FCNL Successes
PDF version See earlier successesThe Friends Committee on National Legislation, a nonpartisan Quaker lobby in the public interest, identifies specific, practical steps that individuals can take now to persuade the federal government to move our country toward the world we seek. The policies and legislative priorities we advocate reflect this focus on long-term change. This list of successes was updated on December 7, 2011. Get a printable version
Building the Movement to Reduce Military Spending
Fiscal pressures and constituent lobbying have persuaded Congress to put cuts in Pentagon spending on the table. After a decade in which war spending nearly doubled, Congress is now on track to cut the Pentagon budget by nearly $1 trillion over the next ten years. FCNL is the go-to group in Washington for lobbying on Pentagon spending cuts, leads effort to link Pentagon spending cuts to protecting other human needs priorities, and is mobilizing grassroots lobbyists in key states and districts to ensure that Congress doesn't reverse the planned cuts in Pentagon spending.
Ending the War in Afghanistan
In December, the Senate for the first time passed legislation supporting an end to the war. Speaking after the vote, lead sponsor Senator Jeff Merkley (OR) credited FCNL and several of our allies for leading a "smart, engaged, fierce grassroots effort" to see this amendment passed. The provision didn't become law but demonstrates growing bipartisan support in Congress for a responsible U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Preserving U.S. Investments in War Prevention
FCNL took action when the House voted earlier this year to eliminate funding for State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development efforts to prevent deadly conflict. We mobilized our constituents and other networks to successfully protect the Complex Crises Fund and the U.S. Institute of Peace. These small but vital programs are part of a broader U.S. government effort to promote diplomacy, development and international cooperation which will be in danger of funding cuts again in 2012.
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Preventing Atrocities and Genocide
In December, 29 senators from both parties signed a letter to the president calling for U.S. leadership to prevent mass atrocities. Many of the cosponsors of that letter found out about this initiative from FCNL constituents, who lobbied in support of this letter during our lobby day in early November. FCNL has lobbied for greater interagency cooperation to prevent atrocities and genocide for more than two years. We worked to pass a resolution on genocide prevention in 2010 and supported the president's August 2011 decision to create an Atrocities Prevention Board.
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Protecting the EPA
In the absence of congressional action, new Environmental Protection Agency regulations to reduce mercury levels in our environment and begin to control greenhouse gas pollution are an effective response to global warming. When Congress tried to strip the EPA of its authority to establish these regulations, FCNL helped to lead faith community lobbying in support of the agency’s regulations and mobilized people around the country to support the EPA. In a key vote in April all the Senate amendments to curtail the EPA’s authority were defeated. But polluting industries and their allies will be back and FCNL will be there.
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Making the World Safer from Nuclear Weapons
The U.S. government program to locate and secure bomb-grade nuclear material scattered throughout the world faced major cuts this year. FCNL’s lobbyist in Washington identified the members of Congress who would decide on this funding, led efforts to engage with the interfaith community and other constituencies, and mobilized grassroots lobbyists in key states to help maintain funding for this program.
Find out more about FCNL’s work to secure loose nukes and build support for the next step toward a safer world through ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.
Iraq: War is Not the Answer
The closing of the last U.S. military base in Iraq on December 31, 2011 ends a chapter in one of the most costly and divisive wars in this century. FCNL’s work over the past 8 years to focus attention on the war through our War Is Not the Answer campaign, to build congressional opposition to a long-term U.S. presence through permanent bases, and to support a timeline for withdrawal from Iraq played a significant role in ending this war.
Native American Advocacy: Protecting Women from Violence
Violence against women is a serious problem in Indian Country, one that FCNL has been focused on for several years. In December, FCNL organized 15 of our prominent colleagues in the faith community to send a letter to Congress to support adding provisions to the Violence Against Women Act to help tribal law enforcement respond more effectively to this troubling and persistent problem. We continue to lobby for this legislation.
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Immigration: Steps Toward Reform
FCNL continues to work for reform of the broken immigration system in the United States. Locally, our Write to Reform campaigners are getting letters to the editor published in key congressional districts to build the case for humane immigration reform. Congress took a positive step when the House passed legislation to ease the restrictions on how many immigrants from any one country can enter the U.S. legally. We are continuing to lay the groundwork in Congress for comprehensive immigration reform.
