There are many buildings in and around our nation’s capitol filled with people dedicated to advancing their special interests: government buildings, union buildings, commercial buildings. They represent many interests: the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Commerce, the Department of the Treasury, the AFL-CIO, the SEIU, the National Education Association, AARP, the NRA and hundreds more. Other buildings are filled with people representing tens of thousands of additional “special interests” — organizations and trade groups. They swarm over Capitol Hill representing their own limited concerns. They get laws created and passed.
But there is no building filled with those who represent the five million employers and 115 million workers who make up the private sector. There is no massive “People’s Lobby” representing the majority of Americans who live and work in free enterprise. There has been no national membership organization representing free enterprise itself. There has been no voice making itself heard — until now. Our dream is that The Free Enterprise Nation will become a major presence on Capitol Hill and in state capitols throughout the nation. No law could be passed, no tax could be levied nor increased, and no regulation could be imposed without consideration of the impact it would have on those who live and work in our free enterprise economy … the engine that drives our nation. The Free Enterprise Nation, Inc. is a C Corporation. We have not applied, and do not intend to apply, to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for special status that would make us exempt from taxation.
In order to achieve tax-exempt status, The Free Enterprise Nation would have to comply with numerous requirements that would abridge our efforts to fully represent our membership’s interests. It would subject us to varying changes and interpretations by the IRS concerning our adherence to these requirements. Management does not believe that accepting such risk is in the best long-term interests of The Free Enterprise Nation’s mission or membership. This does not have a deleterious effect on our members. Individual membership dues to similar organizations (such as the NRA and AARP) are not tax-deductible, even though these organizations do have "exempt" status.
By maintaining a "C" corporation status, we are free to engage in any activity that is not illegal in the furtherance of our interests. We are not subject to regulations concerning how much we may lobby, educate, advertise or whether or not it is “permissible” to take controversial positions. We also have access to capital and have hopes that The Free Enterprise Nation will become a publicly-traded company, owned by the people for whom it has been created, and that the capital raised will serve as the financial foundation for the creation of a permanent presence in the public policy arena.