Government & Regulation

Overtime Rules: A Third of Nonprofits Expect Staff Cuts, Reduced Services
July 12, 2016 at 8:44 am

The Department of Labor in May announced new overtime rules, effective Dec. 1, that will make millions more Americans eligible for overtime. Predictably, reaction has been mixed, but it wasn't clear exactly how the rules would affect the sector. Now, we have a better understanding. National Council of Nonprofits last week released the results of a national survey polling nonprofits with government grants and contracts on the overtime rule changes, and the results are, well, kinda grim...

FBI Director Won't Say If Clinton Foundation Was or Is Currently Under Investigation
July 8, 2016 at 10:29 am

FBI Director James Comey refused to say Thursday whether the bureau investigated the Clinton Foundation as part of its probe into Hillary Clinton’s handling of classified information as secretary of state. “Did you look at the Clinton Foundation?” House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz asked. “I’m not going to comment on the existence or non-existence…

Congressmen Ask for 2.15 Percent USPS Rate Increase
June 17, 2016 at 8:00 am

After business hours on Wednesday night, a catalog association warned its members that USPS may get half of its exigency rate hike back. First Class postage dropped from 49 to 47 cents in April when USPS lost its 4.3 percent exigent surcharge imposed as a result of its losses during the Great Recession...

Bill to Cloak U.S. 'Dark Money' Seen as Harmful to Charity Fraud Fight
May 27, 2016 at 10:11 am

Fighting charity fraud could become more difficult under a Republican bill in Congress to prohibit the IRS from collecting the names of top donors to charities and other nonprofit groups, critics warned on Tuesday. Meant to protect the privacy of wealthy individuals who make anonymous, or "dark money," donations to politically active nonprofit groups, the…

State of Minnesota Suing Fundraiser for Veterans' Charity
May 27, 2016 at 10:07 am

When the phone rang in November 2015, Danette Crenshaw of Glencoe, Minn., declined to donate $20 to an organization called the Foundation for American Veterans. So she was confused when she got a call from the same group a few days later, claiming that she had pledged $20 and asking that she immediately pay over…

Charities Feel the Chill as Russia Looks to Tighten NGO Legislation
May 20, 2016 at 9:44 am

Sotsium was a largely unremarkable Russian nongovernmental organization (NGO) working to stop the spread of HIV in the small Volga River city of Engels, where Russia’s HIV epidemic is growing at one of the fastest rates nationwide. Besides educational drives, the charity distributed syringes and clean needles to people at risk. But last month, a…

Supreme Court Ruling a Short-Term Win for Religious Nonprofits
May 17, 2016 at 9:32 am

The U.S. Supreme Court punted on a challenge by religious nonprofit groups to the Obamacare contraception mandate, sending the case back to lower courts to allow the parties to work out a compromise among themselves. The nonprofit groups challenged an "opt-out" provision of the law, which allowed such nonprofits to avoid providing no-cost contraception to…

Illinois Nonprofits Violate Federal Ban, IRS Does Little to Enforce Rule
May 17, 2016 at 9:26 am

Despite a strict prohibition against electioneering, nearly 90 nonprofit churches, hospitals and schools in Illinois collectively donated more than $80,000 to local campaign groups over the past decade with little or no consequences, a Better Government Association analysis found. While nonprofits, such as trade associations and unions, are allowed to engage in some campaigning, the…

Social Service Nonprofits Sue Illinois Governor Over Unpaid Bills
May 11, 2016 at 8:00 am

A group of service providers who contract with Illinois state government sued Gov. Bruce Rauner and members of his administration last week for stiffing them on bills for services that they've provided since the state budget impasse began in July. In a lawsuit filed in Cook County Circuit Court, the Pay Now Illinois coalition of…

Pennsylvania Attorney General Wants to Remove 3 Leaders of Hershey Trust
May 9, 2016 at 11:04 am

In a sign of the continuing chaos at the top of the $12 billion Hershey charity, the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General is seeking the resignation of three long-standing board members at the Hershey School for poor children, according to a letter from the office obtained by The Inquirer. The resignations would amount to an…