SCG Policy Update
Philanthropy California Opposes Proposed Changes to Healthcare Rights
On August 13, Philanthropy California submitted public comment to oppose the Department of Health and Human Services' proposed changes to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act which would substantially limit federal protections against gender identity and sexual orientation discrimination in healthcare.
July 2019 Public Policy Roundup
Executive Summary
This month’s Policy Roundup takes a look into the bustling updates from Sacramento including the newly enacted state budget, a legislative strategy to reduce deep child poverty and what a statewide-run retirement savings option would look like in practice. We also explore the potential impact of the federal administration’s proposal to shrink the federal poverty threshold and new private university endowments taxes. Other highlights include:
Analysis: Taxpayers First Act Requires Nonprofits to E-File Tax Forms
The newly enacted Taxpayers First Act (Public Law 116-25) is the first substantial modification reform to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in over two decades, revising its organizational structure, increasing cybersecurity measures and revising requirements for electronic filings. The new law also requires all tax-exempt organizations filing a Form 990 and political organizations that receive or spend funds for tax-exempt functions filing a Form 8872 to file their annual tax returns electronically and made available in a machine-readable format.
Analysis: IRS Issues New 1.4 Percent University Endowment Income Tax
On Friday, June 28th, 2019, the Internal Revenue Service released the proposed tax guidelines for higher education institutions that are now required to pay a new tax on their endowments as outlined under the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The 1.4 percent excise tax on net investment income targets universities with at least 500 tuition-paying students and with assets of $500,000 per student. The newly proposed regulations are estimated to impact between 25 to 40 institutions.
State Budget Adopted: New Investments in Early Childhood, Child Welfare, Housing, Homelessness, Healthcare and Health Access, and Justice Reinvestments
The California State Legislature passed a $214.8 billion budget that makes “one-time” investments in key priority areas, such as homelessness, ongoing commitments to health access and early childhood, and contributions to “rainy day” funds that protect the state from a predicted economic downturn. Key highlights from the budget include:
Governor Gavin Newsom's Proposals to Address Homelessness
Considerations for Governor’s Proposals to Address Homelessness
In January, Governor Newsom released his proposed budget summary. The entire budget is just over $209 billion with approximately $2.375 billion designated for housing and homelessness initiatives.
Congressional Hearing on Administration's Family Separation Policy
Congressional Hearing on Administration’s Family Separation Policy”
SCG Public Policy Update, January 2019
To read or download the January 2019 SCG Public Policy Update, click on the link below.
Criminal Justice Reform: Changes to the Pretrial System
In 2017-8 California State Legislative Session, SCG developed an analysis on the background and implications of Senate Bill (SB) 10 (Hertzberg), which proposed to restrict the practice of setting “monetary bail” by establishing a risk assessment tool conducted by judges. Monetary bail is a sum of money that an accused person awaiting trial can deposit to receive a temporary release from jail. The deposit conceptually acts as an incentive for accused persons to return to court. SB 10 proposed an alternative to monetary bail system with a statewide “risk assessment tool”. The tool determines whether defendants can be safely released from jail while awaiting trial. SB 10 proposed this change because the bail system unfairly affects individuals who cannot afford to pay for bail.