Heritage Action for America

Founded in 2010, Heritage Action for America is the political advocacy arm of the Heritage Foundation. Heritage Action's website describes the group's purpose as "hold[ing] Congress accountable to conservative principles." Republicans in Congress have criticized Heritage Action, including Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), who according to The Washington Post "has accused the group of “destroying the Republican Party” with its push to strip funding for the Affordable Care Act (ACA). “They’ve become a purely partisan group that never asks anybody’s opinion.”"

Heritage Action played a significant role in the 2013 government shutdown, which it advocated as part of a campaign against the ACA.

A 501(c)(4) political non-profit, Heritage Action is located in Washington, D.C.

News and Controversies

Heritage Action Offers Help to ALEC State Lawmakers in ESG Fight

Heritage Action endorsed the American Legislative Exchange Council model "Eliminate Political Boycotts Act" after it was voted upon at the States and National Policy Summit at the end of 2022. The policy would prevent companies that account for any "social, political, or ideological interests" in relation to fossil fuels, logging, mining, or agriculture businesses from receiving any federal contracts. If adopted, this policy would allow state governments to block contracts with companies that implement environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors or diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) into their business practices.

At an ALEC workshop in December 2022, Heritage Action executive director Jessica Anderson provided lawmakers with regional lobbyists that can help in passing anti-ESG bills. Heritage is working closely with ALEC, State Financial Officers Foundation, and Texas Public Policy Foundation as part of a larger coalition committed to fighting ESG initiatives, and it expects to see up to 20 states introducing anti-ESG legislation in 2023, Anderson said.

“We work with [state lawmakers] to say, ‘OK, can we bring in an expert to brief you in your caucus? Can we show up to committee hearings? Can we help bring support, media opportunities, op-eds?… There’s going to be opposition, so how can we help you fight back?'” Anderson explained.

Heritage Action Joins 'School Choice' Supporters

Heritage Action joined former Florida governor Jeb Bush in voicing support for a new Florida bill, HB 1: School Choice, which would expand the Florida private school voucher program currently providing $1.3 billion in public funding to low-income families wanting to send their children to Florida private schools. This new bill proposes removing the income restrictions on who can qualify for a "voucher". The Florida Policy Institute warns that this bill would force "school districts to forfeit even more public taxpayer dollars for private education" and has potential ramifications for "teacher pay, supplemental tutoring, and STEM" programs in public schools. Heritage Action, however, released a statement saying they "look forward to supporting this legislation as it moves through the Florida Legislature and makes its way to Governor DeSantis' desk".

Heritage Action's Pro-Life Agenda

Heritage Action celebrated the "first pro-life victory in the 118th Congress" after the passing of the Born-Alive Survivors Protection Act. Executive Director Jessica Anderson said in a press release that they intend to "advocate for even more... pro-life policy goals" which include the Heartbeat Protection Act and U.S. Representative Lauren Boebert's Defund Planned Parenthood Act of 2023.

Heritage Action Launches 'Election Integrity' Initiative

In 2021, Heritage Action announced its 2-year "Election Integrity Plan", which would work to combat the reintroduced "For the People Act". Among many things, this bill would expand voter registration and voting access as well as counteract gerrymandering in congressional districts. Heritage Action writes, "Where Democrats hold power, we must defend against bad policy. Where conservatives and our allies are in power, we must advance changes that protect the lawful votes of Americans." They explain that Heritage Foundation's "Index for Election Readiness" will provide the guidance for determining the states with the "most vulnerable election laws", and those are the states where they will concentrate their plan. Steps of action include hiring state lobbyists, proposing model legislation for election law reform, and "educating" and mobilizing grassroots efforts for election reform. The initiative has a $24 million budget, with $3 million allotted per state.

Heritage Action Draws Criticism

According to reporting by The New Republic, some former Heritage Foundation staffers feel that Heritage Action and its political work have come to drive the Heritage Foundation, rather than being subordinate to it."

Republicans in Congress have also criticized Heritage Action, including Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), who according to The Washington Post "has accused the group of “destroying the Republican Party” with its push to strip funding for the ACA. “They’ve become a purely partisan group that never asks anybody’s opinion.”" Rep. Lynn Westmoreland (R-GA) has said, "I think Heritage Action is really hurting the foundation. […] I think they’ve lost credibility with the people that were most supportive of them.”

Heritage Action Pushes for Government Shutdown

On October 1, 2013, the US federal government shut down when Congress failed to pass a budget. A group of Republicans in the Republican-controlled House pressed for a spending bill that would have delayed the implementation of parts of the ACA, while the Democratic-majority Senate refused to pass a bill with those provisions. The New York Times reported that the "the confrontation that precipitated the crisis was the outgrowth of a long-running effort to undo the law, the Affordable Care Act, since its passage in 2010 — waged by a galaxy of conservative groups" including Heritage Action for America.

On October 11, the Wall Street Journal credited Heritage Action's Michael Needham with playing a major role in the shutdown, stating that "Though Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is the public face of the high-risk strategy to "defund" ObamaCare [the ACA], the masterminds behind it are a new generation of young conservatives, chief among them Mr. Needham." The Journal added that Needham believed the House GOP strategy had not gone badly:

"If conservative groups like Heritage Action hadn't raised the stakes on ObamaCare," he says, "we'd be debating on their side of the football field talking about tax increases, gun control, more spending and amnesty for illegal immigrants."

The political strategy included pressuring Republicans in Congress to support the defunding push through attack ads, on which Heritage Action spent half a million dollars. According to the New York Times, "Heritage Action ran critical Internet advertisements in the districts of 100 Republican lawmakers who had failed to sign a letter by a North Carolina freshman, Representative Mark Meadows, urging Mr. Boehner to take up the defunding cause."

The shutdown ended early in the morning on October 16, 2013 when a temporary budget resolution passed both houses of Congress, with a majority of House Republicans voting against it. No significant concessions were made to those demanding changes to the ACA. According to CNN, "Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire called the House GOP tactic of tying Obamacare to the shutdown legislation "an ill-conceived strategy from the beginning, not a winning strategy."" But in a discussion on Fox News on October 16, Needham seemed to hold to his commitment to repeal the ACA, saying

"The reason the government is shut down is Obamacare is unfair, it's unaffordable, it's unworkable, every single day there's more evidence of that coming out. House Republicans have remained strong in saying we are not going to let this bill go forward."

However, he also conceded that repeal would not be politically possible for years:

"Well, everybody understands that we're not going to be able to repeal this law until 2017. And that we have to win the Senate and win the White House."

Many of those involved in the push to use a government shutdown to defund the ACA had ties to the Koch brothers, including Tea Party Patriots, Freedomworks and former Attorney General Edwin Meese III, who also sits on the board of the Koch-funded Mercatus Center and was formerly on the board of the Heritage Foundation. After Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid claimed on October 8 that the Kochs were behind the shutdown, [Koch Industries]] sent a letter to Capitol Hill. The letter is focused on the corporation, stating that "Koch has not taken a position on the legislative tactic of tying the continuing resolution [for temporary government funding] to defunding Obamacare nor have we lobbied on legislation provisions defunding Obamacare."

Ties to the Koch Brothers

Heritage Action has received funding from the Koch brothers, including a half million dollar donation in 2013, according to CEO Michael Needham.

The Heritage Foundation received $650,000 from the Claude R. Lambe Foundation, which was one of the Koch Family Foundations before it closed in 2013. The Lambe Foundation contributed at least $4.8 million to the Heritage Foundation between 1998 and 2012.

In recent years, the Heritage Foundation has also received funding from Donors Trust and Donors Capital Fund, including $53,300 in 2010 and $69,850 in 2012. The Koch brothers have donated millions of dollars to Donors Trust through the Knowledge and Progress Fund, and possibly other vehicles.

Koch Wiki

Charles Koch is the right-wing billionaire owner of Koch Industries. As one of the richest people in the world, he is a key funder of the right-wing infrastructure, including the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and the State Policy Network (SPN). In SourceWatch, key articles on Charles Koch and his late brother David include: Koch Brothers, Americans for Prosperity, Stand Together Chamber of Commerce, Stand Together, Koch Family Foundations, Koch Universities, and I360.

Ties to ALEC

Heritage Action for America partners with ALEC to help support the model policy that the group produces.

About ALEC

ALEC is a corporate bill mill. It is not just a lobby or a front group; it is much more powerful than that. Through ALEC, corporations hand state legislators their wishlists to benefit their bottom line. Corporations fund almost all of ALEC's operations. They pay for a seat on ALEC task forces where corporate lobbyists and special interest reps vote with elected officials to approve “model” bills. Learn more at the Center for Media and Democracy's ALECexposed.org, and check out breaking news on our ExposedbyCMD.org site.

History

Heritage Action for America was founded in April 2010. In a Wall Street Journal op-ed published to introduce the organization, Edwin J. Feulner and Michael A. Needham wrote that Heritage Action was formed "to spend money to push legislation […] without the obstacles faced by a nonprofit like the Heritage Foundation." Heritage COO Phillip Truluck told The Atlantic that while research is still the focus of the Heritage Foundation, "Heritage Action is a way to exert a little more pressure and get [Congress] members’ attention."

According to the New Republic, the impetus to form Heritage Action came from Thomas A. Saunders III, a major donor to the GOP and member of the Heritage Foundation's board of directors. After he was elected chairman of the board in April 2009, "he made the case that the think tank would be foolish not to take advantage of the moment and pursue the activist option." Michael Needham, whose father had been a donor to Heritage, "had been a proponent of ramping up the foundation’s lobbying efforts" and was brought on to run the new Heritage Action.

Ahead of former Heritage president Edwin J. Feulner's retirement in 2013, former Republican Senator Jim DeMint reportedly began to lobby for the position. According to the New Republic, "[t]here had been resistance at Heritage to hiring a former member of Congress rather than a Ph.D., but Saunders, the chairman of the board, predictably liked the idea of a more activist president." DeMint became president of the Heritage Foundation in 2013. Based on an interview with him later that year, NPR reported that his goal in that position "is to make Heritage the most influential public policy organization in the country."

Activities

Heritage Action for America's website displays a "Scorecard" to "measure[e] votes, co-sponsorships, and other legislative activity to show how conservative Members of Congress are." The "scorecard" is updated "weekly while Congress is in session.".

Heritage Action runs the "Sentinel Program," which its website states "is designed to be a movement of conservatives holding Congress accountable 24/7" by "leading their circles of influence and communicating with elected officials." It encourages program participants to attend town hall meetings, write to their Congressional representatives, and advocate online for conservative causes. As reported by Rolling Stone, the Sentinels are part of

"a sophisticated strategy – modeled, surprisingly, after the Obama campaigns – to turn up the heat on Washington lawmakers. The big idea, says Mike Needham, Heritage Action's 31-year-old CEO, is to keep members of Congress "enveloped in our message" – both on the Hill, "where he's hearing it from our six lobbyists," and at home, "where he's hearing it from a well-informed Sentinel who is a Tea Party leader."

Funding

As a 501(c)(4), Heritage Action is not required to disclose its donors. However, records provided by donor organizations reveal some of the sources of Heritage Action's budget.

• The 85 Fund: $50,000 (2020)
• America First Works: $994,000 (2020)
• American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers: $30,000 (2017-2019)
• BGR Foundation: $4,000 (2016)
• Brian & Joelle Kelly Family Foundation: $178,058 (2017-2019)
• Buckelew Family Foundation: $113 (2017)
• Consumers Defense: $200,000 (2022-2023)
• Deborah J. and Peter A. Magowan Family Foundation: $1,000 (2018)
• Donald & Ruth V. Malvern Foundation: $250 (2015)
• Donna L. Elliott Family Foundation: $100 (2020)
• Dorbarleo Foundation: $1,000 (2015)
• Glen & Carmel Mitchell Foundation: $100 (2019)
• Goldbaum Family Foundation: $1,500 (2013-2014)
• Grace and Li Yu Family Foundation: $200 (2018)
• Grogan Family Foundation: $100 (2015)
• Heritage Foundation: $1,400,000 (2020-2023)
• Irving Rothlein Foundation: $1,800 (2017-2019)
• Jackson Howard Foundation: $1,500 (2015-2016)
• John J. Creedon Foundation: $100 (2019)
• The Concord Fund: $4,437,883 (2020-2022)
• Liberty University: $300,000 (2018)
• Liptak Family Foundation: $150,000 (2020)
• Manloy Heritage Foundation: $100 (2020)
• Pat Boone Foundation: $200 (2017-2018)
• Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America: $37,500 (2018)
• Stand Together Chamber of Commerce: $675,000 (2012-2014)
• Tessie Grosby Charitable Foundation: $200 (2020)
• Thomas A. and Joan M. Holmes Foundation: $1,000 (2016)
• Wiseheart Foundation: $11,000 (2017)

In October 2013, CEO Michael Needham confirmed that the Koch brothers had given a $500,000 donation to Heritage Action. While he did not reveal any other donors, he also "confirmed that Heritage Action does take corporate contributions but said that it made up less than 5 percent of its overall donors." Heritage Action also received a $270,000 donation in 2011 from a Koch-linked group, Free Enterprise America, which was headed by Koch network member Sean Noble.

Google reports having made a "substantial" contribution to Heritage Action, making it part of what the Center for Media and Democracy describes as "a growing list of groups advancing the agenda of the Koch brothers" that are receiving funding from Google.

The Center for Responsive Politics reports that in 2012, about 44% of Heritage Action's budget came from small donations (under $5,000), and it received only 11 donations of $100,000 or more, suggesting that it may have "a large donor base compared to other notable nonprofits active in politics."

Core Financials

2023

• Total Revenue: $12,699,259
• Total Expenses: $14,343,938
• Net Assets: $3,380,626

Grants Distributed

• Sentinel Action Fund: $500,000

2022

• Total Revenue: $20,906,989
• Total Expenses: $21,985,466
• Net Assets: $4,968,549

Grants Distributed

• Sentinel Action Fund: $4,250,000

2021

• Total Revenue: $18,461,249
• Total Expenses: $21,853,746
• Net Assets: $5,096,000

2020

• Total Revenue: $15,897,373
• Total Expenses: $15,564,208
• Net Assets: $8,497,632

2019

• Total Revenue: $11,685,980
• Total Expenses: $9,336,753
• Net Assets: $8,150,798

2018

• Total Revenue: $11,320,527
• Total Expenses: $10,995,704
• Net Assets: $5,804,637

2017

• Total Revenue: $10,239,032
• Total Expenses: $10,340,577
• Net Assets: $5,495,844

2012

• Total Revenue: $5,930,423
• Total Expenses: $4,177,693
• Net Assets: $3,694,656

2011

• Total Revenue: $4,600,406
• Total Expenses: $4,140,701
• Net Assets: $1,915,283

2010

• Total Revenue: $3,159,377
• Total Expenses: $1,674,901
• Net Assets: $1,484,476

Personnel

As of December 2023:

Staff Members

• Kevin Roberts, President
• Jessica Anderson, Executive Director
• Ryan Walker, Executive Vice President
• Ian Artinger, VP of Digital Advocacy & Treasurer
• Janae Stracke, VP, Outreach & Advocacy
• Garrett Bess, Vice President
• Catherine Bunsalus, State Advocacy Director
• Sarah Feldpausch, Director of House Relations
• Jasmine Vakerics, Major Gifts Officer
• Stephanie Kreuz, Director of Sentinel Engagement

Former Staff Members

• Mary Claire Couch, Director of Development & Strategics
• Randall Gibson Jr., Manager of Senate Relations
• Michael A. Needham - Chief Executive Officer
• Tim Chapman - Chief Operating Officer. Previously chief of staff to former Heritage Foundation president Edwin J. Feulner.
• Hugh Fike - Sentinel Coordinator. Previously NRA field representative in Wisconsin, worked on campaign of Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell.
• Kathryn Gunter - Development Associate. Previously finance director for Washington State Republican Party.
• Dan Holler - Communications Director. Previously deputy director of senate relations for Heritage Foundation.
• Cari Kelly - Legislative Strategist. Prevoiusly oversight counsel for Senate Budget Committee under Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL).
• Andrew McIndoe - Development Director. Previously director of development at Bill of Rights Institute and development associate at The FUnd for American Studies.
• Jack Minor - Digital Associate
• Katherine Rosario - Communications Deputy. Previously an intern with Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL).
• Erin Kanoy Siefring - Director of House Relations. Previously director of house relations at the Heritage Foundation.
• Zack Slingsby - Educational Coordinator.
• Russ Vought - Vice President of Grassroots Outreach. Previously policy director for Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN).
• Drew White - Legislative Strategist. Previously worked in development at the Koch Associate Program.
• Jason Yaworske - Legislative Strategist. Previously a legislative director in the House of Representatives.
• Nathanael Yellis - Digital Director. Previously with Yellis & Foley CPAs.
• Rebekah Brown - Western Regional Coordinator
• Ben Evans - Central Regional Coordinator.
• Dave Haas - Northeast Regional Coordinator. Previously Pennsylvania State chairman of Young Americans for Liberty.
• Mike Henry - Upper Northeast Regional Coordinator. Previously an intern with American Majority Action.
• Karen Jaroch - Florida Regional Coordinator.
• Stephanie Kreuz - Midwest Regional Coordinator. Previously wrote for WatchdogWire (Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity) and interned for Mackinac Center for Public Policy
• Trevor Laky - Southwest Regional Coordinator. Previously interned for Rep. Matt Salmon (R-AZ) and worked for gubernatorial campaign for Ken Cuccinelli.
• Wade Miller - South Central Regional Coordinator. Previously interned for Edwin J. Feulner; member of US Marine Corps.
• Nate Nelson - Upper Midwest Regional Coordinator. Previously NRA campaign field representative in Wisconsin, Americans for Prosperity field coordinator.
• Stephen Siao - Southern Regional Coordinator
• Melody Himel Scalley - Mid-Atlantic Regional Coordinator
• Katie Spee - Southeastern Regional Coordinator

Board of Directors

• Jessica Anderson
• Sean Fieler
• Rebekah Mercer
• Nersi Nazari, Ph.D.

Former Board Members

• William J. Hume
• Jerry Grossman

Contact Information

Employer Identification Number (EIN): 27-2244700

Heritage Action for America
214 Massachusetts Ave NE, STE 400
Washington D.C. 20002-4958

• Phone: (202) 548-5280
• Website: https://heritageaction.com/
• Email: info@heritageaction.com, press@heritageaction.com
• Twitter: @Heritage_Action
• Facebook: Heritage Action for America
• YouTube: @Heritageaction
• Instagram: @heritageaction

Articles and Resources

IRS 990 Filings

2023

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