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Defending Rights & Dissent Condemns Passage of H.R. 9495 [1]

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Date: 2024-11-21 15:43:54+00:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – November 21, 2024

Defending Rights & Dissent Condemns Passage of H.R. 9495

Washington, DC – Defending Rights & Dissent condemns the passage of H.R. 9495, or the Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act. This bill allows the Secretary of the Treasury to unilaterally strip tax-exempt status from nonprofits deemed “terrorist supporting” without meaningful due process.

“It is appalling that in the face of overwhelming civil society opposition, 204 Republicans and 15 Democrats in the House voted in favor of a bill that will be used to strip organizations of their nonprofit status in a politically motivated fashion and without proper due process,” said Chip Gibbons, Policy Director. “The bill is driven by the current McCarthyite attacks on Palestine solidarity activism, but it empowers the executive branch to crackdown on charities broadly. It is intolerable for any administration to have these powers, but it is reckless for anyone who claims Trump poses a threat to democracy to hand his administration yet another weapon to use against their opponents.”

Aimed at nonprofits supporting pro-Palestine advocacy and activism, H.R. 9495 has sweeping implications for all of civil society. The bill’s vague “terrorist supporting” designation could be applied baselessly and broadly, with devastating consequences for the civil society infrastructure supporting dissent. In the absence of meaningful due process, any nonprofit – from humanitarian organizations to independent news rooms – could risk losing tax-exempt status. The bill has further implications for civil society. The mere threat of being tied up in litigation, facing the reputational harm that such a designation would bring, and loss of donors, would chill speech and stifle dissent.

Recognizing the existential danger to dissent, civil society organizations and concerned individuals across the nation mobilized opposition to H.R. 9495. Nearly 4,000 Defending Rights & Dissent supporters contacted their representatives about the bill.

“The massive popular outcry against this bill demonstrates just how controversial it is,” said Sue Udry, Executive Director. “Hundreds of thousands of people wrote and called Congress, and over 300 civil society groups stood in opposition. We urge the House and Senate leadership to resist the urge to include it in any year-end must-pass legislation.”

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[1] Url: https://www.rightsanddissent.org/news/defending-rights-dissent-condemns-passage-of-h-r-9495-charity-killer/

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