Nonprofit Speech Rights | Center for Effective Government

Fact Sheet: Impact of Proposed Church Electioneering Bills

H.R. 2357, titled the “Houses of Worship Political Speech Protection Act”, would allow religious organizations to support or oppose candidates for public office without losing their tax-exempt status. (Current tax law prohibits all nonprofits exempt under 501(c)(3) of the tax code from attempting to influence elections.) H.R. 2357’s sponsors claim: ? The bill is needed to allow religious leaders to speak on issues of the day. ? This year’s campaign finance reform law will prevent religious congregations from spending funds on partisan electioneering even if H.R. 2357 becomes law. Why are they wrong?

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Faith-Based Initiative Goes Political

The administration, along with the Republican Party, are increasingly looking at faith-based activities in political terms. A September 15 Washington Post story reported that White House Office on Faith-Based and Community Initiatives officials have appeared with Republican candidates in close races in six states and at a GOP sponsored meeting of religious groups in South Carolina that encouraged them to apply for federal funds.

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IRS Seeks Comment on Nonprofit Disclosure Proposals

The IRS is considering revising Form 990 to increase public accountability through better disclosure. IRS Announcment 2002-87, released September 4th, seeks public comment on a variety of proposed changes to reporting on fundraising, transactions between PACs and their nonprofit affiliates, corporate ties and conflicts of interest and grants to foreign organizations.

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OMB Watch Urges FEC to Protect Nonpartisan Issue Advocacy

As the FEC considers new rules implementing restrictions on electioneering broadcasts disguised as issue ads, OMB Watch filed comments and presented testimony urging them to create exemptions that protect lobbying and policy advocacy. See our comments to the FEC and a summary of the hearing.

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Federal Judge Holds Parts of Stealth PAC Law Unconstitutional

The “Stealth PAC” law of 2000 requires political action committees (PACs) exempt under Section 527 of the federal tax code to register with the IRS and report their contributions and expenditures. (Contributions to 527 organizations are not tax dedcutible.) The National Federation of Republican Assemblies filed a constitutional challenge to the law in federal court in Alabama soon after it passed. On August 27 Judge Richard Vollmer of the U.S. District Court for Southern Alabama upheld part of the law and overturned part as unconstitutional.

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White House to Propose Regulations Implementing Faith-Based Agenda

According to a Washington Post story on August 31, the Bush administration does not plan to wait for Congress to pass the CARE Act before moving forward with proposed changes in regulations aimed at making it easier for faith-based groups to apply for and receive federal funds. The proposed regulations are to be completed by the end of this year. The White House Office on Faith Based and Community Initiatives will also host a series of conferences around the country, beginning in Atlanta on October 10. Details are not yet available.

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FEC Holds Hearings on Broadcast Regulations

Last week the Federal Election Commission (FEC) held public hearings on its proposed regulations implementing the ban on broadcasts that refer to federal candidates within 60 days of an election or 30 days of a primary. The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 creates the new restriction on broadcasts by corporations, including nonprofits, and labor unions, but gives the FEC authority to create exemptions for broadcasts that are not related to elections. The hearing focused on how broad or narrow these exemptions should be.

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Patents on Hypertext and Legal Challenges to Deep Linking

On June 19, 2000 British telecommunications giant British Telecom "discovered" that it owned the patent behind hyperlink technology (U.S. Patent Number 4,873,662), despite not exercising the patent for some 14 years. Why? Because it simply forgot about it among the 15,000 other patents it held, despite the fact that it runs out by 2006. Recognizing that it just might have a claim on a core technology upon which the online world survives and thrives, what did BT do? It promptly sent out legal notices to nearly 20 of the largest U.S.

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OMB Watch Comments to FEC on Proposed Regulations for "Electioneering Communications"

Read the text of our comments to the Federal Election Commission in proposed regulations implementing the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002. These regulations would ban broadcasts that mention federal candidates within 60 days of an election or 30 days of a primary, and are scheduled to go into effect the day after this year's Congressional election. For more background on the issue see our August 5 newsletter article. To download a copy of the original comments click here. August 21, 2002 Mai T. Dinh, Acting Assistant General Counsel Federal Election Commission 999 E Street NW

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GAO Report Recommends IRS Improve PAC Disclosure Web Site

The "Stealth PAC" law of 2000 was meant to inform the public about the sources and uses of soft money in federal elections. It required political action committees (PACS) to disclose their existence and to report soft money contributions and expenditures. It also requires the IRS to post information returns filed by political action committees on the web. However, the information has not been posted in a searchable, useful format.

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