Koch Group Wins Trial to Keep Donors Secret in California
- Americans for Prosperity Foundation defeats disclosure demand
- State attorney general loses bid to force group to file list
California Attorney General Kamala Harris speaks during a news conference on Oct. 10, 2013, in San Francisco.
Photographer: Justin Sullivan/Getty ImagesA conservative advocacy group founded by billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch persuaded a federal judge in a trial with political overtones that California can’t require it to disclose its donors.
Americans for Prosperity Foundation’s victory Thursday following a trial in Los Angeles marked the second time U.S. District Judge Manuel Real agreed with the foundation that any need by the state to use the data for potential fraud investigations doesn’t outweigh the donors’ right to privacy. In 2015, a federal appeals court reversed Real’s pre-trial ruling that the California requirement for donor information would “chill” free speech.