Hot Topics at ALEC's 2015 Meeting in San Diego

Personally - I think all funders of these groups - any group that does any lobbying or 'education' about political (and what isn't?) should have to disclose ALL their funding. A bit off topic but I'm tired of all the back room dealing and secrecy surrounding everything. We 'We the People' don't have any secrets any longer it's only fair that THEY don't either.

I'm not liking people too much today.

This week, the American Legislative Exchange Council, or "ALEC," will bring together hundreds of corporate lobbyists with state and local politicians at a posh hotel in San Diego for the group's annual meeting.

These Topics:

Attacking Federal Efforts to Rein in Carbon Pollution

Undermining Renewable Energy

This one is very telling:

Thwarting Rooftop Solar

Read this carefully:

Direct-to-consumer energy sales that bypass heavily-regulated monopoly utilities might be viewed as the sort of "market disruption" that free market adherents claim to support.

After all, ALEC has celebrated the emergence of ride-sharing companies like Uber because they disrupt taxi monopolies and allow direct-to-consumer ride sales.

The key difference is that ALEC is bankrolled by utility companies.

ALEC funders like Peabody Energy, Duke Energy, and Murray Energy are not pleased about the threat to profits posed by direct-to-consumer solar, so therefore it must be crushed, free market principles be damned.

Incredibly, the "Resolution Concerning Special Markets for Direct Solar Power Sales" declares that direct-to-consumer solar is "antithetical to free markets."

"Beepocalypse Not"

ALEC is now promoting template legislation that denies Bee Colony Collapse - as it is increasly linked to a chemical maufactured by Bayer, an ALEC funder.

And in the interests of thwarting citizen activism and local self-determination ALEC is spining off "The American City County Exchange (ACCE) which aims to stop local ordinances which prohibit sales and use of 'products' and 'profits' of ALEC funder members.

Local democracy has led to some significant policy wins in recent years, with cities like Philadelphia guaranteeing workers paid sick days, and places like Denton, Texas banning fracking.

ALEC's response to cities and counties acting as laboratories of democracy has traditionally been to crush it, through state "preemption" laws that prohibit local governments from raising the minimum wage, or regulating GMOs, or building municipal broadband.

The biggest proactive ACCE initiative is a push for local right to work laws.

In the months following a local right to work workshop at ACCE's meeting last December, twelve Kentucky counties have enacted the anti-union measures, and similar proposals have been floated in states like Illinois and Pennsylvania.

But enacting right to work on the local level likely violates federal law, so groups like the Koch-backed Americans for Prosperity and the state Chamber of Commerce are bankrolling the legal defense of counties that get sued.

Is that even legal?????

Amending the Constitution

Key to the Article V push has been the "Jeffersonian Project," the 501(c)(4) group that ALEC formed in 2013 amidst complaints from Common Cause and CMD that ALEC was violating its 501(c)(3) charitable status by engaging in excessive lobbying.

In order to deflect allegations of lobbying, the "Jeffersonian Project" is now used to urge legislators to pass ALEC model legislation, an activity that ALEC used to do directly.

www.prwatch.org...

ALEC has been lobbying state governments (in particular, red state governments) to start taxing solar panel usage in their states. They're deep in the pocket of Corporations.

lot's of real info on their website ....

ALEC

a reply to: FyreByrd

ALEC... just the thought of them makes me throw up a little in my mouth. Crony capitalism on steroids. So much for the Social Contract, which demands government work and act in the best interests of the people. Now government works and acts in the best interests of the corporation, which only cares about $$. It's absolutely shameful.

I wish I could add more. Actually, no. I really wish more people understood the insidious evil of this incestuous relationship between Big Biz and Big Politics and how it hurts EVERYONE. Instead all I can do is give this a S&F and a bump and hope it increases awareness.

Excellent post. Thank you.