ATLANTA (Legal Newsline) - A voter turnout group is suing Georgia over a law that it says improperly classifies it as a political committee that must turn over its donor information.
New Georgia Project filed suit Aug. 31 against Georgia officials in federal court, claiming the Georgia Government Transparency and Campaign Finance Act violates the First and 14th amendments of the U.S. Constitution.
New Georgia Project says its major purpose is nonpartisan voter engagement, not electoral political activity, but has been labeled a political committee under the overbroad definitions in the act.
"Permitting the (Georgia Government Transparency and Campaign Finance Commission's) investigation of Plaintiffs and sanctioning the Act's overbroad definitions of 'campaign committee' and 'independent committee' would have sweeping consequences, chilling core First Amendment activity for nonprofit organizations by subjecting them to burdensome committee registration and disclosure rules - regardless of their primary purpose," the suit says.
The suit seeks an order declaring the act's definitions of "campaign committee" and "independent committee" are unconstitutional.