CAP budget for dummies

[jimmydeanno]

Whether you choose to acknowledge it or not CAP is not a business. 

Um.  Actually, it is.

[abdsp51]

Um no it has a non profit congressional charter, so therefore legally is not a business.

[Garibaldi]

The Coast Guard is part of the Treasury Department and I guess it would seem to him that we perform much the same mission.

The USCG has no been part of the Treasury Department since 1967 when it was moved to the new Department of Transportation (DOT). Since 2002, the USCG has been part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Brain slipped gears on me. Seriously, I wonder sometimes if I'm going senile. I meant DOT, not Treasury. I was thinking USSS I guess.

USSS isn't in Treasury anymore either, they're part of DHS now.

Mother...of...GOD!!!! This is what I get for not paying attention. That, and my ADohlookasquirrel!

[JeffDG]

Um no it has a non profit congressional charter, so therefore legally is not a business.

Just because an organization is non-profit doesn't make it not a business.

[Eclipse]

Um no it has a non profit congressional charter, so therefore legally is not a business.

+1 - It may have a Corporate structure, but that doesn't make it a business.

[Garibaldi]

Um no it has a non profit congressional charter, so therefore legally is not a business.

+1 - It may have a Corporate structure, but that doesn't make it a business.

Concur. CAP isn't in the business of turning a profit. Unless you count the many people it's helped to further their own aspirations and careers either in the private sector, military or aerospace field.

[Eclipse]

^ OK, but you also don't have to be intent on a profit, per se, to be a legitimate business.
There are plenty of very profitable organizations which are chartered in the name of a charity (actual or as legally defined)
which are in a non-profit status as far as the IRS is concerned.

In CAP's case, they are not a "business" in any sense of the word.

[MajorM]

More to the issue, well the apps issue at least, we don't mail apps anymore, not cadet ones at least. 

We have the parents pay the squadron and then fax the application plus charge card info to NHQ.  Then the card holder gets reimbursed from the squadron.

It used to take 3-4 weeks to process an application.  Now it takes 48 hours, 72 at most.  I fax it on Saturday and by Wednesday they're up in eServices.  The cardholder (usually me) is reimbursed usually inside of a week.

But you do need to know the secret fax number for that process to work.  Use the standard membership fax and it'll get lost.

[Eclipse]

More to the issue, well the apps issue at least, we don't mail apps anymore, not cadet ones at least. 

Seniors still require the hardcopy app and the fingerprint card.

If we could get into some kind of online background system, or they could accept a high-res scan of the FP card, we could be paperless.

[Patterson]

Man, you rarely have anything positive to say about the organization. Whether you choose to acknowledge it or not CAP is not a business.  Now if you have a sound idea present it but keep your negativity and bias out of it.  At the end of the you coming here and bashing a process does not fix any issues nor does complaining and presenting you ever present negativity.  You don't like the process submit your suggestion for a change up the CoC and list the reasoning why this would be more efficient and worthwhile.  If you can't do that or start the process you will always be part of the problem.

Wow.  First, the CAP as chartered in public law is absolutely a business.  It was designed as such, to both protect the individuals associated with it and to allow those individuals to divest finances as they see fit.  I suggest you read the Constitution and Bylaws of the Corporation.  If you still do not recognize this factual reality you may then proceed to go to the "statement of investment policy" found at capmembers.com under National Headquarters >>Financial Management page.  CAP IS IN THE BUSINESS OF MAKING PROFIT (through investments, donations, grants, bequests, gifts etc).

Those that jumped and said "CAP is not a business", "its just a non-profit thingy etc" are individuals we do not want making decisions for the CAP as they have no idea what the organization fundamentally is!!

The IRS recognized CAP as a business in its determination to grant the 501(c)(03) status.  Specifically CAP falls under 509(a)(2).  This recognizes CAP as an "organization that receive their support from a combination of gifts, grants and contributions and fees for their exempt services". PLEASE NOTE: to the IRS the term "organization" means business.

Again, I will say; some here will disagree with me and decide to argue heatedly, but anyone who is against reviewing business practices is either afraid of change, too lazy to change, just doesn't care or benefits from current costly practices and does not want to give up what they have.

abdsp51, I presented my suggestion and your negativity and bias has prevented you from factually challenging my idea. You complain my "bashing a process does not fix any issues nor does complaining and presenting you ever present negativity".  Seriously??  How do you think improvements are made? Nothing in life would ever change if we all just sat back and not said anything....right?!?

For those that may not accept the suggested idea that business practices within CAP need reviewed to determine cost savings on the basis of mere semantics, you are foolish and just out for a fight.  How can you not agree that the review of current practices and procedures are beneficial??  Disagreeing with the idea of review is both detrimental and wasteful. I can accept disagreement with how reviews are done or who conducts the reviews, but disagreeing with the concept is a reason we are in the current financial situation.

abdsp51, please don't attack an individual personally if you don't like a post, especially if you have no alternative suggestions to a proposed idea presented. That only reiterates the fact you are ignorant of the topic.

[abdsp51]

Man, you rarely have anything positive to say about the organization. Whether you choose to acknowledge it or not CAP is not a business.  Now if you have a sound idea present it but keep your negativity and bias out of it.  At the end of the you coming here and bashing a process does not fix any issues nor does complaining and presenting you ever present negativity.  You don't like the process submit your suggestion for a change up the CoC and list the reasoning why this would be more efficient and worthwhile.  If you can't do that or start the process you will always be part of the problem.

Wow.  First, the CAP as chartered in public law is absolutely a business.  It was designed as such, to both protect the individuals associated with it and to allow those individuals to divest finances as they see fit.  I suggest you read the Constitution and Bylaws of the Corporation.  If you still do not recognize this factual reality you may then proceed to go to the "statement of investment policy" found at capmembers.com under National Headquarters >>Financial Management page.  CAP IS IN THE BUSINESS OF MAKING PROFIT (through investments, donations, grants, bequests, gifts etc).

Those that jumped and said "CAP is not a business", "its just a non-profit thingy etc" are individuals we do not want making decisions for the CAP as they have no idea what the organization fundamentally is!!

The IRS recognized CAP as a business in its determination to grant the 501(c)(03) status.  Specifically CAP falls under 509(a)(2).  This recognizes CAP as an "organization that receive their support from a combination of gifts, grants and contributions and fees for their exempt services". PLEASE NOTE: to the IRS the term "organization" means business.

Again, I will say; some here will disagree with me and decide to argue heatedly, but anyone who is against reviewing business practices is either afraid of change, too lazy to change, just doesn't care or benefits from current costly practices and does not want to give up what they have.

abdsp51, I presented my suggestion and your negativity and bias has prevented you from factually challenging my idea. You complain my "bashing a process does not fix any issues nor does complaining and presenting you ever present negativity".  Seriously??  How do you think improvements are made? Nothing in life would ever change if we all just sat back and not said anything....right?!?

For those that may not accept the suggested idea that business practices within CAP need reviewed to determine cost savings on the basis of mere semantics, you are foolish and just out for a fight.  How can you not agree that the review of current practices and procedures are beneficial??  Disagreeing with the idea of review is both detrimental and wasteful. I can accept disagreement with how reviews are done or who conducts the reviews, but disagreeing with the concept is a reason we are in the current financial situation.

abdsp51, please don't attack an individual personally if you don't like a post, especially if you have no alternative suggestions to a proposed idea presented. That only reiterates the fact you are ignorant of the topic.

Your posts for the vast majority are negative and if you can't stand being called out on it then you got issues.  And sorry CAP is not a business in any definition of the word.  I suggest you look up the word in an actual dictionary.  You can be an organization and not a business.  We are an organization and a non-profit one at that and therefore not a business. 

[Eclipse]

Patterson, you literally have no idea what you are talking about.

[vento]

CAP is a Corporation charted by Congress and it falls into the definition of 501(c).
However, a Corporation is not necessarily a business.
It is commonly known that there are "Non-profit Corporations" vs. "Business Corporations".
What is so hard to understand? Really? 

[Ned]

Maybe someone can explain just what was approved and passed for CAP?

I read one article that said that the whole $31M had been approved, then another message that it was only $28M (is that the sequestered $31M?), then recently it's only $22M and NHQ may need to RIF additional staff.

I can't seem to find a definitive number anywhere (maybe one doesn't exist? Is it still gray?)

I hate to interrupt a classic CT furball to return to the OP, but as others have posted, the actual amount of appropriated dollars (non-acquisition type) appears to be a hair over $22 million for FY 13, representing a reduction of just over 6 million from FY 12, and a million less than the roughly 23 million in the budget the BoG approved.  And of course we are already half way through FY 13, so we have had to make some careful reductions, including a RIF at NHQ.  No significant programs have been eliminated, which means among other things, that we should not have to do some of the things we had to do last year like ground airplanes for a period of time. 

We are always reviewing our business practices, and I suspect the members will see some further economies in things like printing and corporate travel.

Our CAP-USAF partners are experiencing even more significant cuts to their operating and travel budgets.

The BoG is aggressively addressing the funding situation and fully understands the risks and lack of stability inherent in meeting mission in an organization dependent on appropriated dollars for the vast majority of our operating  budget.  We get that.  We really, really do.

The good news is that we are still meeting every mission that is requested of us and that due to the prudent reductions, we are in relatively good shape when compared to other organizations.  We have a good cash flow and money in the bank. 

I will try to respond to questions as time permits, but our meeting went to 2200 and starts again at 0800.

You may return to arguing over semantics and offering the leadership advice on how to run the corporation.

I'm going to bed.

Ned Lee

[NIN]

You may return to arguing over semantics and offering the leadership advice on how to run the corporation.

And with that, Ned just whistled up the Burn Unit at Brooke Army Medical Center.

[Critical AOA]

You may return to arguing over semantics and offering the leadership advice on how to run the corporation.

Hey Ned could you mind your own business so the rest of us can get down to business?