Democracy 21
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| Democracy 21 | |||
| Basic facts | |||
| Location: | Washington, D.C. | ||
| Type: | 501(c)(3) | ||
| Affiliation: | Nonpartisan | ||
| Top official: | Fred Wertheimer | ||
| Founder(s): | Fred Wertheimer | ||
| Year founded: | 1997 | ||
| Employees: | 7 | ||
| Website: | Official website | ||
| Promoted policies | |||
| Campaign finance | |||
| Budget | |||
| 2013: | $481,754 | ||
| 2012: | $508,822 | ||
| |||
| Connections | |||
| Campaign Legal Center, Open Society Foundations, Brennan Center for Justice, Common Cause | |||
Democracy 21 (D21) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that focuses on campaign finance policy and advocates for limits on campaign finance contributions. It was founded in 1997 by Fred Wertheimer. According to its website, the organization aims "to strengthen the integrity and fairness of our democracy and to increase the role of citizens in our political process. The organization brings unique policy and litigation experience and expertise to campaign finance and democracy issues, and to related government integrity, transparency and accountability issues," according to its website.[1]
Mission
According to Democracy 21's website, the organization's mission is as follows:[2]
| “ | Democracy 21, and its education arm, Democracy 21 Education Fund, work to eliminate the undue influence of big money in American politics, prevent government corruption, empower citizens in the political process and ensure the integrity and fairness of government decisions and elections. The organization promotes campaign finance reform and other related political reforms to accomplish these goals.[3] | ” |
Background
Democracy 21 is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) that was founded in 1997 by Fred Wertheimer. According to the organization's website, "D21 President Fred Wertheimer has played a key role in every major campaign finance reform and ethics battle in Congress since the post-Watergate reforms in the 1970s and has participated as a lawyer in every major Supreme Court campaign finance case during this period."[1]
Work
Democracy 21 works on campaign finance issues and government integrity, transparency, and accountability issues.[1]
According to the D21 website, the organization identified the following goals for 2018 and 2019:[1]
| “ | – Continuing to challenge ethics and other government abuses by President Trump and his administration and to help lead a national coalition working to protect the Mueller Special Counsel investigation;
– Public and media education efforts on the nation’s campaign finance problems and the reforms necessary to solve the problems; – Promoting other essential democracy reforms, including reforms to address voting rights problems and partisan gerrymandering; – Continuing to help lead and expand a national coalition working to prevent a constitutional convention, and conducting public education efforts on the dangers of such a convention; – Litigation and other legal efforts to defend campaign finance laws and obtain their proper interpretation, watchdog efforts to press for compliance with and enforcement of campaign finance laws, ethics rules and other government integrity provisions; and – Pursuing technological breakthroughs to greatly increase the role of small donors in elections to counter big money in politics and change the way campaigns are financed.[3] |
” |
Leadership
According to the D21 website, the following individuals were on the organization's staff as of January 2019:[4]
- Fred Wertheimer, Founder and President
- Don Simon, Counsel
- Matt Keller, Vice President
- Diane Alexander, Communications and Research Director
- Dibby Johnson, Secretary to the Boards
- Dominic Ucci, Financial Manager
- Jackie Howell, Communications
Tax status
Democracy 21 is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization. Its 501(c) designation refers to a section of the U.S. federal income tax code concerning charitable, religious, and educational organizations.[5] Section 501(c) of the U.S. tax code has 29 sections that list specific conditions particular organizations must meet in order to be considered tax-exempt under the section. Organizations that have been granted 501(c)(3) status by the Internal Revenue Service are exempt from federal income tax.[6] This exemption requires that any political activity by the charitable organization be nonpartisan in nature.[7]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Democracy 21,"About Us," accessed January 11, 2019
- ↑ Democracy 21,"Mission," accessed January 11, 2019
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Democracy 21, "Staff," accessed January 11, 2019
- ↑ Internal Revenue Service, "Exempt Purposes - Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3)," accessed January 13, 2014
- ↑ Internal Revenue Service, "Life Cycle of a Public Charity/Private Foundation," accessed July 10, 2015
- ↑ Internal Revenue Service, "Exemption Requirements - 501(c)(3) Organizations," accessed January 13, 2014
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