NRA = $242 Million;
Versus Brady Center = $6.5 Million
I had an inkling the National Rifle Association and its affiliated NRA Foundation were flush with funds, but until today I didn't know exactly how many millions flow through these non-profit advocacy group. Thanks to the 2008 IRS 990s for the NRA and the NRA Foundation posted at GuideStar, I can share important figures on them.
However, before we get to the numbers I wish to point out that neither the NRA nor the foundation on their sites make any IRS 990s available for public inspection, and they also don't link to the tax filings at the GuideStar site. A small, but important, fiscal transparency problem in need of pointing out.
The 2008 NRA filing shows revenue was as $247,976,782 while assets were listed at $131,342,619.
Wayne LaPierre, the head of the NRA received a compensation package totaling $1,281,635. The leader of the NRA Foundation, Wilson Philips, was paid $664,907.
For the NRA Foundation, the 2008 tax filing shows $24,517,087 in revenue and $58,141,105 in assets.
Combining the revenue amounts for both group gives them a total of $242,493,869, and their joint assets comes to $189,483,724. Two nice and healthy chunks of change.
At the other end of the political spectrum on guns, the Brady Center and its affiliate the Brady Campaign are no match financially for the NRA.
The 2008 tax filing for the Brady Center reports revenue of $3,122,840 and assets of $2,395,940. For the Brady Campaign, its revenue was listed $3,397,792 with assets at $381,668.
Unfortunately, the center and campaign share the same lack of disclosure as their sites as do the NRA and its foundation.
The combined revenue for both arms of the Brady groups is $6,520,632, while the collective assets come to $2,777,608.
In terms of executive compensation, the president for both Brady non-profits, Paul Helmke, came to $249,555, and the public face and director of the groups, Sarah Brady, was paid $141,112.
Let's recap. NRA's total budget equals $242,493,869 with assets of $189,483,724 and the Brady group's budget was $6,520,632 and had assets listed at $2,777,608.
I don't mean to be flip about the enormous gulf between the gun advocates and the control activists, but it's clear the NRA totally outguns the Brady Center in terms of financing, and in America's gun politics money is power. That has got to change.
Michael-
ReplyDeleteI apologize for posting this here, but I didn't know where else to put it. I wanted you to see this unbelievable web posting and video from Stop8.org.
http://stop8.org/
(First item on the page, or scroll down for the video)
Stop8 reports that EQCA has apparently decided on its own that there will be no repeal effort. The EQCA website is still telling the public that there should be a ballot effort in 2012, but the Managing Director Jim Carroll told Stop8 that it is not even on his radar screen.
The Stop8 spokesman tries to justify not going ahead with repeal in 2012. But he bases that conclusion on a ridiculous argument that the opposition has kept its "campaign structure in place".
He also thinks that that the Prop 8 "campaign structure" has been maintained for decades - going back to Prop 22 in 2000 or to the "1980s" when he erroneously believes there was a ballot fight on marriage in Hawaii.
This is wrong on so many levels, it would take several pages to lay it all out. It is unclear whether this bizarre and nearly incoherent rationale came from Stop8 itself, or whether EQCA suggested it.
BTW, I agree that we should not go to the ballot in 2012, b/c the odds are good that we will win in court. But how can EQCA make that decision in secret and unilaterally? I hope you will use your impressive muckraking talents and find out what the real story is here.
-David
BTW, since this really wasn't a comment on the post, feel free to post it or not post it as you see fit.