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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more news

Nonprofits, Elections, and an Issue Advocacy Campaign

Nov 13, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

The LA Times reports on an option for political campaign donors that is expected to become more popular as time closes in on the presidential election, donating to a nonprofit. "It is the 501(c)(4), named for the tax code that defines it, that seems to have struck a chord with people looking for new ways to organize their independent fundraising."

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Another Bump In the Road to Implement new Ethics Law

Nov 9, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

BNA Money and Politics ($$) reports that after a decline in privately sponsored travel by members of Congress, sponsors have now increased their spending, paying to send lawmakers to conferences and on fact-finding trips. The article examines how the new rules have affected some of the biggest private sponsors of congressional travel, including the nonprofit Aspen Institute and the American Israel Education Foundation (AEIF). As it turns out, both suggest that the new rules have increased attendance at their events.

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Senate Judiciary Puts Off FISA Bill

Nov 8, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

The Senate Judiciary Committee was scheduled to consider the first title of , but after Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) distributed a substitute amendment a day before the mark up, Republicans on the committee requested that the mark up be postponed because they did not have enough time to consider the amendment. Senator Leahy's substitute would eliminate a part of the bill that redefines the definition of electronic surveillance. It also strengthens the minimization procedures and clarifies that FISA is the only way the government can conduct electronic surveillance for foreign intelligence.

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GovernmentDocs.org

Nov 8, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

A coalition of organizations, including Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), the Sunlight Foundation, the Project on Government Oversight (POGO), Public Citizen, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation have launched GovernmentDocs.org. It is an online document database that will make results of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests easily searchable, browsed and reviewed. Registered users will be able to review and comment on documents. Check out the site here.

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Watch Lists: "Placebo, Not a Protection"

Nov 8, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

The House Homeland Security Committee held a hearing today (Nov.8) titled "The Progress and Pitfalls of the Terrorist Watch List," to examine how the Terrorist Screening Center (TSC) watch list is being used and managed. This follows a hearing covering the same topic held in the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee on Oct. 24. A Government Accountability Office (GAO) report was released at that time which concluded that the administration is not using the TSC list as effectively as it should be.

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Grassley Wants To Investigate Ministries Spending

Nov 7, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA), the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, is investigating six evangelistic ministries to determine whether they have illegally used donations to finance lavish lifestyles. Senator Grassley sent letters to each of the ministries requesting documents to answer questions regarding expenses, executive compensation, housing allowances, checking and savings accounts, cars, airplanes and overseas trips. They have until Dec. 6 to respond.

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Bills Introduced to Protect Voters

Nov 7, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

Yesterday (Nov. 6) voters in seven states participated in state and local elections. The Election Protection hotline 1-866-OUR-VOTE was up and running, tracking reports of voting problems. In Michigan, a new photo ID requirement reportedly caused so much confusion that the Detroit Branch NAACP complained of possible civil rights violations.

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Senate Judiciary to Mark Up FISA Amendments Act

Nov 7, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

The Senate Judiciary Committee plans to mark up tomorrow (Nov. 8) S. 2248 the FISA Amendments Act to reform the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). One of the most contentious issues is whether to give retroactive immunity to telecommunications companies that gave the administration records of U.S. residents without warrants from the FISA court. Last week the Judiciary Committee had a hearing examining the issue, and during which many on the committee suggested that they would not support immunity.

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Trade Associations Protest Stealth Lobbying Disclosure Provision in New Ethics Law

Nov 7, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

An article in Roll Call ($$) addresses another element of carrying out the ethics and lobbying bill that was signed into law in September, the stealth lobbying coalition disclosure provision. Coalitions will have to disclose any organization that contributes at least $5,000 per quarter and actively participates in the lobbying campaign. Trade associations are not exempt from the rule, which means they could be forced to disclose their members. As a result, many trade associations are threatening to sue, arguing that forcing groups to name their members could violate First Amendment rights.

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FEC Expanding to Regulate Issue Advocacy: New Article in Tax Analysts

Nov 6, 2007 by Kay Guinane

Attorney Ezra Reese of Perkins Coie has done us all a favor by calling attention to little-known enforcement actions at the Federal Election Commission (FEC) over the past year that expand its authority beyond federal campaigns and election activity. Reese's article, The Other Agency: The Impact of Recent Fedral Law Enforcement on Nonprofit Political Activity appears in the November 2007 issue of Tax Analysts. It has a good summary of both Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and FEC rules and enforcement trends over the past few years. The conclusions are ominous. Reese says,

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