House arms US Treasury with new powers to strip terror-linked charities

The bill also includes humanitarian provisions, postponing tax filing deadlines for Americans held hostage or unlawfully detained abroad.

By Jewish Breaking News

The U.S. House of Representatives just handed the Treasury Department its biggest anti-terror weapon since 9/11, pushing through landmark legislation to financially strip non-profit organizations backing Hamas and other terrorist groups.

The measure passed 219-184 on Thursday with strong Republican backing, creating a new category of “terrorist supporting organizations,” defined as any entity the Treasury Secretary designates as having provided material support to a terrorist organization within the past three years.

Under the bill’s framework, the Treasury must provide “a description of such material support or resources to the extent consistent with national security and law enforcement interests.”

Organizations designated as terror-supporting would have 90 days to appeal their designation. It would apply broadly across the nonprofit sector, including membership organizations, unions, and private foundations.

The bill also includes humanitarian provisions, postponing tax filing deadlines for Americans held hostage or unlawfully detained abroad.

“It’s very, very simple,” said Rep. Jason Smith, the Republican chair of the House Ways and Means Committee. “We, as members of Congress, have the duty to make sure that taxpayers are not subsidizing terrorism.”

Speaking on the House floor, Smith also argued that Democrats who opposed the measure would have supported it if Vice President Kamala Harris had won the presidential election earlier this month.

Supporters argue the bill provides necessary tools for protecting American taxpayers while maintaining appropriate oversight of the nonprofit sector, though various nonprofit organizations have expressed concerns about the scope of the Treasury’s newfound authority and appeal processes.

“We think this legislation is an overreach,” Jenn Holcomb, vice president of government affairs at the Council on Foundations, tells the Associated Press. “It would allow the Secretary of the Treasury to designate a 501(c) nonprofit as a terrorist organization at their discretion. And our concern is it doesn’t have enough in there to really ensure that a nonprofit understands the reasoning that a secretary designated as such.”

Political analysts also question why the bill was brought out of committee now while the Democrats still control the Senate, rather than wait until after January 20th when Republicans will hold a mandate in Congress, the White House, and the Supreme Court.

non profitsTerrorismTreasury Department