The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announces online filing for Form 990. The IRS is set to accept online submissions of Form 990, the annual report filed by nonprofits, beginning in March. The IRS has made online filing of nonprofit financial reports a top priority because of the increased scrutiny by Congress, the media and others. The eventual goal is to have most 990s filed electronically, and the information made available to the public in a searchable database. Benefits of filing Form 990 electronically for nonprofits include:

• reduction of the paperwork burden,

On Wednesday, Feb. 4, Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) offered a substitute amendment during House debate to strip out language that gave faith-based organizations permission to infuse their federally funded programs with religion and to discriminate on the basis of religion when hiring. Woolsey’s substitute amendment failed to be adopted by a 50-vote margin (183-232).

Common Cause and the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy have called on members of the House to “urge the Ethics Committee to formally rule on the legality of a plan closely associated with Rep. Tom DeLay (R-TX) to establish a children’s charity as a fundraising vehicle to subsidize donor events at the Republican National Convention.”

The Supreme Court’s Dec. 2003 decision upholding the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA) has raised new questions about what kinds of political action committees are subject to federal campaign finance laws. On Jan. 15 the Federal Election Commission (FEC) voted to consider new regulations defining what kinds of political action committees would be subject to contribution and expenditure limits for federal election activity. FEC plans to have a proposed rule published on March 4. There will be a comment period followed by a public hearing in mid-April.