Advocacy & Legislative Directory - Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund (AFREF)

AFREF has been called “the leading voice for Wall Street accountability” in Washington.

Join us in the fight to hold Wall Street accountable, and make finance work for us, not against us. Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund (AFREF) is seeking an Advocacy & Legislative Director to work on strengthening consumer protections and the effective regulation of consumer financial products; to fight a high cost lending abuses; to work towards reversing the damage caused by systemic racism in the financial marketplace; and to advance an ambitious agenda to protect economically vulnerable consumers and provide all families with access to financial products and services that meet their needs and allow them to maintain economic stability and build wealth.

AFREF played a leading role in winning passage of the Dodd Frank Financial Reform law and the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and we are driving the fight for broader transformations of the financial system to advance economic, racial, and social justice. AFREF’s staff develops plans and strategies in collaboration with a coalition of more than 200 consumer, civil rights, labor, community- based, and other organizations, along with academics and policy experts.

The Advocacy & Legislative Director will work with AFREF’s policy, campaign, and communications directors, and staff, to advance our policy priorities, including in developing strategic approaches and tactics, managing, and coordinating relationships with Hill offices and other policy decision-makers, and leading and engaging our coalition around advocacy approaches, priorities, and actions.

Job responsibilities will include:

• Developing and driving legislative and advocacy strategies and tactics to advance our policy priorities in collaboration with our policy, campaigns, and communications staff
• Working with our coalition partners to collaborate in advocacy and legislative strategy development and implementation, and providing leadership and guidance in advancing our plans
• Enhancing and maintaining systems for communicating with Congressional offices and other decision makers and ensuring AFR policy and research work is visible to key decision makers.
• Building strong relationships with policy makers and representing AFR at meetings with lawmakers and regulators, and with allies and partners
• Explaining and defending our policy positions for a variety of audiences
• Creating and helping to shape the creation of messages and materials to explain financial policy issues
• Identifying opportunities created by new developments and emerging debates in the broader policy arena to promote AFREF policy objectives
• Supporting AFREF policy staff in developing and deepening their relationships with policymakers

Requirements

Ideal candidates will have:

• A strong commitment to economic and racial justice
• Experience moving legislative campaigns, and interacting with legislative staff
• An ability to drive results and to collaborate effectively with colleagues, allies and decision makers;
• Knowledge of financial policy and ability to master new policy areas swiftly
• Excellent strategic judgment
• Good advocacy writing skills, including at translating complicated policy issues into laypersons language 
• Excellent relationship building and verbal communication skills
• An ability to connect with many different constituency groups and experience working with racially diverse communities
• Be very well organized, skilled at working on multiple complex projects simultaneously, and at sharing information effectively

AFR Education Fund is committed to a workplace that reflects diversity defined broadly, and where the talent, skills and uniqueness of each staff member are respected. We value a diverse workforce and are committed to a policy of equity for all employees and for all applicants. We strongly encourage People of Color; LGBTQIA+ people; women; people with disabilities; and veterans to apply.

Meet some but not all our qualifications? Don’t let that deter you from applying. If you believe that you could excel in our organization and believe in our mission, we hope you apply. We are dedicated to considering a broad array of candidates, including those with diverse workplace experiences and backgrounds. Please use your cover letter to tell us about your interest in our work and what you would bring to the role.

Benefits

Annual salary range: $105,000 - $130,000, commensurate with experience. Generous benefits, including medical, dental, vision, and 401K, and generous time off.  We invest in growth opportunities for our employees both within a position and within the organization.

AFREF’s office is in downtown Washington DC. AFREF offers both a fully remote and a generously flexible hybrid/remote work schedule (for staff based in the DC metropolitan area), depending on the nature of the position and organizational needs. This position seeks an applicant based in the DC-metropolitan area (DC, MD, VA).