It is a myth that you have to be a 501 C3, maybe 501 C7 much less reporting procedure work, I have also been told that for some Chapters even just their local State based registration is all that would have been required. Unfortunately I keep seeing from people insisting on doing the hardest and most demanding registration, 501 C3.
Hardly any Chapters, actually I think only one had a bank account as all the others stated they did not as they didn't return any money to the Club when the dissolved tells me that they only needed to register at a minimal level. If they felt that they needed to be able to accept donations, that had not been an issue in the past as they had not had any donations, again I know this as Sue Westwood had never had any requests for her to issue the relevant acknowledgement for tax purposes.

Regards, Wombat (retiring Director)

JM, thank you for the offer, but my life is already overly complicated. When I get a chance I work on my old Cats and other ancient gear but I always check in with ACMOC when I get near the computer. I think that I will try to make the meeting on the 20th.

I still dont know just what technical detail has alienated so many chapters? Grant.

this is something many are missing if you dont have any money dont collect dues or donations you dont need charitable status.
im sure the us tax office has rules specific for social clubs that only collect membership dues for the purposes of covering the operating costs such as postage fees for the club newsletter, insurance premiums for public liability cover and

it easy in my state all community groups are naturally non profits they register as such when they incorporate. but charities are a special category on their own

 

here a link to the queensland office of trading model rules for community groups of course this would need to be updated to suit the state laws for incorporated community groups in your state. but its a starting point.

I think it's important to respond to Deas' question about whether the Chapter switchover process has been difficult, or what other problems may have led up to so many chapters dissolving - I can only speak for myself on this matter as a former Chapter 3 member, and want to make it clear that I do not speak in any formal capacity for any other individual nor on behalf of the former Chapter itself, as I have never held an elected or appointed position and have not personally been involved in any part of the contract chapter process.  The following words are my own observations, gleaned from multiple conversations with former Chapter 3 members as well as ACMOC members not affiliated with the Chapter.

The unfortunate end of Chapter 3 - in my opinion - was the result of several difficult issues that had all piled up to the point that deep cracks had started to form, and the subsidiary-to-contract chapter decision was just the spark that ignited the powder keg.  Some members I spoke with were still unhappy over the discontinuation of the scale models program, others had become unhappy about the closing of the store and loss of merchandise access, others still had begun voicing concerns about difficulties in renewing their ACMOC membership over the phone because they weren't computer savvy and didn't use the internet, etc.  I want to add that I, along with the majority of these individuals fully understand the reasons why the models program had to be eliminated, and the staffing shortages that led up to the closing of the store as well as the struggle to find enough volunteers to keep everything running.  The negative feelings still lingered though, as a result of seeing so many parts of the club go away. Volunteer burnout was also becoming an issue within the Chapter, with some of the elected officials having held the same position for over a decade because there wasn't anyone else that had the ability, experience, or the time to step up and take an active role.  I am guilty of that myself, and am not criticizing any of the good folks who have been working on behalf of ACMOC and have been having to make the hard decisions to try to keep a dwindling club afloat - I want to say thank you to all of you!

With all of the aforementioned factors already in play, the final difficulty came from the formation of the "other Cat club" and the divisions that situation created.  When the decision was made for all the chapters to transition to Contract status, and then hearing the tone of the meetings that followed, it was evident to me that the old Chapter 3 as we once knew it was already dead.  Some members wanted to leave ACMOC for the "other club", others wanted to stay, but everyone knew that the path forward was going to be an impossible one with the attitude of the membership the way it was - like I said, for a number of reasons.  Even if Chapter 3 would've stayed, we wouldn't have had enough ACTIVE members left to be able to carry out the tasks required to remain as an organization, and I believe everyone knew it although nobody was happy that it had transpired the way it did.  I've been an ACMOC member since 2002, and will continue to be a member for as long as there is a club to belong to.  In response to brewzer's question about whether this is the result of an unhealthy club or not, I would say it is.  Membership numbers have been declining for some time, and the antique Caterpillar hobby is pretty much a niche pastime, because a lot of casual old iron enthusiasts don't have the space, the ability to transport, or ability to perform a lot of the repairs on what are often heavy and complicated machines by nature.  More of the older generations that had a natural connection to these vintage machines are passing on, and another problem is the fact that social media has evolved and given potential new members other multiple "free" options for joining up with hobbyist groups, which works against this club. Add to that, the formation of the "other club" has cut an already small group of members into two parts, which I don't believe will end up being a good thing for either one - we were already hurting for numbers prior to that and now find ourselves in an even worse situation.  I hope I didn't overstep and put anybody in a tight spot with my take on things here, but I wanted to lend my perspective on the matter in the most direct way possible.  There were a lot of factors that all led my former chapter to where we are today, and that's unfortunate.

Hi, Sasquatch.
Thank you for your information and perspective - sheds some light on at least some of the 'whys' and the 'wherefores' of the the current situation.

Personally, I will not have anything to do with the 'other mob' 'cos I know some of them and know a lot of how said mob came to be a club - not my style. Also, some of the 'leading lights of the 'other mob' were the cause of this club being in the hole which many of our current BoD here have worked so hard to get it back out of.

Just my 0.02.

The problems we had in Chapter 15 pretty much mirror the problems Sasquatch mentioned. Chapter 15 has been trying for 3 months to get the job done by some very qualified people and still has not succeeded. I wish them good luck.
Wally

Hi, Folks.
I'm no Philadelphia lawyer but it seems to me that a 501c7registration might cover a LOTTT of the chapters in the club, depending on income level.

www.upcounsel.com/501-c-7-bylaws

But what would I know? I'm 'justa pore, dumm bulldozer op'rator'.

Just my 0.02.

I am no expert on this topic, but if 20 chapters left because of the contract, maybe something in the contract is bad.

Sasquach hit the nail right on the head. I understand the issues facing the BoD forced them to make the decisions they felt were best for the club. Whether or not those decisions were correct is yet to be seen. I am holding out hope that the club will come back to its former glory. My personal feeling is that this transition was handled very poorly. There are many variables to setting up a non-profit in the U.S. and those laws vary state to state.
It is nowhere as easy as it was made out to be. After all of the of the back and forth about what the club was going to require or not require of the chapters a deadline was imposed that was unobtainable for many of us. There was not enough time given between the final order to discuss with the membership of the chapter, consult an attorney and an accountant and then deal with all of the federal and state red tape. Our group couldn't have even gotten the paper work completed with the State of Illinois in the time allowed let alone accomplish the rest of what needed done. Add to that many members not wanting to renew their membership in ACMOC after the unprofessional tone of some of the board meetings towards former board members who I and others consider long time friends. I myself am getting tired of all of the chapters that folded being portrayed as lazy and incompetent by the current board and especially club president. That is not leadership. Previous boards made decisions that caused the financial issues. Those mistakes were not done to purposely harm the club. I have talked to many of them and they have all admitted their mistakes to me. Hide sight is 20/20. They had good intentions but took the wrong path. I am sure evryone one here has made some poor finacial decisions that looked good at the time. The current BoD has made decisions to do what they thought was best to rectify those issues. That is what they were elected to do. If you think they are in the wrong then run for the board. Going forward if the club is going to survive a lot of people including the current BoD need to stop pointing fingers and own up to their decisions. The current board handed down an order that caused 20 U.S. chapters to fold because they determined that was what was best. That is on the current BoD. Not the chapters that folded, not on the general membership. The BoD needs to own their decisions and move forward so that we will have a successful club in the future.