Oys Gets Answers: Are Fundraisers Calling On Behalf Of Police And Firefighters Legitimate
– Every day, police and firefighters risk their lives to make your community safer. To show your support, you may consider making a donation when a fund-raiser calls from a fire or police service organization. It is a good idea, however, to be cautious about solicitations for money over the phone, especially during these troubling times when money can be extremely tight. Scammers have tailored their pitches accordingly, even going so far as to pretend theyre from a legitimate group in order to get you to part ways with your money.
Heres how the scam works: an unsolicited call shows up on the Caller ID from someone claiming to be representing a nonprofit organization. In some cases, the charity has a name that includes a law enforcement word . There are plenty of variations on this scam, but one that is making the rounds in the Wichita area currently identifies itself as being from the Fraternal Order of Police . The caller explains that the goal of this nonprofit is to help the families of fallen officers.
If you begin asking specific questions about the organization or how the money will be used, the caller may not answer and may be told to call a different number where your questions are also deflected or evaded. Callers often use intimidation tactics or try to make you feel guilty about not supporting their cause. Dont fall for it! Its all a way to get your credit card information and a donation.
Police Group Raises Money For Politics Not Officers
A secretive political group has been pulling in millions of dollars amid a growing Blue Lives Matter movement, with a cadre of telemarketers telling Americans that now is the time to support the police and keep them safe, CNN reports. The calls, which often target elderly donors, come from generic and similar-sounding aliases: The Police Officers Support Association, the National Emergency Responders Coalition and the National Coalition for Police & Troopers. Donors say they believed they were supporting a charity that helps local officers. None of the money goes to police departments. Instead, the contributions end up with a super PAC, Law Enforcement for a Safer America, which has ties to a controversial union and spends most of its money on its own operating costs.
The Irs Is Not The Answer
When a solicitor for one of these groups calls a prospective donor the pitch will include the truthful statement that they are a nonprofit organization. Nonprofit however does not mean they are a charity. It only means they do not seek to make a profit on their activities. A profit according to Investopedia.com is revenue that exceeds expenses. The IRS has pretty broad rules for being a nonprofit organization. A charity is only one type of nonprofit.
Trade groups like those that represent the fast food or soft drink producers operate as nonprofits. Political organizations including both the Democratic and Republican parties are nonprofits. Lots of different special interest groups are nonprofits, including some private businesses that pay their executives quite well.
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How To Protect Yourself Against Scam Pacs
Some telemarketers who claim to be raising money for causes like homeless veterans and cancer victims work for political action committees , not charities, and keep much of the money they raise. Some tips for consumers:
⢠Listen carefully for the name of the organization. Legitimate charities can be checked on websites such as www.guidestar.org.⢠Ask if the donation is tax-deductible. Gifts to actual charities are donations to PACs, which sometimes sound like charities, are not.⢠Never disclose personal information.⢠Or follow the simplest rule: âNever give to anyone over the phone,â said Margot Saunders, senior counsel for the National Consumer Law Center.
Joseph Tanfani
If the potential donors suspected they had given to the group before, the callers were instructed to say: âI have no way of knowing because we feel that donations are given from the heart, not the hand, so we keep all donation records confidential,â according to the FAQ.
The PAC, organized by Zachary Bass, spent 90% of its take on fundraising, campaign filings show. It spent $103,700 on behalf of House candidates â about 3% of the total, and it has contributed nothing directly to veterans groups.
Bass, who set up several other super PACs, declined to comment.
Across the industry, calls are computer-generated before being routed to telemarketers, something Politicause and TPFE employees said allowed their firms to maximize the number of calls â and to pester people repeatedly.
The Hustle Part Ii The Tell
The tell is a poker term. It means an opposing player does something to indicate he or she is bluffing. There are all sorts of questions that you could go through to determine if the solicitor on the other end of the phone is from an honest to goodness charity or not. They all require time and patience to learn and implement. The most sure-fire solution is to ask for the name of the organization and a means to contact them so you can make your donation at another time.
When you do this, depending on the experience of the solicitor, you will either hear a lot of fast talking or angry response or you will be provided the information. Legitimate charities with nothing to hide will tell you how you can make your contribution later and hustlers will get annoyed.
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Donations Have Surged To A ‘scam’ Political Group That Claims To Help Police Officers
— A secretive political group has been pulling in millions of dollars in recent months amid a growing “Blue Lives Matter” movement, with a cadre of telemarketers urgently telling Americans that now is the time to support the police and keep them safe.
The calls, which often target elderly donors, come from a variety of generic and similar-sounding aliases: The Police Officers Support Association, the National Emergency Responders Coalition and the National Coalition for Police & Troopers.
Many donors say they believed they were supporting a charity that helps local officers. But none of the money being raised actually goes to police departments, according to government records. Instead, their contributions end up with a super PAC, Law Enforcement for a Safer America, which has ties to a controversial union and spends the majority of its money on its own operating costs.
At least seven local police departments from around the country and a state attorney general have issued “scam alerts” and other notices about these fundraising efforts, warning residents in their communities as recently as this summer that they have no affiliation with this group. Around 200 consumer complaints have also been made to state and federal regulators about the super PAC, its aliases and related groups.
Law Enforcement for a Safer America officials did not return repeated requests for comment.
Chiefs Call National Police Association A Scam
An elderly man in Trenton, Mi., received a dire letter that warned of the greatest threats to our public safety in our nations history. The solution, the letter says, is clear: Give our law enforcement officers the crime prevention tools they need. A donation of $10, $15 or $25 would help keep communities like Trenton safe. Donations arent directed to the Trenton Police Department or typically any other police agency, for that matter. Instead, the money makes its way to a new nonprofit based in Indianapolis, the Indianapolis Star reports. Police departments in four states have found the letters to be misleading enough to issue scam alerts. Im thinking, What the hell is this, using our name and our police department to raise funds? said Trenton Police Lt. Mike Hawkins. Get out of here.
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The Reasons To Support
The reason we are able to support members of the law enforcement communityand their families is because of you and your generous financial support.
Donations can also help to support:
- Immediate financial assistance to the survivors of member officers who are killed in the line of duty.
- Training and Educational programs for todays changing law enforcement environment.
- Financial contributions to organizations for physically challenged individuals.
- Congressional advocacy.
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The Committee for Police Officers Defense, the telemarketers who called me, applied for tax exemption in California. The application also included the name Police Officers Defense Coalition, as well as the Police Officers Defense Alliance. The latter is the name of the PAC I found earlier that had raised $3.2 million in contributions.
Virginia incorporation papers show James Fotis is president of the Alliance and changed the name to the Defense Coalition. It appears there are a number of nonprofits up and running under the apparent control of Fotis.
Also worth noting is that while his organization is based in Virginia, and gets its mail in Stafford, TX, Fotis lives in Lake Worth, FL. The websites describe his career in law enforcement and his role as the creator of the police officers safety act legislation carried by former San Diego Congressman Randy Duke Cunningham.
One of Fotis websites solicits money for individuals who were guilty of a crime for doing their job the way they were trained to do it. As an example, he cites former Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County in Arizona. President Trump pardoned the sheriff even after the Department of Justice described Arpaio as being responsible for the worst case of racial profiling in U.S. history.
The website soliciting funds for Arpaio says, Liberals have targeted Sheriff Joe Arpaio with a multi-million dollar lawsuit because he was upholding the law of the land.
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Data Sources: Irs Forms 990
The Form 990 is a document that nonprofit organizations file with the IRS annually. We leverage finance and accountability data from it to form Encompass ratings. .
Impact & Results
This score estimates the actual impact a nonprofit has on the lives of those it serves, and determines whether it is making good use of donor resources to achieve that impact.
Impact & Results Score
This Organization Cannot Be Evaluated By Our Encompass Rating Methodology Due To Only Having 2 Years Of Electronically
To ensure year-to-year consistency the Encompass Rating Systems Finance & Accountability beacon analyzes the three-year average of some data provided through the IRS 990.Charity Navigator currently only has 2 years of consecutive e-filed Forms 990 from the IRS for National Police Association Inc. under the EIN: 82-0647764.Before Charity Navigator can evaluate this organization, National Police Association Inc. will need to e-file for additional fiscal years.
Note: The absence of a score does not indicate a positive or negative assessment, it only indicates that we have not yet evaluated this organization.
This beta feature is currently viewable only on desktop or tablet screens. Check back later for updates.
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National Coalition For Police And Troopers
Recommended Reviews
Your trust is our top concern, so businesses can’t pay to alter or remove their reviews. Learn more.
- 5 star ratingGreat
- 1/4/2020
SCAM. They called my 91 year old mother and got her credit card number and tried to charge $50.00. I called them several times and no return call. I’ve disputed the amount and cancelled her card.
Useful4
- 1/5/2019First to Review
I believe this organization is a reinvention of the National Police and Troopers Association out of Sarasota Florida. This organization is listed in Yelp with 96 bad reviews. I think they have changed their name and are trying to continue to take people’s money. I got a call from someone saying they were in Olympia Washington representing the State Troopers of Washington State and wanted my financial help. When I received the information the address I am mailing my donation to is 2931 So. 108th Street #201 in West Allis, Wisconsin. I go to their website and it is in Sarasota Florida where the previous organization was.I search the internet and all I get is their website as a result. The website has a sarasota Florida contact address and a copyright date of 2019 so I am thinking this is the new face of the same fraudulent organization and would like to get the word out. Request your help.
Useful18
Police And Sheriffs Legal Defense Union In Houston
Basic Plan For Retired Officers
- Unlimited Phone and Office Consultations
- 24/7/365
Extended Plan For Retired Officers
- Unlimited Phone and Office Consultations
- 24/7/365
On and Off Duty Coverage
- Appeals / Grievances
- Free Will, POA, Deeds, Contract Review, Lease Prep
- Reduced Attorney’s Fees for Class A& B MISD, Family Law and Felony Cases
- Reimbursement Plan of $200 / Day for Suspensions and $3000 if Terminated for Memeber Only
On and Off Duty Coverage
- Appeals / Grievances
- Free Will, POA, Deeds, Contract Review, Lease Prep
- Reduced Attorney’s Fees for Class A& B MISD, Family Law and Felony Cases
- Reimbursement Plan of $200 / Day for Suspensions and $3000 if Terminated for Memeber Only
On and Off Duty Coverage & Much More!
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The 50 Worst Charities In America
In the wake of tragedies large and small, they pop up like mushrooms after a rain. With tales of woe and heartbreaking images of children or helpless animals, they beg for assistance. They are the tragi-charities. One hit wonders seeking to cash in on the tragedy of the day from floods and fires to missing children and more.
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The pop-up charity business is usually local, occasionally regional and rarely national. Mostly they are the products of individual scammers who smell an opportunity to cash in using the name of a victim who may or may not even be real. They count on local press coverage and a quick website. These charities usually rake in a few thousand dollars and disappear.
National Police And Troopers Association
A special program within the International Union of Police Associations, AFL-CIO.Speaking With One Voice, Moving With One Purpose.
The I.U.P.A. proudly complies with state regulations and required disclosures. If you require additional information, then call us 1-800-247-4872 or email us at:
Your contribution is very much appreciated and although the International Union of Police Association is recognized as a non-profit by the IRS, due to its particular status 5), donations are not tax deductible pursuant to IRC §170(c.
A copy of our latest financial report may be obtained by writing to: The International Union of Police Associations, 5632 Bee Ridge Road, Suite 200 Sarasota, FL .
The International Union of Police Associations, AFL-CIO was formed in 1979 to collectively represent those in law enforcement that are active or retired law enforcement officers to fight to improve, protect, and remember the lives of officers and their families in law enforcement the organization also works to improve legislation that protects and affects public safety officers, as well as representing the needs of law enforcement officers and support personnel, whether that be for better equipment, more staff or a fair wage.
Registration with any of these state agencies does not imply endorsement, approval or recommendation by any state.
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Warnings From Law Enforcement
Montana Attorney General Tim Fox posted on Facebook last year about a call he received from “Roy” on behalf of the National Coalition for Police and Troopers. “The call was spoofed to appear to be from Montana phone number,” he wrote, noting that the caller did not identify the group as a political action committee, or super PAC, and telling his followers that it was not a nonprofit so donations are not tax deductible.
“Money donated to this group might be used for political purposes and will not be used for direct help to police or troopers,” Fox wrote. “Please do your homework and avoid scams and misleading appeals for your hard-earned money.”
FEC regulations state that political committees can only deposit a contribution into their account if that money came from a solicitation “which expressly states that the contribution will be used in connection with a Federal election” or the solicitation discloses that contributions are subject to federal election law. While several recordings uploaded online show that some callers have briefly mentioned the term “PAC” or have said that the group is supporting efforts to elect lawmakers to advocate for certain issues, the Montana attorney general wasn’t the only person to say the group hadn’t identified itself as required.
Also in Massachusetts, a Wilmington police officer received a call soliciting donations.
How Scam Pacs Fall Through The Cracks Of Us Regulators
Regulators responsible for protecting U.S. consumers from potentially unscrupulous fundraisers face a bedeviling new challenge: the âscam PAC.â
Thatâs what critics call political action committees that gobble up most of the money they raise rather than using it for the charitable or other causes they profess to support.
âScam PACsâ tend to slip through gaps among agencies that govern elections, charities and telemarketing, regulators say, leaving consumers exposed to misleading or fraudulent pitches.
The Federal Trade Commission, which is responsible for policing telemarketing, generally has no jurisdiction over political fundraising, said Lois Greisman, an associate director in charge of the agencyâs marketing practices division. The Do Not Call law, the FTCâs major weapon in policing telemarketing, does not apply to political calls, which have protections under the U.S. Constitution.
reuters investigates
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Apd Warns Of Scam Acting As Police Association
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. Albuquerque Police Department is warning people about a new scam that seeks pledge donations for the National Police and Troopers Association.
A citizen notified the police department of a letter they received in the mail thanking them for a donation. According to a release, the letter went on to say law enforcement officers across the country have joined forces as the National Police and Troopers Association also known as the International Union of Police Associations, to make communities safer.
The letter is seeking to collect child identification information, asking for fingerprints, a hair sample and a current photograph, in order to help locate a child if theyve gone missing.
The Albuquerque Police Department is warning the public to not send any money or personal information to anyone if you receive the letter in the mail.