Cross-posted to Blogging for Michigan.

Recommended:

REPORT: ALEC and the Extreme Right Wing (CPA 2001)

REPORT: ALEC A Big Business Agenda (Defenders 2002)

REPORT: Ghostwriting the Law for Corporate America (Justice.org 2010)

REPORT: Corporate America's Trojan Horse in the States: Untold Story Behind the ALEC (NRDC 2002)

SITES: ALECWatch.org - SourceWatch - Common Cause - Progressive States

ARTICLES: Ghostwriting the Law (Mother Jones 2002) - Outing Alec: The most powerful lobby you've never heard of. (American Prospect 2002) - ALEC Meets is Match: State Activists Are Learning How To Fight Back Against The Right's Powerhouse (Nation 2003) - What makes ALEC so Smart (Governing 2003) - Creating a Right-Wing Nation, State by State (Alternet 2005) - Big Political Player you’ve never heard of (Fortune 2011) - The Power Brokers Behind Health Care Repeal Legislation (Wash. Indep. 2010) - ALEC Behind Voter Disenfranchisement Efforts (Campus Progress 2011)

UPDATE: Michigan State Representative Tom McMillin Denies ALEC Membership at Townhall

UPDATE: WI Prof asked to hand over email by GOP immediately following blog on ALEC - Story going viral.

UPDATE: ALEC Issues Press Release "Setting the Record Straight - Much ado about nothing" - FULL Line by Line ANALYSIS

Let's begin...

While watching the events in anti-collective bargaining Wisconsin unfold, the story of the influence of the Koch Brothers (Charles G. Koch and David H. Koch) and Koch Foundations via their front groups, e.g. conservative think tank "Americans for Prosperity" came to national attention in a laser-like exposé.

What got our ATTENTION was THIS:

A report called "Buried in the Bill" from Milwaukee TV Station WTMJ 4 on February 21, 2011:



"Here's something you might not know. Buried inside Walker's 144-page budget repair bill are 10 lines. They don't directly deal with state workers, unions, or contracts. Still, controversy is already heating up over what it could mean for a couple of out-of-state billionaires."

(Break)

"… to save money, the Governor's controversial budget bill would allow the state to "sell any state-owned heating, cooling, and power plant or may contract with a private entity for the operation of any such plant, with or without the solicitation of bids."

Corruption in its purest form, but the questions were: 1) How did that happened? and 2) "Is Wisconsin Style GOP Corruption and ALEC manipulation in Michigan Budget Related Legislation too?"

You bet, BIG TIME.

There is no easy way to put this, and it’s a long story , but Michigan isn’t Wisconsin; Michigan is Way Worse off than Wisconsin.

What we have found so far in Michigan… and just getting started:

FOUR Smoking Guns have been quickly identified where ALEC and Corporate special interest influence are being used to right Michigan laws, THREE are suspected and being confirmed , and countless others inferred, including bills in the 35+ pieces of legislation currently being passed or debated concerning Governor Rick Snyder’s Executive Budget Proposal for the 2011-12 Michigan State Budget Supporting Legislation.

State Rep. Tom McMillin #1 and #3 – SMOKED OUT (Twice)

ALEC anti-Invasive Species Act Language – INVESTIGATING

State Senator Tom Casperson #2 – SMOKED OUT

State Senator Wayne Kuipers #4 – SMOKED OUT

Long List on Budget Legislation #5-8, maybe 9? – INVESTIGATING

This is not Reinventing, It’s Renting Michigan.

See Details in the ISSUES and AREA of INTEREST Section below.

Table of Contents (All things ALEC A to Z)

• How did this Investigation get started? Basics of Our Narrative

• What is the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)?

• Why should you (Michiganders) care?

• Who does ALEC represent and where do they get their funding?

• What do US/Foreign Corporations Pay to Play?

• How the American Legislative Exchange Council Works

• What is Model Legislation or a Model Act?

• ALEC is a Charity?

• What is the Scale of the ALEC influence? In Michigan?

• The Big Picture: ALEC Connections to CNP and others

• ALEC Issue (and with Michigan Examples)

o Healthcare

o Telecommunications

o Corrections and Criminal Justice

o Big Oil

o Environment

o Education

o Asbestos

o Right-to-Work

o State Taxes and Snyder’s Budget

• Michigan members of ALEC (Find ALEC members in your State)

This Mess is more than about just Unions, It’s the Whole Shooting Match:

ALEC manipulation in Past, Present and Future Legislation and Smoking Guns in Michigan Legislation

"GOP Governors Shift Burden To Poor, Middle Class To Pay For Tax Breaks For Rich, Corporations" by Josh Dorner on February 22, 2011:



Republican governors are using [recent election victories in 2010] as an opportunity to advance several longtime GOP projects: union busting, draconian cuts to social programs, and massive corporate tax breaks. These misplaced priorities mean that the poor and middle class will shoulder the burden of fiscal austerity, even as the rich and corporations are asked to contribute even less.

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When Republican governors speak of "shared sacrifice," it seems that the only thing they mean is sacrifices by the poor and middle class in order to fund massive tax breaks for the rich and corporations .



The Basics of Our Narrative

What Happened to 'I'm just a Bill on Capital Hill'?

The average citizen of Michigan has a very inadequate concept of how laws are made and for whom and by who state laws are introduced. From time to time certain major public concerns arise when there is a wave of public concern and a giant push to enact a law to deal with that immediate problem e.g. a Megan’s Law.

Most every session of the Michigan Legislature dozens of bills are introduced which suggest a change in the state’s governance, codes, or laws. Some bills, of course, address an immediate need for reform or prompt action as a remedy for a “hot button” problem or crisis. Many more bills are introduced to deal with housekeeping affairs. Each session a limited number of bills are designed by one faction, or partisan group to attack and alter the fortunes of the opposition. Finally, many bills are introduced to effect changes in the rules and regulations, taxation and allocation of tax monies as would bear on the operations of government, private individuals, law enforcement, public institutions, and business etc.

Years back a fledgling group of far right businessmen and ideologues began to comprehend the value of having direct and effective access to this process of state-by-state development, introduction, and passage of agendas into law. They formed A.L.E.C. - The American Legislative Exchange Council.

From "Ghostwriting the Law", Karen Olson, Mother Jones, Sept.Oct. 2002:



Republican Strategist Paul Weyrich, founded the Heritage Foundation in 1973 -- a think tank to promote the ideas of the New Right. Weyrich also founded ALEC, The American Legislative Exchange Council in 1973 to coordinate the work of Religious Right state legislators. ALEC initially positioned itself as a counterweight to liberal foundations and think tanks, focusing on social issues like abortion and the Equal Rights Amendment, but [ALEC] became a magnet for corporate lobbyists.

The origination and first thrust at the inception of ALEC dealt with ERA, abortion, and other specific social issues, but quickly moved on to a whole range of corporate driven agendas. There was a sizable group of wealthy conservatives who endowed this effort to put ALEC in place as a way to shape and direct legislation and pass laws friendly to their goals and with the specific aim of rolling back legislation they believe impedes their business operations.

The Heritage Foundation, created in the Era of Ronald Reagan, was having early success and Heritage’s early members saw that their creation of ALEC as a subgroup with a targeted task could be a valuable asset to put their ideologies and business goals into state laws . Because a number of the Heritage Foundation benefactors/underwriters were rich, money was not a limiting concern and their influence flourishes.

Not satisfied with the progress they saw as a result of their influence with federal officials and officeholders, ALEC has turned its attention more and more toward state government, which Newt Gingrich has identified as the “laboratory” for change. Currently, the coordinated thrust in Michigan and around the country is to pass legislation that impedes or cripples collective bargaining and attacks the level of income and benefits for public employees as a systematic way to cripple unions and any opposition, and to promote the interests of conservatives and big business in order to support Republican Party candidates for the 2012 National Election. Karl Rove has openly confirmed this game plan, enthusiastically. Michigan is one of the prime targets because of its history as the home of the UAW, and Wisconsin the birthplace of many reforms supporting the average worker employee in America, is in center stage of this National Republican Strategy.



Michigan’s Koch / ALEC Problem

Koch Foundations’ direct ties to Michigan” Mackinac Center and ALEC Dictated Michigan Legislation

While everybody is running around talking about Rick Snyder’s budget cuts and as the Governor is saying over and over “Michigan is not Wisconsin”, the real story is in the Michigan State House of Representatives and Michigan State Senate ; both now controlled by the now heavily Tea Party/Libertarian infiltrated Michigan Republican Party.

Ties with very powerful corporate special interests such as the Koch Brothers (Koch Industries and a list of Koch Foundations) are in Michigan too, and have been for years. Why Should Michiganders care?

Koch Foundations fund the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, and unless you have been hiding under a rock, that is the Heritage Foundation’s Michigan subsidiary closely and directly tied to the Amway Clan, Dick DeVos, failed candidate for Governor in 2006 and a long list of former Michigan Governor John Engler cronies.

Koch brothers and Heritage Foundation’s American Legislative Exchange Council have been deeply active in Legislation and their operatives have been around Michigan for years and there are scores of new bills and resolutions (maybe even Snyder executive orders influenced by ALEC activities) at work and being introduced in Michigan right now .

What is the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)? And why should you care?

"Ghostwriting the Law for Corporate America"

"ALEC is the ultimate smoke-filled back room: another opportunity for corporations to buy access and protect their profits at the expense of consumers."

- American Association for Justice President Anthony Tarricone May 2010

Methodically, ALEC marketing operatives and staffers present themselves to be to potential corporate customers (opps… 'charitable contributors' – keep reading) in the Official ALEC ‘Corporate Brochure’:



With nearly 2,000 members, ALEC is the nation’s largest nonpartisan, individual membership association of state legislators. Well over 100 ALEC members hold senior leadership positions in their state legislatures. ALEC’s alumni include almost 80 current members of Congress and sitting or former governors. ALEC’s goal is to ensure that each of its legislative members is fully armed with the information, research, and ideas they need to be an ally of the free-market system. One of ALEC’s greatest strengths is the public-private partnership. ALEC provides the private sector with an unparalleled opportunity to have its voice heard , and its perspective appreciated , by the legislative members.

Huh, business and corporations to be heard and appreciated? ‘Public-Private Partnership’ with backroom access in not enough?

Just as systematic and carefully coined, is the ALEC pitch made to State Legislators like this one recorded on February 24, 2011.

For many State Legislators, from both parties (85-90% are Republican in a count from 2002 and its’ now 95% or more Republican these days), ALEC is just a professional association for State Legislators to mix, mingle and munch cheese squares.

Legislators think they are joining an 'association of state legislators'. Some of them don't understand ALEC’s real mission, and when asked tend to say that ALEC is just a supportive and helpful organization to improve legislation for the public interest.

Not exactly, in "Ghostwriting the Law" by Karen Olsson of Mother Jones (September/October 2002 Issue) a much different role of ALEC was already clear:



Though it calls itself "the nation's largest bipartisan, individual membership association of state legislators," ALEC might better be described as one of the nation's most powerful -- and least known -- corporate lobbies . While other lobbyists focus on the federal government, ALEC gives business a direct hand in writing bills that are considered in state assemblies nationwide . Funded primarily by large corporations, industry groups, and conservative foundations -- including R.J. Reynolds, Koch Industries, and the American Petroleum Institute -- the group takes a chain-restaurant approach to public policy, supplying precooked McBills to state lawmakers. Since most legislators are in session only part of the year and often have no staff to do independent research, they're quick to swallow what ALEC serves up.

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…Critics charge that the group allows corporations to write public policy in secret. "Where we have trouble with ALEC is the fact that it operates in a very behind-the-scenes fashion," says Brad DeVries of the nonprofit Defenders of Wildlife. "It brings together some of the most powerful corporate interests to sit down and write legislation, which is then offered around the country without their fingerprints on it."

According to ALEC’s own Media Advertising Kit and ALEC Official History:

“Approximately 45 percent of ALEC members represent the private industry , nonprofits and public-policy organizations”

“Literally hundreds of dedicated ALEC members have worked together to create, develop, introduce and guide to enactment many of the cutting-edge, conservative policies that have now become the law in the states .”

Under the Heading “From Clearinghouses to Think Tanks”

“[‘Task Forces’ post-Reagan] began to actively solicit more input from private sector members, seizing upon ALEC's long-time philosophy that the private sector should be an ally rather than an adversary in developing sound public policy”

“ALEC's far-reaching national network of state legislators [Note - No mention of network of 45% corporate members] that crosses geographic and political boundaries, and affects all levels of government, is without equal. No other organization in America today can claim as many valuable assets - both people and ideas - that have influence on as many key decision-making centers .”

OTHER DESCRIPTIONS of ALEC, just a few from those watching ALEC:

One from Common Cause report "Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing: Telecom Industry Front Groups and Astroturf":



The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is one of the best-funded and most prolific industry front groups. With annual revenues in excess of $5 million, ALEC advances the agendas of its corporate backers in state legislatures all across the country.

People for the American Way, a progressive group calls ALEC:



"a right-wing public policy organization with strong ties to major corporations, trade associations and right-wing politicians" with an agenda that includes "challenging government restrictions on corporate pollution, limiting government regulations of commerce, privatizing public services, and representing the interests of the corporations that make up its supporters."

From the Trial Lawyers Analysis "ALEC in the House: How Corporate Bias Affects Criminal Justice Legislation" (2002):



ALEC is a Washington, D.C.-based public policy organization that supports conservative legislators. Launched in 1973 by Paul Weyrich (a founder of the ultra-conservative Heritage Foundation), ALEC exemplifies the cozy relationship between big business and politicians that so often results in pro-business, anti-human legislation.

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A chief function of the Council is to develop "model" legislative proposals that advance corporate-friendly principles – such as cutting government budgets, decreasing government regulatory authority, and privatizing government services. For example, this year in Oklahoma, a state with strong ALEC ties, the legislature put a right-to-work initiative on the ballot, and debated the elimination of its income tax. Both proposals were promoted as being essential in order to compete with it’s low tax, low wage neighbor – Texas. Here we clearly have a case of “we’re more pro-corporate than you."

More recent descriptions, this one from an observer of recent events in Wisconsin:



They are running government like a corporation. As you know in corporation the more 'shares' you own the more your vote counts. We are seeing this play out in Wisconsin, courtesy of the Koch family and their well funded think tanks like the American Legislative Exchange Council. ALEC has 'model legislation', i.e. prefabricated one-size-fits-all government policy in a box. They write the laws so your legislators don't have to. Corporate Government - no Assembly required. Just like Governor Walker's vision for Wisconsin.

The American Prospect and another very well-informed source in February 2011 stated the objectives and method of operation of ALEC most clearly:



American Legislative Exchange Council, often known as ALEC. ALEC takes the policy ideas of corporate-friendly think tanks, turns them into hundreds of "model legislation" bills, and then sponsors junkets which bring together state legislators (and often their families) with corporate executives and lobbyists to participate in meetings writing and advocating for ALEC's model legislation, share meals, enjoy cocktail parties and booze, and often play golf and engage in other recreational activities. "…ALEC has been active in sponsoring legislation to reign in the influence of unions at the state level, particularly public sector unions. ALEC has been successful in passing hundreds of state laws based exactly or closely on its model legislation. American Prospect magazine labeled ALEC " The Most Powerful lobby you've never heard of ."



Who does ALEC really represent and where do they get their funding?

Ferret out the State’s Koch Dealers and Corporate Dictaphones in Your State

Who are these corporations and associations, and how many are there? A bunch:



In truth, ALEC is a tax-exempt organization set up to help hundreds of big corporations and trade associations advance their legislative agendas in state capitals from coast to coast.

In MICHIGAN, out of the hundreds of corporations and associations funding ALEC, the Michigan based and significant presence in Michigan players include (partial list):

Amway / Alticor (of course), Amisure-Michigan Mutual, AT&T, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Chemical Banking Corporation, Chrysler, Comerica, Consumers Power, Detroit Edison (DTE Energy), Dow Chemical, GM, Ford, Koch Industries (WI), Michigan Consolidated Gas, Nestle USA, Sara Lee Corporation, SBC, Upjohn Corporation, Windway Foundation (WI) and doubtless many more.

Really wanted to add Blackwater USA/Xe, but not yet double sourced. However, ALEC does provide services to defense related companies and international affairs related legislation, but "been there already" and that is another whole topic.

See lists of Corporations identified in your state in a couple reports in 2007 HERE and in 2010 HERE.

How much does ALEC cost? What do US/Foreign Corporations Pay to Play?

A Rate of Return America’s Business Special Interests Can’t Resist

How much to members and corporate customers 'charitable contributors' pay ‘donate’ for ALEC services?

From "ALEC A Big Business Agenda" (Defenders 2002):



ALEC isn’t really a membership association of state legislators. Dues for lawmakers are just $25 a year. ALEC’s tax return for 2000 showed that it collected a total of $56,126 in ‘membership dues and assessments’ that year - less than one percent of its total revenues of nearly $5.7 [near $7 in 2010] million. ALEC reportedly has more than 300 corporate sponsors that pay annual membership fees ranging from $5,000 to $50,000 to be part of the action.

ALEC has a very interesting fee structure much like typical business marketing research and business services, for the basic fee and ALEC customers ‘donors’ get a specific number of “contacts on ALEC publications and policy papers” or what is commonly referred to the business world as “advisory services” like a day with an ‘advisor’ or expert in your area of interest or conference calls with authors of reports and model laws, resolutions and other legislation related materials.

Based on the amount ‘contributed’ a certain number of ‘seats’ granting access to ALEC databases and on-line resources, invitations and sponsorship opportunities for events, discount ‘advertising’ in publications, reserved seating at events and annual conferences and special invitations to the annual meeting “Board Reception” and “Board Dinner.”

State Legislators as members get access to ALEC content, benefits, and bags of SWAG (stuff we all get), and just simply gorgeous plagues, busts (of famous founding fathers naturally) and other expensive looking “Best Legislator” and other awards (look for those in your state capital and offices) for their dues-based membership as well.

See their publicly available corporate fees 'Membership Dues' schedule (or should they be called suggested tax-deductible charitable 'contributions'?).



99% of ALEC funding is from corporations and is tax deductible due to ALEC’s ‘charity’ classification, both US and foreign based, just over 1% is from the State Legislators who pay $25 per year for membership to this powerful ‘charity’ organization.

How the American Legislative Exchange Council Works

No State Assembly Required

One description in "Ghostwriting the Law for Corporate America" (Justice.org 2010):



The relationship between ALEC’s public and private sector members is simple and symbiotic: legislators receive vacations, dinners, and prepackaged model legislation that they can take home and introduce in their sessions without the burden of researching and writing, while corporations get open access to friendly legislators who are willing to act as corporate handmaidens to ensure that corporate perks keep rolling.

Events where State Legislators golf, while their ALEC Prepackaged State Legislation is prepared ‘insert verb’ from "The Secret World of ALEC's Hacks" by Jesse Zwick October 12 2010:



ALEC’s task forces are better known for crafting legislation that coincides, rather than conflicts, with the interests of its private-sector members. Famous for hosting lavish conferences for state legislators who possess no staff of their own, the group pampers lawmakers while providing them the opportunity to collaborate on legislation often previously researched and introduced by the policy shops of its corporate members. "Their conferences proceed in a very orchestrated manner with legislation that was effectively already designed before [state representatives] get there," noted Rodger Schlinkeisen, president of Defenders of Wildlife, an environmental group that has differed with ALEC on state legislative priorities in the past. "Representatives are having a good time, playing golf. There’s no heavy lifting on the legislative side so they don’t have to do much. The ALEC staff and industry reps hold their hand and out pops this model legislation with various corporate interests in mind."

What is Model Legislation or a Model Act?

Given the golf clubs, all the State Legislators Need to do is Swing

A basic definition of "Model Legislation":

A model act is a draft that is written with the intention of providing an example for legislation. A special interest group, a lawyers' conference, or a government agency may draft a model act. The goal is that the model act will be passed into law by local, state, or federal governments.

To be fair the use of 'models' for the formulation of legislation is a common practice these days, and groups across the political spectrum of America create their own goals and objectives for targeted issues and what remedies to a variety of problems should be made into law.

ALEC in its earlier days was more like the organization they say they are, just a place for state legislators to be ‘informed’ or ‘educated’. After all, the majority of the state legislative bodies in the US are not full time organizations with staffing budgets and support staffs like Michigan.

However in the early 1990's the nature of ALEC took a turn to the right into the hands of Corporate America, and the organization added a structure that made the complete takeover by business special interests possible. For the nine (now ten with new "Federal Relations" focused on active US Congressional "alumni") "Task Forces", ALEC took this "private-public partnership" in a new direction. See also Issues section below.

From an analysis of ALEC by Nick Penniman in the American Prospect "Outing Alec: The most powerful lobby you've never heard of." June 30, 2002:



ALEC specializes in nothing if not the intertwining of private and public power: Each of its issue-based "task forces" is co-chaired by a "public-sector chair" (a state legislator) and a "private-sector chair" (a corporate executive); similarly, the council has a "national board" of elected officials and a "private enterprise board" of business leaders.

By having CEOs within the task forces and working committees of ALEC, corporations were given the means to insure that those groups had the support of corporate membership legal staffs and resources, the engine that now drives the content of ALEC model legislation. This is when, some observers say, that ALEC became the ‘secretive’ backroom organization it is today. So who controls the final versions of legislation content the state legislators carry home with them and what do they do with it?

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker’s predecessor Former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson, a major force in ALEC’s rebirth as a corporate front, outlined the process, saying put it this way in back in 2010:



"I always found new ideas and then I’d take them back to Wisconsin, disguise them a little bit, and declare that it’s mine."

ALEC non-lobbyist staffers and paid charity volunteer experts then go to ‘testify’ in countless State Legislators across the country:



"[ALEC's] legislation is patterned after our language in 2008," [state Rep. Nancy Barto (R-Ariz.)] explained. "They called and asked about it, took our language and put it on their website as model legislation and saw we were getting real traction and started using it in their state conferences. In 2009, [ALEC HHS Task Force Director Christie] Herrera came and spoke at our Health and Human Services committee meeting in Arizona when we were moving the bill. She came and testified."

Preemptive Legislation is also one of the tools in the ALEC toolkit. One definition of this form of legislation from a group concerned with local control of food sources and environment, and the influx on generically designed seeds and species used by the corporate Agriculture or Agribusiness, describes it like this:

Preemption is a legislative action in which higher levels of government (state or federal) strip lower levels of government of their control and regulatory authority over a specific subject matter. Preemptive legislation’s sole purpose is to revoke local control and decision-making. The bills are sweeping in their effect. They do not just preempt local control of genetically modified organisms, but strip local authority of all seeds, and, in some cases, all plants including trees.

Many of these laws and language hidden within them do not come to light until some state legislator and concerned groups of citizens seek a change in their own states as was the case in Michigan with the issue of invasive species like the zebra muscle and Asian carp. See Environment issue example for Michigan below.

This preemptive form of ‘model legislation’ has become more and more prevalent in the ALEC arsenal. It allows business interests and associations to get in front of issues and potential regulation to keep a state from getting in their way to more profits. Much of the language is so well embedded, it takes local legislators and investigating citizens weeks to find out that they have already relinquished the control of making any changes they feel necessary in their state.

Shaky Legal Grounds can get Participating State Legislators in Big Trouble

Who’s a Lobbyist? We’re not lobbyists. We’re just corporate civil service Charity workers or __ (insert safe legal definition here) with a helping hand…

From the lawyers at the American Association for Justice (2010):



For an organization that is so intimately involved in drafting legislation and interacting with state legislators, it is surprising that ALEC denies being a lobbying group. As a charitable organization registered with the IRS 501(c)3 exempt status, ALEC must abide by strict guidelines.

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The IRS strictly regulates donations to charities. Groups that are registered as 501(c)3s are considered charities and contributions made to them are tax deductible for the donors. However, with this unique status come limitations on the ability of the organization to lobby or electioneer. The IRS has designated other nonprofit statuses for advocacy groups wishing to lobby and have more influence than 501(c)3 status allows. Contributions to these other types of 501(c) groups are not tax deductible . According to the IRS, "an organization will be regarded as attempting to influence legislation if it contacts, or urges the public to contact, members or employees of a legislative body for the purpose of proposing, supporting, or opposing legislation, or if the organization advocates the adoption or rejection of legislation." This definition appears to fit ALEC’s actions.

In MICHIGAN, since at least February 22, 2011, ALEC is an official Michigan government recognized 'licensed charity' according to the Michigan's latest Republican Attorney General Bill Schuette's office:



MICS 25847

American Legislative Exchange Council

1101 Vermont Ae, NW 11th Floor

Washington DC 20005

Phone: (202)466-3800

Expiration Date: 07/31/2011

Check your own State’s list of charities and see what you find, don’t forget to include your Heritage Foundation state-level think tanks.

View ALEC's "charity" rating at Charity Navigator, which shows they do not share Form 990 or other critical documents like a real ‘charity’ RATING = 49.01% (Low).

What is the Scale of the American Legislation Exchange Council’s influence?

Thousands of Model Acts and Legislation Served, Hundreds Made Law across the US

From "How much of your state’s legislation is being drafted by industry?":

The ALEC-inspired bills are then supported by heavily financed campaigns in target states , reinforced by relevant industry-backed Astroturf groups [Grassroots groups like the Tea Party], co-opted organizations, bogus think tanks, and PR and lobbying firms. The public and unsuspecting home state officials are frequently so overwhelmed with this propaganda blitz that ALEC has been able to claim numerous legislative victories for their ultimate clients, the corporations and industries whose fundamental goal is complete de-regulation of their businesses.

ALEC is now back in a full court press in the current Wisconsin battle, but they have been there low-profile for quite some time. Flipping back to "Wisconsin: A case study in how corporations get the legislation they want" by Bruce Kushnick January 31, 2008:

In Wisconsin as elsewhere, corporations write laws and control the public agenda to a great extent through a well-entrenched group of legislators and corporate money. But it’s not just a Wisconsin issue. ALEC has legislators all 50 states.

Here are just a few data points to give concerned citizens an idea of the number of model bills and enacted laws passed in which ALEC has been active any given year:

For 1999 and 2000:



… according to the council, members introduced more than 3,100 bills based on its models, passing 450 into law .

Given that ALEC claims to have successfully passed 200 bills into law in 2003, keeping tabs on the organization is a good way to get a handle on where the right will train its sights next.

When it comes to state policy, ALEC has clout. It claims it was behind more than 1,100 bills proposed in legislatures across the United States in 2004, 178 of which were enacted into law . Yet ALEC is little-known to the general public.

"The centerpiece of the [nine] Task Forces is ALEC’s model legislation. To date, ALEC has considered, written and approved hundreds of model bills, resolutions, and policy statements. Historically, during each legislative cycle, ALEC legislators introduce more than 1,000 pieces of legislation based on these models, approximately 17 percent of which are enacted ."

Historically , ALEC states in their literature to corporations (2009 version):

For last year in 2010, some watchers say more than 200 Laws were put into place , and ALEC representatives are now claiming 20% of their ‘model legislation’ became law. The truth is that the activity of ALEC is so prevalent across the country’s State capitols, real figures are nearly impossible for anyone, even ALEC’s own staff, to project.

The good news for activists investigating this issue: the ALEC content is so thoroughly embedded into the fabric of state level legislation, and involves so many (chiefly Republican state legislators), that just pulling a couple threads, as in this preliminary investigation and analysis, the leads will give anyone interested plenty of "text strings" and mentions to track in state legislative records, databases and other sources.

What some call the “Secret Society” for Corporate Cronies

ALEC push their Products out of the light of day and without Public Scrutiny

From a Nieman Watchdog piece on ALEC in 2007:



This [ALEC] cast of characters churns out corporate-friendly data. But the real action takes place when laws are passed based on this one-two sucker punch of skewed data and high-priced, propaganda-style marketing - a process to which the public is not invited. The drafting of proposed legislation is often a done deal before the public knows it has begun, much less has a chance for input.

Once of the ALEC radar and blacklist, retribution is swift. With all the efficiency of any nation states IC and resources, once a criticism or exposure of the true nature of ALEC activities, ALEC legal team is right there with a Smart-ALEC bomb.

ALEC’s Hot Buttons : Just use these terms “Secretive” and “Lobbyist”

Legal Disclaimer for ALEC Legal Team: The authors of this piece are not saying that ALEC is a “lobbyist” or “secretive”, but merely pointing out the documented fact that every time someone calls ALEC ‘secretive’ or a ‘lobbyist’, your team goes after them. No contributor or team member of this team is in the employ of any political party, media outlet, think tank / activist group, or lobbying (charitable) entity. – Solon Street pro bono Legal Advisor

A recent example is that of the National Public Radio story on ALEC relationships and connection with Arizona's controversial Immigration Law in Part 1 "Prison Economics Help Drive Ariz. Immigration Law" on October 28, 2010 and Part 2 "Shaping State Laws With Little Scrutiny" on October 29, 2010. Just a couple clips from this "weeks long” investigation by NPR:

NPR spent the past several months analyzing hundreds of pages of campaign finance reports, lobbying documents and corporate records. What they show is a quiet, behind-the-scenes effort to help draft and pass Arizona Senate Bill 1070 by an industry that stands to benefit from it: the private prison industry. The law could send hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants to prison in a way never done before. And it could mean hundreds of millions of dollars in profits to private prison companies responsible for housing them.

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Arizona State Sen. Russell Pearce… was instrumental in drafting the state's immigration law. He also sits on a American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) task force, a group that helped shape the law .

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It was last December [2009] at the Grand Hyatt in Washington, D.C. Inside, there was a meeting of a secretive group called the American Legislative Exchange Council. Insiders call it ALEC.

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In the conference room, the group decided they would turn the immigration idea into a model bill . They discussed and debated language. Then, they voted on it.

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Four months later, that model legislation became, almost word for word , Arizona's immigration law. They even named it. They called it the "Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act."

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As soon as Pearce's bill hit the Arizona statehouse floor in January, there were signs of ALEC's influence. Thirty-six co-sponsors jumped on, a number almost unheard of in the capitol. According to records obtained by NPR, two-thirds of them either went to that December meeting or are ALEC members.



Some story. - Well NPR investigators weren’t finished with it yet. The next day (Part 2):

When you walk into the offices of the American Legislative Exchange Council, it's hard to imagine it is the birthplace of a thousand pieces of legislation introduced in statehouses across the county.

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The difference between passing bills and "finding" them is lobbying . Most states define lobbying as pushing legislators to create or pass legislation. And that comes with rules. Companies typically have to disclose to the public what they are lobbying for, who's lobbying for them or how much they are spending on it. If ALEC's conferences were interpreted as lobbying, the group could lose its status as a non-profit. Corporations wouldn't be able to reap tax benefits from giving donations to the organization or write off those donations as a business expense. And legislators would have a hard time justifying attending a conference of lobbyists .

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Is it lobbying when private corporations pay money to sit in a room with state lawmakers to draft legislation that they then introduce back home? [ALEC Director] Bowman, a former lobbyist , says, "No, because we're not advocating any positions. We don't tell members to take these bills. We just expose best practices . All we're really doing is developing policies that are in model bill form ." So, for example, last December Arizona State Sen. Russell Pearce sat in a hotel conference room with representatives from the Corrections Corporation of America and several dozen others. The group voted on model legislation that was introduced into the Arizona legislature two months later, almost word for word .

Uh-oh, you nosy journalists. Why, my that just doesn’t sound right, does it? What the heck if going on at these events and such? And how to they get people to come, if they are so busy and short staffed in all those States with no budget?

NPR report continues:



But first ALEC has to get legislators to the conferences. The organization encourages state lawmakers to bring their families. Corporations sponsor golf tournaments on the side and throw parties at night.

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Videos and photos from one recent ALEC conference show banquets, open bar parties and baseball games - all hosted by corporations. Tax records show the group spent $138,000 to keep legislators' children entertained for the week.



The NPR guys missed the jet skiing…

"My but those safety regulations and restrictions on “all sports” lakes and bans on jet skiing wildlife refuges are meddlesome thing aren’t they? This is good clean, safe fun…wieeee."

But wait a second… Entertaining families and children….???

Seriously check this out. "ALEC Kid’s Congress Camp":



American Legislative Exchange Council can offer parents a safe and secure, child-pleasing and educational experience for their children (ages 6 months to 17 years). The children will be divided into groups for different age-appropriate activities. Junior Representatives (ages 6 months – 6 years), Representatives (ages 7 – 12 years), Senators (ages 13 – 17 years).

Wow, what a story huh? So you go to a conference at a posh resortish-type place in some sunny city or beach, get free drinks and parties, mingle with your fellow (almost entirely Republican) State Legislators, look at a few PowerPoints, page through boring model thingamajigs, and hear some corporate CEO guys, and VIP Republican guest speakers, like Newt Gingrich plotting to take over the world, and then….

… Hey, whadda say we let’s head out to the ball game, but looky-there… in the next seat over it’s a CEO from your home State… Gosh, isn’t that a nice surprise… flew in with his wife too, oh that’s just great. And after the game how about a couple drinks and a quiet chat ?

Find your State Legislators having a ball in 2009 and in 2010.

At the end of the conference/meeting/summit/evening you might even get this year’s "Best State Legislator of the Year" award. Get enough of those; they just might let you become a ‘non-lobbyist’ charity worker, too. Or better yet, how about being a Congressman, Senator, or maybe even a Governor?

The ALEC OFFICIAL RESPONSE to NPR came out in real-time, indicating that ALEC had suffered from this public media exposure, on October 29, 2010 entitled "TStatement from ALEC on NPR Story dated 10/29/10".





Start of ALEC Press Release Content A recent NPR story noted ALEC as a “secretive organization” that rarely allows press interviews and cultivates back-door lobbying. This could not be further from the truth, as noted by NPR visiting ALEC offices to gather information.

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ALEC has open doors and phone lines to the press. The press is invited to attend all ALEC meetings. ALEC’s mission, policies, initiatives and contact information for all employees is available on the public web site at www.alec.org. Media announcements about ALEC’s publications, news and invitations to the meetings can also be found on this public web site.

What about access to the models? It’s the models that matter.

ALEC is a private organization similar to membership organizations such as the YMCA. Federal law allows non-profits to protect the privacy of non-profit donors, but requires all non-profits to publicly disclose annual financial reports. ALEC fully complies with all federal and state requirements.

Non-profit ‘donations’ from for-profit corporations seeking in enhance profits on the dark side more like.

But what about ALEC’s poor misinformed state legislature participants? What laws are they breaking?





In the U.S., we are fortunate to live in a free-market, free-speech society where citizens, organized groups and businesses can have a voice in the development of their laws and regulations. It is the U.S. entrepreneurs, businesses and working Americans that will lead our country in sustainable economic growth and stability. Just like teachers, farmers and ranchers, senior citizens, and other groups, businesses have the right to representation and to inform legislators about their industry . End of Press Release Content

To inform or educate is one thing, but co-authoring and handing over prefabricated, customized 'cut and paste'legislation, if that is in fact what is really happening is another, isn’t it?

In Michigan the Arizona Immigration Law (SB 1070) model legislation mentioned by NPR above was introduced by a group of Republicans as what the Mackinac Center hosted website "MichiganVotes.org" called "Establishment of 'Arizona' illegal alien law and more " referenced here by the NCSL:



"Michigan H6256 was introduced by Representative Meltzer on June 10 [2010]; S1388 was introduced by Senators McManus, Cropsey, Allen and Brown on June 15; and H6366 was introduced by Representative Agema on August 11 [2010]"

See also MICHIGAN SMOKING GUNS for more examples by ISSUE below.

If this wasn’t so serious a threat to democracy, as serious as we have seen in our generation, that press lease might be entertaining; a story of the poor beleaguer corporate funded ‘charity’ being investigated by a free press. Thanks for the invitation to the next ALEC event or meeting BTW.

Another example of possible ALEC legal team pressure was related to this unbelievable comprehensive and condensed piece that made only a brief appearance on the Huffington Post (hope we will see this content again, if not on HuffPo, where it appears to have been pulled, somewhere else BACK UP). This posted article laid out all the dots into such a clear picture any IC alum would have to admire it.

UPDATE Article Back up: "ALEC: The Behind the Scenes Player in the States' Fight Against the Middle Class by Miles Mogulescu Posted: March 7, 2011.

As this article will demonstrate, there really is what Hillary Clinton termed a "vast right-wing conspiracy". Except it's really not an issue just of left vs. right. It's a vast 30-year long corporate conspiracy funded by a wealthy oligarchy to transfer wealth and power from middle class Americans to the richest 1% or even the richest 0.1%. Wisconsin--along with Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan-- is the firewall which may well determine whether the oligarchy or the vast majority of the American middle class will prevail. The prime organization writing this state-based anti-labor legislation and feeding it to Republican governors and legislators is the secretive American Legislative Exchange Council --known as ALEC--which is funded by such huge corporations as Koch Industries, Exxon Mobil, Pfizer, R.J Reynolds, Coors and Verizon. ALEC writes corporate-friendly "model legislation", and then brings legislators and governors to junkets at lavish resorts to present the legislation attacking unions, blocking environmental protection, supporting tobacco companies, opposing health care reform, and preventing states and cities from offering inexpensive broadband services. The prime organization providing shock troops to support this legislation is Americans For Prosperity , funded largely by the Koch Brothers with an assist from Exxon Mobil, which trains Tea Party organizers. Americans for Prosperity was the prime mover behind the relatively small counter-demonstration in Madison Wisconsin this Saturday in support of Governor Walker and is circulating a petition to undermine unions. This article puts the pieces of the story into a coherent whole describing on how organized corporate money is driving a nationwide movement by Republican lawmakers to destroy unions--public and private--as well as implement other right-wing, corporate-friendly policies which are wreaking havoc on the American middle class. There are four key types of interlocking corporate-funded institutional players who coordinate and implement these union-breaking strategies, as well as other right-ring goals. 1) Think Tanks like the Cato Institute and the Heritage Foundation and their media allies.

2) Lobbying and quasi-lobbying organizations like the secretive American Legislative Exchange Council.

3) Political fundraising and PACS for right-wing candidates.

4) Corporate funded faux populist mass movements like Americans for Prosperity, who provide the shock troops.

For those paying attention the Council for National Policy, Heritage Foundation (Mackinac Center for Public Policy) and their conservative media (neo-conservative ‘news’ outlets) there is no secret at all. It was always expected that this now even better funded (post-Citizen’s United) conservative ‘industry’ was producing legislation in some fashion, however the scale of the ‘cut and paste’ behaviors within Michigan politics led by Heritage’s legislative arm, ALEC, is still shocking and must be resisted.

READ about the Heritage Foundation and "The Rise of Conservative State-Level Think Tanks".

In MICHIGAN: We Know Who You are and Who Pays Your Bills

Let’s look at these four categories of ALEC relationship discussed above in the State of Michigan:

Think Tanks in MICHIGAN

The flagship representation for the Heritage Foundation is the Mackinac Center for Public Policy and the Acton Institute.

Media outlets in MICHIGAN

The Mackinac Center quasi-news outlet Capital News and a long list of related issue targeting web sites and bloggers, and the Detroit News that now directly pipes in Mackinac Center content into their Michigan wan to be “New Republic” Detroit News hosted Michigan View. The supporting cast of characters outside media (both paid and unpaid) come from chiefly Northwood University and Hillsdale College which as a string of right-wing alumni including their favor son Erik Prince of Blackwater fame.

Lobbying and quasi-lobbying organizations in MICHIGAN

ALEC has been in Michigan for a long time, and most recently on February 16, 2011 working in Rick Snyder’s budget and associated legislation. The Mackinac Center much like ALEC is modeled on the same approach and financial structure. Most republican candidates for any significant office must stop by for their ‘briefings” before and during their campaigns, as was the case for Mike Cox and Pete Hoekstra. Rick Snyder has not been identified so far as attending Mackinac Center hosted candidate briefings.

Political fund-raising and PACS in MICHIGAN

There are a bunch of these PACs, but the one of interest at the moment related most directly with ALEC is likely to be Wayne Kuipers’ PAC. Of course Michigan is also home to some the GOP’s largest national party individual contributors.

Corporate funded faux populist mass movements in Michigan

The Michigan chapter of Americans for Prosperity is active in Michigan providing "the shock troops". We have all seen by now, the 'take them out at the knees' comment about unions by Scott Hagerstrom, Director of Michigan American for Prosperity, raised a lot of eyebrows, but he also claimed to be connected with 50 Tea Party organizations in Michigan.

Additionally, there is the usual set of DeVos supported quasi-Christian groups targeting the hearts, minds, and votes of evangelicals, and a long list of national and state level education privatization related organizations supported by the DeVos/Prince Clan money.

The Council for National Policy and ALEC

Why is it that every time you find something so undemocratic and destructive, the CNP always adds another MTF moment?

The founder of ALEC, Paul Weyrich was one of the founders of the Heritage Foundation and a key leader in the Council for National Policy (CNP) and there are a lot of other CNP relationships within the leadership ranks of ALEC such as these examples: Richard (Rich) DeVos Sr., Louis (Woody) Jenkins, William M. Polk and Lawrence D. (Larry) Pratt, etc.

One interesting person of interest is the story of Samuel A. Brunelli who was a Director of ALEC when, Robin Brunelli, his wife presented an award to the wife of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon of the Unification Church (Washington Times / ‘Moonies’), but been down that that hole before with another great investigator, but that too is another whole topic.

ISSUES and AREAS of INTEREST targeted by ALEC

These are just the Tip of the Ice Berg – Man the Boats Michigan

Picture to the right of actual ALEC materials at an ALEC pitch in Alaska by Steve at 'What do I know...' with video as well.

For the purposes of this preliminary analysis, a sample of issues and cases of ALEC activity have been identified to see just how far this whole mess goes, and demonstrate if it is possible to quickly find evidence of these activities and pinpoint relationships to actual State Legislators and specific Michigan legislation.

In MICHIGAN so far:

FOUR Smoking Guns have been quickly identified, THREE are suspected and being confirmed, and countless others suspected, including bills in the 35+ pieces of legislation currently being passed or debated concerning Governor Rick Snyder’s Executive Budget Proposal for the 2011-12 Michigan State Budget Supporting Legislation

ALEC Ten Task Forces (as they define them) include:

• Civil Justice (includes Corrections industry)

• Commerce, Insurance and Economic Development

• Education

• Health and Human Services

• International Relations

• Natural Resources (Environment)

• Energy, Environment and Agriculture

• Public Safety and Elections

• Tax and Fiscal Policy

• Telecommunications and Information Technology

• Federal Affairs (Relations with US Congress ‘alumni’) - NEW

We will give a little background on some of the ALEC areas of interest or issues, and will also identify the SMOKING GUNS showing ALEC influence pedaling right here in MICHIGAN. Let’s take a look at some example cases and issues.

Healthcare

From "The Power Brokers Behind Health Care Repeal Legislation" by Aaron Wiener October 12, 2010:

Ever wonder how legislation to repeal the health care individual insurance mandate started springing up in states across the country?

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Jesse Zwick takes a look behind the scenes and investigates the role of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a conservative 501(c)(3) nonprofit that brings together state legislators and representatives of major industries to craft "model legislation." ALEC’s model "Freedom of Choice in Health Care Act" has been introduced in 38 states and enacted in six - which raises the question of how, exactly, the group has managed to wield so much power without attracting much notice.

From ALEC own document From ALEC own document "State Legislators Guide to Health Insurance Solutions and Glossary” given to State Legislators across the country in 2010:



Guided by the principle that the best health care is patient-driven, not government-driven, ALEC’s Health and Human Services Task Force has been a national leader in promoting free-market, pro-patient health care reform at the state level. Since 2005, 22 states have enacted model legislation developed by ALEC’s Health and Human Services Task Force.

From ALEC own document “State Legislators Guide to Health Insurance Solutions and Glossary” given to State Legislators across the country in 2010:



Guided by the principle that the best health care is patient-driven, not government-driven, ALEC’s Health and Human Services Task Force has been a national leader in promoting free-market, pro-patient health care reform at the state level. Since 2005, 22 states have enacted model legislation developed by ALEC’s Health and Human Services Task Force.

From “The Secret World of ALEC’s Hacks” in the Washington Independent October 2010:



The Private Sector Executive Committee for ALEC’s HHS task force is staffed entirely by government affairs and state policy representatives for Bayer, Johnson & Johnson and PhRMA, while the Private Enterprise Board of ALEC, as a whole, is also filled with high-ranking representatives of Bayer, GlaxoSmithKleine, Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer, as well as PhRMA, which represents them all.

revealed in this article "McMillin Wants to Give Michigan Citizens the Right to Opt out of ObamaCare" in the Rochester Media on February 9, 2011

State Rep. Tom McMillin last week introduced legislation allowing Michigan residents to opt out of the new federal health care mandate, known as "Obamacare". "Last year's passage of the takeover of America's healthcare system was a direct assault on Americans' right to make their own informed decisions about their health," said McMillin, R-Rochester Hills. "This legislation will ensure that Michigan residents will maintain control of their health care, that the Federal government can't get between us and our doctors and that our businesses can't be told what kind of benefits they can and can’t offer their employees."

Read House Bill 4050 (February 2011)

Oh, but there’s the catch… also in the story, which is basically a McMillin press release, we find:



States that have enacted statutes similar to McMillin’s included here, along with the efforts in 37 other states: THIS LINK

Which goes straight to…. You guessed it, right back to ALEC, a couple clips:

In December 2008, ALEC's Freedom of Choice in Health Care Act became model legislation. The model language mirrors Arizona Proposition 101, which was narrowly defeated in 2008.

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The Freedom of Choice in Health Care Act, which was the subject of a front-page New York Times article, has already been filed or prefiled in 38 states - Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Lawmakers in an additional three states- Montana, Texas, and Utah - have publicly announced their intentions to file the legislation.

And of course you have the MICHIGAN conservative media pushing at the same ALEC generated messages at the same time, one example from the Detroit / Mackinac News "Michigan should consider dismantling ObamaCare" January 18, 2011:



The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has just released The State Legislators Guide to Repealing ObamaCare which offers legislators plenty of options for defunding ObamaCare, drawing attention to its harmful effects, and otherwise working to undo the increasing rate of "governmentizing" health care.

This piece was written by John R. LaPlante, an adjunct scholar for the Mackinac Center for Public Policy and an education policy fellow with the Flint Hills Center for Public Policy in Wichita, Kansas. The Mackinac Center and Center for Public Policy by the way are the Heritage Foundation (ALEC’s mother ship) de facto subsidiaries in Michigan and Kansas.

VIEW American Legislative Exchange Council Model Legislation on Healthcare

Telecommunications

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is one of the best-funded and most prolific industry front groups. With annual revenues in excess of $5 million, ALEC advances the agendas of its corporate backers in state legislatures all across the country. Their objective in Telecom is to prevent communities from offering broadband Internet service, since that would mean more competition for their corporate backers. All over the country, ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council) has been promoting the idea that state governments are overstepping their intended missions by offering Internet services in direct competition with private business. States allow citizens to complete their tax returns on public Web sites, for instance, or offer them free e-mail accounts, as Pennsylvania does. ALEC is against that. It drafted model legislation addressing the matter, which, in turn, was introduced by Buehrer and legislators in about half a dozen other states.

Another area of overwhelming corporate power and influence is in the telecom industry and wrestling over the control of the Internet. From Common Cause report " Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing: Telecom Industry Front Groups and Astroturf " in 2006:

In WISCONSIN in 2003 through 2008, ALEC was active passing their prewritten and express delivered legislation professionally matched to their corporate client’s 'generous private sector donors' objectives, in this case just AT&T, much like the anti-Union and collective bargaining legislative 'cocktail', with hidden Koch Industries handouts, they are pushing right now causing the spreading protests. From Part Two of an investigative series “Wisconsin: A case study in how corporations get the legislation they want” by Bruce Kushnick January 31, 2008:

Like ALEC members around the U.S., these legislators have some clout. In 2003, [Senator Ted] Kanavas and [Senator Phil] Montgomery were part of Wisconsin’s “Special Committee on Public and Private Broadband”. [ALEC member WI State Senator] Jeff Plale chairs the influential Wisconsin Senate Committee on Commerce, Utilities and Rail, the committee considering the most recently introduced telecommunications bill. Jensen, the former Speaker of the State Assembly, co-sponsored one of the bills in question. These Wisconsin lawmakers are responsible for at least four bills that appear to correspond to ALEC-generated "models" that mainly help only the state"s major phone incumbent, AT&T. (Only ALEC members have access to the full text of the group’s model bills, but bill titles are listed on its Web site and are suggestive of the contents.) Let’s examine these four AT&T-friendly bills. 1) The Broadband Deployment Act of 2003: Kanavas & Jensen (ALEC model: Broadband and Telecommunications Deployment Act)

2) Municipal broadband bill, co-sponsored by Kanavas & Montgomery; 2004 (ALEC model: Municipal Telecommunications Private Industry Safeguards Act)

3) Video Competition Act, co-sponsored by Montgomery & Plale; 2007 (ALEC model: Cable and Video Competition Act)

4) Telephone Deregulation Bill, co-sponsored by Montgomery & Plale; 2007 (ALEC model: Advanced Voice Services Availability Act of 2007)

Link to Part One "How much of your state’s legislation is being drafted by industry?".

Kushnick concludes:

The ALEC fingerprints also appear to extend to other states that passed similar legislation. For example, in Mississippi, according to AARP, changes in state law allow for a 100 percent increase of local phone rates, not counting other increases.

VIEW American Legislative Exchange Council Model Legislation on Telecommunications

Corrections and Criminal Justice

Nowhere is the activity of ALEC so well-documented and tracked than in the privatization of prisons across the nation, something John Engler actively attempted to do in Michigan, and is being to members of the Rick Snyder administration.

One of the battleground states for prison related privatization was Georgia. Most recently in Arizona, likewise where privatization of corrections assets and facilities has been connected to controversial immigration laws in Arizona:

According to a recent investigation previously referenced to describe ALEC methods of operation by NPR that appeared in October 2010:



"A review of two dozen states now considering Arizona's immigration law shows many of those pushing similar legislation across the country are ALEC members. In fact, five of those legislators were in the hotel conference room with the Corrections Corporation of America the day the model bill was written ."

From "ALEC in the House: How Corporate Bias Affects Criminal Justice Legislation" from Safety and Justice.org January 31, 2002:



Prominent among ALEC's corporate backers are several major stakeholders in prison privatization, including Corrections Corporation of America (CCA); Wackenhut Corrections; and Sodexho Marriott Services, a subsidiary of French multinational Sodexho Alliance, which until last year was a major stockholder in CCA, and now owns the former CCA prisons in the United Kingdom and Australia. CCA, the largest private prison corporation in the U.S., made the President’s List for contributions to ALEC’s 1999 States & Nation Policy Summit. Sodexho Marriott and Wackenhut also sponsored the conference.

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Hundreds of remarkably similar pieces of criminal justice legislation were introduced in cookie-cutter fashion in states throughout the country in the mid-1990s. Their origin can be clearly traced to the influence and work of one conservative organization: the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).

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The drafting of model legislation - which permits legislators in multiple states to introduce similar legislation without going to the trouble of crafting these bills independently and on their own - is bad enough; but that’s not all. ALEC also appears to be involved in well-coordinated efforts to completely overhaul criminal justice policies in certain target states .

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… let’s face it, prisons are big business. Perhaps that has something to do with the fact that this year ALEC awarded it’s Thomas Jefferson Freedom Award to Idaho Governor Dirk Kempthorne, who heads the state that had the fastest growing incarceration rate in the country last year.

John Engler in MICHIGAN, who nearly doubled the incarceration rate in the State of Michigan (see Rick Snyder's Citizen Guide to Michigan’s Financial Health, it’s in there), also is an ALEC Thomas Jefferson Freedom Award winner, maybe that’s how he got it.

VIEW American Legislative Exchange Council Model Legislation on Corrections and Criminal Justice

Big Oil

The Oil Industry are big spenders in lobbying both in Washington D.C. and across the US States,where oil interests of proud of their ability to ‘self-regulate’ and on their way to profitability " Efforts of the industry itself resulted in excellent state laws " (that comes from a Marker put up along Michigan’s Byways that reads like one of ALEC energy templates),

First some of the background from "ALEC: Ghostwriting the Law for Corporate America" by the American Association for Justice (Read Trial Lawyers) published in May 2010:

ExxonMobil has used ALEC as part of its efforts to prevent states from taking action to combat the causes of climate change, particularly by challenging the science behind the causes and effects of global warming. Since 2001, ExxonMobil has given over $1.1 million to ALEC. Between 1998 and 2005, $327,000 of the money ExxonMobil gave to ALEC was earmarked specifically for climate change projects. For its money, ExxonMobil has received model legislation, unpeer-reviewed studies that question the science behind climate change, and statements such as, "the science of climate change is unsettled," and the "question is how much, if any, of this warming is caused by human activities." Its efforts to distort the science surrounding climate change extend all the way to schools, where ALEC is currently pushing a "Resolution on Non-Verified Science Curriculum Funding,” which establishes that the state legislature will no longer fund curricula or textbooks that present 'science' that promotes and advocates for or against only one side of an issue."

Environment

Particularly in the area of environmental protect and regulations, corporate funding has led critics to claim that model bills supported by ALEC are written by corporations. The group especially has drawn the ire of environmental groups, who among other issues are upset at ALEC-promoted self-audit laws that several states passed in the 1990s allowing companies to go unidentified and unpunished if they report their own pollution violations to the state.

In "Ghostwriting the Law" by Karen Olsson September/October 2002 Issue:



Not surprisingly, many of the bills benefit the companies that helped write them. Consider ALEC's "Environmental Audit Privilege," a measure that relieves companies of legal responsibility for their own pollution. The bill got its start in 1992, when Colorado regulators fined the Coors Brewing Company for smog-inducing air emissions at several plants. ALEC was quick to respond, drafting a measure to prevent firms from being fined if they report environmental violations at their facilities, and to keep such disclosures secret. Coors is a corporate member of ALEC, and company executive Allan Auger is a past chairman of the group, to which the Coors family's Castle Rock Foundation is also a donor. Last year [2003], Kentucky and Oregon passed audit-privilege laws like the one drawn up by ALEC.

Protecting the Great Lakes – Invasive Species

One of the most pressing issues at the moment is that of the potential harm to the Great Lakes by the introduction of the Asian Carp, and the past impact of the introduction of the zebra muscle to the Great Lakes. Michigan environmental groups and conservatory advocates in Michigan have been working with a coalition of groups and interest to prevent Asian carp from reaching Lake Michigan through the Chicago River.

They probably know, that it has been ALEC driven legislation in multiple states that has blocked and continues to block resolving this issue. See preemptive legislation discuss earlier.

In Michigan charter fishing and boating is big business for the state with over $7 billion and $12 billion annually. U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow and experts on the Great Lakes have been demanding quick action to keep the invasive Asian Carp from infiltrating Lake Michigan (March 6, 2011):

Stabenow, D-Lansing, was joined by Marc Gaden of the Great Lakes Fishery Commission and Tim Eder from the Great Lakes Commission outside of the Renaissance Center. On Thursday, Stabenow introduced the "Stop Asian Carp Act" bill to the Senate while Rep. Dave Camp, R-Midland, put forth the bill in the House. The bill calls upon for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to come up with a plan that would permanently separate Lake Michigan from the Chicago Area Waterway System.

????

SMOKING GUN in MICHIGAN (Suspected) – going back to 2006 we can find that it was ALEC promoted legislation in multiple US States and federal level that created the greatest barrier to supporters of the Federal Invasive Species Act.

Because Michigan was one of many sates that had already passed these preemptive “seed and plant” laws that were put into place by ALEC, the barriers here were actually self-inflicted, making it more difficult to make necessary change to laws in multiple States.

It is just a matter of time, before the Michigan State legislators that passed these laws are identified. But in the meantime, it should be noted that both US Rep. Dave Camp and former State Senator Patricia (Patty) Birkholz have been members of ALEC. Michigan Governor Rick Snyder recently appointed Birkholz as the “Director of the Great Lakes.”

Another topic close to Patty Birkholz’s heart is that of the Saugatuck Dunes State Park, for which a section is named after for her efforts supporting parks and the environment, to the point of ridicule by many fellow Michigan Republicans. ALEC preemptive legislation is at work here as well, in the form of the "Law of Takings" supported by the Mackinac Center and operatives like Michigan native Donald J. Kochan, the Charles G. Koch Fellow at Defenders of Property Rights, which may interfere with efforts to save an adjacent property, 300 acres of pristine dune lands, purchased by billionaire Aubrey McClendon has purchased out bidding and over the wishes of her local former constituents in Saugatuck.

A couple examples of you reap what you sow.

For more information pertaining to public laws and acts for invasive species go to this Site in the US Department of Agriculture.

Stopping EPA Environmental Actions and Enforcement

One of the many environmental objectives of ALEC currently and historically has been to cripple the Environmental Protection Agency.



SMOKING GUN in MICHIGAN #2 - as recently as February 24, 2011, we can follow the trail to ALEC manipulation of Michigan Legislation. In this case it the Republican State Senator Tom Casperson , currently 38th Senate District (R- Escanaba) and former State Representative 108th district who using ALEC and Heritage documents in an attempt to stop all EPA enforcement actions in Michigan:

Senate Resolution No. 10 and Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 6.

[IMAGE]





A resolution to memorialize the United States Congress to take immediate steps to impose a moratorium on greenhouse gas, air quality, and other regulatory actions by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The question being on the adoption of the following committee substitute:

Substitute (S-1).

The substitute was adopted.

The resolution, as substituted, was adopted.

Senator Casperson’s statement is as follows:



I rise in support of Senate Resolution No. 10 and Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 6. The resolutions are calling on Congress to stop the regulatory train wreck. These resolutions are being introduced by state legislators across the country . The resolutions call on Congress to stop the EPA from issuing burdensome rules known as the train wreck that will, in the words of the American Legislative Exchange Council, dramatically increase energy costs, causing enormous negative impact to jobs and the economy, irreparable damage to the competitiveness of businesses, and trample on the rights of states in the process.

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The EPA is not daunted by the number, cost, and impact on jobs. In fact, the EPA has not even done a study of what all of these regulations together will cost. As a sample of the impact, the Heritage Foundation reports that ten of the major rules that came out of the EPA in fiscal year 2010 have a cost of more than $23 billion. This is just the tip of the iceberg as to what is coming.

Seems ALEC has been moonlighting over in Escanaba as well. Wonder if they came up with the idea to shut down all those EPA libraries too?

Repeal of Midwestern Greenhouse Gas Reduction Accord (MGGRA)



SMOKING GUN in MICHIGAN #3 – while searching through some other investigations, we stumbled across this one goes back to Michigan HR 277 introduced back on May 5, 2010 by then State Representative, now State Senator Tom McMillin.

This time it’s an official ALEC press release lauding McMillin in his efforts on the very same day as the HR 277 was introduced:





Washington, D.C.—Today, State Rep. Tom McMillin of Michigan introduced a resolution (H.R. 277) urging his state’s governor to withdraw Michigan from continued participation in the Midwestern Greenhouse Gas Reduction Accord (MGGRA), an agreement among the region’s governors to reduce greenhouse gases through a regional cap-and-trade program. The Accord (MGGRA) has also been signed by governors in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, Iowa and Kansas and is designed to send a message to Washington lawmakers to move forward on a nationwide cap and trade program. The Accord would restrict energy use - the lifeblood of economic activity in these states - without any tangible benefit to the environment. Michigan’s proposed resolution has drawn the applause of state legislators in nearby participating states who intend to introduce similar measures in their own legislatures.

The press release points to the ALEC "Regional Climate Initiative" part of their web site, this not a model legislation page, but you get the picture. A little bit further down the trail we find this:



Michigan – Rep Tom McMillin (R – Oakland Township, Mich.) is finalizing resolution language with the Goldwater Institute for introduction of the bill.

The Goldwater Institute is another one of these conservative think tanks associated with the Heritage Foundation and ALEC (the AZ version of the Mackinac Center here in Michigan). Hey, if they sat together and wrote “the language” that would be lobbying? Is that legal? My, my isn’t this Karl Rove look-a-like busy? He must be gunning for an ALEC Pioneer Award or something.

VIEW American Legislative Exchange Council Model Legislation on Oil & Energy and Environment

Education

In 2003 during the Bush administration, his Secretary of Education spoke to one of the ALEC Annual Conferences. From an account in "Creating a Right-Wing Nation, State by State" by Joshua Holland November 16, 2005:

[Bush] Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings defended No child Left behind, which she argued wasn't "just good policy, it's good politics." School vouchers -- a long-standing objective of ALEC -- were high on the agenda. There were two pieces of model legislation that advance vouchers. Related are the "Virtual Public Schools Act" and "The Family Tax Credit Program Act." Both are alternatives to public education that, unlike vouchers programs divert public education funds to home-schooled children as well as those enrolled in private schools. Apparently it is, among other things, a sop to Christian conservatives.

From Pauline Vu June 07, 2005



ALEC’s model bills stimulate legislative proposals throughout the country. One measure promoting an "academic bill of rights" -- spurred by the belief that conservative students receive bad grades for disagreeing with liberal professors -- has been introduced in at least 12 states.

For the advanced readers into the whole history of Heritage Foundation and the Council for National Policy, a little background from the history of the Free Congress Foundation and their Coalition for Constitutional Rights (Note: ‘GOALS 2000’ was a radical plan for restructuring American education under George W. H. Bush):

The American Legislative Exchange Council, another Weyrich-formed institution, is a member of the Free Congress Foundation’s Coalition for Constitutional Liberties. Ex-ALEC Director Samuel Brunelli is listed as a member of Chester Finn’s Education Policy Committee which interfaces with GOALS 2000 [1995]. Both American Legislative Exchange Council and the ALEC counterpart, the National Conference of State Legislatures, blanket state legislators with their Model Legislation. ALEC boasts a membership of over 3,000 state legislators; additionally there are over 450 corporate members. ALEC supports charter school legislation. ALEC literature discusses their promotion of public /private partnerships as a solution to reform government. These partnerships will utilize public funds, but will remove accountability to taxpayers. There is a high correlation of GOALS 2000 related corporations who are members of ALEC. The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) also lobbies for charter schools and is a member of the Heritage Foundation for School Choice Network. Connie Koprowitz of the NCSL was featured on a Focus on the Family radio program promoting charter schools. She also worked with the futurist Spadys in Washington state, offering her services to educate state legislators about the charter school initiative. Through the work of numerous organizations such as ALEC and NCSL the plan is to standardize all states through legislation - interlocking laws which are aligned: the federal, to the state, to the local level.

There are a number of voucher and privatization educational organizations who are ALEC members and supporters (many in the quasi-Christian right) just a few examples; American Association of Christian Schools, National Council for Private School Accreditation, National Independent Private Schools Association, National School Bus Association, and a number of services companies looking to takeover public school operations.

Parental Rights Amendment – Privatizing Public Education

On the topic of the "Parental Rights Amendment" from the People for the American Way, a progressive group linking ALEC and Michigan Republicans like Betsy DeVos, sister to Blackwater’s Erik Prince, daughter of Elsa Prince and Edgar Prince (two of the biggest financial funding sources of the radical right in US history) and the husband Dick DeVos (two of the biggest contributors to the Republican Party in US History), failed candidate for Governor of Michigan in 2006:

The parental rights amendment is just one of the many model bills provided to state legislators by ALEC. ALEC works in conjunction with OTP [Of the People – Betsy DeVos was co-chair in the 1990’s] to pass parental rights legislation but is infrequently mentioned in the media as a PRA proponent. ALEC's model legislation, also entitled "Parental Rights Amendment" reads "The rights of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children shall not be infringed. The legislature shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this section." This is identical to OTP's amendment in every particular. Also notable is that both ALEC and OTP promote a constitutional amendment and claim to have introduced it in 28 states .

Ralph Benko, professional conservative story teller and myth maker, former deputy counsel to Ronald Reagan, and supporter of Republican US Representative Mike Pence (R-IN his 2012 presidential bid. He is now working on the current national right wing anti-union and pension strategy and "a senior adviser at the conservative American Principles Project" working with ALEC "to develop the language".

Here is Benko in a radio interview back in the late 1990’s working the evangelical right leveraging education:



"I can tell you exactly where [parental rights is] coming from because it's coming from two organizations, which is Of The People and there's a group called ALEC, which is the American Legislative Exchange Council. We introduced the parental rights amendment at Of The People in coordination with ALEC and that is how it became introduced in 28 states ."

Back to the PFAW report on the Parental Right Amendment:



Media coverage of the parental rights issue almost universally identifies Of The People as the driving force behind the "movement," while ALEC has received relatively little attention. Nevertheless, according to ALEC's Parental Rights Amendment Statement, ALEC's "members are the primary driving force behind parental rights legislation in the states: in 1995 the Amendment was introduced in 28 states by 41 sponsors, and 37 of those sponsors are ALEC members." In other words, more than 90 percent of the Amendment's sponsors were assisted by ALEC .

See also section on the Council for National Policy, or more Michigan background go to Doctrine of Dick DeVos: Tithes that Bind the Christian Right.

VIEW American Legislative Exchange Council Model Legislation on Education

Asbestos

An asbestos related example of inserting special language and restrictions protecting ALEC clients 'donors' within the fine print of legislation, as was the case with the Koch brother recently discovered in Wisconsin budget related bills. The story of a Crown, Cork & Seal inventors of the bottle cap that acquired a smaller company called Mundet Cork, a manufacturer of asbestos insulation in 1963. ALEC handed the issue embedding language to protect the company nationwide:

The legislation was sometimes slipped into larger bills, where they would not be open for debate. It capped the liability of corporations to an amount equal to the assets of the acquired company at the time of acquisition. This cap, unadjusted for inflation or the subsequent growth of any assets, applied no matter how many workers, customers, or bystanders were sickened or killed by the asbestos. This provision was the key to the bill’s effectiveness in ending claims. In 1963, when Crown bought Mundet, gas was 29 cents a gallon, and the average cost of a new home was less than $13,000. In 1963, Crown’s profits were $4.9 million, but by 2008 their profits had grown by more than 24,000 percent to $1.2 billion. Just as the cost of gas has increased, so has the value of assets acquired. But the bill capped them at their low 1963 value.



SMOKING GUN in MICHIGAN #4 where ALEC legislation passed on Asbestos sponsored by State Senator Wayne Kuipers June 25, 2007:





Asbestos Bill Stuck in Committee - Legislation (SB 0591) that would put a cap on asbestos liability for companies that didn’t produce asbestos, but unknowingly bought a company that did remains in the Senate Judiciary Committee. The main company’s liability would be capped at the fair market value of the total gross assets of the transferred company. The legislation is being pushed by the American Legislative Exchange Council and Crown Cork and Seal.

The official Republican justification “written” by XXXX?

Senate Bill 591 (Substitute S-3) as passed by the Senate

Sponsor: Senator Wayne Kuipers

Committee: Judiciary

Date Completed: 8-13-08 To address this situation and others like it, the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) drafted model legislation to limit the asbestos-related liability assumed by a corporation as the result of a merger. According to ALEC, laws based on this proposal have been enacted in six states since 2001 . It has been suggested that Michigan also should enact a limitation on liability.

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Proposed MCL 600.3001-600.3008

BACKGROUND

The American Legislative Exchange Council is the source of the following information. Crown Cork & Seal, the inventor of the bottle cap, purchased a majority of the stock of Mundet Cork in November 1963. Mundet was another company that made bottle caps. Before the acquisition, Mundet also had a small side business making, selling, and installing asbestos insulation… (continues)…

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The application of the successor liability rule may be particularly unjust in asbestos cases. According to ALEC, "Studies have shown that up to 90 percent of recent asbestos claimants are not sick . Those who are sick face a depleted pool of assets as asbestos lawsuits have bankrupted an estimated 85 companies"…(continues)

Read the Official Justification for SB 591 here.

Outcome was elementary, swift in forthcoming and Wayne Kuipers rich with contributions and free from any scrutiny… rushes on to the next corporate favor.



PASSED ROLL CALL # 375 YEAS 21 NAYS 15 EXCUSED 2 NOT VOTING June 3, 2008 (SJ 54 Pg. 1096)

Read SB 591 the “Limitation of Successor Asbestos Related Liability” Amendment to "Revised Judicature Act of 1961" here.

VIEW American Legislative Exchange Council Model Legislation on Business Liability, Insurance and Economic Development

Right-to-Work and Anti-Union

Michigan and Iowa are two states moving in completely opposite directions. In Iowa, the economy is healthy and growing, while in Michigan, the economy is hemorrhaging jobs and the state is in the midst of a prolonged recession. Part of the reason for the economic disparity is that Iowa is a right-to-work state and Michigan is not .

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While the immediate prospects may not be great for passing right-to-work legislation in the home state of the UAW, public opinion in Michigan is behind changing the state's labor law, and this could mean success in the long-term. The firm Research 2000 conducted a public-opinion survey in December 2006, and found that by a margin of 68-30 percent, Michiganders agree that a person should be able to hold a job "regardless of whether or not he or she belongs to a union."

Since these topics have been covered a lot recently, and we will have to return to this issue anyway, just one clip from American Legislative Exchange Council report "" in September 2007:

Oh, yeah? Does this pitch sound familiar? Guess what folks, it ain't 2007 anymore either. More on this next time...

UPDATE: Michigan H.B. 4215/Senate Bills 153-158

Checking into is ALEC is also the source of the "Emergency Financial Manager" or EFM bill that Michigan Republicans are passing giving the Governor and outside contracted EFMs marshal law type powers, including voiding all labor contracts, removing all leadership and a ban from office for 6 years.

VIEW American Legislative Exchange Council Model Legislation on Right-to-Work, Wages, Labor and Anti-Union

UPDATE: Public Safety and Elections

From "ALEC Behind Voter Disenfranchisement Efforts" released by Campus Progress March 8, 2011:

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a conservative organization linked to corporate and right-wing donors, including the billionaire Koch brothers, has drafted and distributed model legislation, obtained by Campus Progress, that appears to be the inspiration for bills proposed by state legislators this year and promoted by Tea Party activists, bills that would limit access of young people to vote.

VIEW: Actual ALEC Model Legislation for Voter IDs and Disenfranchisement used in WISCONSIN.

VIEW American Legislative Exchange Council Model Legislation on Elections

Taxes and State Budget

VIEW American Legislative Exchange Council Model Legislation on Taxes, Budgets and Privatization

NEXT TIME…





Many more SMOKING GUNS in MICHIGAN related to the current Michigan Budget battle. In the NEXT INSTALLMENT of this Nerd-Centric Politics of Rick Snyder Series Exclusive we will explore the activities and connections between ALEC and an array of Michigan based think tanks, conservative organizations, media outlets, and politicians involved the legislation surrounding the current battle over Rick Snyder’s Budget.

Following the story of Michigan’s own native son, a graduate of Northwood University and now Director of Tax and Fiscal Policy, American Legislative Exchange Council, Jonathan Williams, the involvement and activities of ALEC in past and currently will be outlined in detail.

SUMMARY: So Our Novice Nerd Gov Rapidly Becomes Irrelevant?

Michigan Republican Legislature has their Own Agenda / Priorities, Pass ALEC ‘Government in a Box’

Back in toward the end of the 2006 Michigan election cycle while fighting off the well entrenched force of Dick and Betsy Devos self-funded run for Governor of Michigan and perhaps to setup a shot at the US presidency down the road, consideration was given to “what if this rich, right wing, brat boy Dick DeVos wins?”

At that time, it was thought that DeVos was prepared to shape and deliver to Michigan what we called "Government in a Box" or a full set of policies that were ready to come off the shelf from Heritage / Mackinac Center shelves straight into the Michigan Legislature. The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and other right wing think tanks were a force to be reckoned with back then and have maintained very close ties with the Mackinac Center and like-minded Michigan Republicans, but its influence, skills and resources in Michigan have steadily grown since. They were waiting for the results like those in the 2010 Michigan elections, a Republican wave sweeping the Governorship and Michigan Legislature into friendly hands.

While ALEC was a known quantity to many, the extent of their activity in Michigan is mind bogging to say the least, both in the well-documented past and into our future.

What nobody on the Michigan ultra-conservative right counted on was the fact that that a different group of business leaders for in Michigan would field their own candidate, the “tough nerd” largely outsider candidate, Rick Snyder.

If Snyder or his team wants to know more about ALEC and these issues, they don’t have to go far, because Dick Postumus is an expert in this area. Postumus was a member of the ALEC Board of Directors starting in 1991 and he is quite familiar with how they operate.

Will Rick Snyder get with the ALEC Legislation Program? And does he even know what the “program’ looks like? Will he too sellout, like so many other Republican Governors, and become another of Corporate America’s CEO Rubber Stamps?

Or can he actually care for all citizens, above his business buddies? That is real leadership, the Big Bill kind.

If Snyder does what is expected, this is not Reinventing, it’s Renting Michigan.

LIST of MICHIGAN MEMBERS of the American Legislative Exchange Council Past and Present Identified so far…

Michigan Key Republicans

Former Governor John ENGLER

From the very start John Engler was there at the formation of the American Legislative Exchange Council:

Defenders http://alecwatch.org/...

“At that meeting in September 1973, state legislators, such as then-Illinois State Representative Henry Hyde, and Lou Barnett, a veteran of then-Governor Ronald Reagan’s 1968 presidential campaign, together with a handful of others, launched the American Legislative Exchange Council. Among those who were involved with ALEC in its formative years were: Robert Kasten and Tommy Thompson of Wisconsin; John Engler of Michigan; Terry Branstad of Iowa; and John Kasich of Ohio, all of whom moved on to become governors or members of Congress.”

In 1993, then Michigan Governor John Engler received the American Legislative Exchange Council Thomas Jefferson Freedom Award (Not as high as the Adam Smith award Amway moguls and Republican Party mega-donors Jay Van Andel and Dick DeVos got below)

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/...

Former Lt Governor Dick POSTUMUS

Appointed as Special Legislative Advisor to Governor Rick Snyder

Board of Directors for the American Legislative Exchange Council, 1991-XXXX?

Former Senator / Representative Patricia (Purple Patty) BIRKHOLZ

Appointed by Governor Rick Snyder as Director of the Great Lakes

Member American Legislative Exchange Council, Unknown Role

Andrew CARD

White House Chief of Staff, Bush Administration, formerly Ford Motor Company.

Member American Legislative Exchange Council, Unknown Role

Richard (Dick) DeVOS Sr.

Received the Adam Smith Free Enterprise Award from American Legislative Exchange Council in 1993, was in the CNP and Heritage Foundation from the earliest days and in the formation of ALEC as well.

Jay VAN ANDEL

When a Michigan Republican Mega Contributor passed this was read into the Legislative Record a group of Michigan State Legislators all Republicans (State Senators Hardiman, Ken Sikkema, Wayne Kuipers, Patty Birkholz, George and Van Woerkom) offered the following resolution:

http://legislature.mi.gov/...

Senate Resolution No. 309.

A resolution to memorialize and pay tribute to Mr. Jay Van Andel.

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[Van Andel] chaired the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and was a trustee of the Heritage Foundation, Hudson Institute, Hillsdale College, and the Advisory Council for American Private Education. Additionally, Mr. Van Andel’s many honors include selection to the Direct Selling Association Hall of Fame, Junior Achievement National Business Hall of Fame, and the Adam Smith Free Enterprise Award from the American Legislative Exchange Council.

Michigan US Congressmen and Judges

U.S. Representative Justin AMASH

3rd Congressional District - Cascade

Former State Representative R–72nd Representative District - Cascade

American Legislative Exchange Council Civil Justice Task Force

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/...

http://amash.house.gov/...

Judge Richard A. BANDSTRA

3rd Court of Appeals - Michigan Judge (R-Grand Rapids)

Michigan 3rd District Court of Appeals

Named American Legislative Exchange Council outstanding legislator for work on task force on civil justice.

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/...

U.S. Representative Dave CAMP

R–4th Congressional District - Midland

American Legislative Exchange Council, Agriculture Task Force

https:legislature.mi.gov%28S%28gagpxg55yim4lyukqg2jiuro%29%29/documents/publications/manual/2003-2004/2003-mm-0590-0604-USRepBio.pdf

U.S. Representative Mike ROGERS

8th District – Livingston County

Member American Legislative Exchange Council, Unknown

Former U.S. Representative Nick H. SMITH

R–7th Congressional District – Battle Creek

American Legislative Exchange Council - Agriculture Task Force

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/...

U.S. Representative Tim WALBERG

R- 7th Congressional District - Tipton

Member American Legislative Exchange Council, Unknown

http://www.alec.org/...

[IMAGE]

Michigan State Legislators

State Senator Bill BULLARD, Jr.

R–15th Senate District

Member American Legislative Exchange Council

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/...

State Senator Mat J. DUNASKISS

R–16th Senate District – Lake Orion

American Legislative Exchange Council Legislator of the Year Award (1996)

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/...

State Representative Dave HILDENBRAND

R-86th Representative District - Lowell

Member American Legislative Exchange Council

http://apps.detnews.com/...

State Senator Philip E. HOFFMAN

R–19th Senate District - Jackson

American Legislative Exchange Council Board of Directors (Treasurer, 2000-2001; Secretary, 1999-2000);

Outstanding Legislative Member Award, American Legislative Exchange Council, 1992

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/...

State Representative Mike KOWALL

R–44th Representative District – White Lake

Member American Legislative Exchange Council

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/...

State Representative Tom McMILLIN

R-45th Representative District - Rochester Hills

Active introducing American Legislative Exchange Council Legislation

State Representative Mary Ann MIDDAUGH

R–80th Representative District – Paw Paw

State Chair of American Legislative Exchange Council (2004)

https:/legislature.mi.gov%28S%28jrdcj145zkg5cm55sfzfjez2%29%29/documents/publications/manual/2003-2004/2003-mm-0220-0220-Middaugh.pdf

State Representative David PALSROK

R–101st Representative District – Manistee

State Chair of American Legislative Exchange Council

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/...

State Representative Tom PEARCE

R–73rd Representative District – Redford

American Legislative Exchange Council Health and Human Services Task Force

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/...

State Representative Randy RICHARDVILLE

R–56th Representative District – Monroe

Member American Legislative Exchange Council

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/...

State Senator Tonya SCHUITMAKER

R-20th District - Mattawan

Michigan Chair of American Legislative Exchange Council 2009-2010

http://michigan.onpolitix.com/...

http://senate.michigan.gov/...

Former Michigan Legislators (partial list)

Senator / Representative Patricia BIRKHOLZ, Speaker Pro Tempore (R- Saugatuck)

Senator Joanne EMMONS, Republican Senate Majority Floor Leader (R - Big Rapids)

Senator Philip E. HOFFMAN, 2001 National Treasurer of ALEC (R – Jackson)

Representative Rick V. JOHNSON, House of Representatives Speaker (R – Osceola)

Senator Beverly S. HAMMERSTROM (R-Temperance)

Representative Margaret O’CONNER – Wrote a number of reports for ALEC

Representative Bruce PATTERSON, House Majority Floor Leader (R-Canton)

Senator John SCHWARTZ, Republican Senate President Pro Tempore

Representative Susan L. TABOR (R – Delta Township)

END of LIST