Ethics Scenario #92: Children and Family Futures Foundation

92. Alex is the executive director of Children and Family Futures Foundation, a 501(c)(3) national think tank based in Washington that provides educational materials and runs seminars to support its public policy agenda. This think tank receives millions of dollars from one particular businessman, and not surprisingly, that businessman supports the organization’s public policy agenda, and, also not surprisingly, that agenda favors the policies that will result in the businessman’s business making more and more profits. Alex considers his organization to be an educational institution, and he doesn’t do any direct lobbying for the policies on the organization’s agenda. Rather, he runs educational workshops and develops educational materials to provide background information to member state legislators. The organization is effective; it is not unusual for the think tank to distribute a policy proposal and a sample draft of legislation needed to implement that proposal, and having it introduced (and sometimes even enacted) within days by legislators who are members of the organization. Alex likes to keep the affairs of the organization as close to the vest and out of the public eye as possible, and seeks to avoid having the organization and its staff filing lobbying disclosure paperwork at either the state and federal level. Critics have charged that the organization not only lobbies, lobbying is the only purpose of the organization. Alex knows that once the organization admits to lobbying, its 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status would be put at risk.

a. Is Alex’s behavior ethical?

b. Is Alex's behavior legal?