ALECers - Stealing Tax Dollars to Limit Government

Limited government – one of the goals for ALEC.

Steal tax dollars and make sure they aren’t available for other governmental uses – is definitely one way to make sure that government gets limited.

No tax dollars – no government.  That's definitely one way to limit government.

ALEC legislators do this on a regular basis using taxpayer dollars to increase the revenues of ALEC profit sector members – through privatization of public goods and services.   Your tax dollars funding increased revenues of ALEC private sector member companies.

And they evidently have another way to deplete state coffers – ALEC meetings.
Steal tax dollars and make sure they aren’t available for other governmental uses.

When you consider this scenario and multiply it by the thousands of legislators that attend meetings every year – the tax dollars lost add up.

It doesn't matter what state it is - ALEC members do this in every state.

WOW!

Picture this

You go to a business conference of a professional organization that you belong to and you submit the expenses to the company you work for and they reimburse you for the travel, room and taxes and registration.

Then you turn around and apply for scholarships that were available for the same conference and the scholarship fund pays you personally (sending the check directly to your home) for travel, room and taxes and registration.

You keep all the money.

Double Dipping, yep

Unethical – absolutely

But that is what the members of the American Legislative Exchange Council appear to be doing – stealing tax dollars and then getting a little something, something extra for attending ALEC meetings.

These snips from an article this morning:

Ellis said he paid for his trip with campaign donations and his money but received a “scholarship” from ALEC to defray its cost.

The hard earned money of donators used to pay for his attendance in a extremist right wing organization.  And then when he gets home – he fills out an ALEC scholarship reimbursement form and gets reimbursed personally for travel, room and taxes and registration.  ALEC scholarship check comes to his house - he deposits it into his personal checking account.

Some legislators charge the state for a portion of their dues. Bear, who charged the state $100, said lawmakers are not required to report travel paid by ALEC on financial disclosure statements because it is a professional association.

Did he bill the state for his travel to the ALEC meeting and then when he gets home – he filled out an ALEC scholarship reimbursement form and get reimbursed personally for travel, room and taxes and registration?  ALEC scholarship check comes to his house - he deposits it into his personal checking account. And YOU never know that he got the extra scholarship payment – because ALEC legislators have written policies that let them keep the extra scholarship money – without reporting it to the state – even though they have already reimbursed themselves from their campaign funds or the state taxpayer coffers.

State reimburses you for

     travel, room and taxes and registration

Then the ALEC scholarship fund reimburses you for the same

      travel, room and taxes and registration.

Not bad if you can get away with it.

Unfortunately – us schmucks – who worked in the private sector – can’t get away with it.

We would get FIRED for doing the same.

Double Dipping - absolutely!

Unethical – absolutely

Stealing tax dollars – absolutely!

From the Common Cause IRS documentation