Nonprofit Speech Rights

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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Brennan Cntr to Report on Television Advertising

Aug 24, 2005 by Guest Blogger

The Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law and the Justice at Stake Campaign are teaming up to provide regular snapshots of the television advertising campaigns for and against the confirmation of Judge John Roberts to the U.S. Supreme Court, the two public interest groups announced today. The Brennan Center and Justice at Stake regularly collaborate on analyses of interest group advertising in state Supreme Court elections. The research and analysis will provide valuable insight into messages being employed by interest groups, where resources are being spent, and

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Nonprofits Cloak Donors to the Ahhhnold

Aug 24, 2005 by Guest Blogger

From the L.A. Times: Tax-exempt groups provide millions from sources not made public. Ethics watchdogs say the practice avoids state disclosure laws. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is benefiting from millions of dollars raised by a network of tax-exempt groups without revealing that the money comes from major corporations with business before his office.

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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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Op-Ed Argues for More Aggressive FEC Commissioners

Aug 23, 2005 by Guest Blogger

Op-Ed from TomPaine.com: "Nominees for important government posts will be announced in a matter of days, and the radical suggestion of Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Russ Feingold, D-Wis., is this: Appoint capable individuals inclined to carry out their legally mandated duties." In the article, James Sample is arguing that the current FEC commissioners is too "hands-off" and that the Commission should bring in people that are going to be more aggressive in their oversight of campaign finance law. Check out the article

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Action Expected on Charitable Giving Legislation in September

The Senate Finance Committee intends to introduce a package of nonprofit accountability reforms and charitable giving tax incentives soon, according to sources on the Hill.

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Federal Election Commission Seeks Comments on Rule that Could Gag Charities around Elections

The Federal Elections Commission (FEC) is considering changes that could affect the advocacy voice of charities across the country. Currently charities are strictly prohibited from electioneering, and are thus not covered by campaign finance law. However, the FEC is reviewing current rules regarding communications made 30 days prior to primary elections and 60 days before general elections, and weighing whether charities should be limited in mentioning a candidate for federal office during those periods.

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Nonprofit Sues US Gov't for Retracting Grant on Bias

Aug 22, 2005 by Guest Blogger

DKT International, a nonprofit organization that works to prevent HIV/AIDS worldwide, has sued the US Agency for International Development (USAID) for its retraction of a grant when DKT refused to sign a pledge opposing sex work. In June, DKT applied for a $60,000 subgrant to market condom lubricants in Vietnam. The grant was initially approved, but rescinded when DKT refused to sign the pledge.

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Utah TV Station Refuses to Air Anti-War Ad

Aug 22, 2005 by Guest Blogger

A Utah television station is refusing to air an anti-war ad bought by Gold Star Families for Peace, featuring Cindy Sheehan, whose son's death in Iraq prompted a vigil outside President Bush's Texas ranch. The ad began airing on other area stations Saturday, two days before Bush was scheduled to speak in Salt Lake City to the national convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. In the ad, Sheehan pleads with Bush for a meeting and accuses him of lying to the American people about Iraq's development of weapons of mass destruction and its connection to al-Qaida.

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Roberts Weighed In On Rights of Gov't Grantees

Aug 19, 2005 by Guest Blogger

From Today's Washington Post:

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TIGTA Recommends Better Monitoring of 527 Groups

Aug 19, 2005 by Guest Blogger

A Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration report released today said 527 political organizations are not always reporting contribution and expenditure information completely or in a timely manner.

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