Update on ProPublica’s Request for Information on Post-Sandy Expenditures

We previously blogged about the efforts of ProPublica to obtain from the American Red Cross (ARC) information about how the ARC has spent its $300 million-plus in donations that it received for humanitarian aid following Hurricane Sandy.  The blog entry opines as follows:

Soliciting and expending funds in connection with major disasters can present some thorny legal issues (as several of us tax and nonprofit law scholars have discussed in our scholarship).  In general, analyzing whether these issues pose a problem in any given case does require assessment of the type of information that ProPublica seeks.  While privacy laws protecting individuals should certainly be observed, I would think the public interest better served by erring on the side of full disclosure.

Perhaps the ARC has come to appreciate this viewpoint.  The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports that the ARC has sent a 108-page document disclosing that it “has used roughly three-quarters of the $312-million raised, with just under $130-million going to ‘financial assistance’ and $46-million dedicated to the deployment of staff and volunteers.”  Additional details are available on ProPublica’s website.

JRB