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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more news

Surprise, the FEC and IRS Will not Investigate Complaint

Mar 19, 2009 by Amanda Adams*

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Federal Election Commission (FEC) decided against going forward with an investigation into Americans for Job Security (AJS), a 501(c)(6) organization. According to BNA Money and Politics ($$), "AJS has spent about $40 million since its founding a decade ago, nearly all of it for political advertising that favors Republican congressional candidates and attacks Democrats.

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Editorials on the Senate Campaign Disclosure Parity Act

Mar 17, 2009 by Amanda Adams*

Editorials have appeared in newspapers around the country calling on the Senate to pass the Senate Campaign Disclosure Parity Act.

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Pass S. 482!

Mar 13, 2009 by Amanda Adams*

During the 110th Congress OMB Watch was a part of a campaign, pass S. 223. The Campaign Disclosure Parity Act would simply require senators to file their campaign finance reports electronically. And now ten groups have joined in the same effort which has become pass S. 482, where everyone can help us to get the bill passed. There is a list of all senators and information regarding whether they support the measure.

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Waivers for "Public Interest" Lobbyists

Mar 11, 2009 by Amanda Adams*

An interesting posting at Huffington Post addresses some of the unintended consequences of the new executive order on ethics. The main content of the article was apparently based off of interviews with "progressive" lobbyists, who would only speak on the condition of anonymity.

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Obama Administration Delays Implementation of Controversial USAID Rule

On Feb. 2, the Obama administration announced that it was delaying the implementation of the controversial Partner Vetting System (PVS) rule and opening a 30-day public comment period. The rule is now scheduled to go into effect on April 3.

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GAO Reports on Nonprofit Funding through Sub-Award Contracts

A recent report to the chairman of the House Budget Committee shows that the federal government relies on networks and partnerships to achieve its goals, and many of these involve nonprofit organizations. The Government Accountability Office (GAO), the investigative arm of Congress, produced the report.

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Foundation Watchdog Releases Report on Enhancing Impact of Philanthropy

The National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP), a national foundation watchdog organization, recently released a report titled Criteria for Philanthropy at its Best: Benchmarks to Assess and Enhance Grantmaker Impact. The report recommends four criteria and ten accompanying benchmarks for how grantmakers should improve their giving and management.

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CREW Files IRS Complaint Against Two Nonprofits for Partisan Electioneering

Mar 2, 2009 by Lateefah Williams*

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) filed a complaint asking the IRS to investigate if the Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region and the ANCA Endowment Fund violated their tax exempt status by engaging in prohibited political activity. CREW's complaint says that the IRS should consider revoking their tax exempt status.

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How The Economic Stimulus Package Will Affect the Nonprofit Sector

Mar 2, 2009 by Amanda Adams*

The National Council of Nonprofits has initiated an ongoing series of special reports on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and what it means for community-based organizations. The first special report analyzes the legislation and identifies potential grant opportunities for nonprofits. The second report offers grant information, tips, and considerations. The reports will be revised on a periodic basis.

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HHS Will Revise Bush Reproductive Health Rule

Feb 27, 2009 by Matthew Madia

The Health and Human Services Department will revise a controversial regulation finalized under the Bush administration. The rule, which took effect Jan. 20, gives health care providers the right to refuse to provide women with access to or information about reproductive health services, if the provider objects on moral or religious grounds. It is sometimes called the provider conscience rule.

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