Chapter 25., Section 1. Changing Policies: An Overview — Main Section | Community Tool Box

• What do we mean by policies?

• Why try to change policies?

• Who should try to change policies?

• When should you try to change policies?

• How do you go about changing policies?

Staff at the Penbrooke County Jail had reviewed local data and found that many people leaving incarceration returned to the community without consistent access to education, employment support, health and behavioral health services, housing resources, or other supports that could help with a successful transition.

Working with a community human services coalition, jail staff developed a transition program that would begin before release and connect participants with education, career services, community organizations, and mentors. The partners believed the program could fill an important gap, but they encountered a policy barrier: the agency they hoped would support the program did not currently fund services extending beyond release.

The partners therefore had to decide whether to seek a change in that policy.

Policy change can be an important strategy when existing rules, procedures, funding priorities, eligibility requirements, or institutional practices create barriers to community goals. Sometimes a policy was developed under conditions that have changed. In other cases, new evidence, community experience, or unintended consequences may suggest that a different approach should be considered.

A strategy is an overall plan for achieving objectives that will help you fulfill your vision and mission. Tactics are the methods you use in an action plan to carry out your strategy. Chapter 25 discusses a number of tactics that can be used separately or together as part of an effort to change policy.

In this first section, we'll look at policy change in general -- what policies are, why communities may seek to change them, who should participate, when opportunities for change may arise, and some general principles for approaching the work. The following sections examine particular policy-change tactics in greater detail.

What do we mean by policies?

Policies are written or unwritten guidelines that governments, organizations, institutions, businesses, communities, and other groups use when making decisions and responding to situations.

Policies are shaped by many factors, including evidence, laws, resources, organizational missions, professional standards, community priorities, historical practices, and assumptions about people and society.

Those assumptions may include:

• Assumptions about the way things should be. Values, traditions, social norms, culture, religion, lived experience, and community history can all influence people's ideas about appropriate behavior, relationships, responsibilities, and institutions.
• Assumptions about what works. Policymakers and organizations may have different ideas about which approaches will be most effective. For example, people addressing substance use may differ over the appropriate balance among prevention, treatment, harm reduction, recovery services, public health approaches, and law enforcement.
• Assumptions about people and communities. Stereotypes, incomplete information, lived experience, professional knowledge, or limited contact with people affected by an issue can influence how policies are designed. Meaningful participation from people directly affected can help challenge inaccurate assumptions.
• Assumptions about what is good for the community. People within the same community may have different priorities and experiences. Policies are stronger when decision-making processes make room for those differences rather than assuming that one group can speak for everyone.

Policies can take many forms. They may be public or private, official or unofficial, written or unwritten.

Official government policies

Official government policies may appear in laws, regulations, budgets, agency rules, executive actions, administrative procedures, eligibility standards, or formal statements of policy.

Official policy can include:

• Recognition that an issue requires public attention
• Support for particular goals, programs, or approaches
• Funding levels and budget priorities
• Eligibility and funding standards for publicly supported programs
• How laws and regulations are implemented and enforced
• Laws and regulations themselves

Because laws, regulations, and program requirements change over time and differ across jurisdictions, organizations working on policy should use current official sources rather than relying on older examples or assumptions about what government policy currently requires.

Unofficial government policy

Not every policy is written down. Agencies and governing bodies may develop informal practices, expectations, interpretations, or organizational norms that influence how decisions are made.

These informal practices can be difficult to identify because staff may see them simply as "the way things are done." Examining patterns in decisions, access, enforcement, service quality, and outcomes can help reveal whether unwritten practices are creating barriers or unequal experiences.

Historical patterns of discrimination illustrate why unofficial practices matter. Even when formal rules prohibit unequal treatment, informal expectations, organizational cultures, or discretionary practices can continue to affect people's opportunities. Understanding both written policy and how policy is carried out in practice is therefore important.

Policies made by government agencies and public services

Government agencies, schools, public safety organizations, public health departments, transportation systems, and other public institutions develop policies that shape how services are provided.

These policies may affect:

• How community members are treated and whether people experience disparities in service
• How laws and regulations are interpreted and implemented
• How services and resources are prioritized
• The quality and availability of services across neighborhoods and communities
• Where facilities, infrastructure, environmental hazards, and public investments are located

The policies of foundations and other private funders

Foundations and other funders develop policies about what they will support, who is eligible to apply, and what kinds of activities may be funded.

Funding policies may specify:

• Geographic areas
• Communities or groups the funder is particularly interested in supporting
• Eligible program activities, services, operating expenses, or capital expenses
• Eligible organizations
• Preferred methods, program structures, evaluation requirements, or other conditions

Funding policy can strongly influence which community priorities receive resources. Community organizations may therefore need to consider not only how to fit funder requirements, but also whether those requirements align with community priorities and the organization's mission.

Policies of businesses

Businesses of all sizes have written and unwritten policies that affect employees, customers, suppliers, communities, and the environment.

Examples include:

• Hiring and advancement policies. These may address qualifications, recruitment, nondiscrimination, accessibility, local hiring, promotion, and efforts to expand opportunity for groups that have historically been underrepresented.
• Compensation and benefits. Wages, raises, paid leave, retirement benefits, health coverage, scheduling, and other forms of compensation reflect organizational priorities and affect workers' economic security.
• Workplace relations. Policies related to safety, employee participation, professional development, accommodations, grievances, promotion, and communication can shape both the workplace and its relationship with the wider community.
• Community relations. Businesses may establish policies related to community investment, environmental practices, volunteering, charitable giving, local purchasing, or responding to community concerns.
• Business practices and ethics. Policies may address financial practices, conflicts of interest, treatment of suppliers and customers, environmental responsibility, privacy, safety, and compliance with laws and professional standards.

Policies of health, human service, educational, and nonprofit organizations

Nonprofit and community organizations also have written and unwritten policies that shape how they operate and how participants experience their services.

Policies may address:

• The organization's relationship with participants. Are participants treated mainly as recipients of services, or as people with knowledge, strengths, goals, and meaningful roles in decisions that affect them?
• Specific practices, methods, and programs. Organizations may establish standards for how services are delivered and how evidence, professional judgment, community knowledge, and participant preferences are incorporated.
• Collaboration. Policies may encourage or limit partnerships, information sharing, referrals, and joint work with other organizations.
• Professional and organizational ethics. Policies may address confidentiality, privacy, conflicts of interest, boundaries, reporting responsibilities, accessibility, informed consent, and use of organizational authority.

Policies of media organizations

Media organizations make choices about which issues to cover, how much attention to give them, what information and voices to include, and which language, images, headlines, or formats to use.

These choices can shape what audiences know about an issue and whose experiences receive public attention. Editorial standards, ownership, audience interests, available resources, professional norms, and organizational priorities can all influence coverage.

When working with media, community organizations should understand that media outlets make independent editorial decisions. Providing accurate information, accessible sources, relevant data, and opportunities to hear directly from people affected by an issue can help journalists understand the community context.

Community norms and informal practices

Communities also develop informal expectations about what is acceptable, important, or worthy of investment. These expectations are sometimes described as community norms rather than formal policies.

Community norms are shaped by history, institutions, public opinion, local leadership, culture, media, economic conditions, and the experiences of residents. Different groups within the same community may hold different views.

Because communities are diverse, avoid treating "the community" as though it has one voice. Understanding community perspectives requires listening to people from different neighborhoods, identities, age groups, organizations, and experiences, particularly those directly affected by the issue.

Why try to change policies?

Policies shape how organizations and institutions make decisions. When a policy creates barriers, produces unintended consequences, no longer reflects current evidence or circumstances, or does not support the goals it was designed to achieve, changing the policy may be more effective than repeatedly addressing the same problem one case at a time.

Reasons for considering policy change include:

• Policies shape future decisions. Changing a policy can influence how similar situations are handled over time rather than requiring a new response each time.
• Policy discussions can deepen understanding of an issue. Reviewing a policy may lead community members and decision-makers to examine evidence, lived experience, assumptions, benefits, costs, and unintended consequences.
• Policy change can address recurring barriers. If the same difficulty results from a rule or institutional practice, changing that underlying policy may reduce the need for repeated exceptions or workarounds.
• Policies can influence organizational practices and social norms. When institutions consistently implement new standards, expectations and everyday practices may change over time.
• Policy effects can extend over time. Decisions about education, housing, transportation, health, the environment, employment, accessibility, and other areas may affect people and communities for many years.
• Policy change can be one part of broader community change. Policy is rarely the only factor affecting a community issue, but it can influence access to resources, institutional practices, accountability, and the conditions in which people live.

Who should try to change policies?

People and organizations affected by a policy have a legitimate role in discussions about whether it should change. Effective policy work often brings together several kinds of knowledge: lived experience, community knowledge, professional expertise, research, administrative experience, and understanding of the decision-making process.

Coalitions

Coalitions can bring together organizations, community members, professionals, and others who view an issue from different perspectives.

Potential strengths include:

• Bringing people directly affected by the issue into the policy process
• Combining different kinds of knowledge and experience
• Helping participants understand community history, previous efforts, and concerns that may influence the issue
• Demonstrating that an issue is of concern to more than one organization or constituency
• Creating opportunities for shared planning and coordinated action

No coalition can automatically claim to represent every viewpoint in a community. Coalitions should be transparent about who participates, whose perspectives may be missing, and how people outside the coalition can contribute.

Organizations that work with the issue

Community-based organizations, service providers, advocacy organizations, public agencies, and other groups may have research, administrative knowledge, service data, professional expertise, and relationships with people directly affected by the policy.

Their role should complement rather than replace the voices of people who experience the effects of the policy firsthand.

Resident-led and community-based groups

Resident-led organizations and grassroots groups may bring direct knowledge of local conditions, community priorities, existing strengths, and the practical effects of policy.

Supporting community leadership can help ensure that people affected by policy are not included only as examples or sources of testimony, but also as participants in defining goals and deciding strategies.

Professional groups with an interest in the issue

Professional associations may contribute research, technical knowledge, ethical standards, or experience implementing policies in practice.

Concerned individuals

Individuals can raise issues, conduct research, participate in public processes, communicate with organizations or officials, and help bring people together.

Broader participation can strengthen policy work by adding perspectives, sharing responsibilities, and reducing dependence on any single person.

Healthy civic participation depends on people having meaningful opportunities to understand and engage with decisions that affect them. Policy advocates are most useful when they are well informed, transparent about their goals, open to evidence and community feedback, and prepared to revise their proposals when new information identifies problems or unintended consequences.

When should you try to change policies?

Policy change can be pursued whenever there is a clear reason to reconsider an existing policy, but some moments create particularly useful opportunities for participation.

• When a policy is being formally reviewed. Legislative sessions, agency reviews, planning processes, budget decisions, regulatory proceedings, public hearings, and other formal processes may provide opportunities for community input.
• When an issue or policy question first emerges. Early participation may help decision-makers consider evidence, alternatives, community experiences, and possible unintended consequences before a policy becomes established.
• When there is a deadline for public input or a decision. Public comment periods, hearings, planning deadlines, budget cycles, and other formal decision points often establish specific opportunities for participation.
• When evidence suggests that the current approach is not achieving its intended goals. Evaluation findings, community feedback, service data, or new research may identify reasons to reconsider a policy.
• When a change in circumstances creates new risks or barriers. Budget changes, emergencies, population changes, new technologies, economic conditions, or changes in services may reveal problems that existing policy does not adequately address.
• When community priorities or expectations have changed. Community engagement, surveys, public meetings, resident organizing, and other forms of participation may show that people want policymakers to reconsider an existing approach.
• When a specific policy proposal is already under discussion. This can be an important time to review the proposal, understand its likely effects, provide relevant evidence, and participate through the available decision-making process.
• When new information changes understanding of the issue. Research, evaluation, audits, court decisions, community data, or lived experience may reveal effects that were not considered when the policy was established.

Public attention to an issue may also create an opportunity for broader discussion, but attention alone is not evidence that a particular policy change is appropriate. Examine the available evidence, listen to different perspectives, and consider likely benefits, costs, tradeoffs, and unintended consequences.

How do you change policies?

Policy change usually begins when people identify a gap between current policy and the outcomes they believe the policy should achieve. Because policies affect different people in different ways, a strong policy-change process should combine research, community participation, transparency, and opportunities for disagreement and revision.

This section provides broad guidance rather than instructions for any particular political position or policy proposal. The specific process will depend on whether the policy belongs to a government agency, legislature, school, nonprofit organization, business, funder, or other institution.

The original framework can be remembered as eight P's: Preparation, Planning, Personal contact, Perspectives of the community, Positive framing, Participation, Public communication, and Persistence.

Preparation: Prepare carefully for policy work.

Develop an accurate understanding of the issue and the current policy. Examine relevant research, community data, implementation experience, legal requirements, costs, benefits, and possible unintended consequences.

Include knowledge from people directly affected by the policy as well as appropriate professional or technical expertise.

Research should be used to test your assumptions, not simply to support a conclusion you have already reached. If credible evidence shows that a proposed change is unlikely to produce the intended result or may create serious unintended consequences, reconsider the proposal.

• Understand the current law, regulation, organizational rule, funding requirement, or informal practice you hope to address
• Understand the major perspectives on the issue, including the evidence and concerns raised by people who disagree with your proposed approach
• Identify who has authority to change the policy and what formal process is required
• Identify who is affected by the policy and how they can participate meaningfully

Planning: Develop a thoughtful and participatory strategy.

Policy work should connect to a broader strategic planning process. Clarify the problem, desired outcomes, evidence, decision-making process, available resources, responsibilities, timeline, and ways community members will participate.

Meaningful participation does not require every person to agree. It means that people affected by the issue have genuine opportunities to contribute information, raise concerns, influence proposals, and understand how decisions are being made.

Emergencies may require faster decisions, but even rapid planning benefits from clear goals, reliable information, appropriate expertise, and consultation with people who understand the issue and its likely effects.

Personal contact: Establish respectful communication with people involved in the policy process.

Policy change often requires communication with public officials, agency staff, organizational leaders, funders, community organizations, residents, professionals, and others with relevant responsibilities or knowledge.

Useful contacts may include:

• Legislators and legislative staff
• Local elected and appointed officials
• Staff at regulatory, administrative, and funding agencies
• Resident leaders, community organizations, businesses, faith communities, professional groups, and people directly affected by the policy
• Other community-based organizations, initiatives, and coalitions
• Media organizations

Relationships should be reciprocal and professional. Do not treat people merely as tools for advancing a proposal. Provide accurate information, follow through on commitments, respect people's roles and time, and be transparent about the change you are seeking.

Perspectives of the community: Understand how different people experience the issue.

Community members may have different priorities, concerns, values, and experiences related to the same policy. Use listening sessions, public meetings, surveys, interviews, advisory groups, existing community relationships, and other methods to understand those perspectives.

Do not use community engagement simply to determine how people can be persuaded. It should also test whether the proposed policy responds to community priorities and whether important concerns or unintended effects have been overlooked.

Some questions involve fundamental rights or protections that should not depend solely on majority opinion. In those situations, community engagement can still help identify barriers, implementation concerns, and effective ways to communicate and carry out policy.

Positive framing: Explain clearly what the proposed policy is intended to accomplish.

Describe the expected benefits, costs, responsibilities, tradeoffs, and possible unintended consequences as accurately as possible. Avoid presenting a policy as cost-free or universally beneficial when the evidence is more complicated.

Depending on the issue, policymakers may consider a combination of:

• Incentives
• Standards or requirements
• Enforcement
• Education and communication
• Services and supports
• Investments in infrastructure or community resources

Different approaches may distribute costs and benefits differently. Make those differences visible so decision-makers and community members can evaluate them.

Potential effects of policy may include:

• Economic effects. Policies may affect public spending, household costs, employment, businesses, productivity, or long-term economic conditions.
• Social and community effects. Policies may influence access to services, safety, relationships, recreation, education, participation, and community cohesion.
• Individual and family well-being. Policies may affect stress, stability, security, time, caregiving, or other aspects of everyday life.
• Environmental and quality-of-life effects. Policies may influence air and water quality, open space, transportation, neighborhood conditions, or the built environment.
• Health and safety effects. Policies may affect exposure to hazards, access to health-promoting resources, injury risk, or other conditions related to health.

Participation: Involve people affected by the policy.

Community participation can improve policy work by adding knowledge, identifying unintended consequences, strengthening accountability, and helping decision-makers understand how policies operate in practice.

Pay particular attention to people whose perspectives have historically been excluded or whose participation may be limited by transportation, language, disability access, work schedules, childcare, digital access, or other barriers.

When community members contribute substantial time, lived expertise, or ongoing work, consider compensation and other supports when resources allow.

Public communication: Keep people informed.

Explain what policy is being considered, why it is being reviewed, what evidence is available, who has decision-making authority, what alternatives are being considered, and how people can participate.

Communication may include websites, community meetings, newsletters, accessible documents, local and social media, presentations, public notices, or other appropriate channels.

Provide information in relevant languages and accessible formats whenever possible. Distinguish clearly between factual information, organizational recommendations, and opinions.

Persistence: Continue learning and adjusting.

Policy change can take time. Continue monitoring the decision-making process, evaluating your approach, listening to feedback, and updating your recommendations as new evidence becomes available.

Persistence should not mean continuing with the same proposal regardless of what you learn. Effective policy work includes being willing to modify goals, strategies, or recommendations when evidence or community experience indicates that a different approach would be better.

The remaining sections in this chapter discuss specific policy-change tactics in greater detail. These eight principles can help guide the use of those tactics across different issues and institutional settings.

In Summary

Governments, organizations, businesses, funders, institutions, and communities all use policies -- written or unwritten guidelines that influence decisions and practices.

Policies can shape funding, eligibility, access to services, organizational practices, working conditions, community investment, enforcement, and many other aspects of community life. When a policy creates barriers, no longer reflects current conditions or evidence, or is not achieving its intended purpose, communities and organizations may consider whether change is appropriate.

Policy change is strongest when it combines reliable information, lived experience, professional and community knowledge, transparent decision-making, and meaningful participation from people affected by the policy.

A useful framework is the eight P's:

1. Preparation, developing an accurate understanding of the issue and current policy.
2. Planning, developing a thoughtful and participatory strategy.
3. Personal contact, maintaining respectful communication with people involved in the policy process.
4. Perspectives of the community, understanding the different ways people experience the issue.
5. Positive framing, clearly describing what a proposed change is intended to accomplish while acknowledging costs and tradeoffs.
6. Participation, creating meaningful opportunities for people affected by the issue to influence the process.
7. Public communication, providing clear and accessible information about the issue, proposed changes, and opportunities to participate.
8. Persistence, continuing to monitor, learn, evaluate, and adjust over time.

These principles can be adapted to the policy-change tactics outlined in the remaining sections of this chapter.