Top Legal Aid Lawyer to Head NYC Social-Welfare Office
Steven Banks, who as attorney-in-chief at the nonprofit Legal Aid Society often fought New York City Hall over policies affecting the poor and homeless, will now join it as head of the city’s Human Resources Administration, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal report.
$60-Million Gift to Boost KSU Academics and Athletics
The donation from the family of a longtime university benefactor will support upgrades at the university’s football stadium and scholarships and other aid at two campuses, the Associated Press and the Kansas City Star write.
Senate Democrats Seek Hard Cap on Politicking by Nonprofits
A dozen senators called Thursday for a “bright-line rule” on electioneering by nonprofit “social welfare” groups, urging top Treasury officials to limit campaign activity to 5 to 15 percent of such organizations’ work, The Washington Post reports.
Highest Md. Court to Hear Closely Watched Donor-Intent Case
The tangled history of Johns Hopkins University’s legal dispute with the heirs of a Maryland woman over development of a rural property she sold to the institution for pittance in the late 1980s is traced in a Washington Post magazine feature.
Ex-Apple Executive Spearheads Technology Philanthropy Push
The Wall Street Journal profiles James Higa, a longtime aide to Steve Jobs who left Apple in 2012 and has since become a leading figure in efforts to engage the Silicon Valley elite in tackling the region’s socioeconomic problems.
De Blasio Blocks 3 Charters From Using Public-School Sites
Reversing a decision by predecessor Michael Bloomberg, New York City’s new mayor said Thursday that a nonprofit group’s three charter schools will not be permitted to take rent-free space in public school buildings this fall, The New York Times writes.
Metropolitan Opera Seeks Pay Concessions in Labor Negotiations
New York’s Metropolitan Opera wants to curb costs by reducing musicians’ retirement and health-care benefits and altering work rules, The New York Times reports, citing unnamed sources with knowledge of the proposal.
Google Gives $6.8-Million for Transit Passes for S.F. Kids
The Internet giant, whose private buses for its Bay Area employees have crystallized discontent over the tech boom’s disproportionate economic impact on San Francisco, will cover for two years the cost of a city program to provide free public-transit passes for low-income youths, the San Francisco Chronicle writes.
More Than 100 Lawmakers Donated Shutdown Pay
At least 116 of some 240 members of Congress who promised to give away part of their earnings during last fall’s 16-day government shutdown have followed through on the pledge, donating nearly $500,000 to charities or the federal treasury, The Washington Post writes.
House Tax Plan Would Penalize Nonprofits That Pay High Salaries
The plan would levy a surtax on nonprofits that pay employees $1-million-plus and would require that gifts to donor-advised funds be deployed to charities within five years.
By Alex Daniels
Contributor