From: AlanBaggett@volcanomail.com   
      
   Canada Revenue Agency forbids Unitarians from working for justice: CRA SOTW   
      
   Tax auditors continue Harper-launched probe of religious charity under new   
   Liberal government   
      
   By Dean Beeby, CBC News   
      
   One of Canada's most venerable religious charities has been told by the Canada   
   Revenue Agency that it can no longer work for justice in the world.   
      
   Agency officials conducting a political activities audit on the Canadian   
   Unitarian Council said the broad statement in the council's bylaws is too   
   vague.   
   Canada Revenue Agency auditors have insisted the Canadian Unitarian Council   
   purge 'work for justice' from their bylaws, among other demands.   
      
   "Vague purposes are ambiguous and can be interpreted in many different ways,"   
   the agency said in a compliance letter, which includes other demands more than   
   a year after the audit was launched.   
      
   The Canadian Unitarian Council's bylaws were accepted by Industry Canada when   
   the Toronto-based charity submitted them for approval in 2013.   
      
   But the warning three years later from the CRA's auditors forced the group to   
   rewrite its bylaws at a May meeting in Vancouver, purging any reference to   
   "justice" or "social justice."   
      
      
   Expectations soured   
      
   "I have been extremely concerned about this audit process," the council's   
   executive director, Vyda Ng, said in an interview. "It started in January of   
   2015. We're in the middle of 2016. We're still in the process."   
      
   Many charities targeted by CRA's political activity audit program, begun in   
   2012 under the Stephen Harper government, had expected relief from the   
   Liberals, who campaigned on a promise to set charities "free from political   
   harassment."   
      
   Vyda Ng, executive director of the Canadian Unitarian Council, says the CRA's   
   continuing political activity audit of the charity has cost a lot of time and   
   money. (cuc.ca)   
      
   But those expectations soured in January when Revenue Minister Diane   
   Lebouthillier said the 24 political activity audits underway would continue   
   without interference from the new government. She also said notices of   
   revocation of charitable status issued    
   to another five groups would not be rescinded.   
      
   The only relief was that political activity audits set to begin on six   
   unidentified charities, and held in abeyance during last year's federal   
   election campaign, would be cancelled.      
      
   The Canadian Unitarian Council was a vocal critic of the Harper government —   
   raising objections to trade, pipeline and prison policies, for example — as   
   were many of the 60 charities targeted in the $13.4-million political   
   activities audit program.   
      
   The first wave of audits in 2012 hit environmental groups who had been   
   vilified by Conservative cabinet ministers for opposing the government's   
   energy policies. The net was later broadened to include poverty,   
   international-aid and human-rights    
   organizations.   
      
   'I do wish the government would stop these audits, like, right now.' - Vyda   
   Ng, executive director, Canadian Unitarian Council    
      
   The Canadian Unitarian Council has annual revenues of less than $1 million,   
   and in 2014 issued just $84,355 in receipts for tax deductible donations.   
   Legal costs for the CRA audit hit $38,000 in 2015, and continue to rise this   
   year.   
      
   "I do wish that the government would stop these audits, like, right now," said   
   Ng. "It has cost me many, many, many hours of work. … It has also cost us a   
   lot of money that we haven't budgeted for."   
      
   Ng declined to discuss other demands by CRA auditors, but said she expects the   
   process to be concluded by the end of July.   
      
   The group asked its law firm whether it could insert "promote justice and   
   human rights practices" to replace the forbidden "work for justice in the   
   world," but it was nixed.   
      
   Margaret Rao, head of the Canadian Unitarians for Social Justice, says the CRA   
   audit has been a 'royal pain.' (cusj.org)   
      
   "CRA could also find promoting human rights to be a political purpose which is   
   not allowed," said the firm Carters Professional Corp., which specializes in   
   charity law.   
      
   Margaret Rao, who heads a non-profit affiliate of the group, said: "We still   
   work for social justice; we just don't spell it out."   
      
   She calls the audit a "royal pain."   
      
   "There are repercussions of what was started during the Harper regime [that]   
   continue today," Rao said in an interview.   
      
   The CRA previously challenged the wording of the charitable purposes of at   
   least two other groups — Oxfam Canada and Credit Counselling Services of   
   Atlantic Canada Inc. Both were told they cannot work for the "prevention of   
   poverty," which is    
   considered political, but can "alleviate poverty," which is charitable.   
   Neither charity was subject to a political activity audit, though.   
      
   A spokeswoman for the CRA declined comment, citing confidentiality provisions   
   of the Income Tax Act that prevent the agency from even confirming whether or   
   not a charity is under audit.   
      
   But Jelica Zdero said that as of the end of June, there were 16    
   olitical-activity audits still underway.   
      
      
   6 given notice   
      
   Of 38 completed audits so far, only one found no problems. Six charities have   
   been given notice the agency intends to revoke their charitable status, one of   
   which – Environmental Defence – has self-identified and is appealing the   
   decision. At least    
   four of the others are also appealing.   
      
   In March this year, more than a dozen groups launched a letter-writing   
   campaign and petition to end the audits, saying the Liberals have failed to   
   deliver on their campaign promise.   
      
   Cathy Hawara, who set up the CRA's political activity audit program in 2012,   
   was recently promoted by the Liberal government. (pfc.ca)   
      
   But Lebouthillier says the CRA's Charities Directorate must operate   
   independently.   
      
   "I cannot and will not play a role in the selection of charity audits or in   
   the decisions relating to the outcomes of those audits," she said earlier this   
   year.   
   On June 6, the minister promoted the head of the Charities Directorate to   
   become a deputy assistant commissioner, working in the agency's legislative   
   policy and regulatory affairs branch.   
      
   Cathy Hawara, previously with the Privy Council Office under then Prime   
   minister Harper, had managed the political activities audit program since its   
   inception in the 2012 federal budget.   
      
   Follow @DeanBeeby on Twitter   
      
      
      
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