Bipartisan Policy Center

Bipartisan Policy Center

Background

The Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that describes itself as “a Washington, DC-based think tank that actively fosters bipartisanship by combining the best ideas from both parties to promote health, security, and opportunity for all Americans.”1About,” Bipartisan Policy Center. Archived March 16, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/u0S9k

The BPC has previously described itself as an “incubator for policy efforts that engage top political figures, advocates, academics and business leaders in the art of principled compromise.” According to a page on the group’s website that was archived in 2009, the Bipartisan Policy Center was established by former senators Howard Baker (R-Tenn.), Tom Daschle (D-S.D.), Bob Dole (R-Kansas) and George J. Mitchell (D-Maine).2About Us,” Bipartisan Policy Center. Archived March 15, 2009. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gzBVX

BPC formally launched in March 2007. The National Commission on Energy Policy (NCEP), which BPC describes as the predecessor to its current Energy Project, was founded in 2002.3About,” Bipartisan Policy Center. Archived March 16, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/u0S9k

Oil & Gas Funding

According to 2013 reporting by The Washington Post4At the Bipartisan Policy Center, is cash the real divide?The Washington Post, August 15, 2013. Archived April 20, 2021., as well as a profile published by the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University, the Bipartisan Policy Center has a history of getting a “free ride” from the press as it “routinely advocates, under the guise of independent scholarship, for policies that benefit its donors.”5The Bipartisan Lobbying Center,” Harvard University: The Lab @ Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics. Archived July 30, 2014. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/yaLyX

Those donors include energy companies, oil companies, and energy trade organizations, such as ExxonMobil and America’s Natural Gas Alliance.

BPC Action / Bipartisan Policy Center Advocacy Network

BPC Action is the Bipartisan Policy Center’s political action committee. “We are committed to seeing bipartisan policy solutions enacted into law, and we work closely with our 501(c)(3) partner, the Bipartisan Policy Center, to advance smart policies through the legislative process,” the BPC Action’s website reads.6About Us,” BPC Action. Archived March 17, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/25B6w

BPC Action previously went by the name Bipartisan Policy Center Advocacy Network (BPCAN), which “work[ed] directly with Congress and the administration—translating BPC projects into workable proposals and finding common ground between Democrats and Republicans,” according to the group’s 2013 annual report.7“Bipartisan Policy Center Advocacy Network” (PDF), Bipartisan Policy Network, 2014.

BPC’s 2011 annual report (2011) outlined its “Advocacy Network” as follows: “BPCAN pairs the substantive analysis of BPC with strong advocacy efforts and ongoing strategic engagement with the legislative process. The sister organizations work as complementary efforts: BPC impacts the public dialogue and then BPCAN influences the policy outcomes.”8“New Heights: Shaping the Perspective” (PDF), Bipartisan Policy Center, 2011. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Bipartisan Policy Center Lobbying

According to data from OpenSecrets.org, a project of the Center for Responsive Politics, BPCAN spent over $2 million lobbying in 2020.9Client Profile: Bipartisan Policy Center,” OpenSecrets.org. Accessed March 19, 2021.

YearLobbying Expenditure
2020$2,040,000
2019$1,620,000
2018$1,280,000
2017$1,315,000
2016$1,367,712

Stance on Climate Change

The Bipartisan Policy Center has produced reports and white papers on climate policy, such as:

The BPC has also hosted panel discussions on energy policies, such as:

Funding

The information below is taken from IRS Form 990 filings, and data archived at the Conservative Transparency project. Note that not all individual values have been verified by DeSmog.

View the attached spreadsheet for additional details on the Bipartisan Policy Center’s funding by year (.xlsx).

DonorTotal
The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation$12,552,500
John D & Catherine T Macarthur Foundation$6,594,000
Democracy Fund$4,550,000
Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund$3,610,750
Peter G. Peterson Foundation$3,126,000
WK Kellogg Foundation$2,326,908
Carnegie Corporation of New York$1,625,500
The Scan Foundation$1,115,905
Nuclear Energy Institute$1,040,000
Gordon E and Betty I Moore Foundation$937,502
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation$874,384
Denver Foundation$629,100
American Natural Gas Alliance$625,000
Exxon Mobil$590,000
David and Lucile Packard Foundation$535,000
The Heising-Simons Foundation$525,000
Rockefeller Foundation$500,000
Financial Services Forum$500,000
Annie E Casey Foundation$472,500
Silicon Valley Community Foundation$450,000
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation$424,779
Climateworks Foundation$380,000
Charles Stewart Mott Foundation$375,000
Alfred P Sloan Foundation$349,989
Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association$280,000
Schwab Charitable Fund$253,500
Robertson Foundation$250,000
Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation$237,100
The Kresge Foundation$200,000
Smith Richardson Foundation$200,000
Neo Philanthropic Action Fund$200,000
Energy Foundation$200,000
The Eric and Wendy Schmidt Fund for Strategic Innovation$200,000
Kaiser Foundation Health Plan$200,000
Edison Electric Institute$200,000
Geisinger Health$200,000
Ounce of Prevention Fund$175,000
Democracy Fund Voice$165,000
Lumina Foundation for Education$158,800
PhRMA$155,000
Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston$150,000
National Association for the Education of Young Children$135,000
HSAF$132,000
Institute for Mental Health and Wellness$125,000
Stuart Family Foundation$125,000
Howard G Buffett Foundation$125,000
The Ford Foundation$100,000
Alliance for Early Success$100,000
Strada Education Network$100,000
American Council of Life Insurers$100,000
American Bankers Association$100,000
American Gas Association$100,000
Chan Soon-Shion Family Foundation$100,000
American Petroleum Institute$75,000
Parekh Vora Charitable Foundation$75,000
Henry M Jackson Endowment$69,529
With Honor Action$60,000
Charles G Koch Charitable Foundation$60,000
Marguerite Casey Foundation$50,000
Foundation for the Defense of Democracies$50,000
Foundation for a Better World$50,000
ECMC Foundation$50,000
Rock Foundation$50,000
Georgescu Family Foundation$30,000
Jewish Community Federation of S F Marin Peninsula and Sonoma Counties$25,000
FM Kirby Foundation$20,000
Hertog Foundation$5,000
Cedars Foundation$1,000
Grand Total$50,146,746

Donors

The following donors, including individuals, foundations, and corporations, have been listed in the Bipartisan Policy Center’s annual reports:

BPC IRS Form 990 Filings

BPC Action IRS Form 990 Filings

BPC Annual Reports

Key People

See below for a list of key staff and leadership at the Bipartisan Policy Center, via data from the Internet Archive and publicly available IRS form 990 filings.

You can also view the data in the attached spreadsheet for a full list of Bipartisan Policy Center’s key people by year (.xlsx).

BPC Action

Notable individuals:

Leadership

Experts & Fellows

Staff

Actions

March 2021

George David Banks, former executive vice president of the Koch-funded American Council for Capital Formation,94George David Banks,” LinkedIn. Accessed March 2021. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. joined the Bipartisan Policy Center as a fellow.95George David Banks Joins the Bipartisan Policy Center as Fellow,” Bipartisan Policy Center, March 16, 2021. Archived March 22, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/P2L3h

“We’re proud to welcome David as a fellow in our Energy Project. Dave has tremendous experience working with Republicans on energy and climate policy issues both in Congress and the executive branch,” said BPC Energy Project Director Sasha Mackler in an announcement.96George David Banks Joins the Bipartisan Policy Center as Fellow,” Bipartisan Policy Center, March 16, 2021. Archived March 22, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/P2L3h

Banks formerly worked under Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.), a notorious climate change denier, at the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. During the Trump administration, Banks was a Special Assistant for International Energy and Environment at the National Economic and National Security Councils.

2020

BPC lobbied on the Growing Climate Solutions Act of 2020 (S. 3894/H.R. 7393), which would have introduced a “a voluntary framework for certifying third-party credits” for carbon.97Issues Lobbied By Bipartisan Policy Center, 2020,” Opensecrets. Accessed March 19, 2021. 98In Support of The Growing Climate Solutions Act (S.3894/H.R.7393),” R Street, July 29, 2020. Archived March 19, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/TsL0a

More than 200 groups, including representatives from farmer, farmworker, environmental justice, climate, environmental, faith-based, and animal welfare organizations signed an open letter to members of Congress in opposition to the bill, which stated in part:

“…this legislation will allow greenhouse gas emissions to continue unchecked and will undermine efforts to build a healthy, sustainable, and resilient food system.99Over 200 Organizations Reject ‘Growing Climate Solutions Act’,” Food & Water Watch, October 15, 2020. Archived March 19, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/M2yFh

“Carbon markets fail to reduce emissions overall and exacerbate pollution hot-spots in low-wealth communities and communities of color, the groups said. Power plants and industrial polluters, disproportionately located in these communities, purchase credits that allow them to continue burning toxic fossil fuels releasing harmful pollutants that compromise local health and well-being.”

In a press release announcing the open letter, Mitch Jones, Policy Director of Food & Water Action, stated that “the misguided Growing Climate Solutions Act will allow corporations to indulge in more fracking and other forms of fossil fuel pollution, while creating a stream of bogus carbon reduction ‘credits’ that will benefit industrial agriculture and factory farming. Rather than promoting feel good policies that merely perpetuate the status quo, we need bold action from Congress that will create real climate solutions that promote sustainable agriculture and an end to fossil fuels.”

July 30, 2020

BPC’s Energy Project launched a “Farm and Forest Carbon Solutions Initiative” on July 30, 2020.100(Press Release). “BPC Announces Launch of the Farm and Forest Carbon Solutions Initiative,” Bipartisan Policy Center, July 30, 2020. Archived March 22, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/0XMqx

August 12, 2013

According to a report by the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen titled “Made in the Shade: An examination of whether the Bipartisan Policy Center is truly neutral,” 101“Made in the Shade: AN EXAMINATION OF WHETHER THE BIPARTISAN POLICY CENTER IS TRULY NEUTRAL” (PDF), Public Citizen, 2013. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog., BPC “made a series of bank-friendly financial policy recommendations” while receiving funding from banks “and the intellectual support of individuals linked with those banks.”102(Press Release). “Bipartisan Policy Center’s Financial Policy Initiative Dominated by Individuals Tied to Big Banks, Recommends Bank-Friendly Policies, New Public Citizen Report Finds,” Public Citizen, August 12, 2013. Archived October 25, 2014. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/sJoem

July 2013

In the wake of two tragedies at Bangladeshi garment factories that killed more than 1200 workers: 2013’s Rana Plaza factory collapse and 2012’s Tazreen Fashion factory fire, the Bipartisan Policy Center released the “Global Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety.” The Nation reported that the BPC had “significant financial ties to the [major U.S.] retailers” backing the plan, including the law firm Alston & Bird, one of numerous registered lobbying firms representing Walmart.103Lee Fang. “Think Tank Releasing Rival Bangladesh Safety Accord Receives Funds From Walmart and Its Lobbyists,” The Nation, July 9, 2013. Archived April 20, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/PytzJ

The BPC’s plan was intended to rival the “Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh,” a prior agreement signed by more than 70 companies and “largely welcomed by labor rights NGOs for ensuring international inspectors into facilities, greater contractor transparency and for a requirement that retailers fund necessary safety upgrades at garment factories.”104Lee Fang. “Think Tank Releasing Rival Bangladesh Safety Accord Receives Funds From Walmart and Its Lobbyists,” The Nation, July 9, 2013. Archived April 20, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/PytzJ

In contrast, according to The Nation, the BPC’s plan was “panned by critics as a smokescreen designed to help them skirt responsibility for fixing their factory ‘deathtraps.'”105Lee Fang. “Think Tank Releasing Rival Bangladesh Safety Accord Receives Funds From Walmart and Its Lobbyists,” The Nation, July 9, 2013. Archived April 20, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/PytzJ

  • BPC Action 
  • Bipartisan Policy Center Advocacy Network (BPCAN) 

Contact & Address

According to the BPC website, the group’s mailing address, phone number, and email are :106About,” Bipartisan Policy Center. Archived March 16, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/u0S9k

1225 Eye Street, NW Suite 1000
Washington, D.C. 20005
202-204-2400
[email protected]

Social Media

Other Resources

Resources

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