Open Debates, a coalition of reform groups, filed a complaint at the IRS last week asking that it revoke the tax-exempt status of the 501(c)(3) organization in charge of general election presidential debates.

After two days of public hearings with testimony from thirty witnesses and over 200,000 public comments received, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) was no closer to resolving the complicated issue of re-defining the reach of its regulation than it was when it published its proposed rule in March. The FEC is scheduled to make a final decision on the proposed rules in mid-May; however, some Commissioners have publicly commented that they may take additional time to consider the volume of comments they received before taking any further action.

The Senate failed to pass the reauthorization of the 1996 Welfare Reform bill last week. Regardless of the bill’s noted importance, members of the Senate could not agree on many issues within the bill.

Last week the Federal Election Commission announced that it has received 30,000 comments on its proposed rule to redefine what is a regulated political committee. With more than a week to go before the comment period ends, the controversy on the expansive proposed rule will set a FEC record for most public input on an issue. The proposed rule could expand FEC regulation in ways that would limit genuine issue advocacy by nonprofits.