Who Are They
Protecting?
Pervasive government regulators are
destroying the very system that works to provide
much needed dollars to charitable, educational and
public advocacy groups in America, just when the
need is so great. In the name of consumer
protection, the ability of non-profit organizations
is being shackled with fees, regulations and other
hidden costs that divert your voluntary
contribution away from the purpose you intended.
While their intentions may be good, one must ask
who are they really protecting? The consumer? Or
their own job? And at what cost to the donor?
Perhaps they are simply confused. Lost in their
ivory tower they may think they actually do know
better than you do what organizations are worthy of
your support. Is it any wonder that the laws in one
state actually state that the regulators shall
decide which organizations are worthy
enough to ask for support from their citizens?
The cost of such folly is enormous. In fact, it
would be laughable if it weren't so sad. Just how
much do you think government regulations take out
of donations you make to non-profit organizations
across America?
How does $100,000,000 sound? Thats right,
the rules and regulations imposed by the
politicians and bureaucrats divert upwards of $100
million -- thats one hundred million dollars
-- from voluntary organizations, much of it into
the coffers of your favorite state government.
The
Cure Is Worse Than The Disease
One hundred million dollars. Thats a lot
of money to protect us from ourselves because
were too stupid to know whether a group is or
is not worthy of our support. But hey,
its not their money and, remember, its
their job at stake. So what if a good share of the
money you sent to help a starving child or for a
scholarship or to oppose legislation you detest is
eaten up by the bureaucracy? It's no skin off their
nose. And after all, they are there to help you.
The
Tangle Of Red Tape
And each year the cost increases as the fees
grow larger and the tangle of red tape expands.
Each year the cost increases as the fees
grow larger and the tangle of red tape
expands.
Of course, these regulations were supposedly
written to protect you. And, although such
regulations may have been created with the best of
intentions by well-meaning folks, you suffer the
consequences. You pay the bill.
Sadly, it is from your contribution to cure
cancer, support libraries and museums, make your
voice heard in Congress, provide scholarships to
needy students, assist hospitalized veterans and
much, much more that these costs are paid.
Heres
How It Works
Some overly aggressive charity or advocacy
group crosses the line and makes claims it
cant support. Instead of dealing directly
with the problem through fraud statutes which exist
in every state, a politician or bureaucrat decides
that more rules or regulations should be imposed on
all organizations which survive through voluntary
support.
A bureaucracy is born! And slowly but steadily
this bureaucracy grows, eroding and limiting
freedom of speech and your right to choose which
non-profit groups and organizations will receive
your support.
In truth, most of this information is already
filed annually with the IRS or is available upon
request directly from the organization. In either
case, it is publicly available to anyone who wants
it. Non-profit foundations associations and
advocacy groups are an important part of our
democratic process. They address issues and solve
problems which would otherwise go wanting. Why
hamstring them and treat them as guilty until
proven innocent?
Pervasive government regulators are
destroying the very system that works to provide
much needed dollars to charitable, educational and
public advocacy groups in America, just when the
need is so great.
Drowning
In Bureaucracy
Nevertheless, each organization you support
must now run the gauntlet of registering not only
in their own state, but also in some forty state
and local jurisdictions. Complex (and often
confusing) reports that only a bureaucrat could
love must be filed regularly. This not only takes
the time of a paid member of the organization's
staff, but generally requires the assistance of a
Certified Public Accountant and a lawyer. In fact,
some states require a formal audit (not just an
independent financial review). This can cost an
organization tens of thousands of dollars each
year.
Large organizations like those dealing with
cancer and heart disease, can end up having a
full-time staff of accountants and lawyers who
spend their days completing forms and meeting
regulations.
Can a free society which seeks to cure its
ills and solve its problems afford a $100,000,000
roadblock?
The
Numbers Are Escalating
In a typical state, as many as 1,000 non-profit
organizations are required to complete and submit
registrations each year. If each one of those
organizations spends just $2,500 in filing fees,
professional services and administrative time in
complying with such regulations, the cost to their
supporters is $2,500,000! In reality, its
probably much more.
Assuming that each of the 40 jurisdictions which
require registration cause non-profit groups to
incur similar expenses, the national cost to
supporters of such organizations is $100,000,000!
But, unfortunately we still arent
finished. Yes, if you are a donor, you pay still
more.
Someone in each of these state capitals has to
read, certify, record, and file all these forms
sent in by the organizations and their agencies. In
fact, the regulations of non-profit charities by
state government has become a growth industry and
you pay for it.
Protecting
You From Yourself
Often working out of a bureaucracy with the
high sounding name of Consumer Protection
Agency scores of government bureaucrats,
including numerous well-paid attorneys and
accountants, shuffle paperwork, make threats, and
otherwise do their bureaucratic thing, all in the
name of protecting you from yourself. Since
government agencies almost never pay their own way,
you can be sure that you pay millions more in taxes
to cover the cost of operating these bloated
bureaucracies. Once again, you're paying taxes to
protect you from yourself.
That brings us to a cost of more than
$100,000,000 per year to regulate non-profit
charities and organizations in the United States.
And remember, this entire bureaucracy is based on
the premise that you arent smart enough
yourself to decide which groups deserve your
support, and which are legitimate and which are
not. The assumption is that only the bureaucrats
can determine which organizations should be allowed
to ask for your voluntary support. Are they really
that much smarter than you are?
So
Whats The Bottom Line?
At the bottom line, such costly and bloated
bureaucratic structures are born out of a belief
that the free market does not work and that only
the elite are smart enough to decide for the rest
of us which organizations should be allowed the
freedom to solicit funds in the marketplace. When
your right of free speech is involved, the cure is
indeed worse than the problem.
As a result, today some $100,000,000 (or more)
is diverted from its legitimate use in finding a
cure for cancer, helping a needy student, assisting
a hospitalized veteran supporting an educational
foundation, building a museum, funding a library or
one of more than ten thousand other worthwhile
causes, because the bureaucrats know better than
you do how and where to give your money.
Can
You Afford This Burden?
Can a free society which seeks to cure its ills
and solve its problems afford a $100,000,000
roadblock?
If you believe that this bureaucratic nightmare
is a part of the problem rather than a part of the
solution, then give your support to efforts to free
the marketplace of costly government regulations
which hurt the very people they were supposed to
help.
If you really want to get involved, please
write: Free Speech Coalition, 8180 Greensboro
Drive, Suite 1070, McLean, Virginia 22102-3860.
Fight back! End the bureaucratic nightmare that
threatens to undermine and erode the independent
sector in our nation which is the bedrock of
caring, concern and problem solving in our society.
Tell
It Like It Is!
Its time for you to tell the politicians
and the regulators to butt out! They might be
surprised to know that you are smart enough to
separate the frauds from the real thing.
The fact is, existing anti-fraud laws give them
all the authority they need to shut down the
charlatans. Tell them you value your freedom of
speech and association and that you want to
continue using them to raise funds for the common
good. Do it today before it's too late.
The Free Speech Coalition, Inc. is a non-profit
organization dedicated to the preservation of an
open and free marketplace of ideas. It seeks to
empower Americans from coast to coast who seek to
support and encourage associations, organizations
and groups whose purpose is to build a better
America.
|