Charity Transparency Act of 2017

Charity Transparency Act of 2017

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to require tax-exempt organizations to disclose details regarding employees and board members involved in terror finance activities.

An organization applying for tax-exempt status must disclose in its application the names and addresses of any officer, director, trustee, or highly compensated employee who, at any time prior to the date of the application, was:

• a member or employee of an organization: (1) named on the Department of the Treasury's Designated Charities and Potential Fundraising Front Organizations for FTOs (Foreign Terrorist Organizations) list, or (2) with property that has been blocked pending investigation by Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control;
• an unindicted co-conspirator with respect to a terror finance scheme of an organization described above; or
• an employee of any charity found liable for civil damages due to an act of international terrorism.

In lieu of the disclosure, the organization may include a statement indicating that no officer, director, trustee, or highly compensated employee of the organization (or individual with similar powers and responsibilities) meets the criteria described above.

Tax-exempt organizations must also include either the required disclosure or the statement in annual tax returns filed after the enactment of this bill.