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U.S. Representatives Don Beyer (D-VA) and Terri Sewell (D-AL) today sought clarification on the authority behind the unlawful and unprecedented executive overreach targeting the United Institute of Peace (USIP), an independent, 501(c)(3) non-profit. In a letter to Loren J. Sciurba, the senior official in the Office of the Inspector General at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Representatives demanded an explanation on actions taken by the Trump administration, including the White House decision to fire USIP President George E. Moose and all but three of its board members without cause, the so-called Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) forcible entry into USIP headquarters, and the implications of those actions for the more than 232,000 other 501(c)(3) non-profits across the country.

Full text of the letter follows below, and a signed copy is available here.

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Dear Deputy Inspector General Sciurba:

I write to seek clarity on the brazen executive overreach applied to the United States Institute of Peace (USIP), a 501(c)(3) organization.

Founded by Ronald Reagan in 1984 through Public Law 98-525, USIP was chartered as an “independent nonprofit corporation,” and the legal entity that holds USIP’s funds is therefore organized as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit under federal tax law. Despite receiving federal funding from Congress for its essential work, USIP was specifically created as a private organization. Like the other more than 232,000 501(c)(3) organizations in the U.S., it is not a federal agency despite its work in the service of the American public – part of the broader nonprofit sector that accounts for nearly 13 million American jobs.

That private status is essential to not only USIP, but also to other nonprofits, who, like the American people and American businesses, are not subject to management by Presidential fiat. U.S. law (22 U.S. Code § 4603) lays out very limited authorities that the Executive and Congress may employ in engaging with USIP. Those authorities have not been followed.

Reporting indicates that on March 15, special government employees in the Executive Office of the President operating under the “Department of Government Efficiency” (“DOGE”) attempted to access the USIP headquarters with the help of Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents, but were appropriately turned away by the Institute’s counsel. Reporting also indicated that the White House fired the Institute’s president and all but three of its board members without cause. DOGE members returned and again demanded entry, which they eventually secured – allegedly “by force,” according to a USIP attorney. Those reported actions taken by this Administration are unlawful and a dangerous erosion of the privacy of a private organization.

Given the serious implications of DOGE’s recent actions in attempting to gain physical access to USIP property, please provide answers to the following questions:

1. Under what authority, and with the assistance of what federal, state, or local agencies or organizations, did DOGE representatives gain entry to the USIP headquarters on March 17, 2025?
2. Additionally, under what authority did DOGE representatives attempt to gain entry to the USIP headquarters two days earlier, on March 15, 2025?
1. Please share the specific instructions provided to FBI agents to support DOGE in attempting to access USIP property on March 15, 2025, as well as who made the decision to issue those instructions and under what authority.
3. Does DOGE assert similar authority to access the property and interference with the operations of other private, nonprofit organizations, including the more than 232,000 501(c)(3) charitable organizations in the United States?

Additionally, given the similarly serious implications of the Administration attempting to exert direct management over a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, please provide answers to the following questions:

1. Under what authority provided in 22 U.S. Code § 4603 were 11 Board Members fired?
1. For each fired Board Member, please provide the specific authority and the date the date that individual was fired.
2. Additionally, please provide the following information:

1. The date on which Kenneth Jackson was appointed Acting President by the Board of Directors.
2. A list of any Board meetings conducted between February 18, 2025 and March 17, 2025, along with any Federal Register notifications about those meetings.
3. A list of any votes conducted at those meetings, including in any closed portions of those meetings, with indications of which members were present and the vote record for each vote.

Sincerely,