[Kzyxtalk] Stuart Campbell's 'General Pot'

[Scott Peterson]

Dear Mr. Campbell,

The 'MCPB 2016 Budget as Passed' here is $541,500:

http://www.kzyx.org/index.php/about-us/volunteering-at-kzyx/102-station-business/249-mcpb-2016-budget-as-passed

The date on this approval is '6-29-16'.

Yet the budget passed here is $599,500:

http://mendocinotv.com/2016/06/27/mendocino-tv-brings-you-junes-kzyxz-board-of-directors-meeting/

The date on this approval is two days earlier.

Assuming that the higher amount is correct, that

leaves MCPB short by nearly $100,000 over last 

year. Where will all that money come from? At

least some of it will come from the Corporation for

Public Broadcasting, right? Look at your budget,

Mr. Campbell. $26,000 of that money is restricted.

Or designated.

At 45:00 (on the video), you made a statement

that "We don't have any way in our current budget

planning and accounting system to designate funds

for a specific advantage or a specific activity. 

It all kind of goes into the general pot."

Ah-hah. So your budget is just a suggestion. I

see. A few bucks here and there can be siphoned

off from restricted CPB grants for whatever the

treasurer wants. Like fat severance packages for

people who play ball with him/her. Got it.

You might want to write that down, Mr. Campbell.

In a Memorandum of Understanding. And send it to

the CPB. And since it appears to be a significant

change in policy, you might want to copy the 

Internal Revenue Service on it. And the Registry 

of Chartable Trusts. Along with your Form 990.

I understand that MCPB is planning on opening a

studio in Ukiah. But MCPB doesn't have the money 

for it. And it lost the 'restricted' funds raised 

for that project years ago. To the 'general pot.' 

Because there was no way of controlling it. So I 

guess the 'general pot' just has to get bigger 

somehow. Leaving it all to MCPB's treasurer. You.

Since MCPB is bleeding cash, I assume that a

good sized chunk of that hundred grand will come

from major donors. Whose job is that?

Think back, Mr. Campbell. To November of last

year. When you wrote this: "I need to express my 

concern to the entire Board that the budget we 

approved at the end of June included $55,000.00 in 

major donor
contributions as follows: A Legal Bill 

Event ($10K), End of Year ($30K), &
Spring House 

event ($15K). Obviously, perhaps, we are not 

restricted to
those particular events, but as far as 

I know, there are no plans for
generating any of 

these funds at the moment, and I consider this aspect 

of
fundraising to be a Board responsibility. The staff 

will, of course, support
such efforts in any way 

required, but I don’t think they could or should take 

the lead on them. Again, perhaps obviously, if these 

funds are not
generated during this fiscal year, it 

could leave us with a significant deficit." You can

see that here:

http://www.kzyx.org/Board/KZYX%20State%20of%20the%20Station%20Report%20November%202015.pdf

So finding major donors is a board responsibility.

Right. Now you're on the board, Mr. Campbell. 

You've been there for six months. How many have you

found? You had the opportunity to report on that.

At marker 25:20 on the video. I saw nothing of the

kind. Did I miss something?

There's one thing that I definitely missed. That's

any mention of MCPB's 2014/15 Form 990. According

to the Registry of Charitable Trusts, it's already

been filed. Who did that, Mr. Campbell? The last one 

on file from MCPB is here:

http://www.eri-nonprofit-salaries.com/?FuseAction=NPO.Summary&EIN=680050440&BMF=1&Cobrandid=0&Syndicate=No

This is for FY 2011/12. Look at the bottom of page

11. At items 28 and 29. Where it says there are no

restricted assets. Under penalty of perjury.

Now take a peek at this:

http://www.kzyx.org/Board/KZYX%20FY%202013%20Budget.pdf

Look at the eighth line down. Where it says 'CPB

restricted grants'. Of $14,000+. For the same year.

Then all that money disappeared on the Form 990.

Huh. I guess that went into the 'general pot' too.

I'm sure that you're not running a gigantic slush 

fund, Mr. Campbell. Not on purpose, anyway. But

when the treasurer of Mendocino County's only high

power public radio station has no control over the

treasury, that's what it looks like.

Sincerely,

Scott M. Peterson

Mendocino

cc: (MCPB Board Members)

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