Conservative groups that supported Proposition 8 to deny same-sex marriage rights in California may not have to disclose the names of private donors, with the 9th Circuit granting an emergency stay Monday pending the appeal of a federal judge's ruling.
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They sought to permanently enjoin all future disclosure requirements, to expunge the records of past contributions, and to invalidate as unconstitutional the $100 contribution threshold.
During arguments in Sacramento, Calif., on Thursday, the conservative organizations claimed that disclosure requirements made concerned citizens into community targets for harassment and more violent reprisals. Their attorneys argued that Yes on 8 supporters should be treated the same as the NAACP's supporters were in the 1960s - exempt from closure requirements out of safety concerns.
U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England disagreed in a bench ruling that said private donors face the same disclosure rules that apply to corporate contributors of ballot-initiative campaigns. A written ruling is expected this week.
On Monday, however, the 9th Circuit granted an emergency stay pending appeal and set an expedited briefing schedule. Briefs are due on Nov. 14 and Nov. 28, and oral argument is slated for an as-yet-undetermined date in the week of Dec. 5 at the circuit's San Francisco courthouse.