List of Prohibited Activities

There are certain activities – including lobbying, political, religious, or advocacy activities – that AmeriCorps members and staff may not perform in the course of their duties, while charging time to the AmeriCorps program, or at the request of program staff.  Furthermore, members and staff may not engage in any conduct in a manner that would associate the national service program or the Corporation of National & Community Service (CNCS) with the prohibited activities.  Programs must become familiar with the specific prohibitions described in the CNCS formal regulations and the grant provisions.  The list of prohibited activities includes:

• participating in efforts to influence legislation, including state or local ballot initiatives, or lobbying for your program;
• organizing a letter-writing campaign to Congress;
• engaging in partisan political activities, or other activities designed to influence the outcome of an election to any public office;
• participating in, or endorsing, events or activities that are likely to include advocacy for or against political parties, political platforms, political candidates, proposed legislation, or elected officials;
• voter registration drives;
• organizing or participating in protests, petitions, boycotts, or strikes;
• assisting, promoting, or deterring union organizing;
• impairing existing contracts for services or collective bargaining agreements;
• engaging in religious instruction;
• conducting worship services;
• providing instruction as part of a program that includes mandatory religious instruction or worship;
• constructing or operating facilities devoted to religious instruction or worship;
• maintaining facilities primarily or inherently devoted to religious instruction or worship;
• engaging in any form of religious proselytizing;
• providing a direct benefit to a for-profit entity, a labor union, a partisan political organization, or an organization engaged in religious activities;
• participating in activities that pose a significant safety risk to participants; and
• fundraising  including : for living allowance or other costs of the AmeriCorps program or an organization’s operating expenses or endowment; writing grant applications for AmeriCorps funding or for any other funding provided by the Corporation for National & Community Service; or writing grant applications for funding provided by any other federal agencies.
• Additionally, members may not consider such hours as direct service:
  1) Time spent sleeping during overnight retreats affiliated with their service site (or for personal recreation) or travel time to and from a service site.
  2) Service outside a program state (CA, HI, ID, MT, OR, WA, AK) or outside the U.S.A.

However, AmeriCorps members, like any other private citizens, may participate in any of the above activities on their own time, at their own expense, and at their own initiative.  Members may not wear AmeriCorps service gear or other identity item (pins, hats, etc) in such instances.