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Public Policy
Nonprofit
Policy News Action
Alert: Urge Congress to address nonprofit concerns in final health
care reform bill
Congressional
leaders are putting together the final health care reform bill.
It’s time for you to weigh in with Minnesota’s Congressional
delegation to make sure that the final health care reform
bill addresses the concerns of Minnesota’s nonprofits and
the people we serve. Key leaders from the U.S. Senate and
U.S. House of Representatives are moving forward to shape the final
health care reform bill that could come up for a final vote within
the next several weeks. It is essential that we express our support
for the best provisions from both the Senate and House bills.
What
You Can Do
Call Senators Klobuchar and Franken and your U.S. representative
today with the following message:
The final health
care reform bill should include
- Help for
small nonprofits (as for small for-profit businesses) so that
they can afford to provide coverage for their employees.
- Expansion
of Medicaid coverage to individuals with incomes up to 150 percent
of the federal poverty level.
- Federal
funding for Medicaid expansion and no shifting of significant
new costs onto states.
- Financing
that is progressive overall and that does not increase the deficit.
| Senator
Amy Klobuchar 1-888-224-9043 |
Rep. Betty
McCollum 651-224-9191 |
| Senator
Al Franken 651-221-1016 |
Rep. Keith
Ellison 612-522-1212 |
| Rep. Tim
Walz 1-877-846-9259 |
Rep. Michele
Bachmann 651-731-5400 |
| Rep. John
Kline 1-888-808-6644 |
Rep. Collin
Peterson 218-847-5056 |
| Rep.
Erik Paulsen 952-405-8510 |
Rep. Jim
Oberstar 218-727-7474 |
Get
more background and read the full Action Alert
Read MCN's
position statement on health care reform
Read MCN's October
28th press release, 'Health
care matters to nonprofits'
Get up-to-date
information on the health care debate from the
Minnesota Budget Bites Blog
Having
a day at the Capitol in 2010? We can help get the word out
Let us know if your nonprofit or coalition is sponsoring a day at
the Capitol during the upcoming legislative session. We'll add your
event to this page on our Web site
so that others can learn about your event and see the amazing diversity
of nonprofit advocacy in action. Send the date and Web site link to
jeff@mncn.org.
Notice
of proposed annual street maintenance and street lighting fee assessment
for nonprofits in Minneapolis (Update
below November 11) If
your organization owns property in Minneapolis, you may have recently
received a notice from the City of Minneapolis regarding public hearings
related to assessments on street maintenance and street lighting fees
strictly aimed at nongovernmental tax exempt parcels. The Transportation
and Public Works (TPW) Committee met on October 20, 2009 to discuss
this and other issues. We are proud to report that sixteen tax-exempt
organizations including service providers, arts groups, hospitals,
churches and cemetery associations spoke up with the message that
the cumulative effect of similar targeted fees and assessments is
undercutting the very reason these organizations are exempt in the
first place. Read
the compelling testimony from Peter Rodosovich, Vice President
of Operations for the YMCA of Metropolitan Minneapolis; also check
out coverage
of this important issue from Minnpost.
(Update)
The Transportation
and Public Works Committee of the Minneapolis City Council reconvened
on Thursday, November 5th to further consider the proposed street
light operations and street maintenance fee assessments on nongovernmental
tax exempt properties. The committee took action on the two items
separately. Cemetery properties were removed from the rolls for
both assessments. Regarding the street light operations fee assessment,
no major changes were made as it relates to nonprofit tax-exempt
organizations. For the street maintenance assessment, the committee
is recommending that the levies be phased in over a three-year period.
The full council
is to review these recommendations at their regularly scheduled
meeting, Friday, November 13th at 9:30 a.m. in Room 317 of the City
Hall building. You can follow this link to review the city staff
presentations, including power points, and the minutes of the committee
meeting. http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/council/2009-meetings/20091113/tpw20091105agenda.asp
MCN members
in Minneapolis continue to express concern regarding the impact
of further assessments diverting funds from community programs and
services at a time when there is increased demand for the services
nonprofits provide while at the same time they are experiencing
decreased revenues from all sources.You
can find the contact information for your Minneapolis city council
member by following this link:http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/council/
For more information,
please contact MCN Deputy Public Policy Director Jeannie Fox at
jeannie@mncn.org or 651-757-3083
Nonprofit
property tax exemption bill signed into law
MCN's top 2009 legislative agenda item was to pass a nonprofit property
tax exemption bill; we're very pleased to report the bill was passed
and signed on Saturday, May 16th. Please visit the charitable
property tax exemption campaign site to learn more about the new
law and what it means for nonprofits. Audit
threshold raised to $750,000 for nonprofits
The governor has signed a bill with a provision to increase the threshold
at which organizations are required to obtain an audited financial
statement that have been examined by an independent certified public
accountant. The bill changes the threshold from $350,000, where it
has sat for the last twelve years, to $750,000. Organizations with
a fiscal year ending July 1, 2008 or later, fall under the new limit
of $750,000 for 2008 reporting. MCN believes that for Minnesota, given
the dramatically increased costs of audits and the filing of the new
IRS form 990, along with the effects of inflation, this is an appropriate
time to increase the threshold. Read
the language of the bill, HF1298, that was included in the the tax
policy bill. The provision is at section
191.34 in the bill.
Public
Policy at the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits
MCN supports individual nonprofits and Minnesota’s
nonprofit sector to be their own best voice. Our policy work has
focused on informing nonprofits of what is proposed in policy arenas,
what it means and how nonprofits can serve as a resource to decision
makers as they choose priorities and funding options. We host events,
workshops, trainings and issue briefings, deliver testimony and
distribute email legislative updates to ensure that nonprofits are
educated and engaged on key issues facing the state.
Over
the past 20 years, MCN has advocated on issues that impact all
nonprofits, their constituents and communities and has succeeded
in a range of efforts to increase incentives to charitable giving
and protect nonprofit tax exemptions, lobbying rights and election
activity rights.
Current
Campaigns include:
Invest
in Minnesota Campaign - The Invest in Minnesota
Campaign is a coalition of Minnesota’s nonprofit organizations,
labor groups and religious communities organized around raising
revenues fairly to address Minnesota's budget shortfall.
Projects
of the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits include:
Minnesota
Participation Project (MPP) - This is an exciting effort
to support and expand the capacity of Minnesota nonprofit 501(c)(3)
organizations to effectively engage in permissible nonpartisan voter
engagement efforts - registration, voter education and beyond. MPP
is also working with community partners to ensure a complete count
in the 2010 Census.
Minnesota
Budget Project - The Minnesota
Budget Project provides independent research, analysis and outreach
on budget and tax policy issues at the state and federal level,
emphasizing their impact on low- and moderate-income persons and
the nonprofits that serve them.
National
Voter Education Network (NVEN)
- The Nonprofit Voter Engagement Network (NVEN) is a collaboration
of statewide voter engagement initiatives anchored in the nonprofit
sector. NVEN is dedicated to expanding the role of America’s
nonprofits in voting and elections with the goal of increasing participation
in the democratic process among all citizens with a focus on those
with a history of lower voter participation. The initiative is a
nonpartisan program of the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits, the
largest statewide nonprofit association in the country.
Questions? Comments? Contact Jeff Narabrook
at jeff@mncn.org
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