For many years, supporters of a candidate or a cause simply wrote a check and asked friends and colleagues to do the same. But the opportunities to influence elections and public policy have evolved significantly, allowing today’s high-net-worth individuals and family offices to better maximize political influence, while balancing those gains with financial goals and
Janice M. Ryan
Janice Ryan is an experienced general counsel to tax-exempt organizations, specializing in lobbying and political activities compliance. Janice counsels advocacy groups, charities, associations, political organizations, and businesses on the full spectrum of legal issues related to their efforts to influence public policy and elections. She is adept at delivering creative solutions to complex problems and providing pragmatic day-to-day general counseling tailored to her clients’ specific needs and goals. Janice’s clients appreciate her accessibility and responsiveness, and her ability to bring together and manage the right team of attorneys within the firm to solve the problem at hand, providing her clients with seamless, full-service legal support.
New York Adopts Regulations Amending Its Donor Disclosure Rules
New York recently adopted regulations impacting charitable organizations that are registered and required to file annual financial reports (the CHAR 500) with the New York Attorney General’s Charities Bureau.[1] These regulations, which became effective March 16, 2022, clarify that the names and street addresses of donors to public charities are no longer required to be disclosed to the Charities Bureau with the CHAR 500.
The regulations were proposed in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2021 decision in Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Bonta, which found California’s donor disclosure law requiring charities to submit an unredacted copy of IRS Form 990 Schedule B to be unconstitutional under the First Amendment. Following the Court’s decision, California, New York, and New Jersey suspended collection of Schedule B donor information, which is typically filed on a confidential basis with the IRS as part of the otherwise public Form 990. Six months later, the New York Attorney General’s Office proposed regulations to eliminate the requirement that charitable organizations provide the state with the names and addresses of donors on Schedule B. The final regulations remain unchanged from those proposed by the AG’s Office.[2]Continue Reading New York Adopts Regulations Amending Its Donor Disclosure Rules
U.S. Supreme Court Finds California Donor Disclosure Law Unconstitutional
On July 1, the U.S. Supreme Court decided the consolidated case Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Bonta in favor of the nonprofit organizations that brought the suits, holding California’s donor disclosure law to be unconstitutional because it violates the First Amendment protection of freedom of association. The immediate effect of the Court’s ruling is that the Court invalidated California’s rule requiring charities registered to fundraise in the state to file with the state Attorney General an unredacted copy of IRS Form 990 Schedule B, which discloses the names and addresses of their major donors.
As we previously wrote when the Court decided to hear the case and later heard oral arguments, the case focused on two main issues: (1) the standard of review that must be applied to laws involving compelled disclosure that are challenged on First Amendment grounds, and (2) whether the law should be held unconstitutional only as applied to the two nonprofits that brought the cases, or if the law should be struck down on its face.Continue Reading U.S. Supreme Court Finds California Donor Disclosure Law Unconstitutional
New Nonprofit Filing Requirements in New York
Charitable and social welfare organizations that file annual financial reports with the New York Attorney General’s Charities Bureau now must file those reports—and potentially two other reports—with the New York Department of State. These requirements are a result of changes to the New York Executive Law, effective January 1, 2021. The following are key deadlines:
- May 15: Annual financial reports (the CHAR 500) are due to the Charities Bureau and the Department of State by the fifteenth day of the fifth month after the close of the filing organization’s fiscal year. For organizations operating on a calendar year fiscal year, this means the CHAR 500 is due on May 15. Extensions are available for up to 180 days (mirroring the filing schedule for the IRS Form 990).
- July 31 and January 31: New reports for 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) organizations related to certain advocacy activities in New York, if applicable, will be due to the Department of State before July 31 and January 31.
Continue Reading New Nonprofit Filing Requirements in New York
Nonprofits Weigh in on California Donor Disclosure Cases Before U.S. Supreme Court
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review two similar constitutional challenges to California’s law requiring that charitable organizations registered to fundraise in the state disclose the names and addresses of their major donors: Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Becerra (No. 19-251) and Thomas More Law Center v. Becerra (No. 19-255).
Dozens of nonprofits nationwide have filed briefs opposing the California law, emphasizing concerns about the privacy of their donors and the risk of public disclosure of the organizations’ Schedule B donor information, which is typically filed on a confidential basis with the IRS as part of the otherwise public Form 990. The briefs represent diverse sectors of the nonprofit industry, such as public policy, research, and educational foundations; professional membership associations; and social welfare organizations.
The key issue in the case is whether California’s law has a chilling effect on First Amendment association rights, as donors to controversial causes may fear the fallout if their identity were to be made public. The petitioners argue that California has not shown a sufficient state interest to justify these First Amendment implications.Continue Reading Nonprofits Weigh in on California Donor Disclosure Cases Before U.S. Supreme Court
Federal Election Commission Announces New Contribution Limits for 2021-2022 Cycle
Every two years, the FEC indexes certain contribution limits to inflation. New contribution limits for the 2021-2022 election cycle were announced on Tuesday.
Individuals may now give $2,900 per candidate, per election (with the primary and general elections considered separate elections), up from the previous limit of $2,800. Between primary and general election giving, an individual may now give a total of $5,800 per candidate, per election cycle. The new limits are in effect for the two-year election cycle beginning the day after the most recent general election and ending on the date of the next general election (November 4, 2020 to November 8, 2022).
The FEC also raised the limits on individual contributions to national party committees. Individuals may now give up to $36,500 per recipient, per year to the main account of the national party committees, up from the previous limit of $35,500. Individuals may also give up to $109,500 per account, per year, to each of the additional national party committee accounts maintained for presidential nominating conventions; election recounts, contests, and other legal proceedings; and national party headquarters buildings (up from the previous limit of $106,500). These new limits are in effect for the two-calendar-year period beginning January 1, 2021 and ending December 31, 2022.Continue Reading Federal Election Commission Announces New Contribution Limits for 2021-2022 Cycle
Biden Requires Ethics Pledge from Executive Branch Appointees, While Trump Appointees Are Released from Theirs
The ethics rules that apply to presidential appointees have undergone significant changes this month, with wide-ranging implications for incoming Biden appointees and their former employers, as well as for outgoing Trump officials and their prospective employers.
President Biden issued an executive order just hours after being sworn in as president, requiring certain members of his administration to sign an ethics pledge outlining incoming and outgoing employment, gift, and lobbying restrictions. The pledge requires presidential appointees throughout the federal government to commit to the following:Continue Reading Biden Requires Ethics Pledge from Executive Branch Appointees, While Trump Appointees Are Released from Theirs
Interacting with the Biden-Harris Transition Team and Inaugural Committee
As states across the country finalize and certify the results of the 2020 general election, President-elect Joseph R. Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala D. Harris have begun preparing to assume control of the executive branch on January 20. The Biden-Harris Transition Team has already assembled and dispatched agency review teams to survey and report on the current organization and priorities of the various executive branch agencies. And while it remains unclear how traditional Inauguration Day festivities will be affected by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, President-elect Biden’s yet-to-be-organized Inaugural Committee will be responsible for planning and funding any official Inauguration Day parades or galas or any other official events.
As this new chapter of American government unfolds, many individuals, companies, and nonprofits are no doubt interested in reaching out to the Biden-Harris Transition Team and the Biden Inaugural Committee. This short alert sets out high-level guidelines regarding interactions with both the Transition Team and the Inaugural Committee. If you have any questions about these topics, please contact a member of our Political Law Group.Continue Reading Interacting with the Biden-Harris Transition Team and Inaugural Committee
Federal Election Commission to Lose Quorum Again as Commissioner Resigns
“It’s déjà vu all over again”
With the announcement last week that Commissioner Caroline Hunter (R) plans to resign her seat on the Federal Election Commission (FEC), effective July 3, 2020, the agency finds itself yet again without the minimum four Commissioners necessary to open investigations, defend new lawsuits, and issue advisory opinions. As we …
Federal Election Commission is Back in Business
The Senate today confirmed James E. “Trey” Trainor III as a member of the Federal Election Commission, reestablishing a quorum just months ahead of the 2020 general election. Since August 2019, when one of the commissioners resigned, the Commission has lacked a quorum, and as a result has been unable to investigate complaints, collect fines,…