Nonprofits and Voter Mobilization

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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Nonprofits Set Up Election Focused Web Sites

Aug 8, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

If the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) plans to look to the web sites that nonprofits link to for any prohibited campaign intervention, how would the IRS respond to organizations that have created election related web sites that have links to information on the candidates' positions on issues and the official candidates' sites? The Chronicle on Philanthropy ($$) directs us to two specific sites, www.health08.org and www.247townahll.org.

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Voting/Nonprofits/ & Issues That Matter: Voter-Mobilization 2008

Aug 8, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

Working Assets, the phone company that helps people donate to nonprofit groups when they use their services, has begun a nationwide effort to register new voters. Working Assets has partnered with nonprofits Women's Voices. Women Vote. - WVWV - (www.wvwv.org) and Project Vote (www.projectvote.org) to register new voters in 2008. This partnership is meant to reach a diverse population to increase voter registration and participation. "With the presidential campaigns heating up earlier than ever before, the stakes have never been higher, so it's important that people have a say in the outcome."

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How Nonprofits Helped America Vote: 2006

Aug 3, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

Today OMB Watch has released a new report on the role of nonpartisan, nonprofit organizations in elections. How Nonprofits Helped America Vote: 2006 describes nonprofits' electoral engagement during the 2006 election and their preparation for upcoming elections. The work of nonprofits is vital to increase civic participation, and nonprofits should be encouraged to continue this type of activity as the election season looms near. Read How Nonprofits Helped America Vote: 2006

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Senate Bill Protects Nonprofit Voter Registration Drives

Jul 27, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

Last June OMB Watch was very concerned about rules in Florida that would make voter registration drives very difficult and risky. The law was later overturned as unconstitutional, but one can argue damage was done and a trend of regulating voter registration drives continued. The issue of protecting nonprofits' ability to conduct such valuable efforts has resurfaced.

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Attention Advocacy Groups Working To Protect Voters' Rights

Jul 18, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

One of the new commissioners on the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) seeks input from voter rights organizations. If you would like to provide such a contribution, see this press release from EAC Vice-Chair Rosemary E. Rodriguez. "I seek to gauge whether there is interest in participating in monthly brownbag lunch discussions about issues that impact voters as we approach the 2008 election. I also seek input on the agenda, including the topics of discussion, for these sessions, which would take place at EAC's office in Washington, D.C."

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Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Bill Passes House

Jun 27, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

The House passed the Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 2007, (H.R. 1281) to prohibit deceptive practices in federal elections, making it a felony to knowingly communicate false election information to prevent another person from voting. BNA Money and Politics ($$) reports that "the new House bill did not reflect GOP concerns about voter fraud, no one voiced opposition to the measure during a brief debate on the House floor June 25.

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Nonprofits Mobilize to Fight Voter Suppression

A growing body of state laws and regulations governing voter registration and the voting process create barriers to voting that discriminate against minorities, new citizens and the elderly. Nonprofits are challenging these new voter suppression tactics, including filing several lawsuits. These voter drives build off efforts that support election reform programs mandated by the Help America Vote Act of 2002, and these developments illustrate just how important nonprofit organizations are as vehicles of civic participation.

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Roundup: Recent Nonprofit Efforts to Protect Voting Rights

Updated November 3, 2006. Nonprofits across the country are mobilizing to fight voter suppression efforts. Recently enacted state laws, one proposed regulation and a bill in Congress have united some nonprofits in an effort to curb government sponsored voter discrimination and suppression. Challenges brought by nonprofits have resulted in court victories, and decisions on proposed regulations are pending. These battles are being waged in a pivotal election year, amidst a backdrop of national efforts to curb voting registration, and a recent effort by some members of Congress to limit the reach of the landmark Voting Rights Act Reauthorization. This article provides a roundup of recent decisions and nonprofit efforts.

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Nonprofits File Suit Contesting Ohio's New Voter Registration Requirements

A coalition of organizations and individuals have filed suit to stop new voter registration rules in Ohio, charging they are designed to suppress the registration of minority and economically disadvantaged voters.

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Nonprofits Registering Voters Face New Restrictions

A growing number of nonprofit organizations in states across the country are finding new rules make it difficult or impossible to continue their nonpartisan voter registration efforts. In Florida, the League of Women Voters and a host of other groups have sued the state to stop enforcement of rules that make such voter registration drives substantially more difficult and risky.

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