AFP Blog: Legislation, Government Relations and Related Topics

China Builds New Framework Governing Civil Society Organizations, Part I: Charity Law | The National Law Review

2016-05-13T08:28:00.001-04:00

China Builds New Framework Governing Civil Society Organizations, Part I: Charity Law | The National Law Review: "New laws governing civil society in China are a case in point. During its meetings in March 2016, the National People’s Congress passed a new Charity Law that will go into effect on September 1, 2016 and govern all charity organizations in China. Thereafter, on April 28th, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress passed a controversial new Law on the Management of the Activities of Foreign Non-Governmental Organizations Within China (“Foreign NGO Law”).

This article examines the new Charity Law; a follow-on article will analyze the new Foreign NGO Law."

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ACT to Submit Recommendations at June Meeting

2016-05-12T10:54:00.001-04:00

ACT to Submit Recommendations at June Meeting: "WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service’s Advisory Committee on Tax Exempt and Government Entities (ACT) will hold a public meeting on June 8, 2016, when the panel will submit its annual report and recommendations to the IRS.
The ACT includes external stakeholders and representatives who deal with employee retirement plans; tax-exempt organizations; tax-exempt bonds; federal, state, local and Indian tribal governments. They advise the IRS on operational policy and procedural improvements.
At the public meeting, the ACT subcommittee members will present their report that includes recommendations on:"

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5 Ways to Reassure Your Donors Through Compliance

2016-05-10T12:34:00.001-04:00

5 Ways to Reassure Your Donors Through Compliance:

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Fundraiser for Police Group Used 'Deceptive' Tactics... | Patch

2016-05-06T12:16:00.001-04:00

Fundraiser for Police Group Used 'Deceptive' Tactics... | Patch: "Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette said Thursday he intends to take court action to stop a Utah telemarketing company from using what he called “deceptive, unsavory and aggressive” solicitation tactics to extract charitable contributions that Michigan residents have said they never agreed to make."

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Republicans Want to Remove Donor Information From Nonprofit Tax Returns - NonProfit PRO

2016-05-06T12:11:00.001-04:00

Republicans Want to Remove Donor Information From Nonprofit Tax Returns - NonProfit PRO:

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Social Impact Newsletter(Formerly the Charities and Not-for-Profit Newsletter) | May 6, 2016 | Miller Thomson

2016-05-06T09:54:00.001-04:00

Social Impact Newsletter(Formerly the Charities and Not-for-Profit Newsletter) | May 6, 2016 | Miller Thomson: "The Alberta Provincial Government announced on May 4th that it will match donations made to The Canadian Red Cross Society (the "Red Cross") that are designated to support the residents affected by the wildfires currently blazing in the Fort McMurray, Alberta area. Following suit, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced yesterday that the Federal Government will engage in a similar matching program with respect to individual donations made to the same organization."

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UConn Foundation Bill Clears House And Senate, Heads To Malloy - Hartford Courant

2016-05-05T09:52:00.001-04:00

UConn Foundation Bill Clears House And Senate, Heads To Malloy - Hartford Courant: "A compromise bill that would increase transparency at the UConn Foundation – though not to the extent that some advocates sought – cleared the House Tuesday by a wide margin.

The bill, which passed the Senate by a 27-8 vote, now heads to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s desk."

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AFP Urges Members to Oppose California Bill 2855 - Press - AFP

2016-05-04T07:53:00.001-04:00

AFP Urges Members to Oppose California Bill 2855 - Press - AFP: "AFP Urges Members to Oppose California Bill 2855
Despite changes being made to the bill, AFP continues to oppose California Assembly Bill 2855, which requires any solicitation document produced by a charity to include the address for an Attorney General’s website containing information about consumer rights and protections and charity research resources."

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California Charities Pan Philanthropic ‘Warning Label’ - The NonProfit TimesThe NonProfit Times

2016-05-03T11:29:00.001-04:00

California Charities Pan Philanthropic ‘Warning Label’ - The NonProfit TimesThe NonProfit Times: "Nonprofits in California are rising up in opposition against a proposed bill that would serve as a “warning label” to charitable solicitation in the state. About 800 state charities have come out in opposition."

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China adopts new law on international nonprofits operating in mainland | CCTV America

2016-04-29T12:40:00.001-04:00

China adopts new law on international nonprofits operating in mainland | CCTV America: "International nongovernmental organizations must secure approval from Chinese authorities before they can operate on the Chinese mainland, under a new law adopted by China’s top legislature Thursday.

This applies whether they are planning to open permanent offices or operate temporarily, The law states. Overseas nongovernmental organizations operating on the mainland without approval will be punished."

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Pre-Award Risk Assessment Under the Super Circular - The NonProfit Times

2016-04-26T11:04:00.001-04:00

Pre-Award Risk Assessment Under the Super Circular - The NonProfit Times"Federal agencies have always had the authority to evaluate the level of risk a grantee represents before making a grant award. But with the advent of the Super Circular, pre-award risk-assessment requirements are more detailed and explicit.

In keeping with 2 CFR 200.205, federal granting agencies will now routinely evaluate your organization’s past performance, audits, and integrity prior to making an award."

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Steps to Catalyze Private Foundation Impact Investing | whitehouse.gov

2016-04-22T09:28:00.001-04:00

Steps to Catalyze Private Foundation Impact Investing | whitehouse.gov: "Building ladders of opportunity for all Americans requires a focus on outcomes, creative thinking, willing partners, and a variety of financial resources. Through new guidance and regulations from US Treasury Department over the past six months, the Obama Administration has sent a clear message that private foundations can deploy a wide array of financial tools to achieve their charitable goals."

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AFP Rebuts Opinion Piece on Charitable Giving Incentive - Press - AFP

2016-04-19T07:39:00.001-04:00

AFP Rebuts Opinion Piece on Charitable Giving Incentive - Press - AFP: "AFP has responded to a recent opinion piece in the Financial Post about the federal government reversing course in its budget on the capital gains exemption for some gifts of stock and land. Click here for the original piece, and below is AFP’s response, submitted by Dan Brunette, chair of AFP’s Canada Government Relations Committee."

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The Ongoing Overhead Myth and the Dangers of Overly Zealous State Legislators | Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly

2016-04-14T12:08:00.001-04:00

The Ongoing Overhead Myth and the Dangers of Overly Zealous State Legislators | Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly: "Likely in response to this strong opposition, AB 2855 was amended in early April to instead require that all subject charitable nonprofits include a “prominent link” on the home page of their websites, and a corresponding web address on all documents soliciting charitable contributions, that directs visitors to the California Attorney General’s website. The amended version of AB 2855, in turn, requires the Attorney General to “develop and publish on the Attorney General’s Internet Web site, which contains information about charities, informational materials containing consumer rights and protections and charity resources to allow donors to become informed about a charity before making a decision to give” by no later than July 1st, 2017.

While possibly a slight improvement over the initial version, the amended AB 2855 still raises significant concerns for subject nonprofits and the sector as a whole, and has continued to draw significant and loud opposition. (CalNonprofits in particular has continued to oppose what it is calling the “Warning Label Bill” and has sent an additional letter to the Chair of the Assembly committee that was considering AB 2855.) In addition to the burden that the required additions to websites and solicitation documents would place on organizations, AB 2855 is also completely vague with respect to the nature of the information that will be included on the Attorney General’s website to “inform” donors about such nonprofits. Moreover, AB 2855 arguably compels speech in an unconstitutional manner by dictating specific content to be included on nonprofit websites and documents and seems ripe for challenge on this basis."

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Create a tradeable market for charity ‘debt instruments’, parliamentary group hears

2016-04-14T08:50:00.001-04:00

Create a tradeable market for charity ‘debt instruments’, parliamentary group hears

ICYMI: Nonprofit Cash In Less Safe Territory - The NonProfit Times

2016-04-13T11:37:00.001-04:00

ICYMI: Nonprofit Cash In Less Safe Territory - The NonProfit Times: "U.S. Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen testified before Congress that negative interest rates are not out of the question. “I wouldn’t take them off the table but we would have work to do to judge whether they would be workable here,” she said during testimony to the Senate Banking Committee.

Dan Busby, president of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA), described negative interest rates as in the “imponderable” category on the potential negative impact on charities.

"

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Why Your Board Cares About Fundraising Compliance and You Should, Too - Top Nonprofits

2016-04-11T09:31:00.001-04:00

Why Your Board Cares About Fundraising Compliance and You Should, Too - Top Nonprofits: "ur nonprofit’s Board of Directors sets the direction of the entire organization. While the board’s primary duties include ensuring that the nonprofit’s funds actually further its charitable purpose, it also makes financial decisions on new programs, technology, and fundraising expenses. At the same time, your nonprofit’s employees and volunteers look to the board for the materials, technology, and approval to conduct their solicitation activities. Any real or perceived disconnect between board and staff can affect your whole nonprofit’s fundraising success!"

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New Charity Package Introduced in Senate - Press - AFP

2016-04-08T12:48:00.001-04:00

New Charity Package Introduced in Senate - Press - AFP: "New Charity Package Introduced in Senate
Senators John Thune (R-S.D.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) have introduced a series of charity provisions called The CHARITY (Charities Helping Americans Regularly Throughout the Year) Act, which calls on the Senate to ensure that the “value and scope of the deduction for charitable contributions is not diminished during a comprehensive rewrite of the tax code.”

The CHARITY Act, S. 2750, builds on several significant charitable tax provisions that were signed into law late last year, including one that makes permanent a law allowing taxpayers at least 70 ½ to make charitable contributions directly from their IRAs."

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IRA Rollover, Excise Tax Included In CHARITY ActThe NonProfit Times

2016-04-08T12:46:00.001-04:00

IRA Rollover, Excise Tax Included In CHARITY ActThe NonProfit Times: "Legislation introduced in the Senate today would expand the IRA charitable rollover to include distributions to donor-advised funds (DAF) and create a 1-percent private foundation excise tax. The measure also contains a non-binding sense of the Senate that states charitable giving should be a goal of comprehensive tax reform."

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Opt-in a bigger issue than the Fundraising Preference Service, says Etherington

2016-03-23T10:23:00.001-04:00

Opt-in a bigger issue than the Fundraising Preference Service, says Etherington: "EU rules which will require donors to opt in to fundraising communications are “a bigger issue” for charities than the Fundraising Preference Service, Sir Stuart Etherington, chief executive of NCVO, has said in an interview published today.
Etherington, who was interviewed at length for the relaunched Governance and Leadership magazine, also said that the fundraising crisis was inevitable due to “crude” and “industrial scale” fundraising techniques, and because no charity was thinking about the sector as a whole.
"

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Senator Wants Data on Wounded Warrior Project, a Charity Under Fire - The New York Times

2016-03-21T12:55:00.001-04:00

Senator Wants Data on Wounded Warrior Project, a Charity Under Fire - The New York Times: "A week after the top executives of the Wounded Warrior Project were fired amid accusations of lavish spending, an influential senator on a committee that oversees nonprofit organizations is asking for a detailed accounting by the country’s largest veterans’ charity.

In a letter Friday to the Wounded Warrior Project, Senator Charles E. Grassley, an Iowa Republican who sits on the Finance Committee, said that recent news media reports had raised questions about the charity’s treatment of employees and its spending."

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Commentary: Ruth Shapiro: Civic engagement with Chinese characteristics- Nikkei Asian Review

2016-03-18T10:36:00.001-04:00

Commentary: Ruth Shapiro: Civic engagement with Chinese characteristics- Nikkei Asian Review: "China's President Xi Jinping has thrown his weight behind a government drive to increase charitable giving by Chinese citizens at the annual session of parliament this month and a new draft law from Beijing aims to boost local philanthropy by obliging charities to publish financial statements and annual reports."

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Needy clauses: Would China’s proposed charity law be a gift to the disadvantaged? | South China Morning Post

2016-03-09T13:46:00.001-04:00

Needy clauses: Would China’s proposed charity law be a gift to the disadvantaged? | South China Morning Post: "China’s top legislative body will on Wednesday begin deliberating the country’s first charity law, which some observers say could go some way to reversing that reluctance to give.

But others suggest that much more than a new law is needed to bring life to the third sector and unleash funds for needy causes."

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Bingo Becomes Increasingly Tough Gamble For Texas Charities « CBS Dallas / Fort Worth

2016-03-01T11:19:00.001-04:00

Bingo Becomes Increasingly Tough Gamble For Texas Charities « CBS Dallas / Fort Worth: "More than 600 organizations sponsored bingo games in 2015, but the move by the lottery commission appears to be the first time the state has stripped the licenses of underperforming bingo operators.

Charity bingo was first created in 1980 by a statewide vote, but it has faced declining popularity amid the rise of other gambling options. The number of licensed operators fell from 937 in 2010 to 623 last year."

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MRFP, Inc. | Multistate Registration and Filing Portal

2016-03-01T09:23:00.001-04:00

MRFP, Inc. | Multistate Registration and Filing Portal:

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