Date: Fri, 15 May 1998 10:43:18 -0700 From: "Jordan K. Hubbard" <jkh@time.cdrom.com> To: cliff ainsworth III <cliff@cliffsworld.com> Cc: advocacy@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: FreeBSD a 501c3? was BSD vs Linux Message-ID: <5228.895254198@time.cdrom.com> In-Reply-To: Your message of "Fri, 15 May 1998 11:52:34 EDT." <3.0.5.32.19980515115234.008e7400@mail.internexus.net>
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> Has the organization ever filed for the 501c3 status. If not they should. > It would make it easier for companies to donate back to "the cause", Actually, this is a common fallacy. I've had more than one BigCorp tell me "thank GOD you guys aren't a 501(c)3 - we have much more convoluted rules for dealing with those and we get a better tax write-off just sending money to FreeBSD, Inc. and writing it off as a development expense." Tax laws are more arcane than most people think, and running the corp as a 501(c)3 would also have several other bad effects: 1. The extra accounting work would cost at least $1K/yr and also drive me insane to boot. You exist only on the IRS's sufferance as a non-profit and they examine each and every one of those under a microscope every year. It makes tax time a very painful exercise unless you're pulling in so much money a year that you can afford a team of accountants to handle it for you (and we're not). 2. It would prohibit FreeBSD, Inc. from ever getting into any kind of tech support or other creative financial relationship with a large sponsor. There are serious limitations to what you can do as a 501(c)3 and I'm afraid that the usefulness of being such an entity is seriously overrated. - Jordan "who sat for several hours with a high-priced corporate lawyer and had all these things explained to him one day" Hubbard. :) To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-advocacy" in the body of the message
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