The ballot committee behind the paid sick leave initiative is dissolving, but the group pushing the issue will continue operating as a nonprofit with a similar name.
Unlike ballot committees, which are required to file occasional public reports showing what they’ve raised and what they’ve spent, nonprofits do not have to disclose their donors, although they have to file an annual tax return with the Internal Revenue Service that would contain some overall revenue and expenditure numbers.
A few days after Mi Time to Care reported having $199,600 left in the bank, the ballot committee filed its dissolution papers. As part of zeroing out its remaining balance, the ballot committee sent $102,720 to Mi Time to Care, Inc., a nonprofit registered at the state.
State records show the nonprofit is registered with former Rep. David Woodward, an Oakland County commissioner and a strategic advisor to the Economic Justice Alliance of Michigan.
Woodward, also identified as treasurer for Mi Time To Care, said in a statement today that once the Legislature approved the paid sick leave initiative earlier this year, “there was no longer a need for a ballot question committee because there was no ballot question.”
Further, Woodward said they took “the step to form a c4 so that we can continue our work to advocate for this popular law.”
The ballot committee for Mi Time To Care had previously drawn much of its support from the Washington, D.C.-based Sixteen Thirty Fund, also a nonprofit that does not have to disclose donors.
Meanwhile, the paid sick leave proponents two weeks ago announced the beginning of a campaign to educate people about the initiative the Legislature approved. Senate Majority Leader Arlan Meekhof has indicated that amending the paid sick leave proposal in lame duck so it not so “onerous” to business is a “real possibility.”
“Earned paid sick time is the law of the land in Michigan and families need to learn about this new right so they can know their rights,” said Danielle Atkinson, founding director of Mothering Justice and co-chair of Mi Time to Care, in a statement. “Our efforts seek to ensure the people of Michigan know the law so they can take advantage of it and protect it against any and all attacks.”
The education campaign, according to the press release issued two weeks ago, will air radio ads on stations across the state, mail letters and postcards to citizens, run digital ads across social media platforms and conduct a door-to-door campaign to talk to voters.