Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger
In November, I wrote a post titled State Policy Network (SPN)—The “PR Firm” for ALEC and a Right-Wing Agenda. According to the Center for Media and Democracy, SPN “is funded largely by global corporations and by groups and foundations associated with conservative billionaires David and Charles Koch.” Journalist Jane Mayer provided a good description of SPN in her article Is IKEA the New Model for the Conservative Movement?—which appeared in The New Yorker this past November.
Mayer:
In every state in the country, there is at least one ostensibly independent “free-market” think tank that is part of something called the State Policy Network— there are sixty-four in all, ranging from the Pelican Institute, in Louisiana, to the Freedom Foundation, in Washington State. According to a new investigative report by the Center for Media and Democracy, a liberal watchdog group, however, the think tanks are less free actors than a coördinated collection of corporate front groups—branch stores, so to speak—funded and steered by cash from undisclosed conservative and corporate players. Although the think tanks have largely operated under the radar, the cumulative enterprise is impressively large, according to the report. In 2011, the network funnelled seventy-nine million dollars into promoting conservative policies at the state level.
The Guardian newspaper has dug up more information about the workings of SPN…and its plans for 2014. The paper published an article on the subject entitled State conservative groups plan US-wide assault on education, health and tax just last week. According to Ed Pilkington and Suzanne Goldenberg, the authors of the article, SPN and its affiliated conservative groups/”think tanks” are planning “a co-ordinated assault against public sector rights and services in the key areas of education, healthcare, income tax, workers’ compensation and the environment…”
Pilkington and Goldenberg:
The strategy for the state-level organisations, which describe themselves as “free-market thinktanks”, includes proposals from six different states for cuts in public sector pensions, campaigns to reduce the wages of government workers and eliminate income taxes, school voucher schemes to counter public education, opposition to Medicaid, and a campaign against regional efforts to combat greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change.
According to Pilkington and Goldenberg, documents obtained by The Guardian “contain 40 funding proposals” from groups affiliated with SPN in 34 states that provide “a blueprint for the conservative agenda in 2014.” They said their paper partnered with the Texas Observer and the Portland Press Herald in Maine to publish the summary of SPN’s proposals for the coming year in order “to give readers and news outlets full and fair access to state-by-state conservative plans that could have significant impact throughout the US, and to allow the public to reach its own conclusions about whether these activities comply with the spirit of non-profit tax-exempt charities.”
Most of the conservative “think tanks” working in collaboration with SPN “are constituted as 501(c)(3) charities that are exempt from tax by the Internal Revenue Service.” Such groups are “subject to strict restrictions on the amount of lobbying they are allowed to perform.” It was reported, however, that some of “the grant bids contained in the Guardian documents propose the launch of ‘media campaigns’ aimed at changing state laws and policies, or refer to ‘advancing model legislation’ and ‘candidate briefings’, in ways that arguably cross the line into lobbying.”
SPN gathered the grant proposals—monetary requests ranging in size from $25,000 to $65,000—from the 34 states in late July. The requests were then “submitted for funding to the Searle Freedom Trust…” Pilkington and Goldenberg said that the documents show that SPN’s link to Searle was Stephen Moore. (Moore happens to be an editorial writer for the Wall Street Journal.) They added that Moore, “who advises Searle on its grant-giving activities, was asked by SPN to rank the proposals in two halves – a ‘top 20’ and ‘bottom 20’.”
Moore claims that he serves as an “unpaid adviser” to the Searle Foundation…and that he has been a lifetime friend of Dan Searle. He also said that “the grant decisions were made by Searle’s sons and grandsons based upon the late businessman’s ‘commitment to the advancement of free enterprise and individual rights’.”
(Link to a document provided by The Guardian—State Policy Network: Searle Tax and Budget Grant Proposals)
Pilkington and Goldenberg claim, however, that the “proposals in the grant bids contained in the Guardian documents go beyond a commitment to free enterprise…” They provided examples of the submitted proposals:
• “reforms” to public employee pensions raised by SPN thinktanks in Arizona, Colorado, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey and Pennsylvania;
• tax elimination or reduction schemes in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Maryland, Nebraska and New York;
• an education voucher system to promote private and home schooling in Florida;
• campaigns against worker and union rights in Delaware and Nevada;
• opposition to Medicaid in Georgia, North Carolina and Utah.
Kenneth Quinnell (AFL-CIO) wrote, that depending upon which 20 proposals Searle chooses to fund, there were “12 ways that SPN could assault the rights of working families in 2014.” Here are some of the examples Quinnell provided:
1. Alabama Policy Institute: Requested $25,725 to fund the “spark plug” for eliminating the state income tax. Such a plan would lead to the cutting of services for working families. (Also requested for tax cuts or elimination: Advance Arkansas Institute, $35,000; Georgia Public Policy Foundation, $40,000; Nebraska’s Platte Institute for Economic Research, $25,000; New Mexico’s Rio Grande Foundation, $30,000; Ohio’s Buckeye Institute for Public Policy Solutions, $40,000; and Opportunity Ohio, $35,000).
2. Delaware’s Caesar Rodney Institute: Requested $36,000 to fund strategies to repeal the state’s prevailing wage law, which would lower wages for working families.
3. Florida’s James Madison Institute: Requested $40,000 to fund efforts to promote vouchers (which they call Education Savings Accounts), which would reduce funding for public schools. Lower public education funding would lead to worsening student performance and teacher layoffs. (Also requested on this topic: Oregon’s Cascade Policy Institute, $40,000.)
4. Georgia Center for Opportunity: Requested $65,000 to fund opposition to Medicaid expansion, which would mean fewer residents have health care. (Also requested on this same topic: North Carolina’s J.W. Pope Civitas Institute, $46,500; Texas Public Policy Foundation, $40,000; Utah’s Sutherland Institute, $50,000.)
5. Illinois Policy Institute: Requested $40,000 to fight to change Chicago’s public employee pension system to a defined-contribution plan, which would mean less retirement security for working families. (Also requested on cutting public employee pensions: Arizona’s Goldwater Institute for Public Policy, $40,000; Minnesota’s Center of the American Experiment, $40,000; Missouri’s Show-Me Institute, $25,000; Pennsylvania’s Commonwealth Foundation, $35,500.)
6. Maryland Public Policy Institute: Requested $40,000 to push for cuts in corporate tax rates, which would lead to the cutting of services for working families.
Lisa Graves is the executive director of the Center for Media & Democracy, an organization that “has tracked the work of the State Policy Network”—as well as the workings of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). When speaking to The Guardian, Graves said that “such groups are betraying the communities they claim to represent by introducing ‘model legislation’ that undoubtedly are designed to serve the interests of large corporations and the wealthy.” She continued, “They appear to be advocating purely local interests but what they are promoting is part of a larger national template to radically remake our government in a way that undermines public institutions and the rights of workers.”
The difference between 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) organizations (From New Jersey On-Line)
According to the Internal Revenue Service Code, 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) organizations are nonprofit organizations that are exempt from paying federal income tax. 501(c)(3) organizations are either a public charity, private foundation or private operating foundation with open membership whereas 501(c)(4) organizations are civic leagues or associations operated exclusively for the promotion of social welfare or local associations of employees with limited membership.
When it comes to lobbying and political activity, 501(c)(3) organizations can appeal directly to legislative bodies and representatives and may support issue-based legislation. However, they must notify the IRS of their intent to lobby by filing form 5768, which formally informs the federal government that one has elected to use the expenditure test to have the organization’s lobbying activity measured. Under this test, lobbying capacity is typically limited to spending less than 5 to 20% of the organizational budget on lobbying activities, depending on the size of your organization.
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Have you reached a conclusion yet regarding whether or not the activities of the organizations/think tanks written about in this post comply with the spirit of non-profit tax-exempt charities?
SOURCES & FURTHER READING
State Policy Network—The “PR Firm” for ALEC and a Right-Wing Agenda (Jonathan Turley)
State conservative groups plan US-wide assault on education, health and tax (The Guardian)
The Money Behind the Fight to Undermine Medicaid: Documents show how a conservative think tank hinders expansion of health insurance in Texas. (Texas Observer)
New Rules Would Rein In Nonprofits’ Political Role (New York Times)
Guardian Documents Expose State Policy Network Groups’ Intent to Lobby (Center for Media and Democracy)
State Policy Network: The Stealth Network Dramatically Influencing State Law (Center for Media and Democracy)
Stink Tanks: State Policy Network Internal Budget Documents Revealed by The Guardian (Firedoglake)
Is IKEA the New Model for the Conservative Movement? (The New Yorker)
Here’s ALEC’s Plan To Bring Right Wing Policies To States Near You (Crooks and Liars)
12 Ways the State Policy Network Could Assault the Rights of Working Families in 2014 (AFL-CIO)
Washington County residents have mixed reactions to plan to eliminate taxes (Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram)
The difference between 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) organizations (New Jersey On-Line)
Treasury, IRS Will Issue Proposed Guidance For Tax-Exempt Social Welfare Organizations (U.S. Department of the Treasury
Elaine,
I read with interest that the RTW laws have not changed the way business is done n the state f Michigan……
gbk:
The radical right wing think tank “usurpation” of the progressive monoply in ideas at all levels in our society and in all of our institutions.
Bron,
“Elaine:
Why is this a problem?”
What is “this,” Bron?
Explain yourself. Or should the details of “this,” that, and the proverbial other need no further words?
You self-reference too much; break down your thoughts with the assumption that others might read them.
Bron,
What laws did The League for Industrial Democracy and the Fabian Society write???
Were these laws to the betterment of the people or the wealthy????
Why is it that the more socialist countries seem to be MORE competitive than the USA these days???? These countries rank HIGHER on every list including Best places to live…. work… wages more upward mobility?????
The difference that these countries have with the USA is that they ALL have higher taxes……
and yet, they still seem to either keep up rather well, or surpass the USA in EVERY level……
as for the ADA…. there are a few of those in the USA….
and those few are looked at as being Liberal….
If you mean Americans For Democratic Action????
They were born out of fighting for the LEAST Fortunate in the USA….
a part of society that was seriously marginalized….
Helped with the Civil Rights Act……
ALEC is hardly advocating for the AVERAGE American…..
They are not advocating for the betterment of ALL the people, or even marginalized people……
They are ONLY advocating for the Rich to get Richer off the backs of the average marginalized Americans……
ALEC is nothing but a GREED Tank…. It is ALL about Power…
NOT in any way to better the USA….. it is about making laws to make the wealthy MORE wealthy…..
They are NOT in any way a Champion of the Poor…..
and quite frankly, the wealthy have MORE than enough Champions in their corner…..
The Wealthy have always had a seat at the table….
Those Associations you listed were to help get the OTHER people to the table as well…….
Bron,
Where in the Constitution does it say that Income Taxes and NOT Constitutional????
Bron,
The courts seem to disagree with you on the constitutionality of the income tax. Think tanks and organizations actually writing legislation that harms main street are two different things.
good thing we have british newspapers. we’d never know what was going on here in the free market.
Elaine:
Why is this a problem?
Many of the programs instituted in the last century were not Constitutional to begin with. Starting with the income tax.
The left/progressives had the ADA, the The League for Industrial Democracy, the Fabian Society [in England and America] and many other “think” tanks promoting left wing progressive views and influencing our government.
About time for some sauce dont you think?
Not to worry though, they arent as “right” wing as you may think.
Platos Cave & Swarthmore mom,
I was doing research for a post about ALEC in addition to this one on SPN. Both groups work in tandem. Evidently, ALEC has lost a number of state legislators and corporations as members in the past two years because of its SYG model legislation.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/12/05/alec-spokesperson-retreats-after-ted-cruz-advises-stand-your-ground/ Thank you for keeping us informed about ALEC, Elaine.
ALEC is evil incarnate, its also trying to penalize homeowners with solar panels (big coal doesn’t like solar) http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/04/alec-freerider-homeowners-assault-clean-energy
Conservative Think Tank Network Plotting “Coordinated Assault” on Medicaid, Education, Workers’ Rights
—By Andy Kroll
| Thu Dec. 5, 2013
http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2013/12/state-policy-network-assault-worker-rights-medicaid
Excerpt:
As I’ve written before, SPN exists to help out its influential state-level affiliates around the country and to push conservative policies in state capitals. It’s enjoyed quite a lot of success lately: SPN members also played a role in the crackdown on workers’ rights in 2011 in Wisconsin, Ohio, Idaho, and Tennessee. A year ago this month, the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, an SPN member, rightly took credit for making Michigan the nation’s 24th right-to-work state. Months later, Dick DeVos, the Amway heir and onetime in Michigan gubernatorial candidate, used SPN’s annual conference as a chance to share his strategy with state-level allies itching for right-to-work in their states. The Guardian’s documents strongly suggest that conservatives are coordinating their attacks on unions, public employees, and government.
Like prominent liberal nonprofit groups, the State Policy Network appears to have plenty more planned for the near future. If you thought the 2011 fight over workers rights was intense, what’s coming next could be even fiercer.
Help. Comment in cyberspace
Question for the lawyers….
It seems to me that it is easy to make the case that these organizations are legitimately 501c4s or 501c3s and are therefore, (gag me) tax exempt. (They are not my “social ends” but god knows there are others who do believe these are good social ends.)
Lawyers….any chance that they are NOT tax exempt?
Graci, Elaine.
Press Release
December 5, 2013
http://www.aft.org/newspubs/press/2013/120513a.cfm
AFT President Weingarten on State Policy Network’s Agenda to Decimate Democratic and Economic Rights of Hardworking Americans
WASHINGTON— Statement of AFT President Randi Weingarten on the Guardian expose of the State Policy Network.
“These documents published by the Guardian uncover a deliberate, contrived, secretive effort to decimate the democratic and economic rights of hardworking Americans. Powered by well-heeled donors, the State Policy Network’s agenda seeks to further tip the scales against working families and the middle class—all in the service of maintaining the status quo of the austerity-laden, trickle-down economics we have today. It’s an agenda to starve our communities of resources, defund public education and advocate for vouchers and other opt-outs, decimate public services, and destroy and malign unions. And these coordinated efforts have all been made behind closed doors, undermining the democratic process.
“The Guardian expose also indicates there are more documents that the public has a right to see. The State Policy Network must no longer act in the shadows—it must disclose the rest of these documents.
“The American people deserve an agenda built on expanding the middle class, reclaiming the promise of public education, ensuring strong and vibrant public services and communities, and protecting and expanding the voice of workers—with public officials who are transparent and working on behalf of their communities.”
Great article Elaine. The Right has long advocated a take over via the individual states and ALEC is their bank. At the least they should be paying taxes and disclosing their donors.
The Southern Strategy of the GOP has new legs. From Lee Atwater to Ted Cruz.
The USA can NOT lower taxes any further without ending up
a Third World Country…. MORE so than it has already fallen to….
and allowing these corporations to write laws and policy is the Fox
running the Hen House…..
It is what makes the USA one of the MOST Corrupt 1st World Countries…..
and has made the USA less democratic…..
at what point do the people wake up????
This is just so depressing…
It’s like Whack-A-Mole…..except we face impossible odds that we can eliminate the “Moles”.
I do wonder about this new emphasis on SPN. Did ALEC become too well-known and now they are concentrating on SPN?