Opponents of Prop 24 Have Failed to Disclose Payments to Hired Consultants While Trying to Raise Money from Big Tech
Sacramento, CA — Today the FPPC announced it has opened an investigation into the “No on 24” opposition committee for violations of campaign disclosure laws, including failing to report Marva Diaz as a paid consultant. Opponents to privacy have tried to raise money from Big Tech companies while hiring consultants who shill for corporate entities like Lyft.
“The opposition committee ‘California Consumer and Privacy Advocates Against Prop 24’ led by Mary Stone Ross is being investigated for violating campaign laws and failing to disclose payments for services provided by consultant Marva Diaz of Marva Diaz Strategies, who records show has been working for the opposition campaign since July,” said Prop 24 co-author and privacy advocate Rick Arney. “Clearly the opponents are either confused about campaign laws, or they are intentionally trying to confuse voters. Neither scenario is good for them.”
Campaign finance reports also show that the opposition campaign is in debt, with $108,000 owed to outside consultants.
Records from the Secretary of State’s office also show that the consultant listed in the No on 24 prospectus memo (Ned Wigglesworth, Spectrum Campaigns), has also been paid more than $146,000 by Lyft and affiliated campaigns.
“It’s clear that the opponents to consumer privacy have been running a smoke and mirrors campaign to deceive voters,” said Arney. “They need to be held accountable for the deceptive campaign they’ve been running and for hiding the finances of their campaign. It’s important that voters see what’s behind the opposition curtain — a mismanaged campaign that is in debt and that is now under investigation for breaking the law.”
About Prop 24 / The California Privacy Rights Act
Proposition 24 would:
- Protect your most personal information, by allowing you to prevent businesses from using or sharing sensitive information about your health, finances, race, ethnicity, and precise location;
- Safeguard young people, TRIPLING FINES for violations involving children’s information;
- Put new limits on companies’ collection and use of our personal information;
- Establish an enforcement arm—the California Privacy Protection Agency—to defend these rights and hold companies accountable, and extend enforcement including IMPOSING PENALTIES FOR NEGLIGENCE resulting in theft of consumers’ emails and passwords;
- MAKE IT MUCH HARDER TO WEAKEN PRIVACY in California in the future, by preventing special interests and politicians from undermining Californians’ privacy rights, while allowing the Legislature to amend the law to further the primary goal of strengthening consumer privacy to better protect you and your children, such as opt-in for use of data, further protections for uniquely vulnerable minors, and greater power for individuals to hold violators accountable.
Yes on 24 Supporters
The Yes on Prop 24 campaign is proud to have the endorsement of former Presidential candidate Andrew Yang, Los Angeles Times editorial board, Congressman Ro Khanna, California State Controller Betty Yee, Common Sense Media, Consumer Watchdog, AFSCME California, the NAACP of California, California Professional Firefighters, California State Building and Construction Trades Council, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 21 (Bay Area), UA Local 38 Plumbers and Pipefitters, California State Senators Ben Allen, Bill Dodd, Lena Gonzalez, Connie Leyva, Bill Monning, Nancy Skinner, Robert Hertzberg, Scott Wiener, Bob Wieckowski and Jim Beall, California State Assemblymembers Cecilia Aguiar-Curry and David Chiu, John Burton, Former Chair of the California Democratic Party, Alex Rooker and Daraka Larimore Hall, Vice Chairs of the California Democratic Party, Dan Weitzman, Controller of the California Democratic Party, Jenny Bach, Secretary of the California Democratic Party, Dr. Lisa Strohman, JD, PhD, and more.
About Californians for Consumer Privacy
Californians for Consumer Privacy is the same group that authored the first-in-the-nation California Consumer Privacy Act, which was passed unanimously by the California State Legislature and signed into law by California Governor Jerry Brown. Now the group is backing Prop 24, the California Privacy Rights Act on the 2020 ballot, to expand and enshrine privacy rights for all Californians.
