Other Developments

• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/npc.30725
• Date: 01 May 2020
• Published date: 01 May 2020

Bruce R. Hopkins’ NONPROFIT COUNSEL

8 May 2020 THE LAW OF TAX-EXEMP T ORGANIZATIONS MONTHLY

Bruce R. Hopkins’ Nonpr ofit Counsel DOI:10.10 02/n pc

of getting their child into U.S.C. is not a crime.” (See

the Quote of the Month in last month’s issue.)

• Colleges and universities are closing as COVID-19

spreads. This is causing the Department of Education

to ease its rules concerning distance learning pro-

grams. The New York Times reported, on March 11,

of the shift to internet-based education following

spring breaks. The article states that schools will be

able to use grant funds “usually dedicated to tech-

nology to help implement emergency operations.”

The president of the American Council on Education

is quoted as saying that “[i]t isn’t an exaggeration

to say that this is the biggest shock to the higher

education system in a generation.” ◆

OTHER DEVELOPMENTS

◆The Department of the Treasury and the IRS issued

the second-quarter update of the 2019–2020 Priority

Guidance Plan, dated March 6. The plan is referenced in

the December 2019 issue. The update‘s provisions in the

tax-exempt organizations and charitable giving fields are

essentially the same as in the original plan.

◆Three major accounting firms filed an amicus brief,

dated March 16, in support of the petition for a writ of

certiorari in the Altera Corporation case (Altera Corpora-

tion & Subsidiaries v. Commissioner (No. 19-1009)). This

filing follows the filing of four other amicus briefs. The

petition was filed on February 10. At issue is a finding

by the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit that a

Treasury regulation is valid, despite a lack of evidence

of a policy shift by Treasury (decision referenced in the

August 2019 issue). The significance of this case in the

tax-exempt organizations law context is summarized in

the October and November 2018 issues.

◆The Boy Scouts of America, on February 19, filed

for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The New York

Times reported the next day that the case “sets up

what may be one of the most complex and uncertain

financial restructurings in American history.” The filing

came about as the BSA became overwhelmed with

sexual-abuse lawsuits. Bankruptcy protection facilitates

a court-approved compensation plan, although it is not

clear what monies and property are available for accu-

mulation in such a fund. A follow-up article in the Times

on February 20 discussed the properties of the local

councils, which the BSA claims are legally and finan-

cially independent; lawyers for prospective claimants, of

course, are contending to the contrary. An article in the

February 21 Times reported on a bankruptcy filing by a

Roman Catholic diocese seeking protection in the face of

claims by individuals that they were sexually abused by

members of the clergy.

◆Is yoga a religion? The New York Times reported on

March 10 that the practice has been prohibited, under

Alabama law, in the state’s public schools for almost

three decades. The contention has been that allowing

yoga in classrooms amounts to tacit endorsement of

a “non-Christian belief system,” because of yoga’s

connections to Hinduism and Buddhism. This law may

soon be changed, the Times reported, with the intro-

duction of yoga at the discretion of local school systems,

although in a version “stripped of its spiritual aspects

and non-English terminology.” The article references a

case in California where the court held that the pro-

gram involved was “devoid of any religious, mystical,

or spiritual trappings.” Under the law change, certain

words would be banned (e.g., namaste), as would man-

tras. [10.2(a)] ◆

Quote of the Month: The US Supreme Court, on Feb-

ruary 24, issued the following order, in conjunction with

two pending cases (Americans for Prosperity v. Becerra

and Thomas More Law Center v. Becerra (summarized

in, most recently, the November 2019 issue)): “The

Solicitor General is invited to file a brief in these cases

expressing the views of the United States.” This presum-

ably is a request for the view of the Executive Branch,

which is not a party to these cases, as to whether the

Court should hear them.

Each article in the newsletter on a tax-exempt organizations law topic ends with a citation to the appropriate chapter(s) or

subchapter(s) in Hopkins, The Law of Tax-Exempt Organizations, Twelfth Edition (Wiley, 2019). This is done to provide ready access

to additional and background information concerning these articles. For example, underlying information concerning the first article

in this issue is available in Chapter 11 § 8(b) of the book; thus, the citation is referenced as [11.8(b)]. Likewise, each article in the

newsletter on a charitable giving law topic ends with a citation to the appropriate chapter(s) or subchapter(s) in Hopkins, The Tax

Law of Charitable Giving, Fifth Edition (Wiley, 2014, 2019 cumulative supplement). For example, underlying information concerning

the 10th paragraph in the first article in this issue is available in Chapter 3 § 1(a)–(c) of the book; thus, the citation is referenced

as [3.1(a)–(c)].

This newsletter is a stand-alone publication. An inventory of articles in the newsletter since its inception in 1983, and a subject

matter index, as well as an index of the court opinions, IRS revenue rulings and procedures, IRS technical advice memoranda, and

IRS private letter rulings discussed in the newsletter, are available at www.brucerhopkinslaw.com. For those who have the books,

the newsletter also provides monthly updates. Both books are annually supplemented. Questions concerning nonprofit law devel-

opments in general may be sent to brucerhopkins@brucerhopkinslaw.com. Also, a comprehensive summary of nonprofit law is

available in the Bruce R. Hopkins Nonprofit Law Library, an e-book published by Wiley. Other law resources are referenced at www.

brucerhopkinsbooks.com. Follow BRHopkins_NPLaw on Twitter.

The newsletter has a dedicated website. Please visit wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/npc.