Nonprofit Organizations and Counterterrorism Measures

Feb 8, 2016

Top 400 Taxpayers See Tax Rates Rise, But There’s More to the Story

As Americans were gathering party supplies to greet the New Year, the Internal Revenue Service released their annual report of cumulative tax data reported on the 400 tax r...

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Feb 4, 2016

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger 63 Million Americans

Chlorine bleach plants across the U.S. put millions of Americans in danger of a chlorine gas release, a substance so toxic it has been used as a chemical weapon. Greenpeace’s new repo...

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Jan 25, 2016

U.S. Industrial Facilities Reported Fewer Toxic Releases in 2014

The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data for 2014 is now available. The good news: total toxic releases by reporting facilities decreased by nearly six percent from 2013 levels. Howe...

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Jan 22, 2016

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent.

UPDATE (Jan. 22, 2016): Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its proposed rule to reduce methane emissions...

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Emerging Issues in the U.S. Counterterrorism Regime September 2008

This summary is intended to share the information and generate discussion about significant issues that emerged in a Sept. 22, 2008 conference call between the Treasury Guidelines Working Group (TGWG) and officials of Treasury's Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. The agenda covered:

The current nature of the terrorist threat to charities
The extent to which charities are conducting risk assessments and consulting terrorist lists
Conducting relief operations in high risk areas of the world.

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EU Court Says Charity Listed as Terrorist Has Due Process Rights

Sep 30, 2008 by Kay Guinane

On Sept. 3, 2008, the European Union's Court of Justice ruled that funds of charities suspected of having connections with terrorism cannot be seized without the owners receiving a fair hearing. The judgment overturned a 2001 decision by EU officials to freeze the assets of a Saudi businessman and a Sweden-based charity, Al-Barakaat International Foundation.

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ACLU Launches Constitution Voter Campaign

Sep 26, 2008 by Amanda Adams*

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) began the "I'm a Constitution Voter" campaign, to get Americans to consider civil liberty concerns when they go to vote in November. The ACLU is asking voters to sign a petition opposing warrantless surveillance and opposing torture. The petition also states;

"I believe that government officials, no matter how high-ranking, should be held accountable for breaking the law and violating the Constitution.
I reject the notion that we have to tolerate violations of our most fundamental rights in the name of fighting terrorism.

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FBI to Increase Secret Powers in the Near Future

The Department of Justice (DOJ) plans to finalize secret changes to a secret rule that sets guidelines for the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) work. The changes will reportedly lower intelligence-gathering standards and could pose a significant threat to individual rights. Several senators have voiced strong concerns about the changes.

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OMB Watch Signs On to Coalition Letter Opposing FBI Guidelines

Sep 18, 2008 by Amanda Adams*

The Justice Department argues that new rules for national security investigations will help protect Americans from a terror attack. The Los Angeles Times reports that these "changes would expand rules the department enacted after the Sept.

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New Fact Sheets: Impact of the War on Terror on Charitable Activities

Sep 17, 2008 by Amanda Adams*

On September 15, the Global Nonprofit Information Network (GNIN) issued a series of fact sheets that concisely document how the war on terror hampers charitable activities.

Counterterrorism & Charities At a Glance
U.S. Counterterrorism Laws Are Impacting Charities
U.S. Charities Are Not a Significant Source of Terrorist Funding
Charities Are Being Shut Down Through a Process That Is Secretive, Arbitrary, and Unfair
Treasury Department Enforcement Actions are Unclear and Unfair, and Penalties are Disproportionately Harsh

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Critics Ask DOJ to Drop Proposed Expansion of Domestic Surveillance Powers

Recently, several organizations submitted public comments critical of a Department of Justice (DOJ) proposed rule to expand the power of state and local law enforcement agencies to investigate potential criminal activities and report the information to federal agencies. Many noted the proposal is unnecessary for public safety and a threat to free speech and association. DOJ claims the changes are necessary because the existing regulation on criminal investigation does not specifically mention terrorism or "material support thereof."

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Terrorism Charges Filed Against RNC Protest Group

Sep 4, 2008 by Kay Guinane

The Los Angeles Times reports that eight members of a group planning protests at the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis have been arrested by the Ramsey County Sheriff's Department and charged with conspiracy to commit terrorist acts. According to the article, the group planned to block traffic and "considered barricading bridges, spraying delegates with urine and possibly kidnapping delegates." The charges could result in prison sentences of up to five years and fines of $10,000 or both.

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The Search Engine That Couldn't

Aug 25, 2008 by Amanda Adams*

If it weren't for its direct impact on national security, we could all enjoy a hardy guffaw at the $500 million mess that is supposed to tie the nation's intelligence data together. The anti-terror intelligence database, known as Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment (TIDE), is the subject of recent House Science and Technology Committee's Investigations and Oversight Subcommittee report. The report found that "Railhead," the $500 million project that was supposed to tie together the intelligence data of the nation's 16 separate intelligence agencies. Instead:

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Treasury Again Disregards Concerns with the Anti-Terrorism Financing Guidelines

Aug 21, 2008 by Amanda Adams*

On Friday Aug. 15 the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) coordinated a day long event with the US Department of Treasury entitled, "Charitable Principles of Good Governance and Anti-Terrorist Financing." The event was held at the Treasury Department intentionally two weeks before the beginning of Ramadan, where issues could be addressed regarding donating to charitable causes.

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