Advance Arkansas Institute

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Advance Arkansas Institute (AAI) is a state think tank member of the State Policy Network (SPN) that was founded in 2009.[1] It was formerly known as the "Mid-American Policy Institute," according to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).[2] It was listed in the past as hosting Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity "investigative journalists."[3] The Franklin Center funds reporters in over 40 states.[4] Despite their non-partisan description, many of the websites funded by the Franklin Center have received criticism for their conservative bias.[5][6] On it's website, the Franklin Center claims that it "provides 10 percent of all daily reporting from state capitals nationwide." [7]

SPN is a web of right-wing “think tanks” and tax-exempt organizations in 50 states, Washington, D.C., Canada, and the United Kingdom. As of October 2019, SPN's membership totals 162. Today's SPN is the tip of the spear of far-right, nationally funded policy agenda in the states that undergirds extremists in the Republican Party. SPN Executive Director Tracie Sharp told the Wall Street Journal in 2017 that the revenue of the combined groups was some $80 million, but a 2019 analysis of SPN's main members IRS filings by the Center for Media and Democracy shows that the combined revenue is over $120 million.[8] Although SPN's member organizations claim to be nonpartisan and independent, the Center for Media and Democracy's in-depth investigation, "EXPOSED: The State Policy Network -- The Powerful Right-Wing Network Helping to Hijack State Politics and Government," reveals that SPN and its member think tanks are major drivers of the right-wing, American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)-backed corporate agenda in state houses nationwide, with deep ties to the Koch brothers and the national right-wing network of funders.[9]

In response to CMD's report, SPN Executive Director Tracie Sharp told national and statehouse reporters that SPN affiliates are "fiercely independent." Later the same week, however, The New Yorker's Jane Mayer caught Sharp in a contradiction. In her article, "Is IKEA the New Model for the Conservative Movement?," the Pulitzer-nominated reporter revealed that, in a recent meeting behind closed doors with the heads of SPN affiliates around the country, Sharp "compared the organization’s model to that of the giant global chain IKEA." She reportedly said that SPN "would provide 'the raw materials,' along with the 'services' needed to assemble the products. Rather than acting like passive customers who buy finished products, she wanted each state group to show the enterprise and creativity needed to assemble the parts in their home states. 'Pick what you need,' she said, 'and customize it for what works best for you.'" Not only that, but Sharp "also acknowledged privately to the members that the organization's often anonymous donors frequently shape the agenda. 'The grants are driven by donor intent,' she told the gathered think-tank heads. She added that, often, 'the donors have a very specific idea of what they want to happen.'"[10]

A set of coordinated fundraising proposals obtained and released by The Guardian in early December 2013 confirm many of these SPN members' intent to change state laws and policies, referring to "advancing model legislation" and "candidate briefings." These activities "arguably cross the line into lobbying," The Guardian notes.[11]

Ties to the American Legislative Exchange Council

AAI has direct ties to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). In December 2011, the organization sent its executive director, Dan Greenberg, to present on "Preventing Settlement Abuse: The Work of CCAF and the Advance Arkansas Institute" to ALEC's Civil Justice Task Force.[12] AAI is also connected to ALEC through SPN, which is a member of several ALEC task forces.

SPN's predecessor, the Madison Group, was "launched by the American Legislative Exchange Council or ALEC . . . and housed in the Chicago-based Heartland Institute," according to a 1991 report by the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP) found in the University of California-San Francisco's Legacy Tobacco Documents.[13][14]

The case is strengthened by an October 1987 ALEC directory also available via the Tobacco Documents that says, "The Madison Group is chaired by Mrs. Constance Heckman [now Constance Campanella, founder of the lobbying firm Stateside Associates], Executive Director of ALEC . . ."[15] A speakers list also available in the Tobacco Documents says in Constance Campanella's biography, "She was a co-founder and first President of The Madison Group, the first network of free-market state think tanks."[16]

SPN has been a member of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) for many years. In the mid-2000s, SPN secured funding for more of its member think tanks to join ALEC in order to help develop model legislation. By 2009, 22 SPN member think tanks were active ALEC members and participants in ALEC task forces, according to an SPN newsletter, and SPN was being rewarded for its services by ALEC.[17] As of 2013, at least 35 SPN member think tanks have demonstrable ties to ALEC in addition to SPN's own ties, and all of SPN's member think tanks push ALEC's agenda in their respective states, according to a review by the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) (see below for more).

The current president of the Advance Arkansas Institute, Dan Greenberg, had ties to ALEC when he was a representative for the 36th District.

Please see SPN Ties to ALEC for more

About ALEC
ALEC is a corporate bill mill. It is not just a lobby or a front group; it is much more powerful than that. Through ALEC, corporations hand state legislators their wishlists to benefit their bottom line. Corporations fund almost all of ALEC's operations. They pay for a seat on ALEC task forces where corporate lobbyists and special interest reps vote with elected officials to approve “model” bills. Learn more at the Center for Media and Democracy's ALECexposed.org, and check out breaking news on our PRWatch.org site.

Ties to the Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity

The Advance Arkansas Institute has hosted writers from the ALEC-connected Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity, which screens potential reporters on their “free market” views as part of the job application process.[18] The Franklin Center funds reporters in over 40 states.[19] Despite their non-partisan description, many of the websites funded by the Franklin Center have received criticism for their conservative bias.[20][21] On its website, the Franklin Center claims it "provides 10 percent of all daily reporting from state capitals nationwide."[22]

Franklin Center Funding

Franklin Center Director of Communications Michael Moroney told the Center for Public Integrity (CPI) in 2013 that the source of the Franklin Center's funding "is 100 percent anonymous." But 95 percent of its 2011 funding came from DonorsTrust, a spin-off of the Philanthropy Roundtable that functions as a large "donor-advised fund," cloaking the identity of donors to right-wing causes across the country (CPI did a review of Franklin's Internal Revenue Service records).[23] Mother Jones called DonorsTrust "the dark-money ATM of the conservative movement" in a February 2013 article.[24] Franklin received DonorTrust's second-largest donation in 2011.[23]

The Franklin Center also receives funding from the Wisconsin-based Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation,[25] a conservative grant-making organization.[26]

The Franklin Center was launched by the Chicago-based Sam Adams Alliance (SAM),[27] a 501(c)(3) devoted to pushing free-market ideals. SAM gets funding from the State Policy Network,[28] which is partially funded by The Claude R. Lambe Foundation.[29] Charles Koch, one of the billionaire brothers who co-own Koch Industries, sits on the board of this foundation.[30] SAM also receives funding from the Rodney Fund.

Funding

In 2009 and 2010, the organization, then known as the Mid-American Policy Institute (it filed a name change with its 2011 Form 990), filed a Form 990-N, meaning it claimed to have gross receipts of less than $25,000 in those years.[2]

Core Financials

2016[31]

  • Total Revenue: $187,756
  • Total Expenses: $264,384
  • Net Assets: $101,722

2015[32]

  • Total Revenue: $275,270
  • Total Expenses: $240,739
  • Net Assets: $178,350

2014[33]

  • Total Revenue: $254,692
  • Total Expenses: $242,983
  • Net Assets: $143,819

2013[34]

  • Total Revenue: $361,568
  • Total Expenses: $332,463
  • Net Assets: $132,109

2012[35]

  • Total Revenue: $189,287
  • Total Expenses: $164,007.35
  • Net Assets: $103,004.65

2011[36]:

  • Total Revenue: $195,410
  • Total Expenses: $117,685
  • Net Assets: $77,725

2010[37]:

  • Total Revenue: $195,410
  • Total Expenses: $117,685
  • Net Assets: $77,725

Personnel

As of October 2018:[38]

Staff

  • Dan Greenberg, President
  • Stefani Buhajla, Director and Social Media
  • Roman Buhler, Director of the Federalism Project
  • Alex Cartwright, Analyst
  • Britney Logan, Designer
  • Marc Kilmer, Analyst
  • Pat Page, Administrator
  • Caleb Taylor, Reporter for The Arkansas Project

Former Staff

  • Nicholas Horton, Editor of The Arkansas Project
  • Kelly Shackelford, Development Associate
  • Dan Greenberg, President[39]

Board of Directors

  • Betty Jane Strong
  • Creed Spann

Former Board Members

  • Dan Greenberg
  • Stuart Buck

Board of Scholars

  • Professor Jay Greene, University of Arkansas – Fayetteville
  • Professor Bradley Gitz, Lyon College
  • Professor David Mitchell, University of Central Arkansas
  • Professor Richard J. Peltz-Steele, University of Massachusetts School of Law
  • Professor Michael Podgursky, University of Missouri – Columbia
  • Professor Jene Porter, University of Saskatchewan (emeritus)
  • Professor Buddy Rogers (Adjunct), Northwest Arkansas Community College
  • Professor Robert E. Steinbuch, University of Arkansas – Little Rock, Bowen School of Law
  • Professor Julie Trivitt, University of Arkansas – Fayetteville
  • Dean Cheri Yecke, Harding University

Former Scholars on the Board

  • Professor Noel Campbell, University of Central Arkansas

Contact

Advance Arkansas Institute
55 Fontenay Circle
Little Rock, Arkansas 72223
Website: http://www.advancearkansas.org
Phone: (501) 588-4245
E-mail: advancearkansas@gmail.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/advancear
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/AdvanceArkansas/

Articles and Resources

Related SourceWatch Articles

Related PRWatch Articles

External Resources

References

  1. ↑ Guidestar.org, Advance Arkansas Institute, IRS filings and other organizational information about AAI, accessed December 2012.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Exempt Organizations Select Check, tax-exempt organization database, accessed December 2012.
  3. ↑ Statehouse News Bureaus, Source Watch, accessed March 23, 2012
  4. ↑ The Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity. Think tank Journalism: The Future of Investigative Journalism. Organizational website. Accessed August 19, 2011.
  5. ↑ The Portland Press Herald. 'Watchdog' website puts a new spin on politics'. News website. Accessed August 19, 2011.
  6. ↑ Truthout. The Koch Spider Web. News website. Accessed August 19, 2011.
  7. ↑ Sara Jerving, Franklin Center: Right-Wing Funds State News Source, PR Watch, October 27, 2011
  8. ↑ David Armiak, https://www.exposedbycmd.org/2019/11/13/revenue-state-policy-network-state-affiliates-tops-120-million/ Revenue for State Policy Network and State Affiliates Tops $120 Million], ExposedbyCMD, November 13, 2019.
  9. ↑ Rebekah Wilce, Center for Media and Democracy, EXPOSED: The State Policy Network -- The Powerful Right-Wing Network Helping to Hijack State Politics and Government, organizational report, November 13, 2013.
  10. ↑ Jane Mayer, Is IKEA the New Model for the Conservative Movement?, The New Yorker, November 15, 2013.
  11. ↑ Ed Pilkington and Suzanne Goldenberg, State conservative groups plan US-wide assault on education, health and tax, The Guardian, December 5, 2013.
  12. ↑ American Legislative Exchange Council, Civil Justice Task Force Meeting, States and Nation Policy Summit, organizational meeting document, December 1, 2011, document obtained and made available by Common Cause.
  13. ↑ National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, Special Report: Burgeoning Conservative Think Tanks, organizational report, Spring 1991, p. 2.
  14. ↑ Rebekah Wilce, Did ALEC Found SPN? 1991 Report Suggests So, Exposes SPN Agenda, PRWatch, December 12, 2013.
  15. ↑ American Legislative Exchange Council, ALEC Personnel Directory, The State Factor, October 1987, p. 3.
  16. ↑ Speakers List, document available in the University of California-San Francisco's Legacy Tobacco Documents, accessed December 2013.
  17. ↑ State Policy Network, SPN & Alec: A Model Relationship, SPN News, organizational newsletter, July/August 2009, p. 4.
  18. ↑ Franklin Center, Franklin Affiliates in Your State, organizational website, accessed October 2012.
  19. ↑ The Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity, Think tank Journalism: The Future of Investigative Journalism, organizational website, accessed August 19, 2011.
  20. ↑ Rebekah Metzler, "Watchdog" website puts a new spin on politics, The Portland Press Herald, October 2, 2010.
  21. ↑ Allison Kilkenny, The Koch Spider Web, Truthout, accessed August 19, 2011.
  22. ↑ Sara Jerving, Franklin Center: Right-Wing Funds State News Source, PRWatch.org, October 27, 2011.
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 Paul Abowd, Center for Public Integrity, Donors use charity to push free-market policies in states, organizational report, February 14, 2013.
  24. ↑ Andy Kroll, Exposed: The Dark-Money ATM of the Conservative Movement, Mother Jones, February 5, 2013.
  25. ↑ Daniel Bice, Franklin Center boss wants apology from Democratic staffer, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, August 8, 2011.
  26. ↑ The Bradley Foundation. The Bradley Foundation. Organizational website. Accessed August 19, 2011.
  27. ↑ Sam Adams Alliance. Sam Adams Alliance Media Kit. Organizational PDF. Accessed August 19, 2011.
  28. ↑ Media Matters Action Network. Sam Adams Alliance. Conservative Transparency. Accessed August 19, 2011.
  29. ↑ Media Matters Action Network. State Policy Network. Conservative Transparency. Accessed August 19, 2011.
  30. ↑ Media Matters Action Network. Claude R. Lambe Charitable Foundation. Conservative Transparency. Accessed August 19, 2011.
  31. ↑ Advance Arkansas Institute, [Paper copy 2016 Form 990], organizational annual IRS filing, Aug 2, 2017.
  32. ↑ Advance Arkansas Institute, 2015 Form 990, organizational annual IRS filing, May 12, 2015.
  33. ↑ Advance Arkansas Institute, 2014 Form 990, organizational annual IRS filing, May 7, 2015.
  34. ↑ Advance Arkansas Institute, 2013 Form 990, organizational annual IRS filing, May 15, 2014.
  35. ↑ Advance Arkansas Institute, 2012 Form 990, organizational annual IRS filing, May 1, 2013.
  36. ↑ Advance Arkansas Institute, 2011 Form 990, organizational annual IRS filing, May 1, 2012.
  37. ↑ Advance Arkansas Institute, 2011 Form 990-EZ, organizational IRS filing, March 1, 2012.
  38. ↑ Advance Arkansas Institute, Who We Are, Advance Arkansas Institute, October 2018.
  39. ↑ Max Brantley Dan Greenberg, ABC chair, leaving for D.C. job Arkansas Times Nov 1, 2017
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