Advocacy

From the National Council of Nonprofits.

How Will the New Tax Law Affect Your Nonprofit, Your Employees, and the People You Serve?

Yesterday Congress passed the $857 billion tax package negotiated by President Obama and congressional Republicans. President Obama is expected to sign the legislation today.

The Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act (H.R. 4853) has numerous components of interest and concern to nonprofits – as employers and as mission-based organizations involved in local communities. This list presents portions of interest to most nonprofits, nonprofit employees, and the people they serve:

The election is over. We did the best we could. But did the registered voters do their job?

Many registered voters still lack the confidence and knowledge to take the time to vote in an election. Nonprofits are trusted messengers that can help voters with the when, where, and how of voting.There are strong reasons for nonprofits to increase voting in their communities and promote democracy, including benefits that extend beyond any one election.

The independent sector depends as much as any on good government and fair and open elections. Nonprofits are more likely to thrive in an environment where government is held in higher esteem and people are more likely to participate in and trust democracy.

Any form of civic engagement creates a more likely voter. Throughout the year nonprofits can incorporate civic engagement activities that signal to their members their issue concerns and interest in government. Activities work both because they might encourage voting and civic engagement and also provide opportunities for people to get improve their community.
Visit Nonprofit Vote for ways to increase voter participation among your constituents.

First-ever Study of Human Service Nonprofits and Government Contracting

A study by the Urban Institute, an independent, nonpartisan policy research organization, is the first-ever national survey of human service organizations, documenting the extent of nonprofit-government contracting, processes, and problems at the local, state, and national levels. It also examines the impact of the recession on these organizations and the cutbacks they have made to keep their programs operating.

While contracting problems are not new, many are exacerbated by the deep recession that has reduced government budgets and private contributions. Nearly 33,000 human service nonprofits have government contracts and grants, and 9,000 organizations with expenditures over 100,000 were surveyed for this study.

This study is part of a collaborative project of the Urban Institute’s Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy and the National Council of Nonprofits.
 

Landmark Bill to Strengthen Nonprofit-Government Partnership Introduced  (6/16/10)
At a press conference on June 16 at the US Capitol, the National Council of Nonprofits applauded the leadership of Congresswoman Betty McCollum (MN-04) for introducing the Nonprofit Sector and Community Solutions Act (HR 5533), a bill that will transform the way that the federal government thinks about and deals with the charitable nonprofit community in the United States. Read more.

Additional resources courtesy of the National Council of Nonprofits:

• Text of Legislation
• Congresswoman Betty McCollum Press Release
  
• National Council of Nonprofits Press Release
  
• National Council of Nonprofits Policy Brief (PDF)