Hi Karen, I think we signed up to the EU "fix my documents" initiative and I >> would really hope we could continue to support work like that without >> it being an issue. My guess would be that putting our name to that >> sort of campaign should be okay, since advocating a legislative >> amendment does not cost us anything, is not strictly endorsing a >> specific political party and is hopefully not likely to be considered >> a significant enough kind of lobbying activity, but do you think it >> would be a good idea for us to check with a Lawyer before doing that >> sort of thing, in future? >> > > I think it's a good idea to check any lobbying or political involvement of > the charity by a lawyer. As Richard said, there is a difference between > non-partisan education and lobbying or political activity (and there's some > amount of lobbying that can be permitted). Here are two brief summaries > from the IRS: > > http://www.irs.gov/Charities-&-Non-Profits/Lobbying > > > http://www.irs.gov/Charities-&-Non-Profits/Charitable-Organizations/The-Restriction-of-Political-Campaign-Intervention-by-Section-501%28c%29%283%29-Tax-Exempt-Organizations
OK thanks for that information. We should bookmark this and keep it in mind. > > I am now also wondering whether I should write to the California >> Department of Justice to double check that directors are allowed to be >> a member of a political party outside the USA just in case I manage >> get elected onto the board. Does this seem like a sensible idea? As >> disclosed in my candidacy statement, I am a member of the Scottish >> National Party who run the Scottish Government which can sometimes >> mean being personally involved with election campaigns, proposing >> amendments and voting on proposals as a delegate on behalf of my ward. >> > > These restrictions are US federal rules related to GNOME's 501c3 tax > status, not the CA rules (there are different kinds of rules that CA > imposes on us). > Urgh... Your personal views and other affiliations should not be problematic so > long as they are not connected to your role within the GNOME Foundation... > but do you intend to make political statements or lobby in your capacity as > a GNOME Foundation director if you are elected? That would be very > relevant. See this FAQ on the IRS site for more information: > http://www.irs.gov/Charities-&-Non-Profits/Charitable-Organizations/Frequently-Asked-Questions-About-the-Ban-on-Political-Campaign-Intervention-by-501%28c%29%283%29-Organizations:-Constitutional-Considerations > . > There may be a proposal or two which which may relate to software freedom down the line, but nothing I can think of that could directly relate to my role at GNOME either, as a member or (if elected) as a director, at all. So that seems like this should be okay actually. I think it seems like I would have to be a bit more careful about the wording I use on my planet GNOME blog and at events, but that's okay with me. Also, I should make it clear that this is not legal advice. You should > consult with a lawyer about your personal obligations if you are uncertain. > As you can probably see, there's a lot of information available on the IRS > site too if you'd like to educate yourself (I don't think I'll have time > for more back and forth on this issue). > I agree the IRS site is quite informative, thanks. I reckon that should be enough. I'll bookmark it. While I am not running for another board term and have limited time, I > still intend to be available as pro bono counsel to GNOME when the new > board takes office. I also am happy to continue to help coordinate other > pro bono counsel, as I have done for the last number of years. That's decent of you, thanks! We all appreciate how much work you have done to improve GNOME and support its community, so I am sure whoever ends up being elected onto the board will try not to make too many demands on your time around these sorts of things; still, it's always reassuring to know that skilled help like this is at hand, if needed! ;-) Magdalen
_______________________________________________ foundation-list mailing list foundation-list@gnome.org https://mail.gnome.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-list
