American Legislative Exchange Council - History

History

ALEC first came into being in Chicago as the "Conservative Caucus of State Legislators", a project initiated by Mark Rhoads, an assistant to an Illinois state senator. According to the National Taxpayer Union website, Rhoads and a bipartisan group of Midwestern legislators wished to counter what they viewed as a trend toward big government continued by President Richard Nixon. Conservative legislators felt the word "conservative" was unpopular with the public at the time, however, and the organization was renamed as the American Legislative Exchange Council. In 1975, under the auspices of the American Conservative Union, ALEC registered as a federal non-profit agency.

Conservative activist Paul Weyrich helped the new group find a meeting room. Henry Hyde, who later became a U.S. Congressman, and Lou Barnett, who later became National Political Director of Ronald Reagan's Political Action Committee, also helped to found ALEC. Early members included a number of state and local politicians who went on to statewide or national office, including Bob Kasten and Tommy Thompson of Wisconsin; John Engler of Michigan; Terry Branstad of Iowa, and John Kasich of Ohio. Several members of Congress were also involved in the organization during its early years, including Sen. John Buckley and Rep. Jack Kemp of New York, Sen. Jesse Helms of North Carolina, and Rep. Phil Crane of Illinois. Duane Parde served as the executive director from December 1996 to January 2006.