Effort To Cut Acorn Funding Underway

Republican leaders in Congress are trying to cut off federal funding for the controversial Association of Community Organizers for Reform Now, or ACORN.

Politico reports that ACORN has received $53 million from federal agencies since 1994. The community organizing group also receives money through state and local agencies that receive federal block grants.

Republicans believe ACORN uses public funds to advance a Democratic agenda and sometimes engage in illegal behavior. The organization became the subject of public scrutiny last year after it was accused of filing bogus voter registration forms.

"It is evident that ACORN is incapable of using federal funds in a manner that is consistent with the law," House Minority Leader John Boehner and other Republicans told the president."Simply put, ACORN should not receive another penny of American taxpayers' money."

Under the Bush administration, ACORN benefited from $14.2 million in taxpayer dollars from 2001 to 2008, per archived funding announcements at the Department of Housing and Urban Development's website.

More on the GOP's efforts here.