American Legislative Exchange Council

From SourceWatch

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The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) was established in 1973 by Paul M. Weyrich of the Free Congress Foundation. It is a membership organisation of state legislators across the U.S. that drafts "model legislation" that is then often drafted into law.

ALEC is a conservative organisation that pushes legislation that favours big business and rollbacks environmental regulations. ALEC says that its membership exceeds 2,400 state legislators from both political parties, which is over 30 percent of all state lawmakers in America.

In 2002, two environmental groups, Defenders of Wildlife and the Natural Resources Defense Council, described ALEC as "corrosive, secretive and highly influential" and a "tax-exempt screen for major U.S. corporations and trade associations that use it to influence legislative activities at the state level."

1 Mission
2 Mainstreaming right wing causes
3 Tobacco industry involvement
4 Anti-environmentalism
5 Telecom fronting
6 Personnel
7 Funding
8 Contact information
9 SourceWatch resources
10 External links
- 10.1 References
- 10.2 Articles

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Mission

The mission statement of the organisation is to "promote the principles of federalism by developing and promoting policies that reflect the Jeffersonian principles that the powers of government are derived from, and assigned to, first the People, then the States, and finally the National Government."

To achieve this it aims to "enlist state legislators from all parties and members of the private sector who share ALEC's mission." [1]

In the words of ALEC's executive director, Sam Brunelli, "ALEC's goal is to ensure that these state legislators are so well informed, so well armed, that they can set the terms of the public policy debate, that they can change the agenda, that they can lead. This is the infrastructure that will reclaim the states for our movement." [2]

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Mainstreaming right wing causes

"When ALEC began, it comprised only a handful of right-wing legislators; by 1991, it had grown into a clearinghouse of information for 2,400 conservative officeholders in 50 states, almost one third of the 7,500 state legislators in the country. According to a representative of the National Council of State Legislatures, although ALEC has not substantially modified its right-wing position on what it considers to be its core issues, it has been successful in attracting more moderate legislative support by toning down its more extreme rhetoric.

William Bennett, Jack Kemp, John Sununu, and George W. Bush have all addressed ALEC sessions in recent years.

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Tobacco industry involvement

ALEC has a significant history as a tobacco industry ally. It has been an entity through which Philip Morris (PM) launders favors and donations to legislators.

ALEC was mentioned as an ally in a 1987-89 R.J. Reynolds strategic plan to help the company "create an atmosphere of tolerance and fairness in the public's attitude toward smoking and smokers." RJR proposed that ALEC would be a friendly legislative group who would have "the willingness to tell our story in such a manner that it becomes their position."[3]

In 1994, PM sought to leveraged ALEC as an ally in promoting what the company refers to as its "proactive programs" (programs designed to slow or stop legislated efforts to reduce smoking, particularly before they start). In one example, in 1994 PM worked to get ALEC to advance a resolution in favor of the company's Accommodation Program, a program it promoted nationally to restuarants and bars to delay or defuse legislated smoking restrictions.[4]

More recently, a 2001 internal PM presentation titled "LEGISLATORS, POLICY MAKERS & ALLIES 2001 PLANNING" discusses PM's need to expand alliances with public policy groups, and specifically mentions ALEC as a potential ally to help PM "sieze the initiative" (from health groups) and "reframe the debate" on the health hazards of secondhand smoke by changing the focus of the issue from health to "informed choice."[5]

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Anti-environmentalism

DOW and NRDC argue that ALEC plays a central role in reversing environmental legislation across the country: "ALEC is the corporate-funded pivotal point where this network--ranging from national organizations like the Heritage Foundation to state-based think tanks that comprise the State Policy Network--connects".

ALEC - which is in part funded by ExxonMobil - opposes any US action to implement the Kyoto Treaty on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. "States should reject every form of Kyoto legislation for the very same reasons as our leaders in Washington, D.C.," said Sandy Liddy Bourne, ALEC's Environment, Natural Resources, and Agriculture Task Force Director.[6]

In early 2003 ALEC also helped the hunting group, the U.S. Sportsman's Alliance draft model legislation - The Animal and Ecological Terrorism Act. ALEC has backed the bill and started to promote it to legislators in all 50 states. Versions of the proposed law have already been introduced in Texas in February 2003 and in New York in March 2003. [7]

At a May 2004 ALEC forum, industry groups proposed a "Biotechnology state uniformity resolution" that would, in effect, disallow communities from passing resolutions against genetically-engineered seeds, crops or animals. The ALEC proposal came in response to "resolutions opposing the unregulated use of" genetically-modified organisms passed by "close to 100 New England towns" and bans on genetically-engineered crops and livestock passed by "three California counties, Mendocino, Trinity and Marin."

Within a year's time, assisted by state Farm Bureau chapters and pro-industrial agriculture state legislators, "fifteen states ... introduced legislation removing local control of plants and seeds. Eleven of these states have already passed the provisions into law," according to Britt Bailey and Brian Tokar. [8]

In August 2005 George W. Bush spoke at annual conference of the American Legislative Exchange Council. Bush praised ALEC because of its "results-oriented nature". The role of government, Bush said, "is to create an environment in which the entrepreneurial spirit can flourish, in which dreamers can be -- realize big dreams". In his speech Bush said he was working to promote "safe, clean nuclear power" and the "wise" burning of coal "so that we can protect our environment."

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Telecom fronting

"In telecommunications and broadband (my main interests) ALEC’s private sector members include AT&T, BellSouth, the National Cable and Telecommunications Association, SBC Communications (now merged with AT&T), Sprint, Verizon Communications and more," wrote TeleTruth's Bruce Kushnick in November 2007. ^[1]

ALEC's model legislation on telecom issues includes the "Advanced Voice Services Availability Act of 2007," "Broadband Parity Act," "Cable and Video Competition Act," and the "Municipal Telecommunications Private Industry Safeguards Act." ^[1]

These "bills have been showing up in states to block municipalities from offering broadband, to give AT&T and Verizon statewide cable franchises with no restrictions, to wipe out public accountability and gut consumer protections. They would block competitors and eliminate as many regulations as they can get away with," Kushnick wrote. He gave the example of ALEC's broadband bill, which according to Muniwireless.com, would "make it easier for state legislatures to pass anti-municipal broadband laws." ^[1]

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Personnel

Staff (partial list)

Lori Roman - Executive Director
Mike Flynn - head of legislation and Policy
Alexandra Liddy Bourne - also known as Sandy Liddy Bourne
Christie Raniszewski Herrara - head of the health and human services task force (previously public affairs director for the James Madison Institute) [9]
Daniel Simmons - director of the national resources task force (previously a research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University) [10]
Andrew Schauder - director of federal affairs (previously an assistant to then-Attorney General Ashcroft) [11]

National Board of Directors: Officers:

Donald Ray Kennard Chairman - Louisiana Representative
Susan Wagle First Vice Chair -Kansas Senator
Senator Billy Hewes, III Second Vice Chairman -Mississippi
Earl Ehrhart Treasurer - Georgia Representative
Delores Mertz Secretary -Georgia Representative
Jim Dunlap, Immediate Past Chair - Oklahoma Senator

Private Enterprise Board, whose "officers" are:

Kurt L.Malmgren - PhRMA;
Jerry Watson - American Bail Coalition;
Scott Fisher - Altria Corporate Services, Inc.;
Pete Poynter - BellSouth Corporation;
Edward D. Failor, Sr - Iowans for Tax Relief;
Michael K.Morgan - Koch Industries, Inc;
Allan Auger - Coors Brewing Company;
Ronald F. Scheberle - Verizon Communications, Inc.

The members of the Private Enterprise Board include

Ken Ardoin - Pfizer Inc;
Walt Buchholtz - ExxonMobil;
John Del Giorno - GlaxoSmithKline;
C. T. Howell - Chlorine Chemistry Council;
Jeffery A. Lane - Procter & Gamble;
Kenneth F. Lane - Diageo;
Bernard F. McKay - Intuit Inc.;
Roger L. Mozingo - R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company;
J. Patrick Rooney - Golden Rule Insurance Company;
Alan Smith - Ohio Casualty Group;
Patrick Thomas - United Parcel Service

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Funding

In 2002 ALEC's budget was, according to its annual report, $5,025,388. According to Media Transparency ALEC has received 53 grants over the period 1985-2002 totally $2.836 million from a handful of conservative foundations. [12]

The foundations listed include:

Defenders of Wildife and NRDC reported that companies "like Enron, Amoco, Chevron, Shell, Texaco, Coors Brewing, Koch Industries, Nationwide Insurance, Pfizer, National Energy Group, Philip Morris, and R. J. Reynolds pay for essentially all of ALEC's expenses". Corporate membership fees are reported to range between $5,000 and $50,000 with additional fees of $1,500 to $5,000 a year to participate in ALEC's various task forces.

In 2002 , Exxon donated $193,200 to ALEC. [13] The following year this had jumped to $290,000, including $140,000 specifically earmarked for "global climate change" and a further $50,000 for "energy and climate change". [14]

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