Government Cannot Continue Funding NGOs that Perform the Actions that Government Cannot
It’s a tough time to for any federal employee whose job duties are not in the public interest. As difficult as it may be for some to accept, DOGE is rooting out wasteful spending in all sectors of government. If government employees who perform unnecessary or harmful work are at risk, it certainly is not easier working at some nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).
NGOs enjoy a lot of benefits. They are supposed to be separate and distinct from government and operate accordingly. NGOs are not managed by government. They receive tax exempt status. Despite being able to receive government money, NGOs are not subject to the same constitutional limitations as government.
For example, as this author recently testified to at a House Homeland Security Subcommittee hearing, unless deemed a state actor, NGOs can perform the government’s censorship efforts, knowing that NGOs are not bound by the First Amendment.
Despite performing activities that government cannot, these companies have been receiving large quantities of money in government grants. NGOs like the Center for Internet Security have raked in hundreds of thousands of dollars in the last four years to censor American voices.
This problem is far reaching. In another sector of government, the new management at the EPA is trying to claw backsome $20 billion that the Biden EPA shoveled out the door in a frenzy as part of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF). Biden’s EPA placed the funds at Citibank in order to prevent the Trump administration from conducting proper oversight. The entitled NGOs, thirsty for their cash, have already begun to sue Citibank to gain access to these funds.
Climate United Fund is one of the litigious NGOs. According to its website, it is “a national investment fund supporting solutions that tackle our nation’s toughest economic and environmental problems.” The group is a coalition “made up of three expert organizations with decades of experience directly deploying more than $30 billion of private and institutional capital to unlock economic opportunity in all 50 states.” Its goal is to remove “financial barriers to clean energy projects.”
Climate United Fund proudly proclaims that it is a 501(c)(3) that has “raised and managed billions of dollars to drive economic opportunity and a better life for millions of Americans.” Except that, without the $7 billion it got from the GGRF, it claims it “will run out of money as soon as Friday,” Reuters reported. It told the court that it “already had to defer compensation to certain staff to preserve available cash.” Apparently, the government is sole “institution” whose capital Climate United deploys, and if there’s any private capital, it’s not enough to keep the doors open.
As energy reporter Thomas Catenacci pointed out on X, that “Doesn’t seem like a non-governmental organization.” So true.
According to its own executive, Climate Action Fund has only performed three “financing programs,” which include a $31.8 million pre-construction loan in Arkansas, a program to offer affordable leasing options for battery electric vehicles, and a $63 million solar pre-construction financing for native-owned solar developers in tribal communities. It also spent $30 million for a technical assistance program.
For these few things, it employes 37 people. Not only does the Fund rely on government to exist, it manages to also resemble government in its inefficiency.
If the EPA had not cancelled the funds, would the American people have ever been able to learn how this money was being spent? It is unlikely. This information only became available once a lawsuit was filed. Likely, this was by design. Afterall, it is doubtful many Americans want to spend $31.8 million for a small community in California to have access to electric vehicle leases.
But it seems clear that these NGOs exist for two nefarious purposes. First, to keep friendly special interests employed. Second, to perform the functions that government itself does not want to be seen doing.
The Trump administration and Congress should both work to put a stop to the practice of funding NGOs to work against the interests of American people. Unless NGOs are bound by the Constitution and transparency laws like government, they should not exist on the government’s dime either.
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin proudly proclaimed that “the days of throwing gold bars off the Titanic are over.” Indeed, the government cannot continue to throw money at special interests groups that do not offer benefit to the American people.