Longtime ASAE member Phil Peach recently attended ASAE’s Annual Fly-In, where association executives from around the country visited their congressional representatives in Washington DC on March 24, 2010 to discuss issues of concern to the nonprofit association community.
I recently visited with several of our congressional representatives as a part of ASAE’s annual fly-in. This year’s event occurred at a particularly volatile time in the nation’s capitql, as President Obama’s healthcare reform bill had just been passed, and was signed into law literally as we were meeting to get briefed on this year’s issues. The main topics that we were asked to address with our elected representatives this year were allowing associations to create their own insurance pools, preventing a reduction in the current charitable deduction, and recognizing the role of associations to help drive the economic recovery. Other issues that we discussed in the briefing included the new Form 990, UBIT and investment income, lobbying reform, campaign finance reform, business travel, and nonprofit postal rates.
Health Care: ASAE has been lobbying Congress for years to permit the formation of Association Health Plans (AHPs) to allow association members to form their own insurance “pool” as a membership benefit. Now that major reform has passed, it is unlikely that subsequent changes will be made to the law unless technical changes are needed. Oregon’s delegation members (with the exception of Rep. Greg Walden) are pleased with the current bill as passed, and are not supportive of adding a provision for association pools. However, ASAE was successful in getting the employer tax credit that is available for coverage of certain employees extended to nonprofit organizations as a credit against payroll taxes.
Charitable Deduction: With the newly approved deficit commission, as well as Pay-Go legislation calling for full funding of any new programs, there is tremendous pressure to find new sources of funding. Not surprisingly, there are renewed calls for reducing or eliminating the tax deduction for charitable donations, and discussion of such a temptation could easily spill over into the already limited deductibility of association dues as a business expense. I took advantage of the opportunity to share statistics regarding the number of associations in Oregon and how many different types of businesses they represent. Our representatives seem to appreciate the important role that associations play, but no one was willing to rule anything out.
Economic Role: We also took the opportunity to discuss ASAE’s “The Power of A” study and the economic impact of associations, number of employees, and examples of community projects that many associations carry out. Associations are often misunderstood or overlooked. How often have you had to explain to someone exactly what you do for a living, and they still don’t understand? This was apparent when one of the stimulus bills that provided tax credits for companies hiring unemployed persons was passed, overlooking the ability for nonprofit organizations to qualify. ASAE worked successfully to pass amendments making sure that associations qualify, as they did for the tax credit provisions related to health care coverage.
As I spent most of the day walking through the maze of offices and metal detectors to find our various representatives, I realized that I was just one of dozens of 15-minute meetings with the representative and/or staff member that occur every day. I certainly didn’t envy their task of considering so many different viewpoints on so many different issues affecting so many different constituents every day. However, any opportunity to remind our elected officials of the important role that associations play in our society is well worth the time and effort.
Phil Peach, CAE, served as President & CEO of Oregon Remodelers Association from 2003 to 2009, and Executive Director of Oregon Lodging Association from 1987 to 2001. He has been a member of the ASAE Public Policy Committee since 2002. ppeach74@comcast.net
