With the information Iv'e read here and in the FIRST annual reports, it's clear that the increased FRC registration fee has generated almost the exact amount of excess revenue that FIRST has collected in extra cash for the past 4 years.
Quote:
Originally Posted by EricVanWyk
Situations vary between NPOs, but a vague rule of thumb is to keep a quarter of your annual throughput on hand, "minimum".
|
I checked what some other big non-profits keep in reserve, and the Girl Scouts, Boys and Girls Club, and Boy Scouts keep about 10%, 20% and 33% of their operating expenses in reserve. If those three proven and strong non-profits function at those levels, then I do have a problem with FIRST collecting an extra $1-2 million plus from team fees each year to get their extra profit/cash reserve above 33% and over 40% the past two years. This is school money, and in many cases it's my money (tax money when from entities like NASA).
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chicago1st
I'm going to stop, because I get worked up and upset with FIRST every time I delve into the fee structure and the business ethics, or lack of, in instances like the FLL-FTC relationship. I am troubled by the direction of FIRST, but I love the program - or at least the program I thought it was and know it was a a few years ago. Just wish it was managed like a non-profit trying to follow it's great mission, not a business trying to increase it's bottom line at the expense of it's customers. Sorry, just my frustrated view right now.
|
To the earlier poster, can you clarify what you are inferring when you said the FLL/FTC relationship shows bad business ethics? I've seen people say FIRST makes bad decisions sometimes, but bad ethics sounds much worse and might not be the right choice of words.