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Nonprofit Law Prof Blog

US Appropriations Influence International Civil Society

By nonprofitlawprof

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Surprisingly, there is a lot of interesting stuff related to nonprofits in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023.  Monday, I relayed my own belated discovery that the omnibus bill contained what’s billed as a shut down of conservation easement syndicates.  Most people prolly knew about this already but I admit that I only just became aware yesterday.  In fact, there are lots of provisions in the “massive” bill pertaining to nonprofit organizations.  A quick word search shows that “nonprofit” appears nearly 130 times in the act.  Here are just a few topics relating to nonprofits in the bill:

  • That the Secretary shall implement provisions to provide incentives to nonprofit organizations and public housing authorities to facilitate the acquisition of Rural Housing Service (RHS) multifamily housing properties by such nonprofit organizations and public housing authorities that commit to keep such properties in the RHS multifamily housing program for a period of time as determined by the Secretary, with such incentives to include, but not be limited to, the following: allow such nonprofit entities and public housing authorities to earn a Return on Investment on their own resources to include proceeds from low income housing tax credit syndication, own contributions, grants, and developer loans at favorable rates and terms, invested in a deal; and allow reimbursement of organizational costs associated with owner’s oversight of asset referred to as ‘‘Asset Management Fee’’ of up to $7,500 per property.
  • There is hereby appropriated $5,000,000, to remain available until September 30, 2024, for a pilot program for the
    National Institute of Food and Agriculture to provide grants to nonprofit organizations for programs and services to establish and enhance farming and ranching opportunities for military veterans.
  • For necessary expenses of activities authorized by law for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, including maintenance, operation, and hire of aircraft and vessels; pilot programs for State-led fisheries management, notwithstanding any other provision of law; grants, contracts, or other payments to nonprofit organizations for the purposes of conducting activities pursuant to cooperative agreements; and relocation of facilities, $4,500,997,000, to remain available until September 30, 2024.

The list goes on for quite awhile, but the military appropriation to Egypt is an interesting example of how the United States attempts to export its values regarding nonprofit organizations.  From the $1.3 billion appropriated for “Foreign Military Financing,” $225 million is contingent upon certification by the Secretary of State that Egypt is taking “sustained and effective steps to:  

(i) strengthen the rule of law, democratic institutions, and human rights in Egypt, including to protect religious minorities and the rights of women, which are in addition to steps taken during the previous calendar year for such purposes;

(ii) implement reforms that protect freedoms of expression, association, and peaceful assembly, including the ability of civil society organizations, human rights defenders, and the media to function without interference;

. . . 

Regarding clause (ii) quoted above, a group of well known international NGOs — Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, among others — are lobbying Secretary Antony Blinken to withhold certification, and thus the appropriation to Egypt until it rescinds a 2019 law requiring all NGOs, foreign and domestic to register with the government.  Here is a blurb from the letter.  

Dear Secretary Blinken,

Our organizations write to you with serious concern regarding the upcoming deadline imposed by Egyptian authorities, requiring all local and foreign nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) operating in Egypt to register with the government by April 11, 2023, in accordance with the draconian 2019 NGO law. Registration and further implementation of this law will further erode civic space in Egypt, and we fear its detrimental impact given that human rights defenders and government critics in Egypt are already operating in a landscape of systemic repression. The U.S. government should swiftly urge the Egyptian authorities to withdraw this registration deadline until it amends the NGO law and its bylaws by removing the undue restrictions it imposes on freedom of association and expression in Egypt.  

The 2019 NGO law prohibits any form of “civic work” without prior registration and government permission. It places severe restrictions on the activities of NGOs in Egypt, including by mandating government approval for standard activities such as conducting studies or publications, and completely prohibiting activities that are considered “political” or allegedly undermine “national security.” None of these terms are specifically defined in the law, leaving space for sweeping interpretations and arbitrary application.

Without defining what is exactly meant by “political” work, the 2019 law bans NGOs from carrying out any work that could be remotely construed as “political.” It could also be used to target and eliminate the work of independent NGOs that work on  human rights issues. This includes those who work on political and civil rights, as well as groups that support women and girls survivors of gender-based violence or undertake climate change advocacy.  Many of these organizations have been targeted by the government and security agencies for years, through arbitrary detention, politically motivated prosecutions, travel bans, asset freezes, unlawful surveillance and other forms of harassment and intimidation. 

darryll jones