Rights of Government Grantees

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

Early Reports of FEMA Reimbursement Policy Misleading

Early reports about the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) reimbursements to faith-based groups for their hurricane relief services were misleading and lacked essential details. At a press conference last week, FEMA announced that it will reimburse churches and faith-based groups; however, this is simply an extension of its Public Assistance Program that currently provides funding to private nonprofit groups that have provided food, shelter and supplies to victims of Hurricane Katrina at the agency's request. A Sept. 27 Washington Post story gave the impression that only faith-based groups would receive such reimbursements, prompting some protest.

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More On the Head Start Decision

Sep 28, 2005 by Guest Blogger

A http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/28/opinion/28wed4.html ">New York Times Op-Ed on the changes to Head Start: House Republicans have an alarming plan for Head Start, the early childhood program for some of the nation's most impoverished children and their families: They want to give religious groups that sponsor local Head-Start programs license to discriminate by not hiring otherwise qualified individuals who do not share a particular religion.

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Faith Groups To Be Reimbursed for Katrina Aid

Sep 27, 2005 by Guest Blogger

According to the Washington Post, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said yesterday that it will use taxpayer money to reimburse churches and other religious organizations that have opened their doors to provide shelter, food and supplies to survivors of hurricanes Katrina and Rita. This is after weeks of prodding by the Red Cross and Republican Lawmakers. FEMA officials said it would mark the first time that the government has made large-scale payments to religious groups for helping to cope with a domestic natural disaster.

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LCCR Statement on Employment Discrimination in Head Start

Sep 22, 2005 by Guest Blogger

Statement from LCCR on today's Head Start vote: In an attempt to exploit the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina, the Republican-led House of Representatives today rammed through an amendment to the School Readiness Act (H.R. 2123), which — if approved by the Senate — will allow taxpayer dollars to be spent to discriminate against employees in the Head Start program.

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Hoyer Statement on Proposed Charitable Choice Provisions in

Sep 22, 2005 by Guest Blogger

House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (D-MD) released the following remarks today, as prepared for delivery on the House floor, in opposition to the Boustany Amendment to Head Start reauthorization legislation. The Boustany amendment would allow some Head Start programs to use federal taxpayer dollars to discriminate against qualified teachers and other employees solely because of their religion or personal religious views:

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Intefaith Alliance On the Religous Discrimination Amdt

Sep 21, 2005 by Guest Blogger

From Interfaith Alliance: Today, The Interfaith Alliance alerted its members to an amendment to a bipartisan bill to reauthorize the Head Start program that would allow government -funded Head Start providers to exercise religious discrimination in choosing teachers and volunteers. The School Readiness Act (H.R. 2123), is expected to be voted on by the full House of Representatives as soon as this Wednesday, September 21. Yesterday, the Rev. Dr. C. Welton Gaddy, president of The Interfaith Alliance, briefed Members of Congress and their staffs on the threats

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GOP Agenda for New Orleans

Sep 15, 2005 by Guest Blogger

Cong. GOPers, backed by the WH, "are using relief measures" for Katrina to "achieve a broad range of conservative economic and social policies, both in the storm zone and beyond." They are working on legislation: 1) to limit victims' rights to sue; 2) offer vouchers for displaced school children; 3) lift environmental restrictions; 4) create "tax-advantaged enterprise zones" to "maximize private-sector participation in recovery and reconstruction." Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN): "The desire to bring conservative, free-market ideas to the Gulf Coast is white hot. We want to turn the

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Gov't, Teen Challenge Reach Accord on Food Stamps

Sep 7, 2005 by Guest Blogger

federal government has cleared the way for clients of the faith-based Teen Challenge drug and alcohol recovery program to resume receiving Food Stamps. In several states, including Massachusetts and Vermont, officials halted benefits to Teen Challenge clients because the programs were not formally recognized by state officials, and because clients were turning their Food Stamps over to administrators of the treatment program. The coupons were pooled together to buy groceries for those who live in dormitory-style housing for 18 months during their treatment.

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Debate Over Grants Rules Heats Up as Groups Lose Funds, Challenge Policy

DKT International, a Washington-based charitable organization, has filed suit against the U.S. government over a grant condition that dictates organizations adopt a specific policy statement, while a second organization has lost federal funding as a result of a suit brought for noncompliance with grants rules for faith-based organizations.

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FBO Denied Grant Because Lack of Safeguards

Aug 23, 2005 by Guest Blogger

The Bush administration yesterday suspended a federal grant to the Silver Ring Thing abstinence program, saying it appears to use tax money for religious activities. Officials at the Department of Health and Human Services ordered the group to submit a "corrective action plan" if it hopes to receive an expected $75,000 grant this year. In a letter to the program director, Harry Wilson, associate commissioner of the Family and Youth Services Bureau, concluded that the project funded with federal dollars "includes both secular and religious components that are not adequately safeguarded."

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