National Campaign for a Peace Tax Fund Report

Steve Ratzlaff, Mennonite Church USA representative and Board chairperson

The board of NCPTF met May 12-13, 2005 at the NCPTF offices in Washington, DC. The Executive Committee met on Thursday evening to plan for the board meetings. The board spent a good deal of time strategizing for the next few years. The new bill, HR2631 was introduced in the House on May 25 by Rep. John Lewis (GA) with 35 co-sponsors. The bill has not been introduced into the Senate as of yet. We are waiting until we have two Republican Senators who will co-sponsor.

The board heard reports from Executive Director, Marian Franz, and Research & Development Director, Tim Godshall. Both informed the board that they are cutting back on the time they will offer to NCPTF. Marian will move to half-time after the November board meetings and Tim will be leaving the agency at the same time. Marian's job description will be reworked and will include lobbying for the bill as well as some fund-raising. We will begin to advertise for a new Executive Director some time this summer. Tim will be moving on to some other interests. We will miss Tim and his hard work and expertise. Marian's expertise will still be present albeit on a smaller scale, but this is a shift of some magnitude for NCPTF.

A new strategy is emerging in our efforts to have the Religious Freedom Peace Tax Fund (RFPTF) legislation passed. On June 9, the New York City Council will be holding hearings on a resolution to support the RFPTF. Councilman Bill Perkins has been instrumental in bringing this measure to the Council. It is hoped that what has been done in New York City might be replicated in cities throughout the country. The NYC resolution has already brought several of the Representatives from New York on board as co-sponsors of the RFPTF bill. The board feels this is a new and energizing strategy which might prove effective in bringing pressure on other state's representatives to support the bill as well.

Another drive is beginning in the state of Rhode Island. Natalie Merrill has been hired on a part-time basis to coordinate a series of educational events in Rhode Island that will highlight the RFPTF and raise support for the bill with that state's Senate and House representatives. She will be working on events in Providence and other places which will galvanize supporters of the bill to put pressure on their political representatives to support the bill. The events are in the planning stages and will culminate sometime in October and November. Already, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., is willing to be of assistance in this process. We are encouraged by this effort and are hopeful that it will lead to greater support for the RFPTF legislation.

Marian and I will be hosting two workshops at the Mennonite Church USA Assembly in Charlotte, NC, this July. We will be joined by a Canadian representative from the peace section of the Canadian Mennonite Church a well.

As you can see, NCPTF is in the beginning stages of a major shift in strategy and in staff. The board has been energized by the various regional developments but are also aware that we need to find qualified staff replacements to continue. That will be the primary objective in the next sixnths along with the Rhode Island initiative. We are also committed to finding adequate resources to staff NCPTF for the next few years. We also spent some time talking about how we frame the bill and how it is perceived by others. It was helpful for us to look at the "framing" of our task and this will affect how we go about it in the future.

Another recent development is in our website. We have partnered with Democracy in Action ( a web server) to help us be able to take donations on line a well as to allow visitors to our website to click on an option to send an e-mail latter to their representatives in support of the RFPTF legislation. We feel that in the long run, this will make us much more effective in our lobbying and fund-raising efforts.

I continue to serve as the Chairperson of the Board and am grateful to Mennonite Church USA for the continued travel support which enables me to represent MC USA in this endeavor. It is with your support and others that we are able to continue to witness to the rights of conscience and religious freedom that Mennonites have adhered to for many decades.