Nonprofit Voter Engagement

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

IRS Complaint Filed Against Harlem Church for Attacking Obama During Sermon

Sep 5, 2008 by Lateefah Williams*

Earlier this week, we mentioned that American's United Against the Separation of Church and State filed an IRS complaint ($$) against Atlah World Missionary Church in Harlem, New York for engaging in prohibited electioneering. Several videos posted on the church's website and on YouTube show Rev.

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Churches Web Politicking Garners IRS Scrutiny

Sep 3, 2008 by Kay Guinane

Many churches are now using the World Wide Web to disseminate their message to large groups of people. As a result, messages that previously would have been confined to the walls of the church and only heard by like-minded individuals are now heard by both supporters and opponents of the message. Federal tax law prohibits a pastor from giving a message that promotes or opposes a candidate for political office. The IRS can revoke a charity or religious organization's tax exempt status for engaging in prohibited partisan politicking.

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RFK, Jr. Helps Launch New Voter Protection Project

Aug 29, 2008 by Lateefah Williams*

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has helped to launch NoVoterLeftBehind.net, a project of Democrats for America's Future (DAF). The site is designed to monitor voter registration and to monitor the voting process during the November 2008 election. The goal is to bring attention to any irregularities that occur and to urge "every Democratic candidate to pledge not to concede a single race until every last vote is counted."

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Sharpton Announces New Voter Protection and Voter Registration Initiative

Aug 26, 2008 by Lateefah Williams*

The National Action Network, along with the National Urban League, the Southern Christian Leadership Council and the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), will lead a voter protection and voter registration initiative in seven states leading up to the November general election.

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Nonprofit in New Mexico Told to Register as PAC

Aug 20, 2008 by Amanda Adams*

The Center for Civic Policy, a 501(c)(3) organization in New Mexico, distributed a series of mailers regarding the voting records of some members of the state legislature months before the June 3 primary. After losing the primary election, three lawmakers have sued Aug. 1, asserting that the group committed fraud in the financing of campaigns against them, alleging that the group's efforts crossed the line into political activity. They also want the group to register as a political action committee to fully disclose its funders.

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Federal Court Denies Injunction and Upholds Strict Voter Registration Fines in Florida

On Aug. 6, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida denied the League of Women Voters of Florida's (LWVF) request for a preliminary injunction to prevent a harsh voter registration law from taking affect. The law levies substantial fines on organizations that register voters and that do not promptly deliver the completed voter registration forms to the Florida Division of Elections. While the law does prescribe tougher penalties for willful misconduct, it does not grant exemptions for undue hardships or for inadvertent errors.

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New Voter Rights Project Provides Access to Legal Documents

Aug 15, 2008 by Lateefah Williams*

The Voter Rights Protection Project, which was recently launched by the Campaign Legal Center, provides legal documents to help protect the right to vote.

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Update on VA Policy on Voter Registration, Appeals Court Denies Lawsuit

Aug 11, 2008 by Amanda Adams*

A federal appeals court issued a decision in Preminger v. Peake upholding the Veterans Administration (VA) policy that bans voter registration drives in its facilities. The court decided that the rule does not violate the First Amendment. Four years ago Santa Clara County Democratic Central Committee tried to conduct voter registration at a VA facility and was stopped due to a rule that prohibits partisan political activity at VA hospital. The committee sued in 2004 charging that the policy violated the First Amendment.

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Activists Urge Ex-Offenders with Felony Convictions to Vote

Aug 11, 2008 by Lateefah Williams*

Grassroots activists are urging ex-offenders with felony convictions to vote. A detailed article highlighting the activists' efforts appeared in today's Washington Post. The Post article focuses mainly on efforts to urge ex-offenders in Florida to vote. Ex-offenders in Florida with felony convictions are now eligible to vote thanks to a law passed in 2006, which allows non-violent ex-offenders with felony convictions to vote if they have completed probation, paid restitution, and do not have any charges pending.

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Decision in Florida Third Party Voter Registration Case

Aug 8, 2008 by Amanda Adams*

On April 28, 2008, the Brennan Center, filed a lawsuit on behalf of the League of Women Voters (LWV) of Florida, the AFL-CIO of Florida, and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 79, challenging a revised Florida voter registration law that imposes excessive fines on voter registration groups and risks preventing eligible Florida citizens from registering and voting in the 2008 elections. The law does not have any exceptions for innocent mistakes or potential state misconduct.

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