Dear Speaker Pelosi, Republican Leader McCarthy, Majority Leader Schumer, and Republican Leader McConnell,
On behalf of the millions of Americans who cherish and rely on the right to support causes we believe in without fear of harassment and intimidation, we, the undersigned individuals and organizations, ask you to reject H.R. 1 and S. 1, the deceptively named “For the People Act.”
Nonprofit organizations serve a vital role in encouraging free speech and the free exchange of ideas. Privately supporting causes — and the organizations advancing those causes — is a fundamental freedom protected by the First Amendment.
Our Founding Fathers used pen names to encourage independence from Great Britain. Nearly 200 years later, the Supreme Court of the United States blocked the state of Alabama from demanding the supporter list of the NAACP, citing concerns about retribution against the group’s members and financial backers. And last month, the Supreme Court agreed to hear a case challenging a California regulation forcing charities to hand over their supporter lists to the government.
H.R. 1 and S. 1 would dramatically alter the First Amendment protections that Americans have enjoyed since the founding of our country. It would institute sweeping new burdens on their constitutionally protected rights to freely speak, publish, and organize into groups to advocate for the causes they support. In particular, H.R. 1 and S. 1 would impose onerous and unworkable regulatory standards on the ability of individual Americans and groups of Americans to discuss the policy issues of the day with elected officials and the public. This bill would also violate the privacy of advocacy groups and their supporters and stringently and excessively regulate political speech on the Internet.
More specifically, H.R. 1 and S. 1 include numerous, sweeping provisions that would violate the First Amendment rights of Americans by:
• Subjecting citizens who contribute to nonprofit organizations to harassment and intimidation by making their personal information available in a searchable government database. This mandate focuses public attention on the individuals and donors who support causes instead of on the messages communicated by those organizations, exacerbating the politics of division and personal destruction and further coarsening political discourse. This would have a considerable chilling effect on civic engagement and free speech.
• Policing speech by Americans about legislative issues by expanding the definition of “electioneering communications” – historically limited to large-scale TV and radio campaigns targeted to the electorate in a campaign for office – to include online advertising that bears no relation to an election. This will subject far more issue ads to burdensome disclaimer requirements, which will coerce groups into truncating their message and make some advertising, especially online, practically impossible.
• Indiscriminately regulating groups that incidentally or occasionally advocate on federal judicial nominations and require those groups to broadly expose their donors, even if those citizens had nothing to do with the groups’ speech about judicial nominees.
• Forcing groups to publicly identify their supporters on the face of the ads themselves. Faced with the prospect of being inaccurately associated with what the law would consider (unjustifiably, in many or most instances) “campaign” ads in FEC reports and disclaimers, many donors will choose not to give to nonprofit groups.
• Increasing regulation of the online speech of American citizens while purporting (and failing) to address the threat of Russian propaganda.
• Expanding the universe of regulated online political speech by Americans beyond paid advertising to include communications on groups’ or individuals’ own websites and email messages.
• Deterring American citizens from serving their country through political appointments by forcing them to disclose their donations to causes they have supported in the past.
Our elections will not be more honest, more informed, or more secure from foreign interference if we sacrifice the privacy of American citizens. But our democracy will be weakened if voices are eliminated from public debate through intimidation and overregulation.
As a Member of Congress, you have taken an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. H.R. 1 and S. 1 propose multiple violations of our First Amendment rights. On behalf of the millions of American citizens our organizations represent, we strongly urge you to oppose H.R. 1 and S. 1.
Sincerely,
Heather Lauer, Executive Director
People United for Privacy
Lisa B. Nelson
Chief Executive Officer
ALEC Action
Grover Norquist, President
Americans For Tax Reform
Brent Wm. Gardner, Chief Government Affairs Officer
Americans for Prosperity
Michael P. Farris, President & CEO
Alliance Defending Freedom
James L. Martin, Founder/Chairman
Saulius “Saul” Anuzis, President
60 Plus Association
Caleb Crosby, President and CEO
Alabama Policy Institute
Bethany Marcum, CEO
Alaska Policy Forum
John Droz, Jr., Founder
Alliance for Wise Energy Decisions
Bob Carlstrom, President
AMAC Action
Dick Patten, President
American Business Defense Council
Phil Kerpen, President
American Commitment
Bill Johnson, President
American Decency Association
Tom Pyle, President
American Energy Alliance
Carrie Ann Donnell, President & CEO*
American Juris Link
Gary L. Bauer, President*
American Values
Bradley Johnson, President
Americans for Intelligence Reform
Richard Manning, President
Americans for Limited Government
Mike Nichols, President
Badger Institute
John Toedtman, Executive Director
Caesar Rodney Institute
Will Swaim, President
California Policy Center
Ryan Johnson, Associate Commissioner, District 2*
Cass County Commission
Ryan Ellis, President*
Center for a Free Economy
Cathi Herrod, Esq, President
Center for Arizona Policy
Andrew F. Quinlan, President
Center for Freedom and Prosperity
Jeff Mazzella, President
Center for Individual Freedom
Star Parker, President
Rev. Tim Latiff, Clergy Director
Center for Urban Renewal and Education
John Hinderaker, President
Center of the American Experiment
Larry Cirignano
Children First Foundation
David Nammo, Executive Director & CEO
Christian Legal Society
Aaron Baer, President*
Citizens for Community Values
David N. Bossie, President*
Citizens United
Charles Mitchell, President and CEO
Commonwealth Foundation
Kent Lassman, President and CEO
Competitive Enterprise Institute
Nathan Anderson, Executive Director
Concerned Veterans for America
Penny Young Nance, CEO and President
Concerned Women for America
Legislative Action Committee
Ron Pearson, Executive Director
Conservative Victory Fund
The Honorable George K. Rasley Jr., Managing Editor
ConservativeHQ.com
Thomas A. Schatz, President
Council for Citizens Against Government Waste
Linda W. Smith, President
D. James Kennedy Center for Christian Statesmanship
Frank Wright, Ph.D., President & CEO*
D. James Kennedy Ministries
Katie McAuliffe, Executive Director
Digital Liberty
Lawson Bader, President & CEO
DonorsTrust
Colleen Holcomb, President
Eagle Forum
Tim Hoefer, President & CEO
Empire Center for New York State Policy
Craig Richardson, President*
Energy & Environment Legal Institute
Rob Roper, President
Ethan Allen Institute
Patrick Purtill, Director of Legislative Affairs
Faith & Freedom Coalition
Craig DeRoche, President & CEO
Family Policy Alliance
Bob Dane, Executive Director*
Federation for American Immigration Reform
Kelly Shackelford, Esq., President, CEO & Chief Counsel
First Liberty
Tom McCabe, CEO
Freedom Foundation
Annette Meeks, CEO
Freedom Foundation of Minnesota
Adam Brandon, President
FreedomWorks
Randy Hicks, President and CEO
Georgia Center for Opportunity
Victor Riches, President and CEO
Goldwater Institute
Ron Williamson, President
Great Plains Public Policy Institute
Tim Macy, Chairman
Gun Owners of America
Sam Paredes, Executive Director
Gun Owners of California
Jessica Anderson, Executive Director
Heritage Action
Mario Lopez, President
Hispanic Leadership Fund
Jon Coupal, President
Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
Daniel Perrin, President
HSA Coalition
Fred Birnbaum, Director of Legislative Affairs
Idaho Freedom Foundation
Idaho Freedom Action
Matt Paprocki, President
Illinois Policy Institute
Jon C. Caldara, President
Independence Institute
Heather R. Higgins, CEO
Independent Women’s Voice
Ryan McCann, Executive Director*
Indiana Family Institute
Andrew Langer, President
Institute for Liberty
F. Vinnie Vernuccio, President
Institute for the American Worker
Chris Ingstad, President
Iowans for Tax Relief
James Bopp Jr., General Counsel
James Madison Center for Free Speech
Becki Gray, Senior Vice President
John Locke Foundation
James Franko, President*
Kansas Policy Institute
Phillip Wright, Executive Director*
Keep My Voice
Jacob Hibbard, President
Latter-day Freemen
Seton Motley, President
Less Government
Colin A. Hanna, President
Let Freedom Ring
Connor Boyack, President
Libertas Institute
Charles T. Moran, Managing Director
Log Cabin Republicans
Gene Mills, President
Louisiana Family Forum
Joseph Lehman, President
Mackinac Center for Public Policy
Tom McClusky, President
March for Life Action
John Helmberger, Chief Executive Officer
Minnesota Family Council
Douglas Carswell, President & CEO
Mississippi Center for Public Policy
Gregg Keller, Chairman
Missouri Century Foundation
Hunter King, Director of Federal Affairs
National Association for Gun Rights
Troy A. Miller, CEO
National Religious Broadcasters
Carol Tobias, President
National Right to Life
Greg Mourad, Vice President
National Right to Work Committee
Pete Sepp, President
National Taxpayers Union
Karen Bowling, Executive Director
Nebraska Family Alliance
Robert Fellner, Vice President & Policy Director
Nevada Policy Research Institute
Chris Chmielenski, Vice President
NumbersUSA
Ellen Weaver, President & CEO
Palmetto Promise Institute
Daniel Erspamer, CEO
Pelican Institute for Public Policy
Michael Geer, President
Pennsylvania Family Institute
Jim Vokal, Chief Executive Officer
Platte Institute
Mary Taylor, President*
Pro-Life Utah
Lorenzo Montanari, Executive Director
Property Rights Alliance
Eli Lehrer, President
R Street Institute
Mike Stenhouse, CEO
Rhode Island Center for Freedom & Prosperity
Denise Leipold, Executive Director*
Right to Life of Northeast Ohio
James Wigderson, Editor*
RightWisconsin
Paul Gessing, President
Rio Grande Foundation
Bette Grande, CEO
Roughrider Policy Center
James Setterlund, Executive Director
Shareholder Advocacy Forum
Tracie Sharp, President and CEO
State Policy Network
Maureen Blum, Founder and Principal
Strategic Coalitions & Initiatives LCC
Kristan Hawkins, President
Students for Life of America
Students for Life Action
David William, President
Taxpayers Protection Alliance
Judson Phillips, Founder
Tea Party Nation
Jenny Beth Martin, Honorary Chairman*
Tea Party Patriots Action
Robert Alt, President and CEO
The Buckeye Institute
Gary Marx, President
The Concord Fund
Art Harman, Executive Director
The Conservative Caucus / Americans for Constitutional Liberty
Jim Lakely, Vice President
The Heartland Institute
J. Robert McClure III, Ph. D., President and CEO
The James Madison Institute
Brett Healy, President
The John K. MacIver Institute for Public Policy
Daniel Garza, President
The LIBRE Initiative
Renee Carlson, General Counsel
True North Legal
Carl Bearden, CEO
United for Missouri
Rusty Cannon, Vice President
Utah Taxpayers Association
Diane Spicher, President
Veterans and Patriots United
Jane Richey, Local Coordinator
Vegango County Tea Party Patriots
Lynn Taylor, President
Virginia Institute for Public Policy
Tertium Quids
Dann Mead Smith, President/CEO
Washington Policy Center
Susan Loch, Co-Owner
WFYL 1180 AM
Julaine K. Appling President*
Wisconsin Family Council
Richard M. Esenberg, President & General Counsel*
Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty
Scott Manley, Executive Vice President of Government Relations
Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce
Scott Suder, President*
Wisconsin Paper Council
Heather Weininger, Executive Director*
Wisconsin Right to Life
*Affiliation used for identification purposes only.