Supreme Court Wary of Donor Disclosure Requirement for Charities
The case, from California, could affect the regulation of “dark money” in political contests.
The Supreme Court will rule on whether donor disclosures required by California would be in violation of the First Amendment’s protection of the freedom of association.Credit.Stefani Reynolds for The New York Times
April 26, 2021, 3:57 p.m. ET
WASHINGTON The Supreme Court on Monday seemed skeptical of California’s demand that charities soliciting contributions in the state report the identities of their major donors.
A majority of the justices appeared to agree that at least the two groups challenging the requirement Americans for Prosperity, a foundation affiliated with the Koch family, and the Thomas More Law Center, a conservative Christian public-interest law firm should prevail in the case.
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Immediately perceived as historically important, the decision generated intense controversy outside the court. Some hailed it as a resounding victory for freedom of speech, while others criticized it as an overreaching attempt to rewrite campaign finance law. Among the critics was Pres. Barack Obama, who remarked in his State of the Union address in the House of Representatives one week later that the decision would “open the floodgates for special interests…to spend without limit in our elections.” His criticism provoked one of the Supreme Court justices in attendance, Samuel A. Alito, to break decorum by mouthing the words “not true.”