ALEC is Secretly Collaborating With Foreign Countries to Promote Bills in Congress

The Voters Legislative Transparency Project, Inc. announced this week they had uncovered documents demonstrating that 17 representatives of seven foreign nations have been secretly involved in creating legislative bills and policies meant to become laws of policy in the U.S.

This includes the writing of proposed “model bills,” resolutions sent to Congress and the President in support of key policies they wish the U.S. to adopt. All of this is allegedly being done outside the protocols and provision of the U.S. State Department – and possibly without that Department’s knowledge or approval.

Sixteen of these officials are Members of the European Parliament or foreign governments including: the United Kingdom, Poland, Australia, Belgium, Brussels, Punjab, and the Czech Republic. The 17th is the former U.K. Minister of Defense, Liam Fox, who resigned earlier this year following a scandal involving the Atlantic Bridge Charity and the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).

L-R Werrity and Liam Fox. Werrity ran the ALEC/Atlantic Bridge organization out of Fox’s MoD office in the UK.

Journalists did not discover this US/UK scandal involved foreign officials holding full membership in ALEC – and helping craft and develop laws for our states and policies at the federal level. These foreign officials all hold seats upon ALEC’s International Relations Task Force (IRTF). The IRTF has been responsible for creating model legislation that has become law in Utah, South Carolina (as reported in August 2012) including the Sound Money Act recently passed in those states.

As full members, the foreign representatives have full rights of voting and discussion on ALEC’s proposed legislative bills and resolutions.

Member Ayesha Javed, Punjab Provincial Assembly, Pakistan, sponsored a resolution calling for a reduction in the tariff rate for textiles exported to the U.S.. The bill, called “Resolution Calling for the Establishment of Reconstruction Opportunity Zones in Pakistan and the Elimination of US Tariffs on Pakistani Textiles,” was adopted by ALEC’s full membership in August 2010 along with several other important model bills.

Besides Former UK Minister Fox and Ayesha Javed, other foreign ALEC members include, MEP Richard Ashworth (UK), MEP Ivo Strejcek (Czech Republic), Senator Cory Bernardi (Australia), MEP Adam Bielan (Poland), MEP Syed Kamall (UK), MEP Chris Heaton-Harris (UK), MEP Roger Helmer, and MEP Richard Ashworth (UK).

L-R: Javed, Heaton-Harris, Ashworth, Bernardi and Bielan

L-R: Heaton-Harris, Ivo Strejcek, Roger Helmer and Syed Kamall at ALEC Meeting where MEP Helmer received ALEC’s International Legislator of the Year Award.

Center MEP Syed Kamall receiving ALEC International Legislator of the Year Award

A VLTP director stated, “Obviously, interference with our legislative processes from foreign government officials is far beyond troubling. The fact that it involves ALEC was not surprising, given their continued involvement in corrupting our laws and lawmakers."

“We are awaiting responses from the UK, European Union and the US State Department about activities involving foreign official’s hidden participation in influencing US laws and policies. As soon as those agencies respond, we will update readers on official government responses and positions.”

Last month, VLTP filed a formal Whistleblower complaint/claim with the Internal Revenue Service against ALEC, claiming the organization has been secretly funding the travel, lodging and expenses of public officials (including the international members) related to ALEC events without reporting those expenditures as required.