by ProPublica reported that the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence (sic) received a $579,530 on May 12th. The Paycheck Protection Program is part of the original pandemic financial relief bill. It officially ended on May 31, 2021. Thus, it appears that the Brady Center got in just under the wire.
These loans are forgivable if certain criteria are met. These criteria include that compensation and employee levels be maintained, that the loan proceeds are used for payroll purposes and other eligible expenses, and that at least 60% of the money went towards payroll expenses. The loans are made by private lending institutions but are guaranteed and approved by the Small Business Administration.
In applying for the loan, the Brady Center had to attest that it was necessary for continuing operations.
This was the second PPP loan that the Brady Center received. They received a loan for $695,000 in April 2020.
Given that, I am wondering if their contributions are down.
Other gun prohibitionist organizations receiving PPP loans include Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, $349,700; Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV’s 501c3), $528,892 total in two loans; CT Against Gun Violence Education Fund, $108,130 total in two loans; Christians Against Gun Violence Endangering Our Children, $85,000; and New Yorkers Against Gun Violence Education Fund, $57,680. There were a few other groups who got much smaller loans.
Major gun rights organizations such as the Second Amendment Foundation, the NRA, Gun Owners of America, and the Firearms Policy Coalition did not receive any money under this program. I will assume that they did not apply for it.
So as our kids and grandkids pay taxes well into the future to pay off the debt from the pandemic relief bills, part of their tax money will be going to forgive loans to organizations that are actively trying to diminish their civil rights. That just doesn’t set well with me.
Given that, I am wondering if their contributions are down.
Chances are almost 100% yes. They likely rely heavily on events for fundraising and those were all cancelled. Though the (c)3 groups I am in that rely heavily on events frequently had women who decided that the amount they would have spent on travel, hotels, event tickets, and general shopping would be turned into a donation, the reality is that it wasn’t enough. Most groups I know had to furlough some staff or dig into savings. Deliberate and very generous giving by some wasn’t enough to offset what can be made when you can get 500 people to buy a $75 meal ticket for a $50 meal and then drop another $50-$250 on things like raffle tickets, maybe $100 in merchandise purchasing, $150 more in an auction, etc. I just posted some end of the year financials from one group and it sucked.
None of these groups relate to guns, though. That group did fantastically well because it turns out that a very safe and socially distant outdoor activity where you can meet up with friends without taking a huge risk was really popular. đ
Do these anti-gun groups have any non-billionaire contributors? If Bloomberg scaled back, that would definitely impact their revenue streams.