The State Policy Network (SPN) is an umbrella group of right-wing think tanks across the country.

The Pacific Research Institute (PRI) is SPNs cookie-cutter think tank in California. Taking in more than $4.7 million in revenue in 2011, the Pacific Research Institute is one of SPNs largest and best funded right-wing think tanks in the country.

PRI is a member of the controversial American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). At ALEC, corporate lobbyists and state lawmakers go behind closed doors to create laws, with no input from the public, that end up helping the corporations bottom line. After ALECs role in pushing Stand Your Ground and voter suppression legislation became public, 49 corporations and 75 lawmakers cut ties with the controversial organization, although it appears PRI remains a supporter and member of ALEC. PRI is a member of ALECs Tax and Fiscal Policy Task Force and Health and Human Services Task Force, and has ties to ALECs the Education Task Force and Civil Justice Task Force.

Block access to affordable healthcare for Californians Oppose environmental protections and renewable energy proposals Defund and privatize Californias public schools through vouchers Cut corporate taxes Destroy public pensions Protect corporations by making it harder for Californians to sue a corporation when its at fault
[Pacific Research Institute, accessed 8/27/2013]

In 2010, PRI played a fundamental role in the campaign to repeal AB 32, Californias clean energy and climate law. PRI, according to Greenpeace, ThinkProgress and PolluterWatch, funded and published bunk and flawed studies to boost support for Proposition 23 (the repeal initiative). The Yes on Prop 23 campaign was largely funded by three corporations: Valero Energy, Tesoro Corporation, and the Koch Industries subsidiary Flint Hills Resources. One of Valero Energys lobbyists Mike Carpenter is a former lobbyist for Philip Morris in California, and is credited with helping raise funds for the campaign. Carpenter also sits on PRIs board. Despite the $10.6 million spent by big oil and the efforts of PRI, the initiative was defeated. Not surprisingly, major tobacco and oil corporations are among PRIs known corporate donors, including Altria (the parent company of Philip Morris), Exxon Mobil, and Chevron Texaco. PRI has received $615,000 from Exxon Mobil between 2001 and 2009, while also taking over $1.6 million from the Koch brothers three charitable foundations between 1986 and 2011.

PRI has significant ties to the tobacco industry. In an 1998 memo, Marden identified PRI has a potential ally to Philip Morris largely ineffective youth smoking prevention programswhich have been denounced by critics as a public relations move rather than an a substantial effort to stop youth smoking. Marden noted that Philip Morris is a long-time donor to PRI. An another internal tobacco memo from February 1987 sent by Philip Morris executive Roy E. Marden to company staff detailed interactions with then-PRI President Chip Mellor in regard to an Institute project on advertising and marketing processes. The PRI project was partially funded by Philip Morris.

As one of SPNs best funded think tanks and a member of ALECs Health and Human Services Task Force, PRI has been a major force in the effort to block and repeal the Affordable Care Act or Obamacare which, in effect, would block access to healthcare for 1.4 million low-income Californians. PRIs Director of Health Studies John Graham called ALECs Health Care Freedom Initiative a coordinated effort to block the implementation of the Affordable Care Act our key achievement, referring to his membership on ALECs Health and Human Services Task Force where he represents PRI. Along with PRI, other private sector members of ALECs Health and Human Services Task Force include major pharmaceutical corporations such as Pfizer and PhRMA, both of which also fund the Pacific Research Institute. PRIs known funding from PhRMA alone totals $130,000 in just the three years between 2008 and 2010. In addition to participating in ALECs Health and Human Services Task Force, PRI has a history of releasing research and publications against healthcare reform, and PRI President and CEO Sally Pipes has even skewed the results of public opinion polls on healthcare reform to fit PRIs political agenda. In 2009, the Pacific Research Institute received $190,000 from the Koch-funded Donors Capital Fund, known as the dark money ATM of the conservative movement, for projects related to healthcare.

It is highly unlikely that the Health Care Freedom Initiative, or other measures to defeat Obamacare in the states, would have spread so successfully in the absence of ALEC.
PRIs Director of Health Studies John Graham, a member of ALECs Health and Human Services Task Force

In 2011, PRI took in $4.7 million in revenue and spent over $4.9 million, but the think tanks more than $3.6 million in assets made up for the deficit. In the same year, PRI President and CEO Sally Pipes received a total compensation package of $431,773, which is close to $300,000 more than the average CEO nonprofit pay in 2012.

PRI President & CEO Sally Pipes 2011 compensation package 2012 pay for the Governor of California 2012 median salary for a nonprofit CEO 2011 CA median household income 2011 CA Per capita income

$431,773

: Like many SPN think tanks, PRI has received a

significant portion of its funding from out-of-state special interests and rightwing foundations, including from the Koch brothers, the Coors family (of Coors Brewing Company), the Walton family (of Walmart), Wisconsins Bradley Foundation, and Pennsylvanias conservative mega-donor Richard Scaife. Below are some of PRIs largest known right-wing donors:
FUNDER Sarah Scaife Foundation Koch Foundations DonorsTrust/Donors Capital Fund Searle Freedom Trust The Bradley Foundation William H. Donner Foundation William E. Simon Foundation John M. Olin Foundation Jaquelin Hume Foundation Philip M. McKenna Foundation Walton Family Foundation Castle Rock Foundation BASED IN Pennsylvania Kansas Virginia Illinois Wisconsin New York New York New York California Pennsylvania Arkansas Colorado AMOUNT $3,722,000 $1,632,800 $1,342,001 $1,310,000 $1,116,000 $930,000 $759,250 $735,000 $723,750 $514,000 $380,000 $350,000 YEARS 1985-2011 1986-2011 2002-2011 2003-2011 1987-2011 1998-2011 2002-2011 1986-2002 1999-2011 1996-2011 1998-2008 1996-2010

$173,000

$132,739

$61,632 $29,634

[Pacific Research Institute, IRS 990, 2011]

The Koch brothers are PRIs second largest known donor, contributing over $1.6 million over the last 25 years