Democracy, Voter Rights, and Federal Power

ALEC's Efforts to limit democratic participation, facilitate big money in politics, and allow states to override the federal government. The bills on this page represent ALEC corporations' efforts to disenfranchise Americans, to thwart federal government mandates, and to change campaign finance laws and give corporations greater ability to spend money influencing politics. These "model bills" are drafted at American Legislative Exchange Council conventions with input from, and approval by, Big Business, then introduced in state legislatures to erode the democratic power of average Americans. Politicians are elected to represent the people, not corporations; through ALEC, corporations have both a VOICE and a VOTE on specific state laws. Do you?

READ the "Model Bills" HERE Clicking here will send a zip file to your computer of all bills relating to democracy, voter rights, and federal power. To see a full list of bills from this section and send them to your computer individually, click here. For descriptions of some of these bills, scroll down or click here. Join the Conversation No id supplied for Twitter account!

How YOU Can Expose ALEC & Share What You Learn SPREAD THE WORD. Share information about ALEC through Facebook, e-mail and Twitter. Concerned groups and people in every state need this to investigate how ALEC corporations are rewriting laws for their own advantage. And, please join the conversation on Facebook! EXPOSE ALEC LEGISLATORS. Demand the truth about which politicians in your state are in ALEC. Uncover whether YOUR tax dollars are paying ALEC "dues." Expose politicians who accept “scholarships” from ALEC's corporate-funded coffers for fancy trips. EXPOSE ALEC'S ROLE IN YOUR STATE HOUSE. Read these corporate-backed "model bills" NOW and cross-check them with bills in your state legislature. Ask your local media to report on what you have found and write your local newspaper. SHARE YOUR DISCOVERIES. Tell us what you uncovered! Tweet what you learn with the hashtag #ALECexposed, join a discussion on this site or email us a confidential tip via editor AT ALECexposed.org. And, follow our tweets on Twitter!

Get the Goods on ALEC ALEC Exposed Audio & Video From The Nation Magazine: ALEC & Democracy ALEC & Education ALEC & Labor ALEC & Health ALEC & Koch ALEC & Prisons From PR Watch: ALEC & Injury Law ALEC & Wisconsin ALEC & Tobacco ALEC & Climate Change From SourceWatch: Press on ALEC Exposed ALEC Quotes

Who Is Behind ALEC? ALEC Corporations ALEC Politicians ALEC "Scholars" ALEC Boards & Task Forces ALEC Staff More Information ALEC FAQ ALEC Exposed Press Release ALEC Funding ALEC Hotels ALEC Decoded ALEC & NCSL Comparison Common Cause Asks IRS to Audit ALEC Common Cause Study on ALEC Member Campaign Contributions ProPublica's Database of ALEC Campaign Contributions

More Helpful Resources Additional resources on ALEC's corporate agenda: ALEC Funding, PRWatch (2011) American Legislative Exchange Council and other related articles, SourceWatch (2011) Ghostwriting the Law for Corporate America, American Association for Justice (2010) Climate Denial Report on ALEC and Exxon Funding for ALEC, Greenpeace (2011) Governing the Nation from the Statehouses, Progressive States Network (2006) Wolves in Sheep's Clothing, Common Cause (2006) Prison Economics Help Drive Ariz. Immigration Law, NPR (2010) Exposing ALEC, blogging group, Daily KOS (2011) ALEC: The Voice of Corporate Special Interests In State Legislatures, People for the American Way (2011) Corporate America's Trojan Horse in the States, Defenders of Wildlife and the Natural Resources Defense Council (2002) The Attack on Trial Lawyers and Tort Law, Commonwealth Institute (2003) Wisconsin's Cronon Affair: The Power of a Simple Fact, The Nation Magazine (2011) Ghostwriting the Law, Mother Jones (2002) ALEC Behind Voter Disenfranchisement Efforts, Center for American Progress (2011) ALEC Report, Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice (2011) ALEC Exposed: Business Domination Inc., The Nation Magazine (2011)

Learn MORE about the "Model Bills" ALEC Corporations Are Backing to Rewrite YOUR Rights The Center for Media and Democracy analyzed the bills ALEC politicians and corporations voted for. More analysis is available below and also at ALEC Exposed's sister sites, PRWatch and SourceWatch.

How are ALEC corporations limiting democratic participation? These bills limit the democratic influence of average Americans in favor of corporations by: Disenfranchising low-income, elderly, people-of-color, and student voters by requiring all voters show a state ID at the polls (7G16) Opposing public financing of elections designed to reduce the influence of moneyed interests, justifying their position with the dubious assertion that “campaign contributions have no effect upon legislative behavior” (7G9) Anticipating unlimited secret spending in the 2010 midterm elections, releasing a Resolution supporting non-disclosure before anyone recognized how right-wing groups would secretly spend hundreds of millions in the 2010 elections (7G4) Opposing the use of statistical sampling to get an accurate count of urban people of color and immigrants in the U.S. Census, out of concern that it would increase power for Democrats (7G2) Opposing “false statement” laws passed by states designed to ensure that campaign ads don’t mislead voters with false statements (7G11)

Did You Know about these Bills? Some of this Corporate Agenda Has Already Become Law (PLACEHOLDER)Taking a page from the ALEC corporation playbook, in May, 2011 Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, an ALEC alum, signed into law one of the most restrictive "Voter ID" restrictions in the country. Many in the state do not have driver's licenses -- around half of the state's African-American and Latino populations and 178,000 seniors -- and Department of Motor Vehicles offices are open erratically. Also under the bill, a current address is required on the license to vote, disenfranchising many students who move regularly. Wisconsin's Voter ID bill goes even further than the ALEC version. To learn more about this story, click here (PLACEHOLDER) (Have any of these bills been introduced or enacted in YOUR state? If so, please add that information to the ALEC Exposed page on your state by searching for your state's name in the search engine at the top of this page.) Limiting Damages for the Loss of Your Child, Spouse, or Parent (PLACEHOLDER)One of the corporate-politician proposals of ALEC would limit the ability of a family to recover for emotional damages due to the death or injury of a loved one. (LINK) This type of legislation basically makes working class or poor people's lives--as well as the elderly--worth less to their families because any damages for pain and suffering due to the death of a child, spouse, or parent would be limited to an amount equal to their loved one's lost earnings and medical expenses. These kind of corporate provisions try to prevent a jury of YOUR peers from awarding you damages for all you have lost or suffered AFTER a jury finds that your loved one's death was the result of corporate negligence, misconduct, or greed. Is a local legislator who was elected to represent YOU actually protecting the profits of global corporate wrongdoers through such legislation instead of YOU and YOUR FAMILY? Barring Corporate Liability for Killing Your Dog or Cat (PLACEHOLDER)In addition to limiting the rights of people injured by corporations, under the guise of limiting "frivolous" litigation in 2006, one of the proposals would make it harder for you to obtain any compensation from a company whose negligence killed your family pet.(LINK) In 2009, Americans learned that many U.S. pet food companies had shipped the production of food for their four-legged companions overseas and that Chinese contractors had contaminated the pet food with melamine in order to increase profit margins, resulting in the death and serious injuries of numerous dogs and cats in the U.S. If passed in your state, ALEC's corporation-backed proposal would make it very difficult for YOU to recover any damages for the loss of your beloved animal companion due to corporate negligence or misconduct in manufacturing food for America's beloved pets.

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