CAIR's Political Arm Has Operated Without Legal Authority Across US, Watchdog Report Finds

The Council of American-Islamic Relations's (CAIR) political advocacy arm, CAIR Action, is operating "without the licenses, registrations, or legal authority required in any of the 22 states where it raises money or conducts political activity," an investigation shared with the Washington Free Beacon states. According to a watchdog group, CAIR's nationwide political machine has systematically evaded state and federal regulators in what may amount to an illicit fundraising scheme.

CAIR Action is incorporated in Washington, D.C., where it steers a nationwide political operation that solicits donations, endorses candidates, organizes voter influence campaigns, and maintains the infrastructure that powers its massive advocacy network. But CAIR Action "never obtained the Basic Business License (BBL)" required for it to "legally operate or solicit funds" within D.C. and beyond, according to a joint probe by the Network Contagion Research Institute (NCRI) and the Intelligent Advocacy Network (IAN).

CAIR's activities constitute "an unlicensed interstate political-solicitation enterprise operating entirely outside the legal framework required for entities seeking funds across state lines," the report states, and the organization's lack of "legal authority to operate" means it could be guilty of "wire fraud," "deceptive solicitation," and "false statements to the IRS." Investigators were unable to locate "required corporate registration, charitable filings or solicitation licenses" or any other evidence supporting its legal authorization in any of the 22 states in which CAIR Action operates.

The report comes after a wave of action against CAIR on both the state and federal levels. Texas governor Greg Abbott (R.) last week ordered an investigation into the group after designating it a Foreign Terrorist Organization, citing the FBI in accusing CAIR of being a "front group" for Hamas. In Congress, Sen. Tom Cotton (R., Ark.) has urged the Department of Education to look into a "possibly illegal" partnership between CAIR and K-12 schools and pressed the IRS to review the group's tax-exempt status. Alongside Rep. Elise Stefanik (R., N.Y.), Cotton called on the Treasury Department to investigate ties between Hamas and CAIR, whose leader, Nihad Awad, said he was "happy to see" Hamas's Oct. 7, 2023, attack against Israel.

The report shows that the D.C. Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection could not locate CAIR Action's Basic Business License when contacted by NCRI investigators in September and October.

Even in California—one of CAIR's largest and most active hubs—CAIR Action is only registered as an out-of-state nonprofit corporation, the report states. It is not registered with the California Attorney General's Registry of Charitable Trusts, as is required within 60 days of fundraising in the state, and has not filed the CT-1 form necessary for any charitable organization to operate. In fact, CAIR Action "has received no authorization to solicit funds," according to a Nov. 3 letter from the California Attorney General's office contained in the NCRI report.

As in D.C., CAIR Action's California operation "continues to solicit donations and paid memberships, issue political endorsements, and direct voter-targeted mobilization campaigns—despite having no charitable authorization or solicitation registration—generating potential federal exposure across multiple agencies," according to the report.

Though its legal status is opaque, CAIR Action "continues to solicit donations and paid memberships, issue national political endorsements, and run voter-influence campaigns through its website, email lists, and digital platforms—all originating from Washington, D.C., where it lacks the legal authority to operate," according to the report. The investigators maintain that CAIR Action's failure to obtain a business license in D.C. leaves its fundraising efforts inside and outside of the city illegal.

"Because CAIR Action is not legally authorized to operate even in its home jurisdiction, every state where it solicits can treat its fundraising and political influence as presumptively unlawful—and since CAIR Action is openly presented as CAIR National's political arm, any unauthorized solicitation or electioneering it conducts becomes CAIR National's responsibility," the report says.

In the 21 other states in which it operates, CAIR Action maintains specific webpages that allow users to "Donate Now" or "Become a Member." These state-specific sites also list political endorsements and essentially serve as "live fundraising portals" for the organization's political work.

"Yet in the 21 states beyond California, multiple searches revealed no required corporate registration, state charitable filings or solicitation licenses, and no legal authorization of any kind," according to the report. "Despite this complete absence of compliance, CAIR Action continues to solicit money, promote paid memberships, and engage voters while portraying itself as a lawful national political entity."

In a statement provided to the Free Beacon, CAIR Action said it "fully complies with all applicable federal and state laws governing 501(c)(4) organizations" and that the "characterizations in this report are inaccurate and misleading."

The group also told the Free Beacon that, "as the organization's activities expand, all applicable compliance requirements will continue to be reviewed to ensure full adherence to the law."

Though the Free Beacon shared the information in the report with CAIR Action, the group said it "cannot respond to or verify the specific characterizations attributed to the unnamed 'report' referenced in your inquiry because it has not been provided with a copy of that report, nor given an opportunity to review or respond to its contents."

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