CNN report on 'Pulpit Freedom Sunday'

Sadly, the hubris of the heads of these churches may hurt their parishioners. Remember, the Constitution protects the right to speech and religion, but not tax exemption...

'Tis the season for pastors to risk their churches' tax status

The New York Times has the latest... Pastors’ Web Electioneering Attracts U.S. Reviews of Tax Exemptions.

Nonprofit Law Podcast #43 - The Best IRS Publication Revamped

Download: Nonprofit Law Podcast #43 (mp3, 9:11)

Craigslist Foundation Nonprofit Bootcamp
Highly recommend this great day of learning about nonprofits, including nonprofit law
Alliance for Justice session on lobbying was excellent
NYC 2008 Podcasts should be up soon - in the meantime, check out past ones
If you're in the Bay Area, I highly encourage you to attend the west coast version on October 18, 2008 in San Mateo, CA

IRS revamps Pub 1828, the Guide to Churches and Religious Organizations

- IRS Publication 1828 (PDF) - Designed for religious organizations, but this guide is an excellent parallel resource for secular charities as well
- Inurement and Private Benefit
- No special deals for insiders
- No charitable dollars to individuals' "private benefit"
- Employment Tax - The basic ins and outs of withholding and other issues
- Payment Of Employee Business Expenses - How to properly reimburse
- Recordkeeping Requirements - Simple rules for keeping the IRS happy if you're audited
- Substantiation and Disclosure Rules for Donations - What you have to do when you receive tax-deductible donations
- A great index to other relevant IRS pubs (special note to my silver medal for best IRS pub: Publication 557)
- Update reflects some of the examples and guidance from Rev. Rul. 2007-41
- Examples illustrating the application of the facts and circumstances test for campaign intervention
- If you're a non-religious org, check out the Revenue Ruling... Pub 1828 focuses on the religious org examples

Resources

- IRS Publication 1828 (PDF)

This podcast provides general information about legal topics but it is not a complete discussion of all legal issues that arise in relation to nonprofits nor is it a substitute for legal advice. This podcast does not create an attorney-client relationship. This is general legal information and the contributors make no warranties regarding the general legal information provided in this podcast , and disclaim liability for damages resulting from its use to the fullest extent permitted by the applicable law

CraigsList Foundation Nonprofit Bootcamp

I am very happy to report that I'm going to be attending the CraigsList Foundation Nonprofit Bootcamp in New York a week from today. I have heard amazing things about the resources and networking opportunities... more to come in the blog on this.

Nonprofits, campagn interventions and the Internet

The IRS has issued a new directive (PDF) that gives a couple of pages of not terribly helpful guidance on 501(c)(3)s links on their websites to affiliated and unaffiliated organizations. Nothing earth shattering in this doc other than what most nonprofit attorneys have been suggesting over the last few years: watch the context of your links. The one piece of good news is that it looks like the IRS isn't going to spend a lot of time looking at links to affiliated organizations (501(c)(4)s, etc.). I always appreciate guidance from the IRS, but restating the "facts and circumstances" analysis generally doesn't help too much. It's a double edged sword... less guidance may allow more leeway, but it also creates a lot of uncertainty as we head towards November.

Phill Kline: at some point, he's got to get a tax lawyer

Phill Kline and I have never met, but I feel like I know him. He once was Attorney General in the state of Kansas, and when he ran for re-election in 2006 used some very, very questionable tactics in getting church support for his campaign. As you know if you're a regular reader, that's illegal under tax law. I wrote a complaint to the IRS on behalf of an organization I used to work for, and it got a fair amount of attention from the local press. Kline lost that election, but became a county DA in Kansas right afterwards. This year he's running for reelection and lo and behold, guess who's got yet another 501(c)(3) problem? Phill Kline. This time, it's a supporter who has put her pro-life group's tax status in jeopardy by basically fundraising for Mr. Kline's campaign under the banner of her group's letterhead. Check out the letter at the Nonprofit Law Prof blog (a regular read for me these days!).

In any event, it's funny running into Phill Kline again in the pages of Kansas newspapers for more issues with campaign intervention by (c)(3)s...

Contributions over $250? Send a letter!

Gomez v. Commissioner just came down from the federal Tax Court, and it reinforces something you should absolutely be on top of as a charity... if you receive a contribution over $250, send a letter to your donors stating so. If not, the contribution is technically not deductible and if the donor's audited, they run a substantial risk of ending up in the same (losing) boat as the taxpayer in this case... more from the Nonprofit Law Prof blog here.

Hate church loses tax case

I try to be objective here on the blog, but I really can't do that with Westminster Baptist Church... I won't bother repeating their beliefs, but most of you have heard of their act. This week, they lost a tax case regarding exemption of their van used to drive to and fro. The nonprofit law prof blog raises a good point that this may not necessarily have been a good ruling from a pure tax law standpoint. If we replaced the petitioner with another group, would many of us feel ok about the ruling?

Are churches different from other charities?

The ongoing saga of Sen. Grassley's investigation into megachurches, including Kenneth Copeland Ministries, brought this response from KCM in a press release:

However, the Church respectfully disagrees with Senator Grassley’s position that churches are no different from any other tax-exempt organization. Any government inquiry into the affairs of a church raises serious constitutional issues that must be carefully balanced against the government’s need to evaluate the effectiveness of the laws of the land. To ensure its constitutional rights are not unnecessarily infringed upon, the Church firmly believes that it must be given the protections from disclosure afforded by the federal tax laws and the benefit of the processes and procedures that apply to inquires of churches made by the IRS.

When I have taught tax exempt law concepts in seminars and conferences, I have found that some in the secular charitable world find the unofficial distinctions and preferences often afforded to religious entities as unfair and unjust. I'm not sure I totally agree with that (there are a host of reasons why churches and religious institutions should be held to different standards than groups like Nature Conservency or even small community charities). I think it's an interesting discussion however - what do you think? Should churches and religious institutions be treated differently by the IRS and tax law?

Update... today's Des Moines Register... did Sen. Grassley lose his delegate spot at the GOP convention because he's pursuing churches?

National taxpayer advocate to IRS: Speed it up!

The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports that Nina Olson, the national taxpayer advocate, has noted an improvement in the Internal Revenue Service's processing of exemption applications, but still sees room for improvement. As anyone who has applied for exemption recognition recently can attest, she's absolutely right. The process needs to improve - ten years ago the process was measured in months (even weeks if you were lucky). Now, the length of your wait can last over a year under some circumstances...

Churches testing the courts on politics

The Chronicle is reporting an impending legal firestorm:

In a test of federal tax law, a conservative legal group is encouraging pastors to preach about election candidates in September, reports The Wall Street Journal.

The Alliance Defense Fund hopes a court case will result from this open defiance of tax rules, which bar churches from engaging in partisan politics, and that the restrictions will be struck down by the courts.

Would the current Supreme Court turn back the decades-old ban on electioneering by churches? Would there be an equal protection problem if this was not also extended to other public charities? These and other questions might be answered in the next couple of years...

IRS releases 2008 goals on enforcing political activity

Alliance for Justice has a nice summary of the latest on the IRS Political Activities Compliance Initiative:

On April 17, 2008, the IRS Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division issued a letter providing guidance on how they will treat certain activity in the 2008 political campaign season. The letter stated the goals of the Political Activities Compliance Initiative (PACI) task force in the 2008 election season and provided limited guidance on PACI's enforcement of 501(c)(3)s engaging in election-related activity in two specific areas: 501(c)(3)-501(c)(4) websites and issue advocacy.

See more here.

Vermont poised to create charity-business hybrid

From the Chronicle of Philanthropy:

The new business entity is to be called a low-profit limited liability company, or L3C, and Vermont’s governor is expected to sign into law at the end of the month the bill creating the designation.

An L3C, a variation of a limited-liability company, would operate like a for-profit business generating at least modest profits, but its primary aim would be to offer significant social benefits, such providing jobs in an economically depressed area. Such business models already exist: The Vermont law would give them a name, and, its advocates hope, both encourage the creation of more socially conscious businesses and attract more money to them.

I'm really intrigued with this new model, having been working more closely with a socially responsible LLC that also has an affiliated sister 501(c)(3) charity, it seems this might be a new path. Often we see a lot of these corporate models beginning in a few states (the laboratories for laws) and see them sweeping across the country. This one bears watching.

IRS cracking down on political activities of nonprofits... again?

Roll Call reports...

Tax regulators are hinting at an imminent crackdown of outside political outfits masquerading as nonprofit organizations, groups that already are making a splash in the 2008 Congressional primaries.

So, we might see some of the new 501(c)(4)s that were gearing up to engage in a lot of activity supporting or opposing candidates drop out before they begin... this might prompt some litigation depending on how the IRS chooses to enforce things. It's still stinging from losing the DLC case recently, and I suspect the DLC's success may prompt other 501(c)(4)s to fight it out in the courts with the IRS over anything in the exempt activity (loosely speaking, anything that supports or opposes a candidate) category.

New Form 990 instructions

Considering the new form is not to be filed until 2009, it might be a bit premature for most people to take a peek, but if you want to see what next year's Form 990 instructions look like, the IRS is ready to show you... here. More on this from the Chronicle.

IRS engaged in political-speech crackdown?

Church Executive Magazine asks whether the IRS is amping up enforcement this year.

IRS reaches out to charities to aid in economic stimulus

From the IRS:

The IRS is encouraging various partners and stakeholders such as charities, churches and governmental organizations to assist in efforts to reach out to those Americans who may be eligible for the 2008 economic stimulus payment but who normally have no requirement to file a tax return. People who receive certain Social Security, Veterans Affairs, Railroad Retirement or wages from earned income or combat pay may be eligible and not know it.

It's good to see that the IRS is trying to make it easier for low-income individuals receive the allocated funds. Asking charities to aid in the process strikes me as a good idea to facilitate the effort... more about this program here.

Housecleaning

We'll be having some downtime here at the site as we shift servers on March 20th (next Thursday as I type this). You might experience some delays in getting in touch with us during that process, but everything should be operational in short order. Thanks!

Senate deepens financial review of television ministries

NBC is reporting that the Senate Finance committee is renewing its demands for certain churches to provide detailed financial information. The letters sent today are a follow-up to letters sent last year to a virtual who's who of large televangelist ministries, including Benny Hinn and Kenneth Copeland.

These ministries are 501(c)(3) organizations that are required to turn over certain financial information through their Form 990s upon public request. The Senate investigation is turning up the heat on the financial practices of some of these organizations.

Ethics and nonprofits

If you're in Atlanta, this looks like a great opportunity to learn about running an ethical organization:

Seminar Announcement

What: The Nonprofit Studies Program of the Andrew Young School of Policy at Georgia State University presents its Brown Bag Seminar Series in Nonprofit Research.

Who: John Knapp of The Center for Ethics and Corporate Responsibility at the J. Mack Robinson College of Business will address the topic: "Fostering Ethical Cultures in Non-Profit Organizations"

When: Tuesday, March 11, 2008 at 12:30 PM

Where: Seminar Room #749 at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies Building at 14 Marietta Street, NW

The purpose of these seminars is to discuss research-in-progress by faculty associated with the nonprofit program.

We invite students, faculty and interested members of the community to join us!

Drinks and cookies will be served.

All that and cookies too... I wish I could swing the trip down for this one! Hat tip to the good folks at the Nonprofit Law Profs blog for the original pointer.

Still more on churches and politics

The Wall Street Journal is the latest to report on the various issues related to churches and politicking... I was happy to see that it noted that there have only been two revocations since 1954. One of them (the more recent... 1992) was a church in Binghamton that took out full page ads telling readers to vote for Bob Dole. Good old Branch Ministries... I don't know if they had any inkling how badly they violated tax law, but they didn't jsut cross the line... they jumped over it!

Nonprofit Law Podcast #34: What triggers an IRS audit?

Nonprofit Law Podcast #34 covers the murky world of IRS audit procedures (now less murky!).

One-click subscribe in iTunes
Subscribe in other podcatchers

Obama campaign takes fire over church conference speech

Sen. Obama's speech at last summer's United Church of Christ conference has managed to pull an IRS investigation according to the AP. Here's some interesting analysis from two sources:

John Wilson's IRS Probe Of Obama's Church Underscores Anxieties For Nonprofits underscores the difficulty charities and other nonprofits are facing with these subjective rules... something I've blogged about before.

Over at the Nonprofit Law Prof blog, there's a a great pointer to Jack Siegel's take on the situation. Quoting their quote of him:

We do think Congress must step in and write a prohibition on political campaign activity that addresses the reality of how churches and other Section 501(c)(3) organizations interact with political candidates. In addressing this problem, we would like to see Congress take an approach akin to that taken by the intermediate sanctions in Section 4958. That is, rather than penalizing the innocent entity or the entity that can't control a speaker once the speech has begun, the sanctions should focus on the speaker's conduct, penalizing the speaker. Many will argue that this raises First Amendment issues. We recognize that possibility, but are not convinced. Obviously, the speaker has a right to speak, but the speech in question is by invitation. Consequently, this is not silencing the speaker in terms of access to the public square.

A safe harbor for the charity in case the speaker slips into campaign mode would probably face a lot less resistance compared to the flip side: penalizing the speaker. I'd be very surprised if that idea ever got off the ground.

Law schools

I got a question in my email box from a prospective law student... unfortunately the student's email bounced back on me so I couldn't respond! So, if you fit that bill... email me at tim at tim dash mooney dot com and I'll resend it to you directly.

A lot of people ask me about how to go about training to become a lawyer serving nonprofits... I think the bottom line is that law schools are - for the most part - not the place where you'll learn that craft. There are absolutely some great programs out there (Columbia and Boston College come to mind immediately) but I've always maintained that no matter what type of law you'd like to practice, you want to find a good clinical program rather than seek out the best academic program. I'm sure others may disagree, but I can honestly say I learned far more about being a lawyer in my litigation clinic than in any of my classes.

One major piece of advice I give to anyone thinking about nonprofit work in law school... take administrative law. You'll be shocked how often it's relevant to the work you do!

Candidate accused of misusing charity

A North Carolina state representative is being accused of using her charity's resources to aid in her election efforts. Rep. Mary McAllister helped found Operation Sickle Cell in 1972 and has found herself the target of a state auditor's investigation. More on this from the Fayetteville Observer.

Interesting to see that it is a state investigation... it's conceivable that the IRS could look into this as well.

Look out FEC... here comes another lawsuit

Happy Valentine's Day FEC! SpeechNow.org is filing a lawsuit against the FEC today, asking a federal court to allow it to advocate for or against federal candidates without having to comply with contribution limits. The way things have been going in these cases, the SpeechNow.org argument has a really strong chance of succeeding... it takes no corporate money and it does not coordinate with federal candidates nor make contributions to federal candidates. It's (kind of... sort of) akin to the successful arguments made decades ago in MCFL. If that rings a bell, that case opened things up for certain types of ideological 501(c)(4) organizations to make independent expenditures.

In any event, pay attention to this one if you want your nonprofit to be able to engage in more election-related advocacy. It's got a lot of election lawyers taking notice.

OC Church under IRS investigation

Memo to all 501(c)(3)s (especially churches)... yes, the head of your organization can endorse a candidate. Just be sure to not use the organization letterhead when you do it... it matters (apparently) to the IRS.

As I write this, I'm thinking about the paradox in IRS rules at times... in what I like to call the "hang a lantern on your problem" rule, the IRS has no problem when an endorsing person is listed with their organizational affiliation along with an asterisk that leads the reader to a disclaimer stating "organizational affiliation listed for identification purposes only." (IRS FS-2006-17) Contrast that with this instance where clear organizational identification (the letterhead) seems to be leading this church into an investigation even though the pastor is suggesting that the letter underscored a personal endorsement. I think you can distinguish the two endorsement scenarios, but it underscores a continuing problem for all 501(c)(3)s out there: the facts and circumstances analysis is so subjective that it's sometimes difficult to know where the line is between legal and illegal activity.

Nonprofits and elections

BoardSource has just released a new article by my former boss, John Pomeranz entitled
Staying Legal While Engaging in Election-Related Activities. It's free for BoardSource members, but you can check out a free portion of the article here.

Since it's a timely subject, be sure to check out the latest in the Nonprofit Law Podcast's Beyond the Podcast series... Nonprofits and Elections: Balancing Personal Versus Organizational Activity. It's an on-demand video you can get through the NLP site here.

Nonprofit Law Podcast #31: Do we have to file a 990?

Nonprofit Law Podcast #31 is live, covering whether your organization needs to file a Form 990 this year.

One-click subscribe in iTunes
Subscribe in other podcatchers

When the IRS will audit your nonprofit

The IRS recently released Fact Sheet 2008-14, in which it spelled out when your nonprofit might be considered for an examination of its activities:

To determine which organizations should be targeted, experienced specialists analyze information from Forms 990 and other sources. This analysis will usually result in the selection of a group of returns for examination or compliance check. EO also reviews media reports and receives complaints from the general public and Congress about potential non-compliance by exempt organizations. After confirming the information, and when appropriate, these organizations may be selected for examination or to receive a compliance check.

This isn't terribly earth-shattering news... basically the IRS says that it looks at 990s, media reports and complaints, which most in the community already assumed. It's good to have it documented officially, however.

Nonprofit Law Podcast #30: Can a candidate use our space?

Nonprofit Law Podcast #30 dives into election waters again - can a candidate use your nonprofit's space?

One-click subscribe in iTunes
Subscribe in other podcatchers

Nonprofit Law Podcast #29: Unrelated business income

Nonprofit Law Podcast #29 looks at one of the rare times nonprofits face a tax... unrelated business income.

One-click subscribe in iTunes
Subscribe in other podcatchers

Breaking: Dean Zerbe to resign

Who is Dean Zerbe, you ask? He's the chief tax attorney for Sen. Charles Grassley, and to put it bluntly... not a friend to nonprofits, in my opinion. As the Chronicle of Philanthropy notes, he was a driving force behind many recent legislative efforts involving nonprofits in recent years. It will be very, very interesting to see if this impacts Sen. Grassley's efforts in the future.

Nonprofit Law Podcast #28: Nonprofit mail rates

Nonprofit Law Podcast #28 turns its attention to the USPS and nonprofit mail rates.

One-click subscribe in iTunes
Subscribe in other podcatchers

Nevada church accused of illegal electioneering

Americans United filed a complaint with a top IRS official, accusing a pastor of a Nevada church of illegally endorsing Barack Obama this past Sunday. More details at the Nonprofit Law Prof blog... the complaint (PDF) is interesting... the IRS gives some leeway to pastors and other religious leaders for endorsements in their individual capacity, but not when they use church resources to do so. This pastor made the comments during a sermon.

This situation reminds me of a moment in a documentary I just watched with the late Jerry Falwell speaking before his student base at Liberty University (a 501(c)(3) as is his church)... paraphrasing: "the IRS says Liberty University can't endorse George Bush. But I can." This was followed by a long litany of reasons to vote for George Bush. The event was held in a university arena by the head of the university... there are other factors to weigh here in a facts and circumstances analysis, but I don't recall any IRS action aimed at Falwell for that event.

What does this say? There's technically illegal actions and illegal actions that receive IRS scrutiny. Since the process is ruled by "facts and circumstances" analysis, it's totally subjective and it can be difficult to rectify in one's mind why one case receives sanctions and the other does not.

Nonprofit Law Podcast #27: Reporting Changes to the IRS

The latest Nonprofit Law Podcast is on the air... in number 27 we take a look at reporting changes to the IRS.

One-click subscribe in iTunes
Subscribe in other podcatchers

File your 990s

If you don't file your Form 990 - assuming you're required to (some organizations are exempt) - you may have more than the IRS to answer to. You might find yourself at the other end of a press expose. The latest example? The 50-year old civil rights organization Southern Christian Leadership Conference just had its failure to file spread across the pages of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. This is a PR blow you don't want you or your clients to take... just a reminder, if your nonprofit follows an end of the calendar-year fiscal year, your 990 is due May 15th...

IRS reports on its problems serving nonprofits

The IRS released the National Taxpayer Advocate's 2007 Annual Report to Congress this week, and it had some very interesting revelations:

The most serious problems encountered by taxpayers

* * *
13. Exempt Organization Outreach and Education. The U.S. tax-exempt sector consists of more than 1.6 million organizations (not including most churches). These exempt organizations (EOs) are diverse in size, ranging from large hospitals and universities to small volunteer-run charities. Approximately half of all EOs have all-volunteer staffs and another third have fewer than ten employees. Smaller EOs frequently lack professional tax guidance. The IRS has increased enforcement actions against EOs and the resources dedicated thereto. However, resources devoted to EO education and outreach, which were never adequate, have continued to decline. Existing IRS outreach and education programs for EOs are beneficial. However, the National Taxpayer Advocate believes the IRS can and should do more to help EOs, particularly small organizations, comply with the complex requirements to which they are subject. The National Taxpayer Advocate urges the IRS to conduct research to assess the service needs and preferences of the spectrum of EOs and to develop a strategic plan to enhance the scope and effectiveness of its outreach to these organizations.

14. Determination Letter Process. Unreasonable delays in the processing of applications for exemption from federal income tax have persisted for several years. Three years after the National Taxpayer Advocate raised concerns about these delays in the 2004 Annual Report to Congress, the processing time for many organizations’ applications still exceeds the IRS’s goal. These delays can have a serious, detrimental effect on charitable organizations’ finances and activities. The IRS has employed a number of measures to fix the problem but must do more to eliminate processing delays and keep organizations informed about the status of their applications.

The determination letter process has surpassed, in my opinion, the mere annoyance stage. At what point will these applications take more than a fiscal year to process? (I'm sure there are examples already out there) Thankfully, the report includes a recommendation to extend the advance ruling periods for cases of extreme delay, but it seems Congress would have to act on that recommendation for it to become reality. More exciting for smaller nonprofits is the recommendation to create a 1023-EZ of sorts for non-private foundations that will pull in gross receipts of not more than $25,000 in a year. I know a lot of groups that would have loved that option in the last year alone...

Check out the executive summary (PDF) for more.

Bad news for advocacy nonprofits

See this article in the Chronicle of Philanthropy on fundraising trends. Most interesting to advocacy groups:

Advocacy organizations, however, reported the worst results of any type of charity in the survey. They recruited a median 21.8 percent fewer new donors in the first three quarters of last year, on top a 14.2-percent decline during the same period in 2006, while the number of total donors also dropped by a median 12 percent.

Combine that with the usual issues with giving during an election year (more competition than off years) plus the spectre of a recession... this isn't the best of news.

"Dirty tricks" against churches alleged

Time has a great piece on some letters being sent to Iowa pastors supporting Mike Huckabee... the Iowa winner suggested before the caucuses tonight that these were a part of a voter suppression gambit by the authors. As you'll see in the article, if they're vote suppressors, they probably need some grammar lessons as well...

Pastors and other religious leaders are allowed under IRS interpretation of tax law to engage in partisan activities in their personal capacity, so long as the church or religious institution is not used. Many toe right up to the line during election season, but the IRS has recently tried to push back a bit and given some additional guidance (Check out Rev. Rul. 2007-41).

Watch those trademarks!

It doesn't come up often in the nonprofit world, but every once in a while there will be a trademark dispute... Check out this story regarding a "Big Sister" issue in Boston.

Be mindful that trademark and copyright laws apply to nonprofits just as much as a for-profit corporation!

"Anti-Poverty Group Refuses to Name Donors"

A charity's nonpartisan advertisement is drawing the attention of some in the reform community. The ONE Campaign's ad is
described by the NY Sun:

At issue is a brief sequence in ONE's television ad showing simulated campaign buttons for 14 presidential hopefuls from both major parties. "Ask each presidential candidate if they're on the record fighting global poverty and disease," the ad's narrator intones. "One voice, plus yours and millions of others. They will hear."

Attorneys for the Campaign Legal Center suggest this ad falls under the disclosure provisions of BCRA, while Jim Joseph, the attorney who represents the ONE Campaign says it's purely an issue advertisement that doesn't support or oppose any candidate, and is therefore outside of the requirement's scope. When all is said and done, is this really the type of advertisement that the law was supposed to target? Is this a "sham issue ad"? It appears on its face to be precisely the type of ad that should not be regulated (and I put disclosure of donors in the "regulated" column). If the law does demand disclosure, I would suggest it's another indication of the problems with BCRA.

UPDATE... Jim Joseph on the election law listserv gave an update:

I am counsel to The ONE Campaign and certainly had my comments taken out of context in the NY Sun article. The reporter seemed to be questioning ONE about why it had not registered as a political committee, which led to my response explaining how The ONE Campaign is not a political committee and how its ads do not support or oppose any candidates. When I finally realized that what he really was talking about was filing the Form 9, I explained that ONE was filing the form within 24-hours of the FEC regulations becoming final on Dec. 26. ONE never raised funds for electioneering communications, but used general treasury funds for these ads. The regulations provide very clearly that donor names do not need to be included on Form 9 under these facts. The reporter's claim of ONE "boasting" of its ad buy was a simple press release stating that it was releasing an ad and buying $1.8 million in air time. The ads were set to end before December 26 and were paid for well before then, so there is probably an argument that the regulations that became effective on Dec. 26 did not apply, but I explained to the reporter that we wanted to file the form even if there might be argument that ONE was not required to file. We even filed before the FEC released a revised Form 9; the current form does not match up to the new regulations, that is for sure. Obviously, none of this comes out in the article. Given the "faux" issue ads that are out there, you would think the press would not be focusing on such non-issues as this.

Totally agreed on the last point!