The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) is set to file a complaint on Monday with the Federal Election Commission arguing that conservative groups such as Crossroads GPS should not be given non-profit status and allowed to shield their donors, due to the large amount of political advocacy work they are doing.
The complaint targets Crossroads GPS, Americans for Prosperity and the 60 Plus Association, as the New York Times first reported. These groups are classified as 501(c)(4) organizations under the U.S. tax code, which means they can keep their donors' identities private but cannot be focused primarily on political activity.
Crossroads GPS, however, recently launched a $25 million ad campaign attacking President Obama's record on the economy.
"Respondents are raising and spending millions of dollars to accomplish their major purpose of influencing federal elections, while hiding their funding sources," according to the complaint. "By operating in secret, they have violated and continue to violate the Federal Election Campaign Act."
James L. Martin, head of 60 Plus, responded, "This isn't about the law. It's naked politics, pure and simple. They need to stop their whining and stop trying to achieve with lawyers what they can’t in the arena of public opinion."
The Times noted that it's unlikely the FEC will take any action until after the 2012 elections.
The Obama campaign also recently filed an FEC complaint against Crossroads GPS in an attempt to get it to disclose its donors.