Non-profit

People United for Privacy (PUP)

Website:

unitedforprivacy.com

Tax ID:

82-3395877

Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(4)

Budget (2019):

Revenue: $500,000
Expenses: $475,761
Assets: $283,182

Location:

Oak Ridge, NC

Formation:

2018

Type:

Nonprofit

President:

Tony Woodlief

President's Salary:

$0 1

References

  1. People United for Privacy, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2020, Part VII, Section A, Line 1a.

Contact InfluenceWatch with suggested edits or tips for additional profiles.

People United for Privacy (PUP) is a nonpartisan advocacy organization that advocates for public policy that protects the privacy of American citizens, especially those contributing financially to public advocacy. 1

Although the State Policy Network (SPN) is an unrelated organization, tax records filings that in 2019, People United for Privacy delegated management duties to SPN. PUP president Tony Woodlief was compensated $4,714 by SPN for related services. 2

People United for Privacy Foundation is PUP’s sister educational organization. 3

Activities

People United for Privacy opposes the DISCLOSE Act, which has been introduced thirteen times by congressional democrats. PUP claims that the DISCLOSE Act would expand regulations on political speech that would ultimately infringe on citizens’ First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and freedom of association. The DISCLOSE Act would require nonprofits to disclose the names and addresses of their donors in excess of $10,000, to be included in an online government database, with the intention of increasing transparency of donors to combat corruption in government. PUP, however, claims that instead of addressing corruption, the DISCLOSE Act will ultimately end open debate, silence the voices of the American public, and allow for even more corruption amongst politicians. 4

In February 2021, People United for Privacy co-signed a coalition letter advocating against bills H.R. 1 and S. 1, known as the For the People Act. The coalition claims that these bills would interfere with the privacy of U.S. citizens, which is protected by the First Amendment. The coalition points to new burdens that would affect citizens, as the bill would increase regulation of online speech, force groups to identify their supporters publicly, and make personal donor information readily available in a government database. Other members of this coalition include Americans for Tax Reform, the Competitive Enterprise Institute, Donors Trust, and the State Policy Network. 5

People United for Privacy supports bill S.1777, known as the Don’t Weaponize the IRS Act, which was introduced to the U.S. Senate in May 2021. The bill aims to protect organizations, no matter their political ideology or beliefs, by preventing the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from collecting the names and addresses of their donors. Supporters of the bill claim that under the Obama administration, the IRS was able to systematically target conservative nonprofits by collecting donor information, even though this information is not needed for the purposes of tax administration. Other organizations supporting this bill include Americans for Prosperity, Heritage Action for America, and the Institute for Free Speech. 6

Funding

People United for Privacy is funded by donations from individuals, foundations, and corporations. While PUP does not disclose its donors, tax filings confirm donations from the Rule of Law Defense Fund ($500,00 in 2019) 7 and the Wellspring Committee ($500,00 in 2018). 8

People

Heather Lauer is the executive director of People United for Privacy. 9

Tony Woodlief is the president of People United for Privacy and the People United for Privacy Foundation and the executive vice president of the State Policy Network. Woodlief is the former president of the Bill of Rights Institute, the Market-Based Management Institute, and the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. 10

Amy Anderson is the treasurer of the board and the former director of the Task Force on Civil Justice at the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). 11

Jess Yescalis is the secretary of the board and the president of Yescalis Campaign Strategies. Yescalis formerly worked as the director of development at the Goldwater Institute and a regional field finance director for the National Republican Senatorial Committee. 12

Starlee Coleman is the CEO of the Texas Charter Schools Association. Coleman formerly worked as a senior policy advisor at the State Policy Network, executive vice president at the Goldwater Institute, and vice president of communications at the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. 13

Christie Herrara is the former director of the Health and Human Services Task Force at ALEC. 14

References

  1. “Citizen Privacy.” People United for Privacy. Accessed February 21, 2022. https://unitedforprivacy.com/citizen-privacy/.
  2. People United for Privacy, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2019, Part VI, Section A, Line 3.
  3. People United for Privacy, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2019, Part VI, Section A, Line 3.
  4. “A $10,000 Limit on Free Speech?” People United for Privacy, June 20, 2021. Accessed February 21, 2022. https://unitedforprivacy.com/a-10000-limit-on-free-speech/.
  5. “Oppose HR1 and S1.” People United for Privacy, February 1, 2021. Accessed February 21, 2022. https://unitedforprivacy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Oppose_HR1_S1.pdf.
  6. “‘Don’t Weaponize the IRS Act’ prevents IRS from being used as political weapon against non-profit groups.” People United for Privacy, February 1, 2021. Accessed May 20, 2022. https://unitedforprivacy.com/dont-weaponize-the-irs-act-prevents-irs-from-being-used-as-political-weapon-against-non-profit-groups/.
  7. Rule of Law Defense Fund, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2019, Schedule I, Part II.
  8. Wellspring Committee Inc., Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2018, Schedule I, Part II.
  9. “Heather Lauer.” LinkedIn, 2022. Accessed February 21, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/in/heatherlauer/.
  10. “Tony Woodlief.” State Policy Network, 2022. Accessed February 18, 2022. https://spn.org/staffer/tony-woodlief/.
  11. “Amy Kjose Anderson.” American Legislative Exchange Council, 2022. Accessed February 18, 2022. https://alec.org/person/amy-kjose-anderson/.
  12. “Jess Yescalis.” LinkedIn, 2022. Accessed February 18, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/in/jess-yescalis-66906935/.
  13. “Starlee Coleman.” LinkedIn, 2022. Accessed February 18, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/in/starlee-coleman-67ba2a5/.
  14. “Christie Herrera.” American Legislative Exchange Council. Archived from the original November 16, 2011. Accessed February 18, 2022. http://web.archive.org/web/20111116151643/http://www.alec.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=christie_herrera.
  See an error? Let us know!

Nonprofit Information

  • Accounting Period: December - November
  • Tax Exemption Received: July 1, 2018

  • Available Filings

    Period Form Type Total revenue Total functional expenses Total assets (EOY) Total liabilities (EOY) Unrelated business income? Total contributions Program service revenue Investment income Comp. of current officers, directors, etc. Form 990
    2019 Dec Form 990 $500,000 $475,761 $283,182 $27,968 N $500,000 $0 $0 $0 PDF
    2018 Dec Form 990 $500,000 $269,025 $499,970 $268,995 N $500,000 $0 $0 $0 PDF