Conservatives are protesting the Internal Revenue Service’s new regulations to prohibit nonprofit “social welfare” organizations from participating in politics. The guidelines regulate speech in numerous ways including prohibiting the use of words like “vote;” the mention of the names of political parties close to elections; the conduct of voter registration or get-out-the-vote drives; the creation and distribution of voter guides showing how incumbents voted; and the hosting of candidates for debates or charitable fundraisers close to elections. (United Liberty, February 24, 2014, by Louis DeBroux)
ASAE submitted feedback on the regulations to the IRS contending that the regulations unduly restrict “candidate-related political activity” thus preventing nonprofits from engaging in civic activities and chilling their free speech rights. The ASAE favors clearer, more definite definitions for excessive political activity. (Associations Now, February 24, 2014, by Chris Vest)
The liberal American Civil Liberties Union also finds fault with the new regulations. The ACLU’s Gabe Rottman, February 11, 2014, wrote, “The proposed rules could pose a significant chilling effect on issue advocacy engaged in by many nonprofits. They would also disproportionately affect small, poor nonprofits that cannot afford the legal counsel to guarantee compliance with the new rules.”