An Obama administration official is advising charities not to worry about the White House’s plan to limit charity tax breaks for the wealthy and to keep in mind the “broader context” of President Obama’s plan.

Under the proposal, which has drawn fire for its potential to damage charitable giving, the tax break for itemized deductions would be limited to 28 cents for every dollar spent by couples who earn more than $250,000 (or individuals earning more than $200,000), starting in 2011.

Under the current system, taxpayers in the highest tax brackets can write off the same percentage as their tax bracket, or up to 35 percent.

The administration says the itemized deduction limits would raise $267-billion over 10 years to help pay to overhaul the country’s health-care system.

“To a large extent this proposal has been perceived among the nonprofit community that’s reliant on...

Paul Farmer, co-founder of the nonprofit group Partners in Health, seems to be among a shrinking list of contenders to lead the U.S. Agency for International Development, Foreign Policy magazine reports on its blog.

A spokesman for Partners in Health confirmed to Foreign Policy‘s Laura Rozen that Mr. Farmer met with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last week.

Mr. Farmer, a medical doctor and winner of a a MacArthur Foundation “genuis” award, started Partners in Health over two decades ago. Best known for its projects in Haiti, the charity is credited with pioneering an approach to community health based on an understanding of the connections between poverty and disease.

Foreign Policy reports that the selection of Mr. Farmer could come with a reorganization of the U.S. Agency for International Development, with the goal of better integrating all non-military U.S. assistance. ...

The Internal Revenue Service has released a fact sheet that explains the steps that tax-exempt organizations should follow to notify the government if they close or merge their operations.

“Most tax-exempt organizations that end their operations, either by shutting down, transferring their assets, or merging with another organization, must inform the IRS about the details of the action,” the revenue service said.

Independent Sector, a national coalition of charities and foundations, has asked the Obama administration to rescind or modify rules that restrict contacts between lobbyists and federal officials regarding the $787-billion economic-stimulus law enacted in February.

The rules, which the White House said it designed to ensure that spending decisions are not made “in response to improper influence or pressure,” say that registered lobbyists may communicate with administration officials about specific stimulus projects only in writing — no phone calls or in-person contacts.

“While we applaud the administration’s efforts to bring the highest standards of transparency and accountability to the distribution and use of government funds intended to strengthen our economy and assist the millions of Americans who are suffering in these difficult times, we believe the prohibition on...

President Obama did not include money in his fiscal 2010 budget proposal for a program to provide grants to help small and medium-size charities get training and management help that was authorized by a new national-service bill.

But the plan to spend $25-million over five years on a Nonprofit Capacity Building Program is not dead.

Sen. Max Baucus, the Senate Finance Committee chairman, who championed the program during the debate over the national-service bill, still considers it a priority and will fight for it when Congress formally appropriates spending for 2010, one of his aides said.

The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, signed into law last month, included a last-minute amendment — proposed by Senator Baucus, Democrat of Montana, and Senator E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa — that called for spending of $5-million a year for five years on the Nonprofit Capacity...

Leaders from more than 300 nonprofit organizations across the country attended a meeting today in Washington with White House and administration officials to discuss ways to mobilize people to volunteer this summer.

First Lady Michelle Obama was among those who addressed the group.

“A diverse group of organizations came together today to discuss ways to encourage and facilitate service all across the country this summer,” said a statement that was forwarded by the Corporation for National and Community Service, which participated in the meeting.

The meeting was not publicized or open to the news media, but the statement said that “more details on this summer project will be forthcoming in the next few weeks.”

Among those attending were nonprofit and foundation associations including the Council on Foundations, Independent Sector, and the National Council of Nonprofits. One...

In an effort to help Pakistani refugees, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is using a relatively new fund-raising tool: text messages.

The secretary announced yesterday that by typing the word “swat” into cell phones and dialing 20222, Americans can make a $5 gift to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

The U.N. group is providing tents, clothing, food, and medicine to the almost 1.5 million people who have been displaced in the Swat Valley region of Pakistan, where the government is fighting the Taliban.

Ms. Clinton did not say how much she expected to garner with the campaign, but did say, “I’m hoping that we’ll have a big response to the text messaging. Just think if a million people in the United States gave at least $5, that’s $5-million. And that would be a significant contribution from ordinary citizens, just people who care about what’s happening.”

...

The two top members of the Senate Finance Committee have released what they call policy options for revamping the nation’s health-care system that include a change in how the tax-exempt status of nonprofit hospitals would be handled under federal law.

Under the proposal, “nonprofit hospitals would be required to maintain a minimal level of charitable activity, limit charges to uninsured, indigent patients, and limit aggressive collection actions. Hospitals that do not meet those requirements would be subject to an excise tax.”

Sen. Max Baucus, the Montana Democrat who chairs the finance committee, and Sen. Charles E. Grassley, the Iowa Republican who is the most senior member of his party on the committee, said the committee would begin to draft legislation to change the country’s health-care system next month.

The Internal Revenue Service currently uses a “community benefit”...

With state and local governments strapped for cash, they are increasingly looking for new sources of revenue — including imposing fees on nonprofit groups.

According to Governing magazine, states and localities are receiving money from the economic-stimulus package, but it’s not enough to cover budget gaps. To find revenue, some municipalities have placed fees on tax-exempt groups to pay for city or county services.

Nonprofit organizations “don’t have to pay property or sales taxes, but they are liable for fees,” the magazine says. “One Minnesota city is charging a curb fee based on property frontage as a way of generating revenue for street upkeep — and as a way to get 501c3s to chip in for the local services they receive.”

Even before the recent downturn took hold, governments considered such fees to make up for losses in property taxes.

According to a 2006 study by The...

President Obama has nominated María Otero, chief executive of Accion International, a microfinance group, to be the under secretary of global affairs at the U.S. Department of State.

The appointment requires Senate approval, which is expected in a few weeks, and comes as the State Department says it is seeking greater partnerships with international nonprofit groups.

According to Accion’s Web site, the group’s chief deputy, Catherine Quense, will serve as the interim head as a search committee looks for Ms. Otero’s successor.

Ms. Otero joined Accion in 1986 to lead its lending program in Honduras. Three years later she helped open the group’s Washington office, and in 2000 she was appointed chief executive.

As under secretary, Ms. Otero would be part of an office that oversees a variety of international issue.

According to the State Department’s Web site: “The Office of...