On May 30, 2018, CfA released a new report, “The Lobbyist in the Garage,” revealing that Engine, a San Francisco-based nonprofit claiming to represent the “voice of startups in government,” is little more than an apparent AstroTurf lobbying group created by current and former Google employees to advance Google’s interests.
On April 24, 2018, CfA called on attorneys general in Arizona, Nevada, and New York to investigate rooftop solar companies with an emphasis on Vivint Solar.
"For more than a year now, my organization, Campaign for Accountability, has been documenting how some rooftop solar companies exploit vulnerable consumers."
"A report seen by The Times examined the financial backing of five institutions in Britain and Europe. The academic groups also stage events that allow Google lobbyists to rub shoulders with ministers and policymakers who might not attend those run under the technology company’s branding. The report, compiled by a US watchdog, said that Europe was crucial to Google because the European Commission was the only regulator outside America with sufficient clout to cause the company to change its conduct."
On March 16, 2018, Campaign for Accountability released a new report revealing how Google has paid tens of millions of euros to European academic institutions over the past decade to develop an influential network of friendly European academics who write research papers supporting the tech giant’s business interests.
On October 30, 2017, Campaign for Accountability released a report revealing Google continues to place ads on websites that promote false information despite promises to alter its practices. CfA analyzed a sample of 1,255 news publishers and found that Google continues to place ads on hyper-partisan and misleading websites, resulting in millions of dollars in revenue for the company.
"Similarly, Google doesn’t have to ask the researchers whom it funds to write about public policy to turn in favourable articles. But it has funded, directly or indirectly, 329 such papers since 2005, according to the US-based Campaign for Accountability. More than a quarter of those funded directly by Google didn’t disclose the source of their money, according to the report."
Law360 wrote about our FOIA request to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau about Clayton Homes.
Campaign for Accountability filed a Freedom of Information Act Request with the Consumer Financial Protection Board (CFPB) to follow up on a Seattle Times/ Center for Public Integrity investigation into predatory lending practices of Clayton Homes, one of the nation’s largest mobile home sellers.
Company pays stipends of $5,000 to $400,000 for research supporting business practices that face regulatory scrutiny; a ‘wish list’ of topics.