HSUS Is Not Your Local Humane Society It’s common knowledge that Question 1, which seeks to ban hunting bears with the use of bait, dogs, and foot snares, is sponsored and funded almost completely by the Washington, D.C.-based Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). So what, exactly, is the Humane Society? It turns out there are two. And they’re not the same. The general public knows their local Humane Society as shelters for dogs and cats, run by dedicated, low paid people and volunteers who love animals. Across America there are thousands of such local shelters, almost all calling themselves the Humane Society. They are all independent; they are not connected to a larger organization, or even to each other. However, polling shows that 71% of Americans believes HSUS is an umbrella organization for all these local shelters. People think their shelters are somehow affiliated with HSUS. By extension, they also feel that HSUS is the voice of local shelters. It is not. HSUS has nothing to do with local Humane Society shelters; they just happen to use exactly the same name. HSUS furthers this deception by frequently using dogs and cats in their many ads, asking for money to help these animals. But HSUS does not run any pet shelters – and, although it raises well over $100 million annually from contributions, it consistently gives shelters less than 1% of that money. The figures below are based on HSUS’s 2013 IRS Form 990, which all nonprofits have to file. It accurately shows their 2012 activity. (Note: not all expenses listed.) • Total revenue: $125.8 million. • President/CEO Wayne Pacelle’s annual compensation package: $395,469. • Employees: 636 (including 30 lawyers); 7 earn over $200,000; 38 earn over $100,000. • Total salaries and benefits: $44.5 million (35% of its total budget). • Added to pension plan: $2.4 million. • Spent on fundraising: $49 million (39% of its total budget). • Spent on lobbying: $2.5 million. • Grants to pet shelters: $1,028,586 (.8% of its total budget). • Total expenses: $120.3 million. • Total investments: $177.7 million (publically traded securities). • Total assets: $195.4 million Of particular concern is HSUS’s 2012 investment of $25.7 million in the “Central American and the Caribbean” region. These investments: Ascend Partners Fund I, L.P. (Cayman Islands); BKM Holdings Ltd. (Caymans); Fore Multi Strategy Offshore Fund, Ltd. (Caymans); Hayman Capital Offshore Partners, L.P. (Bermuda); Fir Tree International Value Fund (Caymans). These are all for-profit hedge funds. Why did a U.S. non-profit park almost $26 million in offshore funds in the Cayman Islands? Equally disturbing is the May 2014 settlement of a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) lawsuit against HSUS by Feld Entertainment, Inc., which owns Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circuses. HSUS had sued Feld for mistreatment of their elephants, but it was discovered that they had paid their witness $190,000 to provide false testimony. HSUS paid Feld a settlement of $15.75 million to avoid the RICO charge. The respected American Institute of Philanthropy (AIP), which analyzes charities, has consistently given HSUS annual “D” ratings, reflecting its high operational costs, inefficient fundraising, and low percentage of giving to its intended recipients. And in 2014, Charity Navigator, the nation’s largest charity evaluator, completely revoked HSUS’s charity rating, for these same reasons. One major way HSUS raises money is by asking for contributions to help animals in shelters. Their deceptive advertising is so effective that polling of those who contributed to HSUS shows that 74% gave specifically to help pet shelters. A full 90% of those polled were completely unaware that HSUS gave less than 1% to shelters annually. They fully believed that by giving to HSUS, they were helping their local shelter. Local humane shelters operate on a shoestring, with low salaries and unpaid volunteers. The Bangor Humane Society, for example, has only 20 paid employees, most part-time, and about 100 volunteers. Like most shelters they survive on contributions and some municipal funding. HSUS siphons off millions of dollars that should go to these local Humane Society shelters, because much of the money given to HSUS is from people who think their contributions are going to shelters. HSUS is an enormous fundraising machine that gives next to nothing to animals. If you want to contribute money to your local Humane Society shelter, send it directly to them. They need it far more than the fat cats of HSUS. Another big fundraiser for HSUS is ballot initiatives, like Maine’s Question 1. They normally raise more than they spend, due to their deceptive contribution appeals to their 10-plus million “constituents” across the country, mostly urban/suburban people with no idea of the reality of either rural life or wildlife management, who don’t even live in the states these initiatives affect. These ballot initiatives are moneymakers for HSUS. That’s the primary reason they’re back in Maine with the same anti-bear hunting initiative that failed here in 2004. They make money even when they lose. But they do need wins, to encourage more contributions. We should deny them that win on Question 1, both for the sake of our important bear management program, and to keep from adding even more to their already stuffed wallets. HSUS has a long history of being loose with the truth to obtain its goals; be cautious of their claims about Question 1. And when HSUS says they believe hunting bear over bait is cruel, do not be deceived into thinking they are speaking for the many Humane Societies throughout America that deserve our respect and admiration.
Posted on: Mon, 20 Oct 2014 12:13:16 +0000
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