On this page, you will find information on Grantmaking, the Foreign Agents Registration Act, and the Partner Vetting System.
The rights of nonprofit organizations (NPOs) to free speech, association and assembly often come under pressure or even direct attack as a result of over-reaching laws and regulations. The problem is exacerbated by donors and enforcement agencies that shift risk downstream onto NPOs. For example, counterterrorism clauses or certifications that NPOs must sign as part of the grant agreement and USAID’s problematic Partner Vetting System may be inconsistent with humanitarian principles or privacy standards. In addition, since investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election raised the profile of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), , which requires registration and disclosure by those acting “for or on behalf of” foreign governments and entities, have led to overly broad application of the law to fundamental civil society relationships . Information and analysis in this section calls attention to threats to the rights of nonprofit organizations and efforts to address them.
Featured Resources
Surveillance of Civil Society is a Growing Problem
Headlines in recent weeks serve as reminders that the long-standing problem of government surveillance of civil society has not gone away. Instead it is growing into a threat to the privacy of communications of civil
Abstract: Development Needs Civil Society: The Implications of Civic Society for the Sustainable Development Goals
“Development Needs Civil Society: The Implications of Civic Society for the Sustainable Development Goals,” by the ACT Alliance and Institute for Development Studies, examines the consequences of closing civic space on civil society organizations (CSOs),
Abstract: UN Special Rapporteur Calls for End to Attacks on Civil Society
In her report to the Fortieth session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHCR) on the role of measures to address terrorism and violent extremism on closing space (Advance Unedited Version, A/HRC/40/52, February 18, 2019),
House Committee Expands Use of Foreign Agent Registration Act to Target Environmental Advocacy Groups
The House Natural Resource Committee is intenseifying its ongoing investigation to “examine foreign influence on U.S. natural resource and environmental policy.” On June 13 it asked the Department of Defense (DOD) for an assessment on how a
FARA Used to Attack Environmental Nonprofit
A recent letter to the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a U.S.-based environmental nonprofit organization, from the House Committee on Natural Resources confirms civil society's worst fears about how the Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA)
Foreign Agent Registration Bill Advances in House on Split Vote: Could Affect Nonprofit Cross-Border Programs
Congress has responded to concerns about foreign influence in U.S. elections by introducing several bills to amend the Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA), an obscure law requiring registration and disclosure by those acting “for