ALEC drafts bills without regular democratic review and gets them passed into law by Republican legislatures. ALEC thrives on corporate donations.
"Exposing ALEC: How Conservative-Backed State Laws Are All Connected. A shadowy organization uses corporate contributions to sell prepackaged conservative bills -- such as Florida's Stand Your Ground statute -- to legislatures across the country." - The Atlantic
Corporations fund ALEC to get laws they want passed and regulations they don't like removed. What responsibility do corporations and their shareholders have when their donations are being used to destroy democracy and public trust in institutions? Should a group that lobbies for legislation be treated as a non-profit?
ALEC was behind the 'Stand Your Ground' bill that was behind Trayvon Martin's death. Now their voter suppression bills being adopted by Republicans across the country threaten to kill democracy.
To make sense of all the connections, and money changing hands, we created a relationship map with Kumu, a free app. This map can be freely shared with this link https://Dem-Labs.kumu.io/lost-your-vote or embedded in a website with this code. < iframe src="https://Dem-Labs.kumu.io/lost-your-vote" width="1024" height="576" frameborder="0">
The map includes images, videos, audio recording and cartoons. We've tried to make it comprehensive and include links to the different organizations. Please let us know of any new information that should be added or corrected. Thanks. Kumu relationship maps are dynamic and can be updated at any time with new information.
Voter suppression bills
"In a private meeting last month with big-money donors, the head of a top conservative group boasted that her outfit had crafted the new voter suppression law in Georgia and was doing the same with similar bills for Republican state legislators across the country.
“In some cases, we actually draft them for them,” she said, “or we have a sentinel on our behalf give them the model legislation so it has that grassroots, from-the-bottom-up type of vibe.” - Mother Jones
The groups and issues involved
What makes a non-profit?
"Common Cause asked the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in 2011 to investigate the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) for possibly violating its tax-exempt status. The request came one day after the Center for Media and Democracy unveiled "ALEC Exposed," a website uncovering more than 800 model bills created by the corporate-funded organization.
As a non-profit registered under section 501(c)(3) of the tax code, "no substantial part" of the American Legislative Exchange Council's activities can be spent on "attempting to influence legislation," the practice otherwise known as lobbying." - PR Watch