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January jobs report: Unemployment rate falls to 4%, wages rise more than forecast; Trump signs order imposing sanctions on International Criminal Court over investigations of Israel; Ten Commandments in public schools debate reaches South Dakota; Virginia ranks among worst states for wage theft; Mexican long-nosed bat makes appearance in Arizona.

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Attorney General Pam Bondi strikes a Trump tone at the Justice Department, federal workers get more time to consider buyouts, and an unclassified email request from the White House worries CIA vets.

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During Black History Month, a new book shares how a unique partnership built 5,000 schools for Black students, anti-hunger advocates say ag communities would benefit from an expanded SNAP program, and Americans have $90 billion in unpaid medical bills.

Report exposes donors funding climate change disinformation in TN

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Monday, October 7, 2024   

As Tennesseans deal with record-breaking heat, hurricanes and prolonged drought linked to a changing climate, a new report showed how American taxpayers are subsidizing disinformation about climate change.

Chuck Collins, co-founder of the Climate Accountability Research Project and the report's co-author, said people with ties to the fossil fuel industry are bankrolling groups trying to block action on climate change through tax-deductible donations.

"There's 137 organizations that are actively involved in promoting climate disinformation, challenging the science, sowing doubt, blocking alternatives," Collins reported. "Their goal is to run out the clock and keep extracting their profits."

The report said between 2020 and 2022, the organizations received nearly $6 billion in tax-deductible donations, which are entirely legal under the U.S. tax code. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled financial contributions deserve the same First Amendment protections as speech, at least in political campaigns.

Collins contended because wealthy donors are essentially pushing the burden of building and maintaining roads, schools and other essential services onto other taxpayers, the public deserves to know who they are.

"They're opting out of paying their taxes, so the rest of us do have a public interest in knowing how that money is being used," Collins asserted. "And whether it's being used in a way that influences Congress and influences public policy, and takes us down a road that we may not want to go down."

Many donors are now listed online at ClimateCriminals.org, which also features a countdown to a deadline set in Paris to cut fossil fuel emissions in order to prevent the worst impacts of climate change. Collins pointed out many more donors remain anonymous by contributing through groups, including donor-advised funds. He believes increasing transparency is important in removing barriers to serious climate action.

"We should know who is blocking our ability to respond in a timely way to climate change," Collins emphasized. "We should hold those people accountable."


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