CharityWatch, formerly the American Institute of Philanthropy, has graded the Humane Society of the United States with a “D” for the fifth year in a row in their charity rating guide, according to HumaneWatch.
CharityWatch finds that HSUS spends as little as 49 percent of its budget on actual program costs, meaning the rest is overhead costs(salaries, pension plans, etc.). CharityWatch also determines that it takes HSUS up to 49 cents to raise every dollar.
CharityWatch rates over five hundred charities each year on an A-F grading scale. The highest grades, according to CharityWatch, are earned through the following:
Groups included on the Top-Rated list generally spend 75% or more of their budgets on programs, spend $25 or less to raise $100 in public support, do not hold excessive assets in reserve, and receive “open-book” status for disclosure of basic financial information and documents to CharityWatch.
The watchdog group does acknowledge that it is difficult to disclose funds while working with charities, and suggests that their guide is used as an aid in determining decision making on certain charities, and how the public supports them. For $3, a sample copy of the Charity Rating Guide can be obtained by sending a check to the organization. Membership in CharityWatch is a $40 donation and includes a copy of the report.
For the top rated animal charities, visit their top-rated charities page.
