On April 15, the U.S. House of Representatives passed
H.R. 1314, a bill that would amend the Internal Revenue Code to assure the right to an administrative appeal for non-profit organizations that are denied tax-exempt status by the IRS. When the bill went to the Senate, it became the vehicle for the high profile trade promotion authority. The May 12 substitute amendment (
full text) that added the trade authority provisions, however, eliminated the text of the House language regarding non-profits.
A large number of amendments have been offered on the Senate floor to the trade authority bill.
One of those amendments (No. 1237), approved in the Seante on May 18 by a 92-0 vote, adds to the numerous trade negotiating objectives in Sec. 102, the following:
to take into account conditions relating to religious freedom of any party to negotiations for a trade agreement with the United States.
