Assistance group for homeless in San Angelo considers new structure

March 09--SAN ANGELO -- The Concho Valley Homeless Planning Coalition on Wednesday agreed to begin looking for a nonprofit fiduciary organization that would oversee the coalition's finances and enable businesses and private donations to be claimed as tax deductible.

The coalition currently does not have nonprofit status, said Mark Bethune, vice chairman of the Concho Valley Homeless Planning Coalition. Bethune and other coalition members believe the change could attract more financial donors because they could use donations as tax deductions.

"We're not talking about a lot of money," said Robert Salas, director of San Angelo's Neighborhood & Family Services Department. "We have about $600 in our budget right now.

"We fund a number of events such as Homeless Awareness Day. If we had more money we could do bigger and better programs. But if companies can't write off their donations there's not much incentive for them."

Salas said he will return with a proposal for the coalition board in April. The proposal will include a list of several nonprofits for the board to consider.

Not having nonprofit status is creating several headaches, said Bethune, who is also executive director for the Concho Valley Community Action Center. For example, two local businesses recently sent checks that were made out to the coalition, which doesn't have official status or the ability to cash the checks.

The coalition previously agreed not to pursue their own nonprofit status because all of its members are volunteers, Salas said. The group consists of representatives from various social service organizations that work with homeless people.

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