Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/20pdf/19-251_p86b.pdf
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AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY FOUNDATION v. BONTA 

Opinion of the Court 

the Attorney General is authorized to “establish and main-
tain  a  register”  of  charitable  organizations  and  to  obtain
“whatever information, copies of instruments, reports, and
records are needed for the establishment and maintenance 
of the register.”  Cal. Govt. Code Ann. §12584 (West 2018).
In order to operate and raise funds in California, charities
generally must register with the Attorney General and re-
new  their  registrations  annually.    §§12585(a),  12586(a).
Over 100,000 charities are currently registered in the State, 
and roughly 60,000 renew their registrations each year.

California law empowers the Attorney General to make 
rules  and  regulations  regarding  the  registration  and  re-
newal process.  §§12585(b), 12586(b).  Pursuant to this reg-
ulatory authority, the Attorney General requires charities 
renewing their registrations to file copies of their Internal 
Revenue  Service  Form  990,  along  with  any  attachments
and  schedules.    See  Cal.  Code  Regs.,  tit.  11,  §301  (2020).
Form  990  contains  information  regarding  tax-exempt  or-
ganizations’ mission, leadership, and finances.  Schedule B 
to Form 990—the document that gives rise to the present
dispute—requires organizations to disclose the names and 
addresses of donors who have contributed more than $5,000 
in a particular tax year (or, in some cases, who have given 
more  than  2  percent  of  an  organization’s  total  contribu-
tions).  See 26 CFR §§1.6033–2(a)(2)(ii)(f ), (iii) (2020).

The petitioners are tax-exempt charities that solicit con-
tributions  in  California  and  are  subject  to  the  Attorney
General’s registration and renewal requirements.  Ameri-
cans  for  Prosperity  Foundation  is  a  public  charity  that  is 
“devoted to education and training about the principles of a
free and open society, including free markets, civil liberties,
immigration  reform,  and  constitutionally  limited  govern-
ment.”  Brief for Petitioner Foundation 10.  Thomas More 
Law Center is a public interest law firm whose “mission is 
to protect religious freedom, free speech, family values, and