- (At left) Common Cause Advocate Phillip Ung told Capitol reporters earlier this year that California corporations? political spending outstrips labor unions? by a wide margin.
California Common Cause and the League of Women Voters during a Friday morning teleconference accused Americans for Responsible Leadership, an Arizona non-profit organization that has reportedly donated more than $11 million to the Small Business PAC that is underwriting the Pro-Proposition 32 campaign, of violating six-month old California campaign rules that require disclosure of donors when funds are earmarked for a specific purpose.
The organizations plan to file a complaint with the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) that could require the out-of-state non-profit under pressure of subpoena to produce documents showing who provided the funds.
Common Cause Vice President Derek Cressman sketched out for reporters a ?web? of intrigue that links donors including the Koch brothers to the donations that have been given by the out-of-state non-profit.
Phillip Ung, of Common Cause, said the California regulations enacted six months ago were designed to force disclosure of donors by out-of-state organizations that are seeking to influence California politics.
Common Cause is asserting that the Arizona non-profit corporation has also failed to meet corporate filing requirements of Arizona, let alone the new regulations in California.
Common Cause officials say they believe the filing will show that the corporation was a small organization with less than a million dollars but suddenly received an infusion of funds on the order of $200 million. The Arizona Corporation suddenly this week dropped $11 million into the Small Business Action Committee, which is the main source of funds for Proposition 32, the CTA-opposed Special Exemptions Act. ?Ung also told reporters that the Small Business Action Committee is also a major funder of the efforts to defeat Proposition 30, the governor?s revenue measure designed to fund schools and stave off some $6 billion in trigger cuts.
During the teleconference on last-minute out-of-state donations of $11 million, Ung called the donation the ?single largest, non-disclosed? donation from out of state?and the ?second largest donation? from an out of state organization.
Trudy Schafer, of the League of Women Voters, said she wanted to put the donation in the?context?of the campaigns right now. ?Common cause and the League are strongly no on 32.? It is ironic that the proponents of Prop. 32 are advertising it as an initiative stopping special?interests, but special interest money is being poured into California within three weeks of the election in support of it,? Schafer said.
These corporations would be ?untouched by Prop. 32,? Schafer said.? ?We?d like to see campaign reform but this is not campaign reform.?
Ung said disclosure of donation sources is vital so that voters can make informed choices. ?If you know the money [for an initiative] is coming from a Molly Munger or a Charles Munger, voters can take that into consideration.? When it?s coming from a black box, they can?t.?
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