ACLU Statement on House Passage of Dangerous Civil Society Attack Bill

WASHINGTON – Today the House of Representatives voted to pass H.R. 9495, the Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act, 219-184. This legislation would grant the secretary of the Treasury the unilateral power to investigate and effectively shut down any tax-exempt organization — including news outlets, universities, and civil society groups — by stripping them of their tax-exempt status based on an unilateral accusation of wrongdoing. This vote came just days after the House narrowly blocked the same bill, 256-145, under suspension.

This bill was passed despite hundreds of thousands of Americans voicing their opposition over the past few weeks. The American Civil Liberties Union also led a coalition of over 300 nonprofit organizations from across issues and ideologies in sending a letter expressing their deep concerns with the bill and the consequences it could have on all of our civil rights and civil liberties.

“By voting for H.R. 9495 today, the House of Representatives chose fear over freedom,” said Kia Hamadanchy, senior federal policy counsel at ACLU. “After over 100 years of defending civil liberties in this country, we know that the American people won’t sit quietly as politicians try to ram through anti-democratic legislation like this one. Over the last few weeks, we’ve seen hundreds of thousands of people make their opposition to this bill known, flooding members with so many phone calls, texts, and emails that dozens of representatives flipped their vote. As the bill heads to the Senate, we will continue to make sure our voices are heard, and we urge them not to take this bill up before they adjourn.”