Protecting Nonprofit 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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China Cracking Down On Advocacy Groups That Receive Foreign Funds

Jun 15, 2006 by Guest Blogger

According to the Boston Globe: The Chinese government has launched intensive financial and security probes of many foreign-funded nonprofit groups, according to the organizations. Critics of the audits say the government apparently fears the organizations could destabilize China by mobilizing public opinion against the government's human rights and environmental policies.

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Sign on Against Sunset Commissions!

Jun 15, 2006 by Guest Blogger

We are hearing that proposals for sunset commissions are accelerating through the House now. Reports are emerging from Boehner’s office that indicate some yet-to-be-unveiled vehicle will get a floor vote next week. We need to stop this legislation which would give unelected commissions the power to recommend which federal programs live, die, or get realigned, and then force those recommendations through Congress on a fast-track, take-it-or-leave-it basis. And we need your help making nonprofit voices heard! We are circulating a sign-on letter to send to the House, the text of which follows. It would be great if the groups who care about social services, public health, safety, civil rights, the environment, scientific research, and access to justice — i.e., you! — would sign. Deadline Friday COB. To sign, just email stopsunsets [at] ombwatch.org to let us know that your organization will sign on!

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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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FEC Won't Change 527 Rules This Year

The Federal Election Commission (FEC) on May 31 announced it will provide a better explanation and clear justification of its 2004 rule limiting regulation of 527 independent political committees. The move can in response to a court order that calling on the FEC to either explain the rule or open up a new rulemaking providing more limits. The timing for the FEC action is not clear.

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Federal Court Rules Against Taxpayer-Funded Religious Programs for Inmates

A federal judge has ruled that an evangelical Christian program operating in an Iowa state prison promotes religion with state funds, in violation of the Establishment Clause of the Constitution. The court ordered the program to reimburse the government $1.5 million.

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Lobby Reform Update

Although GOP leaders are promising a final lobby reform package by the July 4 recess, a group of Republican Senators has broken rank and is threatening to filibuster the lobby reform conference report if it includes a provision expanding regulation of independent 527 organizations.

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Advocates Say Logic Puzzle Hinders Grassroots Lobbying

Jun 12, 2006 by Guest Blogger

Articles on the "Logic Puzzle": Jeffrey Birnbaum from the Washington Post discusses the issue, including On a single day last week, of the 8,262 times the logic puzzle was viewed in the House, only 1,568 people answered it and moved on to send a message -- a 19 percent success rate. It's unknowable whether this means that computers could not crack the code or whether actual humans were frustrated and gave up (though there were probably a combination of both). There is also a Roll Call article on the issue.

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FEC Won't Investigate Radio Ad Criticizing Kerry During Election

Jun 9, 2006 by Guest Blogger

From BNA: The Federal Election Commission has rejected a staff recommendation to investigate a radio ad that ran in Indiana before the 2004 presidential election and appeared to criticize Democratic presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry (D-MA)

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Hastert to Name Lobby Reform Conferees

Jun 9, 2006 by Guest Blogger

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and House Speaker Dennis Hastert said today they expect conferees to produce a final lobby reform package before Congress leave town for the Fourth of July. Majority Leader Frist and Speaker Hastert added, “Lobbying and ethics reform remains an important priority for Congress. We are confident that the conferees will work hard and deliver a conference report that will build trust with the American people by making our government more transparent and accountable.”

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Report Recommends Changes to the Form 990

Jun 9, 2006 by Guest Blogger

The Advisory Committee on Tax Exempt and Government Entities (ACT) presented its fifth annual report of recommendations to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). One section of the report, “Policies and Guidelines for Form 990 Revision,” contained seven broad recommendations, including eliminating the $25,000 threshold for registering. According to 501cstrategies:

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