SB 416: Vetoed. Because Democracy Deserves the Light.

How our coalition’s veto letter helped protect North Carolinians from a new wave of dark money laws

Earlier this month, North Carolina For The People Action, with fellow democracy partners, joined together in sending a clear message to Governor Josh Stein: Veto Senate Bill 416. And thanks to coordinated pressure from advocates across the state, he did just that.

SB 416, deceptively titled the “Personal Privacy Protection Act,” was anything but a neutral privacy bill. In reality, it was part of a coordinated, ALEC-backed campaign to shield political donors from public accountability and hide dark money behind nonprofit facades.

We broke it down plainly in our veto letter to the Governor: SB 416 would have allowed wealthy donors to pour unlimited money into elections and legal challenges, without ever having to disclose their identities to the public. That includes the kinds of legal expense funds used in recent elections to contest results and sow public distrust.

Real-World Consequences

Just last cycle, voters learned about a $5,000 donation from a sitting Court of Appeals judge to a legal fund supporting Jefferson Griffin’s attempt to throw out over 65,000 votes. Under SB 416? That donation could’ve been kept secret. That’s not privacy, that’s political cover.

What This Bill Would Have Done

SB 416 applied not just to 501(c)(3) charities, but also to 501(c)(4), (c)(5), and (c)(6) groups—entities that are increasingly being used to funnel untraceable political dollars.

It would have:

• Undermined existing campaign finance disclosure laws

• Created a loophole for legal expense funds to avoid transparency

• Blocked future efforts to shine light on political spending

The truth is, we need smarter, targeted disclosure, not blanket exemptions. Voters deserve to know who’s trying to influence their decisions, especially when those actors hide behind nonprofit status to bankroll campaigns or fund lawsuits to undermine elections.

The Bigger Picture

This veto doesn’t just stop one bad bill. It protects the principle that transparency is essential to democracy. It ensures North Carolinians—Black, brown, working-class, rural, and urban—can see who’s pulling the strings behind closed doors.

And it shows the power of coordinated grassroots action. From our letter to your calls, from partner orgs to press coverage—we pushed back and won.

What’s Next?

This fight isn’t over. Dark money forces will regroup, rebrand, and refile. But we’ll be ready.

Read our full veto letter HERE Support our fight against dark money and for judicial integrity: DONATE HERE

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Transparency matters. Democracy depends on it. And thanks to your voice—and ours—it just won another round.