Good news! Senate passes legislation to generate millions for food banks!

[theHandpuppet]

(Latest News from Second Harvest) http://www.secondharvest.org/news_room/2006_News_Releases/080406.html

SENATE PASSES LANDMARK LEGISLATION GENERATING UP TO $250 MILLION DOLLARS IN NEW FOOD DONATIONS FOR HUNGRY AMERICANS

A Statement From Vicki Escarra, President & CEO

CHICAGO, August 4, 2006—“The US Senate voted last night to extend a new tax incentive for the donation of food to charities as part of the Pension Reform Bill that will generate an estimated more than $250 million in new private sector food donations over the next 24 months. This represents a major victory for America's Second Harvest—The Nation's Food Bank Network, food donors and the 25 million Americans—including 9 million children and nearly 3 million seniors—our food banks and food-rescue organizations serve each year.

For the first time in the history of the United States, all business entities – including farms, small businesses, and restaurants – will receive a tax incentive to help in the fight against hunger in their communities. Under previous tax law, only C corporations, generally larger companies, were eligible for the enhanced deduction for donations of food.

The new law means that through 2007, small businesses, farmers, ranchers and restaurateurs have a real incentive to give food for hunger relief and can deduct from their taxes the value of donated food equal to the basis of donated items plus one-half the fair market value, or two times the basis, whichever is less. The Joint Committee on Taxation estimates that more than $250 million in new food will be donated for food banks and other charities through this change. This is a great step forward to help ensure that our food banks have enough food available to meet growing requests for assistance....

MORE

[mom cat]

1. Thank goodness for the perseverence of Second Harvest!

:toast::applause::toast:

[jrd200x]

2. GOP must be REALLY desperate!

They loathe this type of bill. I guess they really are scared of losing!

[theHandpuppet]

3. Does anyone know how we can find out how the voting went?

I'm just curious.

[chill_wind]

5. Passed as Part of H.R.4 , package is part of pension reform bill

As I understand it.

A couple summaries:

Charitable Giving Incentives. H.R. 4 contains seven separate giving incentives, all of which would run through the end of 2007. These incentives, according to a summary prepared by House Ways and Means Committee staff, include:

* Tax-Free Distributions from IRAs for Charitable Purposes. The IRA "rollover" provides an exclusion from gross income for certain distributions of up to $100,000 from a traditional individual retirement account (IRA) or a Roth IRA, which would otherwise be included in income. To qualify, the charitable distribution must be made to a tax-exempt organization to which deductible contributions can be made.

* Contributions of Food Inventory. For donations of food inventory, the provision extends an enhanced deduction for all trades and businesses.

* Certain Payments to Controlling Exempt Organizations. Under current law, rent, royalty, annuity, and interest income paid to a tax-exempt organization by a controlled taxable subsidiary is generally treated as unrelated business income, which is taxable to the tax-exempt parent organization. The provision provides that payments received or accrued by certain exempt parents from taxable controlled subsidiaries will not be treated as unrelated business taxable income.

* Qualified Conservation Contributions. The provision raises the charitable deduction limit from 30 percent of adjusted gross income to 50 percent of adjusted gross income for qualified conservation contributions, provided that such contribution does not prevent the use of the donated land for farming or ranching purposes. The charitable deduction limit is raised to 100 percent of adjusted gross income for eligible farmers and ranchers.


more:
http://www.guidestar.org/news/features/charity_reform_aug06.jsp

another summary here:
http://www.501cstrategies.com/blog/

________________________________________________


House Vote

H R 4 RECORDED VOTE 28-Jul-2006 11:34 PM
QUESTION: On Passage
BILL TITLE: Pension Protection Act

FINAL VOTE RESULTS FOR ROLL CALL 422
(Republicans in roman; Democrats in italic; Independents underlined)

(see link)

Ayes Noes PRES NV
Republican 203 16 12
Democratic 76 114 1 10
Independent 1
TOTALS 279 131 1 22


---- AYES 279 ---

Ackerman
Aderholt
Akin
Alexander
Bachus
Baker
Barrett (SC)
Barrow
Bartlett (MD)
Bass
Bean
Beauprez
Berry
Biggert
Bilbray
Bishop (GA)
Bishop (UT)
Blackburn
Blumenauer
Blunt
Boehner
Bonner
Bono
Boozman
Boren
Boswell
Boucher
Boustany
Boyd
Bradley (NH)
Brown (SC)
Brown-Waite, Ginny
Burton (IN)
Butterfield
Calvert
Camp (MI)
Campbell (CA)
Cannon
Cantor
Capito
Cardoza
Case
Castle
Chabot
Chandler
Chocola
Clay
Cleaver
Clyburn
Cole (OK)
Conyers
Cooper
Costa
Cramer
Crenshaw
Crowley
Cubin
Cuellar
Davis (AL)
Davis (KY)
Davis (TN)
Davis, Tom
DeFazio
Delahunt
Dent
Diaz-Balart, L.
Diaz-Balart, M.
Dicks
Dingell
Doolittle
Drake
Dreier
Duncan
Ehlers
Emanuel
Emerson
Engel
English (PA)
Everett
Feeney
Ferguson
Fitzpatrick (PA)
Foley
Forbes
Ford
Fortenberry
Fossella
Foxx
Franks (AZ)
Frelinghuysen
Gallegly
Garrett (NJ)
Gerlach
Gibbons
Gilchrest
Gillmor
Gingrey
Goode
Goodlatte
Granger
Graves
Green (WI)
Gutknecht
Harman
Harris
Hart
Hastert
Hastings (WA)
Hayes
Hayworth
Hefley
Herger
Herseth
Higgins
Hobson
Hoekstra
Hooley
Hostettler
Hulshof
Hunter
Hyde
Inglis (SC)
Israel
Issa
Jefferson
Jenkins
Jindal
Johnson (CT)
Johnson (IL)
Kaptur
Keller
Kelly
Kennedy (MN)
Kildee
Kilpatrick (MI)
Kind
King (IA)
King (NY)
Kingston
Kirk
Kline
Knollenberg
Kolbe
Kuhl (NY)
LaHood
Latham
LaTourette
Leach
Levin
Lewis (CA)
Lewis (KY)
Lipinski
LoBiondo
Lucas
Lungren, Daniel E.
Lynch
Mack
Manzullo
Marchant
Marshall
Matheson
Matsui
McCarthy
McCollum (MN)
McCotter
McCrery
McHenry
McHugh
McIntyre
McKeon
McMorris
Meek (FL)
Meeks (NY)
Melancon
Mica
Miller (FL)
Miller (MI)
Miller, Gary
Moore (KS)
Moran (KS)
Murphy
Musgrave
Myrick
Ney
Norwood
Nunes
Nussle
Oberstar
Osborne
Otter
Pearce
Pence
Peterson (MN)
Peterson (PA)
Petri
Pickering
Pitts
Platts
Pombo
Porter
Price (GA)
Pryce (OH)
Putnam
Radanovich
Rahall
Ramstad
Regula
Rehberg
Reichert
Renzi
Reynolds
Rogers (AL)
Rogers (KY)
Rogers (MI)
Rohrabacher
Ros-Lehtinen
Ross
Rothman
Royce
Ruppersberger
Rush
Ryan (WI)
Ryun (KS)
Sabo
Saxton
Schmidt
Schwarz (MI)
Scott (GA)
Sensenbrenner
Sessions
Shadegg
Shaw
Shays
Sherwood
Shimkus
Shuster
Simmons
Simpson
Skelton
Smith (NJ)
Smith (TX)
Sodrel
Souder
Stearns
Strickland
Stupak
Sullivan
Sweeney
Tancredo
Tanner
Tauscher
Taylor (NC)
Terry
Thomas
Thompson (CA)
Thompson (MS)
Tiahrt
Tiberi
Towns
Turner
Udall (CO)
Upton
Velázquez
Walden (OR)
Walsh
Wamp
Weldon (FL)
Weldon (PA)
Weller
Westmoreland
Whitfield
Wicker
Wilson (NM)
Wilson (SC)
Wolf
Wu
Wynn
Young (AK)
Young (FL)

---- NOES 131 ---

Abercrombie
Allen
Andrews
Baldwin
Barton (TX)
Becerra
Berkley
Berman
Bishop (NY)
Bonilla
Brady (PA)
Brady (TX)
Brown (OH)
Brown, Corrine
Burgess
Capps
Capuano
Cardin
Carnahan
Carter
Conaway
Costello
Culberson
Cummings
Davis (CA)
Davis (FL)
Davis (IL)
DeGette
DeLauro
Doggett
Doyle
Edwards
Eshoo
Etheridge
Farr
Fattah
Filner
Flake
Frank (MA)
Gonzalez
Green, Al
Green, Gene
Grijalva
Gutierrez
Hall
Hastings (FL)
Hensarling
Hinchey
Hinojosa
Holden
Holt
Honda
Hoyer
Inslee
Jackson (IL)
Jackson-Lee (TX)
Johnson, E. B.
Johnson, Sam
Jones (OH)
Kanjorski
Kennedy (RI)
Kucinich
Langevin
Lantos
Larsen (WA)
Larson (CT)
Lee
Lofgren, Zoe
Lowey
Maloney
Markey
McCaul (TX)
McDermott
McGovern
McNulty
Michaud
Millender-McDonald
Miller (NC)
Miller, George
Mollohan
Moore (WI)
Moran (VA)
Murtha
Nadler
Napolitano
Neal (MA)
Neugebauer
Obey
Olver
Ortiz
Owens
Pallone
Pascrell
Pastor
Paul
Pelosi
Poe
Pomeroy
Price (NC)
Rangel
Reyes
Roybal-Allard
Ryan (OH)
Sánchez, Linda T.
Sanchez, Loretta
Sanders
Schakowsky
Schiff
Schwartz (PA)
Scott (VA)
Serrano
Sherman
Slaughter
Smith (WA)
Snyder
Solis
Spratt
Taylor (MS)
Thornberry
Tierney
Udall (NM)
Van Hollen
Visclosky
Wasserman Schultz
Waters
Watson
Watt
Waxman
Weiner
Wexler
Woolsey

---- ANSWERED “PRESENT” 1 ---

Baird

---- NOT VOTING 22 ---

Baca
Bilirakis
Boehlert
Buyer
Carson
Coble
Davis, Jo Ann
Deal (GA)
Evans
Gohmert
Gordon
Istook
Jones (NC)
Lewis (GA)
Linder
McKinney
Meehan
Northup
Oxley
Payne
Salazar
Stark

Senate Vote

Grouped By Vote Position
YEAs ---93
Akaka (D-HI)
Alexander (R-TN)
Allard (R-CO)
Allen (R-VA)
Bayh (D-IN)
Bennett (R-UT)
Biden (D-DE)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Bond (R-MO)
Brownback (R-KS)
Bunning (R-KY)
Burns (R-MT)
Byrd (D-WV)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Carper (D-DE)
Chafee (R-RI)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Clinton (D-NY)
Cochran (R-MS)
Coleman (R-MN)
Collins (R-ME)
Conrad (D-ND)
Craig (R-ID)
Crapo (R-ID)
Dayton (D-MN)
DeMint (R-SC)
DeWine (R-OH)
Dodd (D-CT)
Dole (R-NC)
Domenici (R-NM)
Dorgan (D-ND)
Durbin (D-IL)
Ensign (R-NV)
Enzi (R-WY)
Feinstein (D-CA)
Frist (R-TN)
Graham (R-SC)
Grassley (R-IA)
Gregg (R-NH)
Hagel (R-NE)
Harkin (D-IA)
Hatch (R-UT)
Hutchison (R-TX)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Inouye (D-HI)
Isakson (R-GA)
Jeffords (I-VT)
Johnson (D-SD)
Kennedy (D-MA)
Kerry (D-MA)
Kohl (D-WI)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Landrieu (D-LA)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Lincoln (D-AR)
Lott (R-MS)
Lugar (R-IN)
Martinez (R-FL)
McCain (R-AZ)
McConnell (R-KY)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Mikulski (D-MD)
Murkowski (R-AK)
Murray (D-WA)
Nelson (D-FL)
Nelson (D-NE)
Obama (D-IL)
Pryor (D-AR)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Roberts (R-KS)
Rockefeller (D-WV)
Salazar (D-CO)
Santorum (R-PA)
Sarbanes (D-MD)
Schumer (D-NY)
Sessions (R-AL)
Shelby (R-AL)
Smith (R-OR)
Snowe (R-ME)
Specter (R-PA)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Stevens (R-AK)
Sununu (R-NH)
Talent (R-MO)
Thomas (R-WY)
Thune (R-SD)
Vitter (R-LA)
Voinovich (R-OH)
Warner (R-VA)
Wyden (D-OR)


NAYs ---5

Boxer (D-CA)
Burr (R-NC)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Feingold (D-WI)

Not Voting - 2
Baucus (D-MT)
Lieberman (D-CT)

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=2&vote=00230#top

[theHandpuppet]

7. Thanks very much for the info and links

I'm troubled by the fact that the majority of Dems voted against this package, which tells me there was something untoward in that Pension Reform Bill. Is this comparable, tactic-wise, in the way the GOP tacked on the estate tax clause onto a bill which would have raised the minimum wage?

[chill_wind]

8. Most welcome.

Sorry, I know little about this beyond what I've found just yet.

[ThomCat]

4. I hope that's enough to feed all the people in the US who

need foodbanks.

[chill_wind]

6. K&R nt