I agree with Sam that a separate bank account and non-profit status do
not necessarily indicate a good shelter.  I've found that doing a little
research on any organization to which I wish to make a contribution is
always a good idea.
 
>Bank accounts, phone lines, non-profit status... all of these cost money.
 
There are low cost or free bank accounts for non-profit organizations,
and yes filing for non-profit and tax exempt status costs money, but this
money is an investment and will yield more money from grants and other
contributions that are simply not available to non tax exempt
organizations.  I'm not advocating that shelters get their own bank account
or non-profit status just to look more professional or official, but
because they can actually use these tools to save money in the long run
and increase income.
 
A separate phone line or listing in the phone book can be obscenely
expensive (unlike banks, most local phone companies do not distinguish
between non-profit and for-profit corporations and thus charge their full
business line fee to all organizations), and doesn't actually yield much in
return.  Having a separate phone line is not required to become a 501(c)3
corporation, but having separate financial accounts is.  A personal phone
line can work just as well as dedicated shelter line if the operator does a
good job of advertising the phone number.
 
Leonard Bottleman                   [log in to unmask]
[Posted in FML issue 2878]