LANGHORNE, PA. — Today, April 29th, 2020, Representatives Seth Moulton (D-MA) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) sent a letter to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy urging them to support nonprofits in the next round of coronavirus disaster relief. More than 140 Members of Congress and a large group of the nation’s leading national nonprofits joined them in the call to action.

In the letter, Fitzpatrick, Moulton, and 142 of their colleagues said: “Charitable nonprofits are significant employers ready to serve. The 12 million people working for America’s charities are the backbone of our communities: the food banks, shelters, domestic violence services, houses of worship, early care and education centers, after-school facilities, and more that are being called on to feed, house and care for people whose lives have been disrupted by sickness, closures, and job loss. Cities and states are relying on nonprofits to help mitigate the impact of the pandemic. We will continue to rely on the experience, expertise, and ingenuity of the sector during future recovery efforts. As we work to build on the CARES Act in the next relief package, we cannot overlook the needs of these community-based institutions and must ensure that charitable nonprofits are fully supported in their service on the front lines of responding to the COVID-19 crisis.”

The group outlined what they’d like to see in the next relief bill. It includes: Expanding access for nonprofits in disaster relief programs including the Paycheck Protection Program, increasing the unemployment insurance reimbursement for self-insured nonprofits struggling to pay furloughed employees, and strengthening tax incentives so more Americans donate to nonprofits in this era of economic uncertainty.

The full text of the letter is available here and below.

The effort follows Moulton and Fitzpatrick’s introduction of the Save Organizations that Serve America Act, also known as the SOS America Act, a bill to provide $60 billion in disaster relief to nonprofits, immediate tax write-offs for Americans that donate to nonprofits, and a fix to a problem in the original CARES Act which prevents many nonprofits from accessing emergency loans because of the cap on the number of employees that can work at entities that receive the loans.

Here is a list of the nonprofits that signed on to the call to action:

Alliance for Strong Families and Communities, American Alliance of Museums, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Council of the Blind, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, Americans for the Arts, Association of Art Museum Directors, Association for Healthcare Philanthropy, Bethany Christian Services, Boys and Girls Club of America, Catholic Charities USA, ChildFund International, Council of Michigan Foundations, Council on Foundations, Covenant House, Ducks Unlimited, Embrace Relief, Faith & Giving Coalition, Food for the Hungry, Forefront, Girl Scouts of the USA, Girls Inc., Goodwill Industries International, Inc., Grantmakers in the Arts, Habitat for Humanity International, Helping Hand for Relief and Development, Human Rights for Kids, IHC Global, Independent Sector, InterAction, Jewish Federations of North America, KABOOM!, League of American Orchestras, Lutheran Services in America, March of Dimes, Mental Health America, Mercy Corps, Minnesota Council on Foundations, National Council of Nonprofits, National Health Council, National Indian Child Welfare Association, National MS Society, Philanthropy Colorado, Philanthropy Delaware, Philanthropy Massachusetts, Philanthropy New York, Philanthropy West Virginia, Physicians for Peace, Project HOPE, The Red Cross, RTI International, SPOON, The Henry Ford Museum, The Jewish Federations of North America, The Nature Conservancy, UNICEF USA, Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, United Philanthropy Forum, United Way Worldwide, United Way of Delaware, World Vision US, YMCA of the USA

Here is the list of Members of Congress who support the call to action:

Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick, Seth Moulton, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Elise Stefanik, Joe Neguse, Sheila Jackson Lee, Chris Pappas, Mary Gay Scanlon, Joyce Beatty, Tom Malinowski, Jim Cooper, Alan Lowenthal, Betty McCollum, Tony Cárdenas, Angie Craig, John Katko, Bennie Thompson, Jamie Raskin, Lori Trahan, Peter DeFazio, Max Rose, Ted Deutch, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Cindy Axne, Debbie Dingell, James McGovern, Doris Matsui, Mary Gay Scanlon, Jim Himes, Wm. Lacy Clay, John Larson, Carolyn Maloney, Paul Tonko, Adam Smith, Jim Costa, John Sarbanes, Harley Rouda, Scott Peters, Steve Cohen, Ed Case, David Cicilline, Marcia Fudge, Blunt Rochester, Bradley Schneider, Chellie Pingree, David Trone, Dean Phillips, Joe Kennedy, Joe Courtney, Yvette Clarke, TJ Cox, Suzan DelBene, Val Demings, Jared Huffman, Mike Quigley, Lizzie Fletcher, Sanford D. Bishop, Jr., Joseph Morelle, Ron Kind, Thomas Suozzi, Deb Haaland, Josh Harder, Eliot Engel, Kathleen Rice, John Yarmuth, Donna Shalala, Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, Jason Crow, Juan Vargas, Zoe Lofgren, Kendra Horn, Eddie Bernice Johnson, Bonnie Watson Coleman, Diana DeGette, David Price, Fred Upton, Donald Norcross, Darren Soto, Barbara Lee, Julia Brownley, Gilbert Cisneros, G. K. Butterfield, Anthony Brown, Mike Gallagher, Linda Sanchez, Alcee Hastings, Derek Kilmer, Al Green, Emanuel Cleaver II, Steve Stivers, Alma Adams, Suzanne Bonamici, Frederica Wilson, Salud Carbajal, Jefferson Van Drew, Rick Larsen, Marcy Kaptur, Jahana Hayes, Marc Veasey, Hank Johnson, Sean Casten, Bill Keating, Susan Wild, Elissa Slotkin, Tom Cole, Brenda Lawrence, Bill Foster, Albio Sires, Andy Kim, Brendan Boyle, Josh Gottheimer, Sean Patrick Maloney, Susan Brooks, Rashida Tlaib, Michael McCaul, Donald S. Beyer, Grace Meng, Vicente Gonzalez, Gerald Connolly, Adriano Espaillat, Collin Allred, Dave Loebsack, Al Lawson, Rodney Davis, Sylvia Garcia, Andy Levin, Jim Banks, Dan Kildee, Filemon Vela, Jesus G. “Chuy” Garcia, Bill Huizenga, Ayanna Pressley, Henry Cuellar, Peter T. King, Veronica Escobar, Ted W. Lieu, Ilhan Omar, Charlie Crist, Will Hurd, Donald M. Payne, Jr., Steven Horsford, C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, and Haley M. Stevens.

Here is the text of the letter:

 April 29, 2020

Dear Speaker Pelosi and Minority Leader McCarthy:

Charitable nonprofits are significant employers ready to serve. The 12 million people working for America’s charities are the backbone of our communities: the food banks, shelters, domestic violence services, houses of worship, early care and education centers, after-school facilities, and more that are being called on to feed, house and care for people whose lives have been disrupted by sickness, closures, and job loss. Cities and states are relying on nonprofits to help mitigate the impact of the pandemic. We will continue to rely on the experience, expertise, and ingenuity of the sector during future recovery efforts. As we work to build on the CARES Act in the next relief package, we cannot overlook the needs of these community-based institutions and must ensure that charitable nonprofits are fully supported in their service on the front lines of responding to the COVID-19 crisis.

Specifically, we urge you to include the following clarifications and provisions in the next relief package:

1. Expand Nonprofit Access to Relief and Support: Establish a distinct reserve dedicated to funding nonprofit loans and expand the eligibility for nonprofits to participate in the Paycheck Protection Program by modifying the current 500-employee cap or by other means. Adjust Economic Stabilization Fund or other mechanisms to implement programs to support nonprofit employers with between 500 and 10,000 employees, including loan-forgiveness and other provisions. Provide clear guidance and maximum flexibility to private lenders to prioritize processing the applications of charitable nonprofits.

2. Increase Unemployment Insurance Reimbursement: Treat self-funded nonprofits fairly by increasing the federal unemployment insurance reimbursement for self-funded nonprofits to 100% of costs. As currently written Section 2103 of the CARES Act will subject nonprofits throughout the country to crippling payments to their state unemployment systems later this year, while other employers will likely experience little or no additional costs resulting from mass COVID-19-related layoffs. The impacts will be real. States will be greatly challenged to distinguish among employers in an already overburdened system due to the unprecedented surge in new applicants. Many nonprofits will be hit with a bill for reimbursement to states at a time when they will be in the highest demand for providing services. This could actually inhibit nonprofits’ ability to perform.

3. Strengthen Charitable Giving Incentives: Encourage donations to the work of charitable organizations in their communities by enabling taxpayers making donations on and after March 13 (date of national emergency declaration) and before July 16 to claim the deductions on their 2019 tax filings. This retroactive application should apply to itemized and above-the-line deductions during this critical period to encourage an influx of donations when these nonprofits need them most. Also, enhance the Above-the-Line Deduction in the CARES Act by increasing the $300/person cap and extending the effective date of the incentive.

On behalf of the nonprofit charities in each of our districts providing critical services to our constituents, we appreciate your attention to this request and believe that the inclusion of these provisions will directly help charitable nonprofits respond to the fallout from this pandemic and will continue to serve our communities in the aftermath.  We appreciate your consideration and attention to this request.

Sincerely,

Brian Fitzpatrick                                                                     Seth Moulton

Member of Congress                                                   Member of Congress

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