The National Rifle Association of America has fallen on hard times.
According to documents obtained by The Reload, a digital outlet that focuses on news about the firearms industry, the NRA’s “membership, revenue, and program services” contracted in the first eight months of 2021.
Meanwhile, the group’s legal expenses exploded to $31.1 million over that same time period, accounting for nearly 20% of the group’s expenses.
“The amount spent on lawyers was more than ten times the amount the NRA spent on programs aimed at education and training, competitive shooting, law enforcement, community engagement, the NRA Range, NRA Firearms Museum, and school security combined,” reports The Reload.
The outlet’s founder, journalist Stephen Gutowski, tweeted that the documents he obtained show that “the NRA is half the size it was just three years ago.”
Brian Mittendorf, a professor of accounting at The Ohio State University who studies the NRA, told The Reload, “Their budget is sustainable, but at what point do members see a huge chunk of the money is going towards legal costs and the primary programs have really been gutted?”
“The contraction of the organization through the first eight months of 2021 accelerates a trend that dates back to 2019 when news first broke of allegations CEO Wayne LaPierre and other leaders had used the nonprofit’s coffers to fund lavish personal trips and luxury wardrobes,” The Reload reports.
In a statement to The Reload, the NRA said its financials are “very positive.”
“We are confronting a New York Attorney General who openly vowed to destroy our organization,” the statement continues. “With respect to legal fees, we are defending the interests of our members against people who portray them as terrorists and criminals. The NYAG called the NRA a ‘terrorist organization’ and a ‘criminal enterprise’ before she was even elected – without a shred of evidence to support her claims.”
An investigation led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat who seeks to dissolve the organization, has forced the NRA to plow millions into its legal defense.
James sued the NRA in August 2020, accusing the organization of corruption and financial mismanagement. The NRA filed a countersuit.
Last May, a New York judge blocked the NRA from attaining bankruptcy protection, ruling that their petition was not pursued in good faith.