Fairfax, Va. – Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today released the following statement in reaction to the Supreme Court decision in the Americans for Prosperity (AFP) v. Bonta case:
“The Supreme Court today affirmed the fundamental constitutional precept of freedom of association in their AFP v. Bonta decision. The case revolved around whether the state of California could require the disclosure of donors. Citing the landmark 1958 Alabama v. NAACP decision, the Court held that donor identities can be withheld from the state on the basis that disclosing donor identification could subject donors to retaliation. In the 1950s, Democrats in the state of Alabama attempted to require the NAACP to provide its donor list with the full expectation that the state would engage in retaliation against those people. In the late 2010s, Democrats in the state of California attempted to impose the same requirements on non-profits for the same purposes.
“This decision should put an end to Congressional attempts through so-called “election law reform” to compel non-profit groups, which provide zero tax benefits to donors, to provide donor names to the highly politicized federal tax collection agency.
“This is great news for people on all sides of the political spectrum to be able to engage in political advocacy without risking their personal and professional safety.”
For media availability contact Catherine Mortensen at 703.478.4643 or cmortensen@getliberty.org.
