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In this week's issue...
If you have followed the news in the past couple of weeks, you may have heard that there is an election this fall. Although 501(c)(3) nonprofits cannot and should not support or oppose candidates for office or political parties, they can and should engage in nonpartisan voter registration and voter education activities to ensure that their staff, volunteers, and the people they serve turn out to vote. This week’s update highlights a great new resource on nonprofit voter engagement and seeks your input on what the Center can provide to help your nonprofit’s nonpartisan voter engagement work. We also share analysis of the potential impact of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Loper Bright decision on nonprofits, celebrate a major milestone in Medicaid expansion in North Carolina, and provide a preview of what the state legislature might (or might not) do in the near future.
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New Guide Highlights Nonpartisan Voter Engagement Opportunities for Nonprofits
Charitable nonprofit organizations have a critical role to play in promoting voting as a safe and accessible activity to strengthen our communities. Last week, the National Council of Nonprofits and Nonprofit VOTE released a Nonprofit Voter Engagement Guide to provide basic information on ways that charitable nonprofits can get involved in voter registration, education, and engagement while remaining strictly nonpartisan. Even if you don’t have a chance to read through the entire 42-page guide (which includes plenty of pictures and is actually a pretty quick read), we encourage you to take a couple of minutes to check out the section on selecting the best activities (pages 19-20 of the guide), which can help you assess what types of nonpartisan voter engagement activities make the most sense for your nonprofit this summer and fall.
In the coming weeks, the Center will share several North Carolina-specific voter engagement resources for nonprofits leading up to this fall’s election. Let us know if there are any specific topics you would like us to cover or questions you would like us to answer.
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Become a National Voter Registration Day Community Partner
National Voter Registration Day (September 17) is just over seven weeks away! National Voter Registration Day is a great opportunity for nonprofits to ensure that their staff, volunteers, and community members are registered to vote. Sign up today to join the nationwide effort to register hundreds of thousands of voters on September 17. As an official partner, your nonprofit will receive free voter registration resources and access to other opportunities to support your nonpartisan voter registration work.
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Learn What End of Chevron Deference Might Mean for Nonprofits
Earlier this month, the U.S. Supreme Court issued two decisions significantly limiting the authority of federal government agencies to issue regulations:
- In Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondi, the court overruled Chevron U.S.A. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, a 1984 decision that provided broad rulemaking authority to federal agencies. In the Loper Bright case, the court found that the National Marine Fisheries Services of the U.S. Department of Commerce exceeded its authority in its regulation of commercial fisheries. The Loper Bright decision overrules Chevron, which had required courts to defer to federal agencies’ reasonable interpretations of statutes (i.e., laws passed by Congress) in their development of regulations interpreting federal laws. Over the past 40 years, the Chevron deference has enabled federal agencies to establish a variety of environmental, safety, and labor regulations that are important to the missions and operations of many nonprofits. Under the Loper Bright decision, federal courts now use their “independent judgement” to determine whether these federal rules are permissible.
- In Corner Post v. Federal Reserve, the court ruled that the six year statute of limitations for challenging federal rules starts when a business, nonprofit, or individual experiences harm from the rule, not when the rule is implemented. This ruling could open the door to court challenges of longstanding federal environmental, health and safety, and labor rules.
Practically, the Loper Bright decision makes it harder for federal agencies to make significant substantive policy changes through the regulatory process. This increases the likelihood of success of court challenges to new regulations affecting nonprofits as employers, including the U.S. Department of Labor’s recent overtime rule, and to the new and improved OMB Uniform Guidance, which sets many of the rules for federal grants to nonprofits. It also could delay or prevent federal agencies like the U.S. Treasury Department and U.S. Department of Education from issuing final rules on policies affecting nonprofits, including new donor advised fund rules and expansion of federal student loan relief programs. And nonprofits that advocate on federal rules may now need to focus some of their advocacy on Congress (to be more explicit in the laws it passes) and/or court (to interpret federal rules in an appropriate way). The National Council of Nonprofits has a helpful new blog post highlighting these and other implications of the Loper Bright decision for charitable nonprofits.
The Loper Bright decision only affects federal regulations, not the state rulemaking process. However, a recent blog post from the UNC School of Government explains that many of the federal rules that could be challenged under Loper Bright are important to the work of state and local governments in North Carolina, many of which partner with nonprofits to provide services to communities.
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Reminder: Overtime Salary Threshold is Now $43,888 Per Year
On July 1, the first phase of the U.S. Department of Labor final rule on overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) took effect. This means that most nonprofit employees making less than $43,888 per year are now eligible for overtime pay when they work more than 40 hours in a workweek. The second phase of the overtime rule is set to take effect on January 1, 2025. At that time, the salary threshold is schedule to go up to $58,656 per year ($1,128 per week). It remains possible that a federal court could prevent or delay the second phase from taking effect.
The Center continues to hear from (many) nonprofits with questions about how the U.S. Department of Labor final rule on overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) will affect their organizations. Two Center resources can help nonprofits better understand this new rule, its potential impact on North Carolina nonprofits, and compliance options for nonprofit organizations:
- An analysis of the final overtime rule and its impact on North Carolina nonprofits, concluding with 15 compliance options and eight next steps for nonprofits to take now to be ready to adapt to the significantly higher salary threshold in just over six months. The Center continues to update this analysis with information on the status of pending litigation on the rule.
- A webinar recording that provides more information on FLSA and the new overtime rule and answers nonprofits’ questions.
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More Than Half a Million North Carolinians Have Health Coverage Through Medicaid Expansion
Earlier this month, Governor Roy Cooper and the NC Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) announced that more than 500,000 North Carolinians have enrolled in Medicaid expansion since the program opened on December 1, 2023. Many of the North Carolinians who have gained access to health care coverage through Medicaid expansion over the past eight months learned about the program from outreach from nonprofits (perhaps including your own organization). Congratulations (and thank you) if your nonprofit has been a part of this important and successful outreach campaign!
DHHS estimates that about 100,000 additional North Carolinians may be eligible for coverage under Medicaid expansion. Almost all potential Medicaid expansion enrollees receive services from nonprofits, so it is important for nonprofit organizations to spread the word about Medicaid expansion eligibility and the application process. The DHHS website includes basic information on eligibility for Medicaid coverage, details of costs and coverage, and free materials to help nonprofits provide clear and accurate information about Medicaid and Medicaid expansion to their clients and communities. Please continue to share this information widely, especially with clients who may now be eligible to apply!
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NC General Assembly Returns to Raleigh Next Week
Next Monday, the NC General Assembly is scheduled to start a four-day mini-session. Legislators are not expected to hold committee meetings or to vote on new bills next week, but it is possible (but not certain) that they could vote to override Governor Cooper’s vetoes on five bills that legislators had approved last month.
After next week’s mini-session, legislators are scheduled to be in session four other times this year: September 9-11; October 9; November 19-22; and December 11-23. It is possible that legislators could vote on adjustments to the state budget for FY2024-25 (which began on July 1) during the September session. While both the NC House of Representatives (H.B. 263) and NC Senate (H.B. 317) have passed their proposals for adjustments to the state budget, the two versions have enough differences – most notably on pay increases for state employees and public school teachers – that legislators haven’t been able to reach agreement on the bill. A budget adjustment bill could include a variety of provisions of interest to nonprofits including:
- Extended child care stabilization grants to help stave off the looming “child care cliff”;
- Funding for the 54,800 families that are currently on the waitlist for the Opportunity Scholarship program;
- Earmarked appropriations for some nonprofits; and
- Expansion of the ability of nonprofits to conduct raffles as fundraising events.
Legislators also could take action on a variety of other legislation during the November mini-session, although the scope of issues to be considered during that session likely won’t be determined until after the election.
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