Some of you may be aware that a group called the National Legal and Policy Center, a Washington-based non-profit has filed a complaint with the FEC regarding Dnet and our arrangement with CGS and the League of Women Voters. http://www.nlpc.org While we don't know for sure, it's possible that one of our competitors is indirectly behind this nuisance - perhaps the price we pay for being in a leadership position.
I want everyone to be apprised of the facts as we know them, but please do not make public comments regarding this matter or otherwise share this information with anyone outside of Grassroots.com.
First, this is not a lawsuit. It is simply a complaint filed with the FEC against a ruling that we received in October 1999. That ruling does not rest on the for profit or non-profit status of the entity which holds DNet, and the DNet project, its mission, scope are altered in no way from their status under CGS, a non-profit. We had a followup informal discussion with the FEC a month ago confirming the October 1999 ruling is not changed under Grassroots.
Second, this filing is mostly 1. in error, and 2. misrepresentative of facts and 3. interpreting the law backwards. While for the most part, we don't believe it is material, we are responding seriously, and our attorneys are preparing a point by point rebuttal which will be filed with the FEC this week. Our lead attorney on the case is a former head of the FEC and is well apprised of both the law and the commission's workings.
Third, Robert Palmer and Ellen Keech are on top of the PR aspect. In association with our attorneys, we have already prepared a press statement which we are providing on a case by case basis, and may issue a press release if the story gains any traction in the press. If it doesn't we'd rather not create waves where there are none.
On both legal and PR fronts we are working hand in hand with the League
of Women Voters to coordinate our response.
NLPC's FEC Complaint Against Grassroots.com