Building Nonprofit Advocacy Capacity

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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more news

Red Cross To Undergo Independent Audit

Feb 28, 2006 by Guest Blogger

According to the Washington Post, the Red Cross is commissioning an independent audit to identify ways in which it can meet growing demands for assistance, and recommend reforms to the execution of its mission.

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Santorum Charity Had 60% Overhead

Feb 27, 2006 by Guest Blogger

From the AP: Sen. Rick Santorum's charity donated about 40 percent of the $1.25 million it spent during a four-year period - well below Better Business Bureau standards - paying out the rest for overhead, including several hundred thousand dollars to campaign aides on the charity payroll, records show.

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Senate Names Tax Reconciliation Conferees

Feb 15, 2006 by Guest Blogger

The Senate leadership appointed three conferees for the upcoming tax reconciliation conference. Here is the full list of conferees: In the Senate: Finance Committee Chairman Charles Grassley (R-IA); Finance Ranking Member Max Baucus (D-MT); Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ) and In the House: Ways and Means Chairman Bill Thomas (R-CA); Ways and Means Ranking Member Charles Rangel (D-NY); Representative Jim McCrery (R-LA); Representative Dave Camp (R-MI); Representative Pete Stark (D-CA) The eight conferees will work to reconcile the differences between S. 2020 and H.R. 4297.

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LA Times Article Detailing Abramoff's Misuse of Charities

Feb 13, 2006 by Guest Blogger

LA Times article on Jack Abramoff's misuse of charities. It details how Abramoff misused the charities that he associated with.

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President's Budget Includes Charitable Incentives

Feb 9, 2006 by Guest Blogger

President Bush, in his FY07 budget proposal released on Monday, asked for $7.65 billion over ten years in tax incentives for charitable giving. The incentives include an IRA charitable rollover proposal. The President’s IRA rollover proposal would allow people over the age of 65 to donate money from qualifying individual retirement accounts to charity without penalty. This differs from the IRA rollover provision included in S. 2020 — a person must be age 70 ½ to take advantage of the Senate-passed provision.

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Reform Bills Mount, Both Houses Plot Course of Action

As reform bills mount and calls for lobbying reform intensify, members of Congress are beginning to grapple with technical details and a timeframe for legislation. On Jan. 25, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) held the first of what may be many congressional hearings on lobbying reform. Three panels of witnesses testified, addressing a wide range of issues, including grassroots lobbying disclosure; possible bans on privately sponsored travel and gifts for congressional members and staff; and spending earmarks inserted into appropriation bills.

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Two More Hearing Scheduled For Lobby Reform

Feb 7, 2006 by Guest Blogger

Two more hearings scheduled on various aspects of lobby reform. We can be guaranteed they won't be the last, though. Senate Indian Affairs Chairman John McCain (R-AZ) has scheduled a hearing for Feb. 8 to look at closing a loophole under the Federal Election Campaign Act that places no aggregate limit on the contributions an Indian tribe can make in an election year. Click here for details. Senate Rules Chairman Trent Lott (R-MS)is holding a hearing on Feb. 8 that is a forum to look at adding greater transparency to the legislative process. Click here for more information.

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Tax Reconcilliation Conference Moves Forward

Feb 7, 2006 by Guest Blogger

The House and Senate are hoping to get everything done to begin a conference committee on tax reconciliation legislation. A motion to go to conference on the bill is slated for House floor action Wednesday. House action on the tax reconciliation bill will clear the way for the Senate to appoint its own slate of conferees. Senate rules allow for 10 hours of debate, which could begin as early as Wednesday but will likely be subject to votes Thursday. Staffers have expressed a desire to wrap up the conference before the Presidents' Day break that begins Feb.

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UWA Drops Nonitemizer Report, As Groups Galvanize to Oppose It

Feb 7, 2006 by Guest Blogger

United Way released a report yesterday detailing the benefits of the nonitemizer. According to United Way, the proposed nonitemizer deduction in the Senate tax reconciliation bill (formerly S. 2020, now incorporated in H.R. 4297) could increase charitable giving to United Way alone by a net $180 million a year.

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Finance Cmte Investigates Trustee Salary

Feb 6, 2006 by Guest Blogger

The Chronicle of Philathropy reports that the Senate Finance Committee is questioning whether the trustees of a group of 12 Oklahoma charitable trusts worth $1.6-billion deserve to be paid more than $5-million a year. According to the Chronicle:

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