US Representatives Introduce Bill to Provide $60B in Emergency Relief to Nonprofits

On March 27, President Donald Trump signed the $2 trillion stimulus bill into law, providing emergency funds to individuals, small businesses and corporations across the country.

According to the final 880-page Coronavirus, Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, many nonprofit organizations were eligible to receive a portion of the $350 billion reserved for small business loans, known as the Paycheck Protection Program. But it comes with a caveat: Organizations that have over 500 employees would not be eligible to receive any emergency funding from this bill.

The nonprofit sector has been pleading Congress to give charitable organizations more financial support through this bill, helping them keep operations and fundraising afloat during this stressful time.

With millions of people working in the charitable sector, current circumstances have threatened job security, making the sector more vulnerable than ever to mass layoffs. Now, U.S. Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-1) and Seth Moulton (MA-6) are introducing the Save Organizations That Serve (SOS) America Act, providing nonprofits $60 billion in emergency funding.

“Charitable organizations in my community and across our nation are hurting. In times like these, we must support these critically-important organizations that serve our most vulnerable citizens,” U.S. Representative Fitzpatrick said in a press release. “The focus of our efforts to save America’s small businesses must include all of our nonprofit organizations. Our community and our nation, and those most in need, cannot survive without them.”

In addition to the $60 billion emergency funding for nonprofits, the proposed bill would:

• Create a robust universal charitable deduction. The bill aims to significantly raise the universal charitable deduction cap and allow all taxpayers to immediately claim the deduction on their 2019 taxes and beyond. 
• Ensure all nonprofits qualify for the small business loans under the CARES Act. The current version of the bill qualifies 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations that have under 500 employees. Through the SOS America Act, U.S. Representatives Fitzpatrick and Moulton plan to amend the bill to include all nonprofits, not only 501(c)(3) organizations, qualify and remove the 500-employee cap. 

Editor’s Note: NonProfit PRO will continue to follow this story and provide additional details as we receive them.