Nonprofit Law Prof Blog

More Support for Improving the Microfinance Industry

On May 7, 2008, Corporate Social Responsibility Newswire reported that MasterCard Foundation, a nonprofit private company, awarded a three quarter million dollar grant to Microfinance Information Exchange to share information on the financial strength of microfinance institutions.  Here is an excerpt from the article:

The grant underscores the MasterCard Foundation's commitment to building the capacity of the microfinance sector, which provides financial services to low-income populations in developing countries. MIX Market 2.0 will improve the speed, accuracy and usability of the current MIX Market Web platform, which serves more than 25,000 visitors per month. The platform provides annual financial and operating information on more than 1,150 microfinance institutions, as well as profiles of 100 funders that invest in microfinance and almost 200 partners, including evaluators and development programs. However, significant technological improvements are needed to expand and upgrade the platform to support the growing demand for real-time information.

For the entire article, see "MasterCard Foundation Partners with Microfinance Information eXchange to Enhance Transparency of Microfinance Industry," in the May 7, 2008, on-line edition of Corporate Social Responsibility Newswire.

DAB

Blaine Amendments Under Attack: Should State Tax Dollars Be Used to Fund Religious Education?

As we just blogged, in addition to the tax swap proposal, Florida voters will consider in November a constitutional amendment that will eliminate its so-called "Blaine Amendment" law.  According to an article in the May 15, 2008, issue of the Washington Post, 37 states across the country enacted Blaine Amendments about one hundred years ago when the "Protestant majority" wanted "to block government support for catholic schools."  It appears that the stakes in Florida are huge considering the potential loss of funding for a myriad of social service activities that many consider critical.  here is an excerpt from the article:

Patricia Levesque, the commission member who pushed to add the measure, said she acted because a 2004 appeals court decision cited the Blaine Amendment while striking down then-Gov. Jeb Bush's effort to allow students in failing schools to enroll in parochial and other private schools at public expense.

Levesque said the 2004 decision, as well as a lawsuit recently filed against state prison chaplains, could endanger millions of dollars in state contracts that go to faith-based organizations running substance abuse programs, HIV education services, foster care programs and pre-kindergarten programs.

* * *

Opponents of the measure say that Levesque, Jeb Bush's former education policy chief and the current head of Bush's independent education organization, Foundation for Florida's Future, is using alarmist language as a way to revive his voucher program.

The warnings are a "scare tactic" said Mark Pudlow, spokesman for the Florida Education Association. "It's Governor Bush's attempt to get vouchers for all." A coalition of education organizations has combined with Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the Anti-Defamation League to contest the measure.

For the entire article, "Fla. to Consider Key Church-State Question: Funds Ban for Religious Groups at Issue," in the May 15, 2008, issue of the Washington Post.

DAB

Florida Voters Poised to Consider Tax Swap Proposal and Religious School Funding Ban in November

Two months ago we blogged about Florida's tax swap proposal which is aimed at eliminating a significant portion of the school portion of state property tax and replacing it with a sales tax revenue and other sources.  The May 14, 2008, issue of the Orlando Sentinel reports that Florida citizens are poised to vote in November on three proposed constitutional amendments - one would approve the tax swap (Amendment 5) and the other two would essentially authorize the state to use tax dollars to fund private sectarian elementary and high school education (Amendments 7 and 9).  Here is an excerpt from the article:

Amendment 7 would remove Florida's century-old ban on state dollars going to religious or "sectarian" institutions. Amendment 9 would spell out that the constitutional requirement to fund "public" schools couldn't prevent tax dollars from going to private schools. Both amendments were pushed by former Bush staffers on the tax and budget panel, which last month put them on the ballot.

* * *

Amendment 5 would eliminate $9.5 billion in required school-tax levies and require the Legislature to replace the revenue from higher sales taxes or other sources. Business groups including Associated Industries of Florida and the Florida Retail Federation argue that this will lead to taxes on services such as lawyer fees, haircuts or pet manicures.

For the entire article, see "Teachers union poised to fight amendments: Group will challenge voucher revival, also may battle tax swap," in the May 14, 2008, issue of the Orlando Sentinel.

DAB

Myanmar Aid is Still Being Delayed

We previously blogged about the trouble that charity aide groups are having trouble getting relief supplies and services to victims of the May 3 cyclone in Myanmar.  Based on this article from the May 14, 2008, edition of the New York Times, it appears that charitable organizations may still be having trouble getting to hard to reach areas of the country.  Estimates from the United Nations are that nearly 60,000 people will die as a result of the cyclone.  Here is an excerpt from the article:

In a report from Yangon, the official news agency of China, Myanmar’s friend and neighbor, said international aid had been arriving in Myanmar since last week, with aircraft landing at the airport one after another. The Chinese reports made no mention of delays.

On Monday, several medical teams from the Swiss-based branch of Doctors Without Borders were ordered out of the Irrawaddy Delta with no explanation.

Andrew Kirkwood, country director in Myanmar for Save the Children, said he had surveyed the delta by air in recent days and had concluded that trucks and helicopters would not be enough to deliver the aid needed by the people affected by the storm. The Myanmar government reportedly has five working helicopters.

For the entire article, see "Myanmar Government Still Blocking Relief," in the may 14, 2008, issue of the New York Times.  dab

Nonprofit Blog Editor, Susan Gary, Named to Professorship at Oregon

On May 12, 2008, the University of Oregon School of Law announced on its website that a contributing editor to this blog, Professor Susan Gary, has been named Orlando J. and Marian H. Hollis Professor.  Here is the announcement:

Susan Gary, an expert on trust and estate law and the current Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, has been named an Orlando J. and Marian H. Hollis Professor.  Professor Gary's research examines the way inheritance laws apply to changing family structures, regulation of nonprofit organizations, and use of mediation in estate planning and probate.  She currently serves as reporter for the Uniform Management of Institutional Funds Act.

Many congratulations Susan!

DAB

If Government Can't Do It, Why Not Hire a Nonprofit?

The May 13, 2008, issue of the St. Petersburg Times reports that residents of Tampa, Florida are upset over the prospect of a private nonprofit sell its waste water to private corporations.  The nonprofit, Water Partners, Inc., will sell treated sewer water that would otherwise be dumped into Tampa Bay to corporate purchasers, including a local utility company, a fertilizer company and nearby county and city governments.  Government officials in in Tampa are concerned that a private company is being hired to do what the city of Tampa has failed to do after 10 years of trying.  Here is an excerpt from the article:

Why consider the public-private venture at all?

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is pressuring Florida to limit its release of pollutants into coastal waters, and state lawmakers are taking steps to make rules for reclaimed-water use. That could take away Tampa's control of its water altogether.

At a recent meeting, City Council member Charlie Miranda said the city should participate in all conversations about plans for its water, or legislators would "take it away from us for distribution to the region without one penny to the citizens who create it."

The plans involve Hillsborough County and a small amount of its reclaimed water, too. Commissioner Jim Norman recently asked for more time to consider the proposal, saying he is concerned about having a nonprofit group in charge and how much the plan might cost the county.

For the entire article, see "Letting Nonprofit Control Water Reuse Worries Tampa," in the May 13, 2008, issue of the St. Petersburg Times.

DAB

"Hey brother, can you spare a dime?": San Francisco's Attempt To End Panhandling as a Form of Direct Philanthropy

The May 13, 2008, issue of the San Francisco Chronicle has an article about San Francisco's innovative new way to deal with what it calls the problems of homelessness - set up 10 meters around the city that accept change from the public that is given directly to charities that help the homeless.  Here is an excerpt from the article:

Money deposited in the meters would go directly to charities that help the homeless. The goal, officials say, is to reduce panhandling and to educate tourists and residents about the problem of giving money directly to people on the streets.

"The reason people are panhandling is because there's a market for panhandling," Mayor Gavin Newsom said Monday. "We're not helping these individuals by handing out cash. If there was strong evidence to suggest this helped people turn their lives around, we would not be using this approach."

* * *

Local advocates for the homeless, however, laughed - and gasped - when told about the idea Monday.

Sister Bernie Galvin, executive director of Religious Witness with Homeless People, called the meter idea "utterly ridiculous." She said it was based on a stereotype that all panhandlers use every nickel and dime to buy drugs and alcohol.

"Forget the children, forget the mothers who are struggling to raise their family homeless or in inadequate housing," she said. "Will the city never give up on trying to find ways to make the lives of homeless people harder?"

For the entire article, see "S.F. parking meters retooled to aid homeless," in the May 13, 2008, issue of the San Francisco Chronicle.

I don't usually comment on my posts to this blog, but this idea is nuts!  Sister Galvin is absolutely correct in stating that this idea is based on, and will likely promote, a stereotype about panhandlers using donated money exclusively for drugs and alcohol.  Each of us should give money to panhandlers if we choose to do so.  If panhandlers are breaking laws concerning when and where to panhandle, the public officials should enforce those laws.  If panhandlers are breaking other laws concerning illegal drug use, then public officials should enforce those laws.  But giving money to a 501(c)(3) charity as a substitute for direct giving to someone in need is just ludicrous.

DAB

More on Piggy Bank Philanthropy: Harnessing the Power of the Young to Help Relieve World Poverty

As a follow-up to an earlier post this week about "piggy bank philanthropy," the March 12, 2008, issue of the Boston Globe has an interesting article about an effort to educate middle and high school students about philanthropic ways in which they can help relieve world poverty.  The article describes a program being organized by MicroLoan Foundation USA, a nonprofit that plans to recruit college students to teach middle and high school students about microlending - "a loan system for people in developing countries."  Here is an excerpt from the article:

The program, which will be taught by volunteer college students in partnership with classroom teachers, is designed to show students that "just because they're in high school and half a world away doesn't mean they can't actually help someone in an impoverished community in rural Africa," said Lauren Galinsky, 20, a junior at Boston College who is recruiting schools and college students to participate in the project.

On the contrary, Galinsky added: Even small amounts of money raised by large numbers of students can have a powerful positive effect on the lives of disadvantaged people thousands of miles away.

Modeled after globally acclaimed microcredit organizations like Grameen Bank - which with its founder, Muhammad Yunus, won the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize - the MicroLoan Foundation USA is a spinoff of the MicroLoan Foundation, a London-based organization founded in 2002 to provide microfinance services in Malawi, Zambia, and the Philippines. The Cambridge entity was created to bolster the organization's US fund-raising efforts, and to enable US donors to receive charitable tax deductions for their contributions, said David A. Rice, executive director of MicroLoan Foundation USA.

For the entire article, see "Seed money: MicroLoan Foundation USA plans to make big changes by teaching students about poverty and microlending," in the May 12, 2008, issue of the Boston Globe.

DAB

New Leader Announced for Gates Foundation

The Chronicle of Philanthropy announced on May 12, 2008, that Jeffrey S. Raikes will be the new CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the world's largest foundation.  Mr. Raikes, a former Microsoft executive and founder of his own $100+ million foundation, will start in September when the current CEO, Patty Stonesifer, steps down after 11 years as the founding CEO of Gates Foundation.  Here is an excerpt from the article:

Ms. Gates said the foundation chose Mr. Raikes, in part, because of his demonstrated success at managing during periods of high growth. Mr. Raikes had most recently been president of Microsoft’s business-software division, which is responsible for such things as the Office software suite.

“We really wanted somebody to build on the organization that we have today,” Ms. Gates said.

She said that all three of the foundation’s presidents — Allan C. Golston, who heads the U.S. Program; Tadataka Yamada, president of the Global Health Program; and Sylvia Mathews Burwell, president of the Global Development Program — approved of Mr. Raikes’s selection.

“I have much to learn, but being able to work with a tremendous team will be very exciting for me,” Mr. Raikes said.

For the entire article, see "Gates Foundation Picks Microsoft Veteran as New CEO," in the May 12, 2008, issue of the Chronicle of Philanthropy.

DAB

IRS Releases New Guidance on Public Inspection of Form 990T

On May 8, 2008, the IRS issued new guidance on public inspection of Form 990T's. Here is the IRS announcement of the new guidance in Notice 2008-49:

Public Inspection and Disclosure of Form 990-T

The IRS has provided interim guidance on the requirement that section 501(c)(3) organizations (charities) make available for public inspection Forms 990-T, Exempt Organization Business Income Tax Return. Notice 2008-49 provides as follows:

• Guidelines in Treas. Reg. § 301.6104(d)-1 and Notice 2007-45 for making annual returns available for inspection and copying generally continue to apply, except that a return covered by the guidelines includes an exact copy of a Form 990-T filed by a charity after August 17, 2006. The return also includes any schedules, attachments, and supporting documents that relate to the imposition of tax on the unrelated business income of the charity. Schedules, attachments and supporting documents that do not relate to the imposition of the unrelated business income tax do not have to be made available for inspection and copying.
• A charity must make Form 990-T available only for the three years beginning on the last day (including extensions) for filing the return.
• The IRS now must make Forms 990-T filed by charities publicly available; Announcement 2008-21 sets forth procedures for requesting Forms 990-T from the IRS.

The IRS and Treasury Department invite comments on implementation of the new public inspection requirement for Form 990-T, including what schedules or attachments should not be available for public inspection when attached to Form 990-T. See section 4 of Notice 2008-49 for additional information.

DAB

Lipman and Williamson Post "Avoiding Malpractice Traps in Noncash Charitable Contributions"

Professors Francine Lipman (Chapman) and James E. Williamson (PhD, CPA) posted an abstract of their Practical Tax Lawyer article about charitable contributions of property on SSRN's Nonprofit and Philanthropy Law Abstracting Journal.  The article is entitled "Avoiding Malpractice Traps in Noncash Charitable Contributions"  Here is the abstract:

Substance usually rules over form, but form is a very necessary and critical component of any tax practice. This maxim is especially true when taxpayers claim tax deductions for the FMV of their noncash charitable contributions. As the recent Tax Court decision in Hewitt v. Commissioner, 109 T.C. 258 (1997), and that decision's subsequent affirmation, 166 F.3d 332, 98-2 U.S.T.C. (CCH) P50,880 (4th Cir. 1998), demonstrate, taxpayers must follow very detailed and technical rules to substantiate deductions for charitable contributions of property. The Internal Revenue Service and the courts have confirmed that unless taxpayers (and their tax attorneys) follow the letter of the law, their noncash charitable contribution deductions may be limited to the taxpayers' cost basis in the property. Tax attorneys should use this clearly stated position to support and not undermine their clients' noncash charitable deductions.

DAB

Goodwin Posts "Ask Not What Your Charity Can Do for You: Robertson v. Princeton Provides Liberal-Democratic Insights into Cy Pres Reform"

Professor Iris Goodwin (Tennessee) posted an abstract of her draft Arizona Law Review article about the cy pres doctrine on SSRN's Nonprofit and Philanthropy Law Abstracting Journal.  The article is entitled "Ask Not What Your Charity Can Do for You: Robertson v. Princeton Provides Liberal-Democratic Insights into Cy Pres Reform."  Here is the abstract:

This article centers on a long-standing problem in the law of public charity: how to ameliorate the force of restrictions imposed by donors on large gifts in the face of societal change. Seeking to advance personal beliefs or social agenda, donors of large gifts commonly limit the application of donated funds to particular programs. Under current law, such restrictions obtain in perpetuity. A restriction, if socially apposite when made, often functions as a dead hand upon the charity with the passage of time. What has long been sought by the legal community is a substantive standard by which to evaluate the continued social efficacy of these donor-imposed restrictions and to justify interpreting them more liberally in the face of change. This article sheds light on this challenge by first understanding these restrictions as private views of the public good, and by then locating charitable mission and in particular restricted gifts in the context of liberal democracy. At that point, we can discern the deep, normative reasons for which this criterion has eluded commentators, judges and legislatures operating in a tradition of political liberalism. This argument is grounded in John Rawls's use of the distinction, fundamental to liberal political thought, between the concepts of the right and the good, to locate within a liberal democracy certain claims about the public good.

By way of illustration, this article also examines aspects of the ongoing legal dispute between the Robertson family and Princeton University. The Robertsons allege that the University has failed to comply with a restriction that the family imposed on a gift made decades earlier and, further, has applied Robertson funds far outside the compass of the grant. Now valued at almost $800 million, the gift represents 6% of Princeton's endowment. The Robertsons' gift was made in response to President Kennedy's challenge to Ask not what your country... The Robertsons claim that, consistent with the patriotic impulse that motivated the grant, funds were to be used to establish a graduate program to educate students for careers in the U.S. government. As one family's response to Kennedy's challenge to the nation, the Robertson restriction is a quintessential example of a private view of the public good. Within a few short years, however, the moment of idealism that inspired the gift came to an abrupt end with the assassination of Kennedy, the mire of Vietnam and other national embarrassments, and young people were not interested in working for the U.S. government. No case or controversy better illustrates the role that restricted gifts play in the charitable sector or demonstrates the particular inadequacies of the current law in guiding charities in their stewardship of such gifts over time.

DAB

Crimm Posts "Muslim-Americans' Charitable Giving Dilemma: What About a Centralized Terror-Free Donor Advised Fund?"

Professor Nina J. Crimm (St. John's) posted an abstract of her draft Roger Williams University Law Review article about the challenges Muslim-Amreicans face when giving to some charities on SSRN's Nonprofit and Philanthropy Law Abstracting Journal.  The article is entitled "Muslim-Americans' Charitable Giving Dilemma: What About a Centralized Terror-Free Donor Advised Fund?"  Here is the abstract:

In the post-9/11 national security oriented environment, many Muslim-Americans face an inhospitable philanthropic environment and the dilemma of how to satisfy their religious charitable giving obligations and goals. The Article addresses the chilled philanthropic climate by suggesting that it might be moderated through the creation of a centralized terror-free donor advised fund aimed specifically at enabling Muslim-Americans discreetly to direct their diaspora philanthropy to needy Muslims in a few targeted regions and communities abroad. It presents the financial feasibility of, and the essential requirements for, creating such a terror-free donor advised fund. The Article suggests how the benefits of a terror-free donor advised fund would inure not only to Muslim-Americans and the neediest Muslims abroad, but also to the American public.

DAB

The Nonprofit, Nature Conservancy, Hires New Leader

The May 9, 2008, issue of the Chronicle of Philanthropy announces that the nonprofit, Nature Conservancy, has hired a former investment manager as its new chief executive.  In 2003, the Nature Conservancy was the subject of a series of investigative articles by the Washington Post that resulted in a Senate investigation into its business practices.  Here is an excerpt from the article:

The Nature Conservancy today named an investment manager with a deep background in environmental issues to be its new chief executive.

Mark R. Tercek, 51, managing director at the investment firm Goldman Sachs and head of the firm’s Center for Environmental Markets, will replace Steven J. McCormick, who left the charity in October.

* * *

The Nature Conservancy is also working to regain its momentum following a a 2003 investigation by The Washington Post into its business practices that sparked a Senate investigation and prompted the organization to restructure its board.

Given the Nature Conservancy’s size and complexity, some observers had speculated the organization would hire its new leader from within.

For the entire article, see "Nature Conservancy Hires Investment Banker as Its New Chief Executive," in the May 9, 2008, issue of the Chronicle of Philanthropy.

DAB

Piggy Bank Philanthropy: Taking Note of the Philanthropic Tendencies of the Young

The May 11, 2008, issue of the New York Times contains an interesting op-ed article about "piggy-bank philanthropy" among young people.  The article describes instances in which high school aged children caught with the philanthropic bug have raised thousands of dollars for things starting a high school in Cambodia and contributing to the effort to save Darfur.  Here is an excerpt from the article:

College students used to be the activists, but increasingly they’re joined by high school pupils and even younger children. The spotlight may be on billionaire philanthropists like Bill Gates, but one of the country’s healthier trends has been the rise of piggy-bank philanthropists.

Two high school students in Massachusetts, Ana Slavin and Nick Anderson, started a nationwide high school campaign, Dollars for Darfur, that has raised $420,000 for the people of Darfur from 440 schools.

The humanitarian prodigies like Ana and Nick are laudable for going beyond simple protesting to help their causes. Today’s young social entrepreneurs come across as more constructive than my generation of student activists, and more savvy about how to accomplish their goals cost-effectively.

For the entire article, see "Saving the World in Study Hall," in the May 11, 2008, issue of the New York Times.

DAB

Claude Rosenberg, Advocate for Increased Charitable Giving By the Wealthy, Dies at Age 80

The New York Times reported on May 8, 2008, that Claude Rosenberg, an advocate for increased charitable giving by the wealthy, recently died in his home near San Francisco.  Mr. Rosenberg explained his ideas about charitable giving in his book, “Wealthy and Wise: How You and America Can Get the Most Out of Your Giving” (Little, Brown, 1994).  According to his writings, "poor and middle-class people . . . give more, relative to what they can afford, than do the wealthy, especially the very wealthy."  His is an excerpt from the NYT article:

“Based on extensive research on charitable giving in the U.S., Mr. Rosenberg developed a model that estimated that if people gave what they could really afford, we would increase charitable giving in the United States by $100 billion a year,” James Phills Jr., director of the Center for Social Innovation at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, said Tuesday.

* * *

“When you take into account people’s assets, they can actually afford to give much more than they would based just on income,” Professor Phills said. That is because tax laws give a bigger break to people who donate appreciated assets, like stock that has risen in value, than it does to those who give cash. People who donate appreciated assets do not have to count the increased value of the asset as income, but they can deduct the asset’s value against their income.

Beyond informing people of how to maximize giving and tax benefits, Mr. Rosenberg “explored the psychological reasons that people don’t give as much as they can,” Professor Phills said. “For example, that people tend to do what he called ‘eyeballing’ — ‘I think I can give $50,000 this year’ — which tends to be systematically lower than what they actually are able to give.”

For the entire article, see "Claude Rosenberg, Advocate for Philanthropy, Is Dead at 80" in the May 8, 2008, issue of the New York Times.

DAB

More Nonprofits Suspend Aid for Orphans in Zimbawbe

On the heels of the trouble aid groups are having getting into Myanmar, the New York Times reported on May 10, 2008, that more than half of 55 nonprofits surveyed in Zimbawbe say they have suspended aid for orphans in that country due to violence and political strife.  Here is an excerpt from the article:

Zimbabwe’s ruling party, bent on retaining control after 28 years in power, has broadened its campaign of intimidation and violence to include teachers and even aid workers, disrupting education and basic care for tens of thousands of children across the country, according to humanitarian groups, union officials and the teachers themselves.

Teachers have been upbraided by the ruling party for allegedly siding with the opposition during the nation’s disputed March elections, in which they served as poll monitors. More than 2,700 of them have fled or been evicted from classrooms, the teachers’ union says. Dozens of schools have closed, the union says, and 121 are being used as bases for the ruling party’s youth militias as they harass and beat opponents in the countryside.

Beyond that, the United National Children's Fund says that more than half the 55 nonprofit groups it recently surveyed have partly or fully suspended aid for orphans in Zimbabwe.

For the entire article, see "Violence in Zimbabwe Disrupts Schools and Aid" in the May 10, 2008, issue of the New York Times.

DAB

IRS Investigates Al Sharpton's Nonprofit, National Action Network

The New York Times reported on May 10, 2008, that the IRS is investigating Rev. Al Sharpton's nonprofit organization - National Action Network.  The article reports that Rev. Al Sharpton is "brush[ing] off" reports of the investigation.  Here is an excerpt from the article:

Now the U.S. attorney is investigating his nonprofit group, a probe that an undeterred Sharpton brushes off as the kind of annoyance that civil rights figures have come to expect from the government.

''Whatever retaliation they do on me, we never stop,'' he told the AP. ''I think that that is why they try to intimidate us.''

Over the past year, Sharpton's lawyers and the staff of his nonprofit group, the National Action Network, have been negotiating with the federal government over the size of his debt, which they dispute. The group has also been trying to pay off tens of thousands of dollars it owes for failing to properly maintain workers compensation and unemployment insurance.

According to National Action Network's website, Al Sharpton is the President of the 501(c)(4) organization that was founded in 1991, but formally incorporated in 1994.

For the entire article, see "Records show Sharpton owes overdue taxes, other penalties" in the May 10, 2008, issue of the New York Times.

DAB 

Politics from the Pulpit

Suzanne Sataline of the Wall Street Journal online reports today that a conservative legal-advocacy group, Alliance Defense Fund, a Scottsdale, Arizona nonprofit, is enlisting ministers to use their pulpits to preach about election candidates this September, defying legal prohibitions that bar churches from engaging in politics.

According to the report, the group is hoping that at least one sermon will prompt the IRS to investigate, sparking a court battle that could get the tax provision declared unconstitutional. The action marks the latest attempt by a conservative organization to help clergy harness their congregations to sway elections. The protest is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 28, a little more than a month before the general election, in a year when religious concerns and preachers have been a regular part of the political debate.

The report notes that the section of the tax code barring nonprofits from intervening in political campaigns has long frustrated clergy. Many ministers consider the provision an inappropriate government intrusion, blocking the duty of clergy to advise congregants.

In recent years, attempts by members of Congress to change the law have failed. Rob Boston, a spokesman for Americans United for Separation of Church and State, a nonprofit that has filed more than a dozen complaints in the past year with the IRS accusing nonprofits of tax code violations, takes the position that tax exemption is a benefit and comes with conditions. He is reported as saying that any pastor who feels gagged  should forgo the tax exemption and say what he or she wants.

In 1954, Congress made it illegal for nonprofits, including churches, to endorse or publicly oppose political candidates or to intervene in candidates' elections, although they are free to take sides on issues. Only one church has challenged this, unsuccessfully. The U.S. Court of Appeals in the District of Columbia ruled in 2000that the IRS didn't violate constitutional rights when it revoked the tax-exempt status of Branch Ministries of Binghamton, N.Y., which had bought newspaper ads opposing Bill Clinton's candidacy.

Apparently, some legal scholars are hoping for a new test case. Lloyd Hitoshi Mayer, a law professor at the University of Notre Dame, is reported as saying that a church might make a successful claim that the federal government is burdening the free exercise of religion and cannot do so without a compelling state interest.

ss

Massachusetts Legislature Considers Plan To Tax Well-Endowed Colleges

The Boston Globe reports today that the Massachusetts Legislature has asked state finance officials to study a plan that would impose a 2.5% annual assessment  on colleges with endowments over $1 billion, an amount now exceeded by nine Massachusetts institutions.  Not surprisingly, the plan is generating a great deal of controversy.  If adopted, it would raise significant implications for the sanctity of the tax-exempt status of non-profits.

ss