Nonprofit Law Prof Blog

DC – Catholic Church Threatens to Pull Social Services Over Gay Rights

The Washington Post reports that the Catholic Church is threatening to end a wide range of service programs in the District of Columbia pending the passage of a same-sex marriage bill by the DC Council next month.  The bill has language that requires, among other things, prohibiting discrimination against gay men and women by religious organizations. 

A spokeswoman for the church stated that "the city is saying in order to provide social services, you need to be secular. For us, that's really a problem."  The church says that it will be forced to abandon its contracts with the city including those that provide social services to the community.  Specifically, the church points to the $10 million it contributes to city social services to illustrate the impact of the bill.  The DC government has responded that the church is not “an indispensable component of [the city’s] social services infrastructure.”  Peter Rosenstein of the Campaign for All D.C. Families states that “the issue here is that they are using public funds, and to allow people to discriminate with public money is unacceptable.” 

The DC Council is expected to pass the bill next month.  Council members state that they are baffled by the church’s position, but that they are willing to find another partner to provide social services who will be able to make use of the $8.2 million in city contracts that currently goes to the church.

SS

Tough Fund-raising Year Ahead for Nation's Top Charities

Today's Chronicle of Philanthropy reports that "[b]ruised by the deepest recession in decades, the nation's most-successful fund-raising organizations anticipate that giving will decline this year by a median of 9 percent."  The Chronicle's conclusion is based on a survey it conducted  to determine the 400 organizations that raise the most money from private sources.

The findings reveal that the fund-raising outlook for those organizations in 2010 is gloomy.  In fact,

Nonprofit officials say they are hopeful that the stock market's climb will prompt donors to give more, but they fear that foundations and corporations might cut back further. For the most part, they are setting their budgets conservatively, often hoping to raise just 1 or 2 percent more than they did in 2009.

These developments haveforced nonprofits to create new methods of fund-raising.  According to the Chronicle,

... the push to be more aggressive in seeking donations continues. Colleges and other nonprofit organizations are stepping up their efforts to solicit individuals, trying to explain more clearly why they need money, focusing on donors who have stopped giving, experimenting with new methods of online fund raising, and putting more time and effort into securing planned gifts.

Charities are also reorganizing their fund-raising departments, sometimes because they have been forced to lay off employees. They are encouraging fund raisers to share responsibilities and work more closely with people in different departments.

Smaller charities are more badly hit than larger ones.  Yet, the picture for big groups is still grim:

For only the third year in the survey's 19-year history, the minimum amount to qualify for The Chronicle's list dropped, to $47.6-million from $51.5-million in 2007, adjusted for inflation.

VEJ

Texas Southern University Drops Broadcaster's Name from School

A recent Houston Chronicle report revealed that a long-simmering disagreement between broadcaster Tavis Smiley and Texas Southern University("TSU") ended Friday when the university's governing board agreed to strip Smiley's name from its communication school.

In 2004, Smiley promised to donate $1 million (at $200,000 a year for five years) and to raise another $1 million for TSU. The school later created the Tavis Smiley School of Communication in his honor.

Since then, though, Smiley has made one $50,000 donation in mid-2005 and raised $250,000 from three corporate donors.  Still, he told the Chronicle on Friday that he had intended to fulfill his personal $1 million pledge.  In an interview with the paper, he allegedly stated: “Any institution that turns away a $1 million gift in this economy, I think ought to have good reason for doing that.”

Smiley said former university President Priscilla Slade offered to name the school for him before he pledged any money.  “I even made a joke, how much is this decision going to cost me?” he said. “She said, ‘This decision has already been made.'”

TSU President John Rudley said the dispute had been going on since he arrived on campus in early 2008.

Talks broke down last month after more than a year of negotiations, and Rudley informed Smiley the deal was off.

In a letter to Smiley dated September 28, Rudley wrote:

Because you did not fulfill your original commitment to our partnership, TSU plans to treat the partnership as being at an end.  TSU will therefore remove your name from the School of Communication and the KTSU Radio facility to allow us to provide other major donors with the naming opportunity.

Smiley maintains that he stopped making the payments as agreed out of concern about mismanagement under the former university president.  Slade was accused of using school money for personal expenses and fired in mid-2006. She eventually was sentenced to 10 years probation after a grand jury indicted her.  

The controversy with Smiley has prompted TSU's regents to adopt a policy spelling out the circumstances under which it will consider naming a university building, college, endowed professorship or other program.  Under this new policy, anyone interested in naming consideration for a college has to donate $10 million, with half in hand before the name change takes effect. Naming consideration for a department or school within a college would require a $2 million donation.

VEJ

Coming Soon to Aceh, Indonesia: Death by Stoning for Adulterers

Today's New York Times reports that under a new Islamic Criminal Code that goes into effect this month, the Shariah police in Aceh, Indonesia, will be wielding a new and more potent threat to the province's citizens and residents: death by stoning for adulterers.

Although most of Indonesia still lives up to its reputation for a moderate, easygoing brand of Islam, Aceh has gone from basic Islamic law to what many observers see as extremism.  According to the Times:

Though extreme, Aceh is not an isolated case. In recent years, as part of a decentralization of power away from the capital, Jakarta, at least 50 local governments have used their new authority to pass Shariah-based regulations regarding conduct and dress, though none have gone as far as Aceh to deal with criminal matters.

The Times continues:

Most experts and human rights advocates believe the regulations discriminate against non-Muslim minorities and contravene the country’s Constitution, which guarantees freedom of religion. But the government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono — a moderate former general whose Muslim credentials have often been questioned by political opponents — has not challenged them. In fact, Mr. Yudhoyono has backed morality-based laws that pleased Muslim conservative allies but angered advocates of human rights.

The president has yet to comment on the stoning provision, leaving it to his aides to quietly criticize it and clearly hoping that the Aceh Parliament will repeal it. Aceh’s governor has said he will refuse to carry out any stonings, and even supporters acknowledge that the punishment will be extremely hard to apply for practical and theological reasons. Nevertheless, because the governor lacks veto power, stoning could remain on the books.

VEJ

   

Congress Introduces Legislation to Give Nonprofits Temporary Pension Liability Relief

Today's NonProfit Times is reporting that legislation introduced in Congress yesterday could provide temporary relief for nonprofits faced with huge increases in pension contributions in the coming years.

The measure, introduced by Rep. Earl Pomeroy (D-N.D.) and Rep. Patrick J. Tiber (R-Ohio), will either be taken up by the Senate directly on the floor or will go through the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

According to Patricia Read, Senior Vice President, Public Policy and Government Affairs at Independent Sector, a Washington, D.C.-based coalition of nonprofits, “This was a problem that came up with the 2006 Pension Protection Act, when they did not foresee the consequences of economic downturn." 

Michael Watson, Senior Vice President, Human Resources and Diversity, for the Girl Scouts of America, believes that “The [Pension Protection Act] was designed to make sure that companies paid an adequate amount into their pensions but I don’t think any of the designers anticipated the dramatic decline in the market to the extent that we’ve had.” 

Currently, nonprofits that offer defined benefit pension plans grapple with daunting budget challenges as they face huge increases in their required, minimum pension payments.  Under the bill introduced in Congress, employers could make amortization payments over nine years instead of the required seven, and make interest-only payments in the first two years. They also could choose to make level payments for a 15-year period.

Diana Aviv, President and CEO of Independent Sector, gave a few examples of nonprofits that would be affected if some type of relief is not granted:

• Family Service of Greater Boston saw funding status fall from 94 percent to 72 percent in one day due to a market decline in 2008, and now it is underfunded by $2 million.
• Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s defined benefit assets declined 23 percent between April 2008 to April 2009, increasing the cost of the plan by almost $1.5 million, a 215-percent increase over the prior year.
• One nonprofit in the Midwest estimates its annual contributions will increase by six to eight times what it was the previous year.

“The problem is that this comes at exactly the time when folks aren’t having an easier time of raising money as they might have had in the past, so there is the double whammy,” Aviv said. Although “predicting anything with certainty one does at one’s own peril … there is sympathy for this for resolution,” she said. “We’re not seeing obstacles and barriers that would suggest this is going to be a big fight. All things being equal, we are hopeful that this will be resolved,” Aviv added.

VEJ

French Court Convicts Church of Scientology of Fraud

Earlier today, a French court convicted the French branch of the Church of Scientology of fraud and fined the organization almost $900,000.  However, the court stopped short of granting the prosecution's demand to ban the church entirely.  The church said it would appeal.

The verdict was among the most important in several years to involve the group, which is registered as a religion in the United States but has no similar legal protection in France where it is considered a sect.  Today's court decision marks the first time that the church itself -- and not individual church members -- had been tried and convicted.

According to the New York Times:

The case was brought by two former members who said they were pushed into paying large sums of money in the 1990s, pressed to sign up for expensive “purification courses” and harassed to buy a variety of vitamins and other forms of pharmaceuticals, plus electronic tests to measure spiritual progress. One woman said she had been pressured into spending more than $30,000.

The major fines were rendered against the Scientology Celebrity Center in Paris and a Scientology bookstore. Six group leaders were convicted of fraud, with four given suspended sentences of 10 months to two years. One of them, the group’s leader in France, Alain Rosenberg, was given a two-year suspended sentence and fined $44,700. Two others were given only fines, of $1,490 and $2,980.

Olivier Morice, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, applauded the tribunal's decision, saying: “This is an historic decision. It’s the first time in France that the entity of the Church of Scientology is condemned for fraud as an organized gang.”  Meanwhile, Agnès Bron, a spokeswoman for the church, called the verdict "an Inquisition for modern times.”

The Church of Scientology is based in Los Angeles. It was founded in 1954 by the writer L. Ron Hubbard. The State Department has in the past criticized Belgium, Germany, and other European countries for labeling Scientology a cult or sect and enacting laws to restrict its operations.

VEJ

Federal Program Helps Disadvantaged Students Succeed in College

Today's Washington Post is reporting that the federal Student Support Services program, launched during the Nixon administration, is today part of a larger effort to help disadvantaged students overcome academic and cultural barriers to success in higher education. The program is part of TRIO, a group of national initiatives aimed at raising the odds that a disadvantaged student will stay in college, get good grades and graduate.

However, supporters of the programs are not satisfied.  They claim that the programs have languished through years of fiscal neglect. Total funding to the TRIO programs -- $848 million in the fiscal year that began this month -- has risen about 1 percent in the past five years. TRIO currently serves 838,591 students, fewer than it did in 2003.

The Post continues:

The support programs are closely linked to the federal Pell grant, a $25 billion fund that helps students from low-income families pay for college. Unlike TRIO, funding for Pell has increased by more than one-third over the past three years. A student aid bill that cleared the House last month would add $40 billion to Pell over the next decade but does not address TRIO.

Advocates say the support programs are key to the success of students who receive Pell grants. They argue that money is not enough.  Arnold Mitchem, president of the Council for Opportunity in Education, a nonprofit organization headquartered in Washington, DC, that supports the TRIO programs, had this to say: "You can give them all the money in the world, but if you don't address the confidence issues, the skills issue, you're not going to make it."

Statistics apparently support this view.  Federal data show that 29 percent of all postsecondary students complete a bachelor's degree in six years and 10 percent attain associate's degrees.  But when Pell is combined with the support programs, the graduation rate rises by about 10 points.

VEJ  

Reactions Continue to Pour in on Pope's Invitation to Traditional Anglicans

Last week, the Vatican made a proposal to Anglicans unhappy about their church's moves toward accepting female and gay bishops: reunite with the Roman Catholic Church.

In a surprise announcement from Rome last Tuesday, Pope Benedict XVI approved a provision to create a new church entity that will allow Anglicans to join the Catholic Church in a format similar to Ukrainian or Eastern Rite Catholics, keeping their liturgy and married priests, but not married bishops.

According to USA Today, the announcement stunned many in the 77-million worldwide Anglican Communion, particularly the Church of England, where the Archbishop of Canterbury has wrestled for years with factions that oppose female bishops.

Meanwhile, several church officials and commentators have been weighing in on the Pope's announcement.  One Anglican group, known as the Traditional Anglican Communion, opposes female bishops and has made public its bid to join the Catholic Church. The fellowship, which split from the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1990, says it has spread to 41 countries and has 400,000 members.  In a similar vein, the Rev. Kendall Harmon, canon theologian for the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina, sees the Vatican's announcement as a global event, "maybe one of Benedict's biggest moves."   

"Rome is trying to find a structural solution to an unbearable pastoral problem," Harmon said in a statement reacting to the Pope's invitation.   According to him, Vatican leaders "clearly feel that if they don't intervene now, it will get worse. Their motive is the reunification of Christianity. If Anglicanism wasn't going to provide a catholic solution, the worldwide church would fracture even more."

Still, Harmon does not expect to see any "snap moves" — particularly because most traditionalist bishops in the USA are married.

Across the border in Canada, some Anglicans have rebuffed the Pope's invitation.  Canadian Anglican parishes dissatisfied with their church's new approach to female bishops and gays have broken away from the Anglican Church and formed the Anglican Network in Canada.  According to the Network's website, the group "embrace[s] Anglican orthodoxy — the biblically faithful, authentically Anglican way of following Jesus … defined by and centered on the … foundational principles of the Anglican tradition in Canada."  No evidence exists that the breakaway parishes will now reunite with the Catholic Church.  In fact, CBC News reported on Thursday that Kevin Flynn, director of Anglican studies at Saint Paul University in Ottawa, said he does not think Rome's offer will change much between Anglicans and the Catholic Church. Flynn also thinks the Pope's attempts to woo disaffected Anglicans might alienate some Catholics who want to see their church adopt more liberal views.

"For those Roman Catholics, … I'd say, 'Well, come and be an Anglican.' "

In an op-ed published in Saturday's New York Times, British commentator A. N. Wilson opined that the Pope's overture is actually good news for Britain:

It will formally bring to an end the idea of the Established Church, and of the monarch as that Establishment’s symbol and head. Whatever our private religious allegiances, we Britons no longer want to force our royal heads of state to jump through those impossible hoops. The paradox is that a move by a conservative pope to ease the tender consciences of conservative-minded Anglicans will actually be a move toward the complete secularization of Britain, and an acceptance of its new multicultural identity.

In yesterday's Times, Ross Douthat took a different approach.  According to Douthat, the Pope's invitation "represents an unusual effort at targeted proselytism, remarkable both for its concessions to potential converts — married priests, a self-contained institutional structure, an Anglican rite — and for its indifference to the wishes of the Church of England’s leadership."

He continues: 

This is not the way well-mannered modern churches are supposed to behave.  Spurred by the optimism of the early 1960s, the major denominations of Western Christendom have spent half a century being exquisitely polite to one another, setting aside a history of strife in the name of greater Christian unity.

This ecumenical era has borne real theological fruit, especially on issues that divided Catholics and Protestants during the Reformation. But what began as a daring experiment has decayed into bureaucratized complacency — a dull round of interdenominational statements on global warming and Third World debt, only tenuously connected to the Gospel.

At the same time, the more ecumenically minded denominations have lost believers to more assertive faiths — Pentecostalism, Evangelicalism, Mormonism and even Islam — or seen them drift into agnosticism and apathy.

Nobody is more aware of this erosion than Benedict. So the pope is going back to basics — touting the particular witness of Catholicism even when he’s addressing universal subjects, and seeking converts more than common ground.

Along the way, he’s courting both ends of the theological spectrum. In his encyclicals, Benedict has addressed a range of issues — social justice, environmental protection, even erotic love — that are close to the hearts of secular liberals and lukewarm, progressive-minded Christians. But instead of stopping at a place of broad agreement, he has pushed further, trying to persuade his more liberal readers that many of their beliefs actually depend on the West’s Catholic heritage, and make sense only when grounded in a serious religious faith.

At the same time, the pope has systematically lowered the barriers for conservative Christians hovering on the threshold of the church, unsure whether to slip inside. This was the purpose behind his controversial outreach to schismatic Latin Mass Catholics, and it explains the current opening to Anglicans.

Douthat then makes an interesting comment:

...in making the opening to Anglicanism, Benedict also may have a deeper conflict in mind — not the parochial Western struggle between conservative and liberal believers, but Christianity’s global encounter with a resurgent Islam.

Here Catholicism and Anglicanism share two fronts. In Europe, both are weakened players, caught between a secular majority and an expanding Muslim population. In Africa, increasingly the real heart of the Anglican Communion, both are facing an entrenched Islamic presence across a fault line running from Nigeria to Sudan.

Hence, Douthat concludes, what is being interpreted, for now, "as an intra-Christian skirmish may eventually be remembered as the first step toward a united Anglican-Catholic front — not against liberalism or atheism, but against Christianity’s most enduring and impressive foe."

The debate will no doubt continue for a while.  We shall keep you posted as warranted.

VEJ  

Corporate Sponsorships: A Modest Proposal

The New York Times reports that at least one school, the City College of San Francisco, is offering donors a chance to sponsor academic classes.  School officials view this as a way of restoring courses that have been eliminated due to budget cuts.  When the plan was first conceived, donors would have had naming rights.  However, board members at the school scotched that idea for fear of ridiculous or humiliating results: tobacco companies sponsoring health courses, for example.

I say City College's board was too timid!  Here at University of North Carolina we recently opened the gleaming Fed Ex Global Education Center.  This gave me the idea, which I only mostly-jokingly shared during a faculty meeting, that we search for a corporate sponsor for our new law school building, the construction of which has been held up by the financial crisis.  By way of example, I suggested The Church's Fried Chicken UNC School of Law.

I confess it did not occur to me to move corporate sponsorship down to the level of the classroom, but I like it!  How about "Nonprofit Law, brought to you by H & R Block."  We could have a faculty committee to weed out anything too unseemly.  This could be the answer.  This could be the future.

TAK

Flirting for Philanthropy

I cannot vouch for the credibility of the on-line publication The Daily Tell, which purports to report on "the better side of human nature," but I feel compelled to pass on their story about the launch of GiveAndDate.com.  This new organization will post photos and profiles of single New Yorkers and will ask readers to make charitable donations.  As a reward for their donations, the readers/donors might have their contact information passed on to the singles shown in the photos.  Since this is a nonprofit law blog, I pose the question: What portion of the donation, if any, is deductible?

TAK

Profile of a Venture Philanthropist

You may have missed a nonprofit-related item in last week's New York Times.  It was in the Business section in a regular column called The Boss, which typically features former Ivy League quarterbacks explaining how they became billionaire financiers.  This version, entitled A Banker for the World, focuses on Jacqueline Novogratz, who founded and now runs the Acumen Fund, one of the early entrants in the category of so-called venture philanthropy.  As is true of other, later arriving venture philanthropies, Acumen invests rather than making grants, takes management positions in many of the organizations in which it invests, organizes its activities into investment portfolios, and tracks performance according to a complicated set of metrics.  It is unabashed about the fact that financial sustainability (meaning, I assume, profit) is among its investment criteria.  Although it is not clear from Acumen's website, I know that Jacqueline's original plan included compensating fund managers (otherwise known as program officers) based on the overall performance of their investment portfolios.  With all of this socially entrepreneurial innovation, I would love to be a fly on the wall in the office of Acumen's counsel.  I have to believe they have a direct line open to the Exempt Organizations division at the IRS.

TAK

Fairfax County Schools Drop Automatic Failure Rule

For years Fairfax County Public Schools (the twelfth largest school system in the nation) has had a strict attendance policy: Students who miss three classes in a quarter without a legitimate excuse get an automatic F.  That is about to change.

Claiming that the three-strikes policy has provided little motivation for students who had already missed three classes in a quarter to show up for class, school officials have decided to get rid of the policy starting this fall.  

Today's Washington Post reports that going forward, Fairfax County principals will instead have a list of ways teachers can punish students who skip classes and reward those who show up.  Teachers can, for example, give points for class participation and credit for turning in homework or doing well on pop quizzes. As far as punishment goes, teachers will be able to utilize options such as detention, taking away parking or extracurricular privileges, and meetings with parents. 

I wonder whether the new policy will truly motivate Fairfax County students to show up for classes. 

VEJ

  

Lutherans to Vote on Sexually Active Gay Clergy

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ("ELCA") -- one of the largest Christian denominations in the country -- will decide this week whether to allow gay people in relationships to serve as clergy.

Pursuant to church policy, sexually active gay people are not currently permitted to serve in the clergy; however, celibate gay people are allowed to thus serve.  Over 1,000 Church delegates -- clergy and laypeople -- meeting in Minneapolis this week might as early as today vote on a 34-page document on human sexuality that would permit congregations to let gay men and lesbians in committed, monogamous relationships serve as clergy.

The ELCA is the latest major denomination to address the issue of gay clergy.  Just last month, the Episcopal Church voted to make gay people eligible for any ordained ministry.  Earlier this year, the Presbyterian Church (USA) voted against accepting openly gay pastors. 

In a news conference in Minneapolis on Monday, ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson predicted "deep, profound disappointment" for the losing side.  However, few -- if any -- observers expect large conservative factions to break away from the ELCA if the proposal passes.

VEJ

UNC Charlotte receives $9.3 Million Gift from Philanthropists

Today's Charlotte Observer is reporting that philanthropists Leon and Sandra Levine on Tuesday announced that they will be donating $9.3 million to the University of North Carolina -- Charlotte ("UNCC").  The gift, which will span a ten-year period, will fund a merit scholarship program aimed at developing community service leaders. 

UNCC intends to put the gift to use almost immediately.  Fifteen students will receive Levine scholarships in the fall of 2010.  School administrators hope to have 60 such scholars on campus within four years.

UNCC Chancellor Philip Dubois called the scholarship "a watershed moment" for UNCC:

A scholarship initiative of this magnitude signals UNC Charlotte's maturation as an academic institution as we seek to compete with the best institutions in this state and this country for academic talent,” Dubois said. “…What makes this initiative so special, and so important, is its goal: To develop compassionate, ethical leadership for our region.

The Levine scholarship will cover all tuition and fees, housing and meals, books, a laptop computer, and funding for four summer experiences, as well as an $8,000 grant to support community service work over four years at UNCC. The value for in-state students will be about $90,000 and for out-of-staters more than $140,000.

VEJ

Rooney to Nonprofits: Learn the Triple P

The current economic climate and its effect on nonprofit organizations form the basis for another article in today's press.  Today's NonProfitTimes published an article by Patrick M. Rooney, Executive Director of the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, in which the author counsels nonprofit organizations that rather than giving up in these difficult economic times, they should learn the triple P: be positive, pragmatic and proactive.

The article gives sound advice to nonprofit administrators on how to weather the current economic storm.  The following paragraph stands out:

Openness, honesty, transparency, accountability and communication are more vital than ever. As you examine budgets, processes and programs, make sure that key stakeholders, especially staff at all levels and board members, are invited into and engaged in an ongoing dialogue about difficult decisions. This will generate good ideas and good will, and will help create buy-in when tough decisions are made. When you tackle problems head on, openly and honestly, that in itself gives staff hope and confidence and contributes to trust, loyalty and perseverance.  

The article ends on a positive note:

Thoughtful, foresighted decisions in this difficult environment will increase the chances of survival now and build toward the organization’s long-term health and success.  

VEJ  

Recovery for Newspapers?

An opinion published in today's Atlanta Journal-Constitution suggests that newspapers, hard-hit by the current economic climate, could well recover if they began operating as nonprofit organizations.  According to the op-ed piece, today's newspapers are struggling because they are losing out on advertising revenue.  As a result, many newspapers "simply do not have a profit incentive to engage in significant watchdog or accountability journalism."

That said, the article has a proposal:

One possible solution to rescuing the watchdog function of the press is to allow newspapers to operate as nonprofits. If a newspaper were run as a nonprofit, this would allow people who valued the impact of its stories to donate and receive a tax deduction.

According to the article:

Media and nonprofit leaders recently . . . identified several steps the federal government could take to make it easier for struggling daily newspapers to transition to nonprofits. For example, the Internal Revenue Service currently has the power to issue tax guidelines that would make clear that metro daily newspapers could be run as nonprofits.

Additionally, Congress could speed the development of new forms of media organization, such as the low-profit limited liability (L3C) corporation. L3Cs are companies with low profits but high positive spillovers on their communities.

A newspaper run as a L3C could draw many different types of investors. Foundations interested in accountability coverage could make a program-related investment in the L3C and state up front they did not expect a high rate of return. Socially conscious investors who care about local news could also invest in the L3C and accept only a modest rate of return. With these two sets of investors accepting lower rates, a third set of investors in search of a market rate of return also could be willing to invest in a newspaper.

In the final analysis, this development would ultimately help newspapers return to their watchdog role:

If a metro newspaper were run as a L3C, the presence of investors who focused on the quality of public affairs coverage would help managers make the case for watchdog stories. And if the L3C ended up doing well and doing good at the same time, the taxes on any profits would be paid as they were distributed among the investors. 

 This is not a bad idea at all!

VEJ

Joint Venture for Affordable Housing

Nonprofit Moorestown Ecumenical Neigborhood Development, Inc., a New Jersey nonprofit organization, and Conifer Realty, a development company have teamed up to create an affordable-housing development with 104 units, wetlands, trees, and a lake.  MEND had the community experience and Conifer brought a strong financial background, access to outside capital, a large staff and a construction partner.  Together they created a $20 million development and will continue to work together on other projects.  The difficult credit market makes these joint ventures more common, but in the affordable-housing sector, the nonprofit/for-profit joint venture may prove to be a good way to go  even after the economy recovers.

sng

July 2009 Issue of International Journal of Civil Society Law Newsletter

The International Center for Civil Society Law has just published its July 2009 Newsletter.  It is available on-line at http://www.iccsl.org/pubs/09-07_IJCSL-N.pdf  Here is a listing of the topics addressed in the newsletter:

 

ANTI-TERRORISM LEGISLATION

U.S.—ACLU REPORT DETAILS UNDERMINING OF MUSLIM CHARITIES SINCE SEPTEMBER 11 ATTACKS

CITIZEN PARTICIPATION AND FREEDOM OF INFORMATION

CANADA--DEMOCRATIC RACE GOOD FOR VANCOUVER AND MONTREAL

BERMUDA—GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS REVIEW CAYMAN ISLANDS’ FREEDOM OF INFORMATION LEGISLATION

CAYMAN ISLANDS-- INFORMATION COMMISSIONER WARNS OF DELAYS

ENGLAND—CREWE CITIZENS GET TO VOTE ON NEIGHBORHOOD PLANS

EUROPE—TREATY ON ACCESS TO OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS SIGNED

UNITED STATES—

• STATE DEPARTMENT TRIES INTERNET DIPLOMACY

• LIEBERMAN, GRAHAM THREATEN SCORCHED EARTH ON TORTURE PICS

FISCAL MATTERS

ENGLAND AND WALES—

• CIF REGULATION BY FSA ‘MAY LEAD TO FEE HIKE’

• WIKIMEDIA UK HAS BEEN DENIED CHARITY S

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION AND PEACEFUL ASSEMBLY

INDIA—MADRAS HIGH COURT RULES IN FAVOR OF EMPLOYEES IN LABOR DISPUTES WITH NGOS

SOMALILAND—GOVERNMENT SUSPENDS SOME NGOS

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

CHINA—

• GREEN DAM PORNO PROJECT EVOKES FEARS OF INTERNET CENSORSHIP; JULY 1 DEADLINE DROPPED ON JUNE 30

• GOVERNMENT TIGHTENED INTERNET ACCESS AROUND TIANANMEN ANNIVERSARY

• INTELLECTUALS CALL FOR RELEASE OF DISSIDENT

ENGLAND--HOME SECRETARY JACQUI SMITH TO FIGHT SHOCK-JOCK MICHAEL SAVAGE’S LAWSUIT

INDONESIA—RADIO NEWS AGENCY BECOMES VOICE FOR TOLERANCE

KAZAKHSTAN—GOVERNMENT TO TIGHTEN INTERNET LAW

SRI LANKA--GOVERNMENT ARRESTS FAMED ASTROLOGER OVER PREDICTIONS OF PRESIDENT’S FAILURE

UGANDA—CONSTITUTIONAL COURT UPHOLDS CRIMINAL LIBEL CASE

UNITED STATES—

• LOCAL GROUPS TO HOST BRITISH MP WHO JUSTIFIES TERROR

• TALK SHOW HOSTS MAY BE ACCOMPLICES UNDER HATE BILL

FREEDOM OF RELIGION AND BELIEF

AZERBAIJAN—RELIGION LAW CHANGES TARGET MUSLIMS

FRANCE—SARKOZY ANNOUNCES AIM TO OUTLAW BURQA

IRAN—BAHAIS ONCE AGAIN SUFFERING DISCRIMINATION AND HARASSMENT

IRAQ—ANCIENT RELIGION IN DANGER

MALDIVES—RELIGIOUS FREEDOM FOUND LACKING FOR MIGRANT WORKERS

TONGA--CHINESE REGIME PRESSURES TONGAN OFFICIALS TO CURB FREEDOM

LEGAL FRAMEWORK

CANADA—NEW NOT-FOR-PROFIT CORPORATIONS ACT P

NORTHERN IRELAND-- CHARITY COMMISSION GETS DOWN TO WORK

RUSSIA—DUMA PASSES LESS RESTRICTIVE NGO LAW

UNITED STATES—TEXAS ADOPTS LAW TO PROTECT DONOR INTENT WITH REGARD TO ORPHAN TRUSTS

ZIMBABWE—CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANIZATIONS REJECT PROPOSAL TO MAKE TRUSTS REGISTER UNDER PVO ACT

MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS

CANADA—NEW GUIDANCE ON FUNDRAISING ISSUED BY CRA

RESOURCES

LAO PDR—DECREE LAW NOW AVAILABLE ON ICCSL WEBSITE

DAB

 

June 2009 Issue of International Journal of Civil Society Law Newsletter

The International Center for Civil Society Law has just published its June 2009 Newsletter.  It is available on-line at http://www.iccsl.org/pubs/09-06_IJCSL-N.pdf  Here is a listing of the topics addressed in the newsletter:

CITIZEN PARTICIPATION AND FREEDOM OF INFORMATION

Arab World—International Idea Publishes Report On State Of Local Democracy In Four Progressive Countries

Brazil—FOI Legislation Submitted To Congress

Caucasus--May 2009workshop In Georgia Compares FOI Laws And Practices Across Region

Ghana—Action Urged On FOI Law

Guatemala—FOI Law Goes Into Effect

Latin America—Paper Published On Role Of Media In Passing FOI Laws

Sri Lanka—USAID Program Promotes Citizen Participation

Venezuela—Reform Of Popular Councils Law Begun

FISCAL MATTERS

U.K.—Is There A Potential Threat To Charity Tax Breaks?

U.S.—Finance Committee Proposes Changes In Tax Exempt Status Criteria For Hospitals

Freedom Of Association And Peaceful Assembly

Egypt—EOHR Again Subjected To Harassment

Uganda—Petition Distributed Claiming 2006 Ngo Act And 2008 Regulations Are Unconstitutional

U.S.—Conservative University Stops Students From Organizing Club Affiliated With Democratic Party

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

China—Human Rights Lawyers Being Censored Because Of Their Work

Global— World Press Freedom Day Celebrated

Egypt—Freedom Of Expression Still Outlawed

Kenya—Government Responds To Journalists’ Requests To Eliminate Controversial Provision Of Media Bill

The Philippines—House Addresses Right Of Reply Bill

Thailand—New Regulations For Control Of On-Air Content Raise Alarms

Tunisia—Government Takes Steps To Reduce Press Freedom

Turkey--Filiz Kalayci Arrested For "Aiding An Illegal Organization"

Venezuela—HRW Calls For End To Harassment Of Private Media

FREEDOM OF RELIGION AND BELIEF

Azerbaijan—Controversial Religion Law Amendments Continue Course Toward Adoption

France—Scientology Sued For Fraud

Kyrgyzstan—New Commission To Assess Controversial Provisions In Religion Law

Russia—New Expert Council On Religion Includes Activists Opposed To Minority Religions

U.K.—Sikh Police Officers Seek Development Of Bulletproof Turban

U.S.--Christian Attorneys Urge Senate To Vote Against "Hate Crimes" Bill

LEGAL FRAMEWORK

England And Wales—Charity Commission Publishes Guidance Update On Elections

Ethiopia--World Bank Extends $540million Loan And Says Country Should Ease Regulations On NGOs

Kyrgyzstan--Compact-Like Agreement Signed By Government And NGOs

Lao PDR--International NGOs Welcome New Law Allowing Local NGOs To Register And Operate As Independent Entities

Tanzania—Mainland And Isles CSOS Seeking Common Legislation

MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS

China— New Public Service Program Announced By The Government

China - Amnesty International Report Details Intimidation Of Quake Victim Families By Chinese Authorities

Egypt—Appeals Court Overturns Conviction Of Saad Eddin Ibrahim

Israel--Proposed Legislation Raises Issue Of Loyalty

Malawi—Peaceful Election Campaign Program Being Developed

North Korea--Defectors Say Human Rights Situation Worsening

Russia—New Commission Formed To Attack "Falsifiers Of History"

U.S.--Social Networking Tools Stimulate Government Operational Efficiency And Transparency, Government Insights Research Finds

RESOURCES

Canada--Revenue Agency Issues Anti-Terrorist Checklist For Charities

U.S.—New Right-To-Know Network Website Launched

DAB

President Obama to Host Seder at White House

The JTA is reporting that President Obama will host a Passover seder at the White House this evening. 

The JTA report states in part:

William Daroff, vice president for public policy and director of the United Jewish Communities Washington office, said the seder was scheduled on the second night so as not to disrupt first night family seders and is "a testament to how far we have come as a Jewish people in America.

"Jews are a vital component in the mosaic that is American culture and society," he said. "Our welcome through the front door, and the dining room door, of the White House speaks to the inclusiveness of today's America and of President Obama. This night is indeed different from all other nights."

We rejoice with our Jewish friends at this development.

Be patient with me as I digress and rejoice about another matter: the appointment of my friend and colleague, David A. Brennen, as dean of the University of Kentucky College of Law.  David was one of my tax law professors (I actually took three classes with him) when I was a law student at Syracuse University College of Law many, many years ago.  I learned much from David, both in and out of the classroom, and for many years after I had graduated from law school.  I rejoice with him, and wish him well in this new endeavor.

VEJ