The inaugural committee for Gov. Patrick Morrisey donated $500,000 to a non-profit run by a long-time political operative, for the second time in two months.
Under state law, the inaugural committee is required to spend all monies it collects, and leftover money needs to go to some kind of charity.
On May 29, the committee donated the funds to the West Virginia Prosperity Group Inc., according to a recent report filed with the secretary of state’s office.
The non-profit is headed up by Scott Will, who ran Morrisey’s 2012 campaign for attorney general and advised an outside group that raised millions to support Morrisey in the 2024 Republican primary.
Will did not return multiple phone calls about the donation. Neither did inaugural committee chairman Conrad Lucas.
During the leadup to his inauguration, the organization served as a portal for job applications in the Morrisey administration. The governor’s office was asked if the organization is still serving that function for the administration, but did not reply.
The inaugural committee previously donated $125,000 to the 1925 Fund, a nonprofit with no public presence.
Lucas previously identified Will as being in charge of the 1925 Fund as well.
The West Virginia Prosperity Group’s mission statement says it is “committed to the rule of law, pushing back against federal government overreach, improving West Virginians’ standard of living and advocating for conservative values.”
The Group is incorporated as a “social welfare organization” which allows it to engage more in the political sphere than a typical charity. In recent years, these types of non-profits have been a source of “dark money” in politics because they are not required to disclose who funds them.
While the vast majority of the leftover $551,000 went to the West Virginia Prosperity Group, other donations included the Kanawha-Charleston Humane Association, orchestras in Wheeling and Charleston and several Catholic churches and charities.
Almost $13,000 was given to the West Virginia First Foundation, which oversees how settlement money from opioid lawsuits are dispersed.