Alliance for a Better Iowa

Background

The Alliance for a Better Iowa was granted tax-exempt status as a 501(c)(4) advocacy group and social welfare organization in 2022. The group’s sister organization, the Alliance for a Better Iowa Education Fund, was also granted tax-exempt status in 2022 as a 501(c)(3) educational organization. The emergence of both groups grew out of a project formed by state Democratic leadership called the Hughes Project, which was named for Harold Hughes, a Democratic governor of Iowa in the 1960s credited with revitalizing the Democratic Party in the state and facilitating the passage of left-of-center legislation. ⁵

The Hughes Project was formed by Democrats in the state, including 2014 gubernatorial candidate Jack Hatch, 2018 gubernatorial candidate Fred Hubbell, Democratic donor Harry Bookey, former Governor and Obama and Biden administration cabinet secretary Tom Vilsack (D) and Iowa Democratic Party chair Ross Wilburn, following losses by Democrats in most statewide and U.S. Congressional races in the 2020 election. ⁵

The Hughes Project “circulated a survey to Democrats at every level of the party, asking for their thoughts about what went wrong and how to improve for the future. It planned to analyze its findings to draft a plan for conducting Democratic campaigns in 2022.” ⁵

According to Hatch, that work resulted in a plan to launch the Alliance for A Better Iowa, along with a research hub called the Heartland Research Project, as separate entities. The Des Moines Register reported that “Though the goals [of the new organizations] align with those of the Iowa Democratic Party, the groups operate as separate organizations.” The Register also noted that the Alliance employs “‘dark money’ tactics Democrats often decry in their opponents.” ⁵

Jamie Burch Elliott, the executive director of Alliance for A Better Iowa, stated that the group’s efforts are not affiliated with the Democracy Alliance, a national organization that pools money from Democratic mega-donors to fund “the infrastructure necessary to advance a progressive agenda for America,” according to its website. ⁵

Leadership

Jamie Burch Elliott works simultaneously as executive director of both the Alliance for a Better Iowa and the Alliance for a Better Iowa Education Fund. Burch Elliott previously was a lobbyist and public affairs director for Planned Parenthood Advocates of Iowa. Her reported compensation for 2023 from both Alliance organizations includes $45,318 from the Alliance and $69,486 from the Education Fund. ^{1 2 3 4}

Funding

In 2023, the Alliance for a Better Iowa reported approximately $602,000 in revenue and $586,000 in spending, ending with $85,470 in net assets for the fiscal year. Meanwhile, the Alliance for a Better Iowa Education Fund raised $327,518, with expenditures of $366,865, and net assets of approximately $94,713. ^{1 2}

While the group has not disclosed funding sources or groups funded, co-founder Jack Hatch noted that the Hughes Project raised an initial $1.5 million to form the Alliance and the Heartland Research Project. He also noted that one group funded by the Alliance is Progress Iowa, a left-of-center issue advocacy group that is part of the larger Progress Now network. ⁵