Hi all, I looked though the archives when I joined the FML, and noticed the controversies regarding this big rescue attempt. I think some of it certainly has to do with a lack of knowledge about reporting requirements, and of the function/rules of 501c 3 organizations/ aka charities. You do NOT have to file with the IRS until the following year, and if you are not great at record keeping and are a small org you just have to put your receipts/expenses in a box and pull them in March of the following year (as a volunteer with a non-profit I do that with my expenses I'm embarrassed to say, but my tax guy understands when I file October 14). You are supposed to send an acknowledgement/receipt of cash donations by the end of the calendar year or by a few months in the next year so you can have something to give the Infernal Revenue service, but other than that no organization is required to give a daily or monthly accounting of their expenses. That would be an incredible amt of paperwork and a burden for large groups and I doubt you could have one rule from the IRS for a small charity with one executive director and another for a large charity with hundreds of employees. I belong to a wildlife organization that takes in injured wildlife. We are a 501c (3) organization. We do NOT have to show our current years bookkeeping to the IRS, members of the public or anyone else. Another misconception: as treasurer for about ten years I was told by several people who joined the group that we should/could not make a profit. I explained that non-profit meant no distribution to shareholders and that charities (501c 3's) can pay staff, have savings accounts for future catastrophes (oil spills, emaciated seabirds during El Nino, fires with burned animals, fires in rich suburbs -- can you guess what state I'm in ?). People (even volunteers) who got copies of the budget/previous years expenses of the previous year were often horrified that much of the expenses - in 2001 when I retired - $292,000 (for 10,000 animals) - went to salaries, payroll, taxes, insurance, telephone, and rental of our center - gas and electricity costs were enormous in the winter. Actual food, vet bills, caging, feed, utensils, equipment were only about 66,000, fundraising/newsletters/postage cost 8,000 (newsletters, events. Salaries at our center (so at least one person per shift turned up at our center to feed 50 baby birds 12 hrs a day, 7 days a week and supervise volunteers) were $70,000. Repairs maintenance (computer crashes are expensive) $7000, We have/still have a separate office (rent15,000) more paid staff to answer questions from pissed off members of the public who complain their animal (non-releasable) was euthanized -- groan ($25,000) and to keep paperwork straight. We have someone to reimburse some volunteer costs, answer the phone and generally keep paperwork records. Oops forgot FICA and the workers comp -10,000. Rent was about 30,000 for office and our animal care center, electricity and water extra. We did have a bookkeeper (we paid one -- ouch 6,000/yr) and she was usually 2 months behind in record keeping because she did not charge us the full rate. And the auditor -- to make sure the IRS didn't get us- another 2,200. Guess they would go to the IRS with us if we needed it - when someone complained they hadn't received a thank you letter (another way to really be mean to your local shelter). Those of us who do wildlife home care with this group do pay our own expenses - but write off the mileage, food etc as IRS deductions. And why the paid staff rather than volunteers you may ask? Well, sorry to say, few want to supervise at our wildlife center on weekends, weekdays, Thanksgiving and Christmas etc for 12 hour days. People have to live, work and pay the rent. For our 10,000 animal caseload in 2001: About 80% birds, 20% mammals. It broke down we spent over 11,000 on vet bills (usually free euthanasia, but mammal and bird surgeries are usually $200-$500 a pop. (Its double that in 2006), In 2006 raccoons cost us $3000 alone in vet bills, admittedly 90 animals - only about 20 with injuries - and we pay even if they die - how unfair is that!!!); caging in 2001 (admittedly aviaries and large mammal enclosures are not needed for ferret rescue) was 23,000; (repairs ending up being done every year - even with free labor from our cage building team); feed and supplies (some donated or bought by volunteers but the rest purchased) 22,000; phone bills (we have volunteer phone answerers, but we pick up the phone costs on a plan from A T and T) 5,000. This did not include costs for our administrative stuff -newsletters, answering email, which a ferret rescue might not have to deal with. Every organization is a little different, but some things are expensive - animal care, feeding, meds, vaccinations, vet bills. And what I listed was the costs for 6 years ago!!! People are demanding this charity to account for expenses as they are carrying on the rescue. If that is the case, I think we should all be required to report to the IRS on our tax status on a monthly status as well; after all it is the same situation, and only fair. If anyone wants to join with me to call the IRS and suggest that we all do this, give me a call, but you'll have to get my phone number from BIG since I am one of those illegal ferret owners. Finally, I think it is a little tough when you are swamped with animals, trying to place them, , fund raise, pay bills, answer email, run a website, even maybe get some sleep, to answer people who want a printed spreadsheet -- right now dammit -- and a receipt so I can list in my deduction to charity in 2008!!!! I'm being facetious of course, but you need to walk in someone's shoes before you can tell them how to behave. I think we should cut the lady who helped these animals a bit of slack. But that's just my opinion. And for those suspicious folks, I checked the IRS site -- and yes she is a 501(c) 3 charity. You have to keep records for that or they nuke you from the list. M, plus Ferris the new head ferret, Foster the follower, Felicity the female head ferret, Evelin with a heart problem, Buxom Babs(over wt) and Xena the screaming warrior queen. [Posted in FML 5811]