NEWS ADVISORY

November 26, 2003

EFF: Hopefully WEA next in line for IRS audit

Evergreen Freedom Foundation
Headlines around the nation announced today that the National Education Association (NEA) is being audited by the IRS for reporting "zero" political expenditures on its tax forms, even though the union spends millions each election cycle to elect candidates and influence policy.

Responding to the news, NEA president Reg Weaver first predicted the union would be exonerated, then declared that union officials would "vigorously defend our constitutional right to speak to our members about the role of politics in public education."

Many teachers here in Washington may wonder what that means in light of a recent Court of Appeals decision in which a panel of judges overturned a lower court and ruled that the union’s interest in collective speech outweighs a teacher’s individual free speech and free association rights. The Attorney General has requested an appeal in the state Supreme Court.

The IRS audit of the NEA stems from a complaint filed by the Landmark Legal Foundation, a Virginia-based non-profit public interest law firm dedicated to individual liberty and free enterprise.

Through litigation aimed at protecting teachers’ rights, the Landmark Legal Foundation and the Evergreen Freedom Foundation have obtained tens of thousands of internal NEA documents exposing the union’s multi-million dollar political campaigns.

The documents unmask one of the most powerful political forces in America, detailing what one former NEA executive director described as the NEA’s goal "to tap the legal, political and economic powers of the U.S. Congress" and "collect votes to reorder the priorities of the United States of America."

EFF has also obtained thousands of documents describing the political goals of the WEA. Many of those documents were kept for years in a locked file cabinet under a union-sought protective order.

"The last thing union officials want teachers to know is how mandatory dues are spent to advance controversial political causes," said Bob Williams, EFF’s president.

EFF’s investigations have prompted Washington State Attorney General Christine Gregoire to sue the WEA twice during the last several years for illegal political activity, resulting in fines and penalties of more than $1.3 million. Gregoire also filed suit against the NEA for illegally spending money taken from Washington teachers.

EFF filed an IRS complaint against the WEA in 2001.

"Now that the IRS is going forward with its audit of the NEA, we hope it will follow suit with the WEA," said Williams. "Teachers deserve to know the truth."

More Information:

Landmark Legal Foundation: IRS Complaint v. NEA (2001)

The Olympia-based Evergreen Freedom Foundation is a nonprofit public policy research organization dedicated to individual liberty, free enterprise, and accountable government.

Contact: Marsha Richards | Communications Director | 360.956.3482

Evergreen Freedom Foundation P.O. Box 552, Olympia, WA 98507 Phone: (360) 956-3482, Fax: (360) 352-1874 Email: effwa@effwa.org