Liberal fundraising giant MoveOn.org raised more than $50,000 for Vermont's Food Fight Fund, designed by lawmakers this year to help pay for the state's defense of its law requiring the labeling of foods that use genetically modified ingredients.
Sarah Clark of the Vermont Department of Finance and Management said the state received a $53,000 check from MoveOn.
"Essentially, with that donation, the fund doubled," she said.
Clark said she wasn't sure if MoveOn would continue fundraising for the effort.
"All we got was a check," she said.
The $53,000 check was funded by user donations at MoveOn.org, and the organization did not provide the state with any details about the donors. Whereas donors who give directly to the fund can be known because of public records law, MoveOn is not required to follow the same transparency requirements, meaning the original source of half of the money in the food fight fund is unknown.
With just over $100,000 in the fund, the state is 10 percent of the way to raising the $1 million minimum estimated cost of a lawsuit over the controversial law. The Grocery Manufacturers Association filed a lawsuit against the state last month, and it remains unclear if Vermont will be able to defend the law on donations alone.
