Have the names of your contributors been illegally and publicly exposed by the Attorney General of California?

See for yourself. Here’s a 116-page list of organizations whose major contributors were “inadvertently” made public on the website of the California AG.

This is the third week in a row I’ve found it necessary to single out the threats to donor privacy from overzealous and incompetent government officials who seemingly could care less about the law and the U.S. Constitution.

Back to this in a moment.

First, our thanks to the many Agitator readers who passed along their thanks to key California legislators for killing the so-called “Warning Label” bill that would have required virtually every organization — in or out of California — to link their website donate pages and printed fundraising materials to the California Attorney General’s website.  [See Urgent Warning: Immediate Action Required and Victory Is Ours!]

Of course a number of readers wrote to warn that these sorts of victories never stay won. The battle is never over. And they’re absolutely right as this latest California invasion of donor privacy makes clear.

The Agitator  has warned time and time and time and time again, government and its armies of bureaucrats and regulators is an enemy of fundraisers. Period.

And, yes, if you’re confused because I don’t think government is benign, I’m an unabashed liberal.

But sure as hell I’m not one of those liberals who remain silent when the constitutional rights of my ideological opposites are being gored. When it comes to protecting the privacy of members and donors, all nonprofits should be fighting mad regardless of ideology.  Michael Moore and the Koch brothers. We’re all in this together.

Back to the case at hand. In August, 2015 we posted Urgent Alert to U.S. Nonprofits: Immediate Action Needed warning that Kamala Harris, the liberal Attorney General of California and now the Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, had launched a campaign against a right wing nonprofit that promotes limited government and market economics, attempting to compel it to turn over a list of its major donors in order to be legally registered as a charity in those states.

It happens that two of its most prominent donors are allegedly Charles and David Koch, the billionaire brothers who finance conservative and libertarian causes and spend heavily to promote Republican candidates.

Of course, I’m no fan of what the Koch brothers stand for, having spent my life battling the right wing politically. But, their nonprofit giving, according to the court filings by American for Prosperity, has subjected them to public threats and intimidation.

For details and a brilliant piece of reporting on this case, see Suzanne Perry’s piece in The Chronicle of Philanthropy.

According to Suzanne’s report:

“On Twitter: “Can someone assassinate [their] family already? What’s taking so long?” “Let’s drag [them] out and let the hangman do his deed so they can twist in the wind.” By email: “I hope both of them get cancer and suffer for years and then die.” “Please crawl back under whatever slime pit you crawled out of. I wish there was a ‘Hell’ in which you would burn for eternity.”

“Protesters have shown up at their houses and companies and hundreds surrounded the Washington Convention Center when the charity held a conference there in 2011, attempting to enter and accosting people as they left.”

And thus in a nutshell the importance of protecting donor anonymity and privacy. This time it’s the Koch brothers under attack and deserving of protection. But at other times it’s the risk of exposure and condemnation to donors to civil rights, gay rights and women’s rights causes. I remember well those ‘good old days’.

But I digress. What’s going on here is that California has taken Schedule B of the IRS’ Form 990, which under federal law may not be disclosed and posted it on the AG’s website. So much for Attorney General Harris’ — liberal or not — respect for the law.

So now, this whole mess has ended up in court, as well it should. And before Congressional committees, as well it should. At 17 organizations per page that was publicly exposed, that’s 1,972 organizations whose donors were exposed without either the donors’ or the organizations’ consent. Shameful. And illegal.

We’ll keep you posted on where it all this ends. Meanwhile, check out the 116-page listing of organizations whose donors’ privacy have been illegally violated — all for political expediency: CALIFORNIA DISCLOSURE.

I found one of my favorite organizations MoveOn.org on the list. What did you find?

Has your organization discussed or taken a stand on what it will do with your donor list when the government comes knocking?

Roger

P.S. The Agitator’s continuing thanks to Mark Fitzgibbons, is a long-time warrior on behalf of nonprofit constitutional and donor rights for keeping us posted on the legal details and status of this battle for donor privacy rights.

Mark is the  President of Corporate Affairs at American Target Advertising whose founder is direct mail pioneer Richard Viguerie. In the 40 years Richard and I’ve been battling each other ideologically and politically I think there’s only been one thing we’ve always agreed on: the importance of the Constitutional guarantees of free speech and due process unhampered by the meddling hands of officials who abuse their power in attempts to silence those with whom they disagree.

Richard, The Agitator is giving Mark an Agitator Raise. I know this will bring ironic joy to your black, right-wing heart.

P.P.S. For Agitator readers who want to understand and gain appreciation of the importance and history of protecting member and donor privacy — and the dangers of not doing so — treat yourself to a reading of this opinion of the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall in Brown v. Socialist Workers ’74 Campaign Committee.