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Model Legislation Resolution Calling on States to Defund Acorn, Center for Media and Democracy Alec

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Model Legislation

Public Safety and Elections

Did you know the NRA--the
National Rifle Association-was the corporate co-chair in

Resolution Calling on States to Defund ACORN 2011?

WHEREAS, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN)
was founded in 1970 with the mission of increasing voter participation, delivering
services to inner-city neighborhoods, community organizing, and carrying out issue
campaigns; and

WHEREAS, ACORN is an organization guilty of violating numerous laws and aiding
and abetting criminal activity; and

WHEREAS, in 2003, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) found that ACORN
had illegally suppressed the ability of its employees to organize a union. The NLRB
said, “By interrogating employees about their union activities, by informing
employees that other employees have been discharged because of the union, by
threatening employees that selecting the union to represent them will be futile,
and by threatening employees with discharge, respondent has violated section 8(a)
of the act;” and

WHEREAS, ACORN workers have been convicted of voter registration crimes in the
following states: Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and
Washington; and

WHEREAS, on November 14, 2008, the Catholic Campaign for Human
Development stopped all contributions to ACORN, citing “[S]erious concerns about
national ACORN’s financial accountability, transparency, governance and
organizational integrity,” and “reports of ACORN involvement in alleged voter
registration fraud and political partisanship.”

WHEREAS, ACORN workers were videotaped in Baltimore, New York City, San
Diego, San Bernadino, and Washington, D.C. aiding and abetting prostitution, child
prostitution, human trafficking, illegal immigration, and tax fraud; and

WHEREAS, ACORN workers instructed individuals to falsify tax forms by listing
child prostitutes as “dependents;” and

WHEREAS, on September 11, 2009, the United States Department of Commerce
ended its partnership on the 2010 Census with ACORN, citing a lack of confidence
in the organization; and

WHEREAS, on September 16, 2009, White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs
remarked, “The conduct you see on those tapes is completely unacceptable;” and

WHEREAS, on September 15, 2009, the U.S. Senate voted 83-7 to prohibit federal
funds from going to ACORN; and

WHEREAS, on September 17, 2009, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 34575 to prohibit federal funds from going to ACORN; and

WHEREAS, a large portion of ACORN’s funding comes from government grants;
and

WHEREAS, since 1994 ACORN, has received more than $53 million in government
grants; and

THEREFORE, the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) calls on states to
engage the appropriate state auditing authority to audit all grants in order to
identify funding for ACORN and groups linked to ACORN.

THEREFORE BE IT FURTER RESOLVED, that ALEC calls on all states to
immediately end support for ACORN and groups linked to ACORN.

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