmaking, and strategic convening to strengthen organizations advancing racial and social justice, human rights, environmental protection, and systemic transformation.

Our fiscally sponsored partners include projects, funds, and collaboratives led by Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC), other historically marginalized people, and allies, with a deliberate focus on social welfare and advocacy in Black communities as a strategy to strengthen multi-racial democracy and challenge systemic inequities. Our partners work across program focus areas including voting rights and democracy, climate and environmental justice, economic justice, health equity, civic engagement, and community-led policy innovation, leveraging Beyond Impact’s support to organize communities, build political power, and advance meaningful policy change. Guided by our core values—Joy, Equity, Integrity, Sustainability, and Solidarity—we give our partners the space to pursue bold, transformative work.

Beyond Impact has grown substantially in recent years, managing a dynamic network of approximately 85 fiscally sponsored partners. Our collective workforce includes around 150 employees, supported by a home office team of 33 staff, alongside consultants, outside counsel, and temporary personnel. In FY 2024, Beyond Impact’s consolidated revenues were approximately $93 million, with home office operating expenses of approximately $8.5 million.

For more information, please visit beyondimpact.org.

Position Summary

The Compliance Specialist will support advocacy work and related programmatic operations at Beyond Impact. In particular, the Compliance Specialist will be primarily responsible for tracking and reporting lobbying activities, managing the lobbying timekeeping system, filing registrations, flagging potential compliance issues associated with proposed activities, and maintaining, organizing and preparing relevant training materials, and leading lobbying trainings. Compliance Specialist is also responsible for state and local charitable solicitation and business registration filings, and creating and maintaining any related processes in order to prepare and file accurate reports. Compliance Specialist will research fundraising (charitable) registrations and business registrations. In all of their work, the Compliance Specialist will work closely with the Director of Compliance and other members of the Legal, Risk and Compliance (“LRC”) team to identify, resolve and anticipate issues.

The Compliance Specialist is an exempt position and works collaboratively with the department at large. Exempt employees are expected to work the appropriate and necessary time in order to complete key assignments and related tasks on schedule.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Lobbying and Gift Rules (55%)

• Prepare lobbying registrations and reports in multiple jurisdictions for review and approval by the Director of Compliance; file same after approval.
• Maintain a lobbying reporting calendar, following up with project staff and others for required information. Work proactively with partners on potential registration and reporting activities.
• As needed, gather material for a regulatory audit related to lobbying reporting.
• Manage lobbying time tracking system, including adding or removing staff, answering questions, following up as needed to obtain time reports, working with IT to modify as needed.
• Review time reports and expenses coded as lobbying monthly and flag new jurisdiction for research to determine if additional lobbying registrations are required. Follow up with appropriate departments or partners for additional information.
• Maintain an internal knowledge management database related to local, state and federal lobbying reporting and registration requirements, and gift and ethics rules.
• Respond to inquiries from Beyond Impact staff and partner staff concerning lobbying and advocacy reporting and registration requirements.
• Organize, maintain and prepare lobbying guidance provided to Beyond Impact staff and fiscally sponsored projects. Identify compliance issues reflected in proposed lobbying and other advocacy activities, including related to gift and ethics rules.
• Stay up to date on changes in rules and regulations that affect lobbying, advocacy, and gift rules compliance.

Charitable Solicitation and Business Registrations (35%)

• Serve as the primary contact with Beyond Impact’s chosen vendor(s) (“Vendors”) for state and local service of process, charitable solicitation registration and reporting, and business registrations in every jurisdiction that requires the same.
• Work with Vendors to prepare and file Beyond Impact's annual charitable solicitation registration/reporting and business registration filings, subject to approval. If Vendor assistance is unavailable for a given local jurisdiction, prepare additional registrations for approval and direct filing as needed.
• Establish any process needed to compile information from multiple departments and partners in order to file annual charitable solicitation registration/reporting and business registrations.
• Research and evaluate jurisdiction-specific requirements as needed.

Materials and Training Support (10%)

• Support in the preparation and presentations of compliance trainings and resource materials for internal and partner staff.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Prior experience and familiarity of lobbying regulations and ethics rules; prior experience with time tracking systems a plus
• Prior experience and understanding of charitable solicitation and business registration regulations
• Familiarity with legal frameworks governing organizations exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4) and 527 of the Internal Revenue Code
• Strong organizational skills and project management skills
• Ability to work independently within a fast-paced, task-directed, deadline-oriented environment
• Ability to manage a variety of activities and pay close attention to detail
• Strong verbal and written communications skills with the ability to cooperate and work collaboratively toward solutions that generally benefit all involved parties
• Strong critical thinking and decision-making ability
• Ability to hold information confidential with excellent judgment

Education and Experience

Required:

• 2+ years of direct experience with lobbying and/or other similar advocacy compliance
• Familiarity with Salesforce and Microsoft Office suite and/or similar systems

Preferred:

• 1+ years of experience with business and/or charitable solicitation registration

Equal Employment Opportunity

Beyond Impact is an equal opportunity employer. We strongly encourage and seek applications from women, people of color, and bilingual and bicultural individuals, as well as members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities. Applicants shall not be discriminated against because of race (including hairstyle and texture), religion, sex, national origin, ethnicity, age, disability, political affiliation, sexual orientation, gender identity, color, marital status, or medical condition including acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and AIDS-related conditions.

Applicants with Disabilities

Reasonable accommodation will be made so that qualified disabled applicants may participate in the application process. Please reach out to us via this portal if you have any reasonable accommodation questions or requests.

Beyond Impact currently offers the following benefits:

• Medical Plan
• Dental Plan
• Vision Plan
• Basic Life Insurance & Accidental Death & Dismemberment (AD&D)
• Voluntary Life
• Voluntary AD&D
• Short-term Disability insurance
• Long-term Disability insurance
• Hospital Indemnity
• Critical Illness
• Accident
• Flexible Healthcare & Dependent Care Spending Accounts
• Health Savings Account
• Parking & Transportation Savings Account
• Employee Assistance Program
• 401(k) Retirement Plan
• Fertility and Gender-Affirming Health Care