Opinion: Change Rules to End Charity-Politician Conflicts

Congress should eliminate exceptions that allow its members to receive money or other perks from charitable organizations without disclosing the donors who contributed the funds, according to an opinion piece in The New York Times.

Frances R. Hill, a law professor at the University of Miami, wrote that the current exceptions that allow politicians to accept “values raised from charities”—as opposed to individuals or corporations—provided channels for the lobbyist Jack Abramoff to direct money to favored politicians without having to disclose where that money came from.

Last week, a report by the Senate Finance Committee named five nonprofit groups that Mr. Abramoff used to channel money in this way.

Read an opinion piece in The Chronicle of Philanthropy about preventing politicians from abusing charities.

(Free registration is required to view the Times article. A paid subscription is required to view the Chronicle article)