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From: Rich Freeman <rich0@gentoo.org>
Date: Fri, 5 Jul 2019 11:00:01 -0400
Message-ID: <CAGfcS_mFnqAfP_7fj0StHc4m089d2ZLMtj-dOp_rNwYnSNkoDw@mail.gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [gentoo-nfp] Re: [gentoo-project] Questions for Gentoo Council
nominees: Gentoo Foundation - Treasurer Response!
To: gentoo-nfp <gentoo-nfp@lists.gentoo.org>
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On Fri, Jul 5, 2019 at 3:45 AM Aaron Bauman <bman@gentoo.org> wrote:
>
> On Wed, Jul 03, 2019 at 09:08:14AM -0400, Rich Freeman wrote:
> > On Wed, Jul 3, 2019 at 8:56 AM Micha=C5=82 G=C3=B3rny <mgorny@gentoo.or=
g> wrote:
> > >
> > > Are you aware if the fee is going to be the same if we
> > > go for proper non-profit?
> >
> > Do you mean 501c3 by "proper non-profit?" Or some other tax-exempt sta=
tus?
> >
> > I think most around here have abandoned all hope of ever running our
> > own 501c3. A number don't even think we should try, and a 501c3 is
> > hard enough to get approved if you have a professional board all
> > towing the party line. If you get people making public statements
> > like we ought to be a trade association (which is non-exempt) it would
> > be even harder.
> >
>
> This is not true. A 501c3 is not some mysterious unicorn that no one can =
obtain.
I never claimed it was.
> Plenty of organizations gain tax-exempt status with the IRS by simply fil=
ing and
> following the law.
Absolutely true.
> We will be just fine if we decide to maintain a 501c3.
Not true at all. Lots of organizations would have no problems
becoming a 501c3. Gentoo is not those organizations.
If you want to be a 501c3 you need to spend several years working
towards that status. You need to present yourself as fitting into the
categories that the status pertains to. You need to file your taxes
on time and so on.
I can't tell you how many times I've seen Trustees post on this list
or on IRC saying that they don't think that we should even be a 501c3
and should be a non-exempt status like 501c6/etc. What is the chance
that we'll be able to refrain from having board members do that for 5
years or so? Heck, I'm skeptical that we'll ever manage to file our
taxes on time 5 years in a row, though I at least see that as being
conceivable.
And then we have our history of non-compliance. That will only make
things harder even if everybody does everything right.
So, yes, all things being equal some hypothetical organization that
does what Gentoo does could probably become a 501c3. However, Gentoo
isn't some hypothetical organization and all things are not equal.
We're an organization with many conflicting views on how it ought to
be operated, with members who aren't all that interested in running a
non-profit, and with relatively limited interest in fundraising/etc.
Now, I wouldn't be opposed to just letting people who want to try to
create their own 501c3 play around with it for another decade or two,
except that in the meantime I think we're avoiding putting effort into
other approaches that are more likely to work out, like joining an
umbrella.
--=20
Rich