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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchProPublica reported that American Resolve Policy Fund’s 2023 tax filing listed an $80,000 payment to Ashwood Strategies, a company associated with then-South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, for fundraising services. The report did not describe it as a personal check to Noem. It said the payment was absent from her federal financial disclosure; Noem’s lawyer said she complied with disclosure law. The available sources do not establish a final legal finding.
What the $80,000 payment was
American Resolve Policy Fund’s 2023 nonprofit tax filing listed an $80,000 payment to Ashwood Strategies for fundraising services, according to ProPublica’s June 30, 2025 report. Ashwood Strategies is an LLC associated with Noem. ProPublica said the firm raised $800,000 for the nonprofit, making its fee 10% of the amount raised. The filing also listed a 7% fee paid to another professional fundraiser.
The distinction between the recipient and Noem matters: the reported payee was Ashwood Strategies, not Noem personally. Noem’s disclosure summary lists Ashwood as an outside role and notes that income reported for the LLC was received solely by the LLC, with no personal income or distributions to her. The summary also records book advances. ProPublica’s financial disclosure summary provides that context.
Who funded American Resolve?
ProPublica reported that American Resolve raised $1.1 million in 2023 and reported zero employees. The nonprofit did not disclose its donors, so the public record described in the report did not identify the original sources of its funds. That means the $80,000 payment can be traced in the filing to Ashwood Strategies, but the underlying donors whose contributions made up the nonprofit’s funding are not identified in the cited reporting.
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What was reported about Noem’s disclosure
ProPublica said the $80,000 payment did not appear on Noem’s federal financial disclosure. Ethics experts quoted by the outlet raised concerns that the arrangement and omission could violate disclosure requirements. Former Federal Election Commission attorney Daniel Weiner, now the Brennan Center’s campaign finance lead, said: “If donors to these nonprofits are not just holding the keys to an elected official’s political future but also literally providing them with their income, that’s new and disturbing.”
Noem’s lawyer, Trevor Stanley, disputed the suggestion of noncompliance. He told ProPublica: “Then-Governor Noem fully complied with the letter and the spirit of the law”. He also said the Office of Government Ethics had “analyzed and cleared her financial information in regards to this entity.” The cited reports do not establish a final judicial or regulator finding on whether the payment or its disclosure violated the law. A separate Guardian report published July 1, 2025 covered the disclosure dispute.
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A later payment reported for 2024
The $80,000 figure is for 2023. In a separate report published January 16, 2026, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington said American Resolve’s 2024 tax return listed a $137,842 payment to Ashwood Strategies for “fundraising consulting.” CREW also reported that the 2024 amount was not included on Noem’s federal disclosure and that the nonprofit did not identify its donors. The 2024 filing entry is a separate year’s payment, not a revision of the 2023 figure. CREW’s report describes the later payment.
Quick Recap
How to read the claims
- Tax return: The nonprofit filing identifies a payment to Ashwood Strategies and the stated fundraising purpose.
- Personal disclosure: ProPublica reported that the 2023 amount was absent from Noem’s federal disclosure, which separately characterizes Ashwood income as belonging to the LLC rather than being distributed to her personally.
- Legal interpretation: Experts cited by ProPublica raised concerns; Noem’s lawyer said she complied and that OGE had reviewed the information. The sources cited here do not resolve the legal question through a final adjudication.
- Donor identity: The nonprofit did not disclose its donors, and the reporting does not identify the original source of its funds.
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