By Tate Miller
The Center Square

Consumers’ Research says consumers must be protected from government officials who abuse their power as it filed an amicus brief in support of the National Rifle Association’s cert petition to the Supreme Court regarding a case in which the NRA alleged a New York official’s discrimination toward them caused negative business impacts.

Executive director of consumer protection group Consumers’ Research Will Hild told The Center Square: “Allowing public officials to pressure organizations to act in ways that align with an activist, political agenda harms free speech, evades the rule of law, and hurts consumers.”

Hild stated that the New York official in question – former New York Financial Services Superintendent Maria Vullo – “coerced banks and insurers to cut ties with the NRA.”

Hild said that he and Consumers’ Research “believe the Supreme Court has the opportunity to sharply curb the power unelected bureaucrats have to push activist agendas onto private institutions and consumers and reinstate accountability for activist New York regulator Maria Vullo.”

“Consumers’ Research hopes to end the blatant, despicable discrimination that has targeted organizations such as the NRA for not adhering to a radical political agenda,” HIld said.

“Consumers deserve government officials who work to adhere to the rule of law, rather than their own ideological beliefs,” Hild said.

“We hope the Supreme Court will hold the corrupt public officials accountable and protect consumers from government officials that abuse their position of power in ways that harm consumers’ First Amendment rights,” Hild said.

In 2024, it was ruled in NRA v. Vullo II that Maria Vullo’s “alleged actions constituted permissible government speech and legitimate law enforcement.”

According to the NRA’s recent cert petition to the Supreme Court, Vullo used her official power “to coerce the NRA’s insurance providers into cutting ties with the NRA,” in order to “punish and suppress the NRA’s core political speech.”

CEO and Executive Vice President of the NRA Doug Hamlin told The Center Square: “Regardless of their stance on firearm rights, organizations throughout the country are urging the Supreme Court to hold regulators accountable for their politically biased targeting of the NRA.”

“These groups realize that if it can happen to us, it can happen to them,” Hamlin said.

“To ensure government officials no longer deliberately harm speakers they disagree with, the Supreme Court must hear our case and rule that bad actors can be held accountable for abusing their positions of power,” Hamlin said.

In its amicus brief, Consumers’ Research stated that “government coercion to suppress disfavored viewpoints is increasingly common, putting consumers at special risk.”

Additionally, Consumers’ amicus brief stated that “government action through coercion evades administrative law requirements,” and that “minute factual distinctions should not remove liability for unlawful coercion.”

Vullo served as New York Financial Services Superintendent from 2016-2019. Currently, she is an adjunct professor of law at Fordham School of Law and runs Vullo Advisory Services PLLC, along with other commitments, according to a bio.

The Center Square reached out twice to Vullo via her firm’s online form and received no response.

The Cato Institute also filed an amicus brief in support of the NRA.