Policy Update

OMB Watcher: Panel on Nonprofit Sector, Lobbyist Scams, Threats to Charities, More

6/27/2005

Panel on Nonprofit Sector Makes Final Recommendations to Senate Committee

http://www.ombwatch.org/article/articleview/2892

On June 22, the Panel on the Nonprofit Sector released its Final Report on reform for charities, saying the measures are "intended to strengthen the ability of the nation's 1.3 million charities and foundations to serve as responsible stewards of the public's generosity."

The 116-page report, which makes over 120 recommendations in 15 areas of nonprofit governance and financial reporting, was well received by Senate Finance Committee Chair Charles Grassley (R-IA) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner Mark Everson.

Scam by Lobbyists Could Have Negative Consequences for Legitimate Nonprofits

http://www.ombwatch.org//article/articleview/2901

A June 22 hearing of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee revealed details of a scam by lobbyists Jack Abramoff and Michael Scanlon to pocket millions of dollars in donations to nonprofit groups they controlled or on whose board they sat. They used these groups as intermediaries, with subgrants going to other nonprofits and consulting firms they controlled, and ultimately into their pockets.

This abuse, and other recently reported cases of professional lobbyists using nonprofits to avoid ethics and disclosure rules, has raised questions about the need for greater transparency and oversight of the identity of donors and of financial transactions between groups.

Panel Explores Threats to Charity in the Post-9/11 Regulatory Environment

http://www.ombwatch.org//article/articleview/2903

On June 14 the Georgetown Public Policy Institute's Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership (CPNL) hosted Safeguarding Charity in the War on Terror, a panel discussion on the impact of government anti-terrorism programs on the nonprofit sector.

A diverse group of scholars and practitioners charged that the government's campaign against terrorist financing has proven ineffective, inefficient, and harmful to philanthropy and charitable programs.

Clashing 527 Bills Moving in the House

http://www.ombwatch.org/article/articleview/2902

On June 23, Rep. Robert Ney (R-OH), chair of the House Administration Committee, sent a letter to Reps. Martin Meehan (D-MA) and Christopher Shays (R-CT) informing them he intends to schedule their proposed legislation, H.R. 513, the 527 Reform Act, for committee consideration. Ney also said that, although he supports a competing 527 bill, he will vote to send the Shays-Meehan proposal to the floor.