Josh Drobnyk's great investigative report about congressional wannabe Sam Bennett does more than raise a few eyebrows. It also leads to even more questions. She draws a comfy $110,000 salary at a nonprofit whose annual budget is only $351,000. This includes a $100k grant from the Guv. Have Pennsylvania taxpayers have been duped into paying Bennett's salary at Properties of Merit so she can campaign full time?According to the Properties of Merit webpage, Governor Rendell and the Pennsylvania DCED are credited with grants in excess of $100,000. It also claims to have sponsorships from Lehigh County exec Don Cunningham($20k), Lehigh County DCED($20k), state senator Lisa Boscola($20k) and even state senator Pat Browne ($10k).
That's a lot of garden rakes!
And get a load of this testimonial, made just this year!
The expansion of Properties of Merit to communities throughout the Lehigh Valley is an incredibly positive development! POM has had a wonderful impact on neighborhoods in Allentown where property owners have taken a greater interest in their own properties. POM is a community development program that will yield great results that improve the quality of life for the residents of the communities that have joined. Congratulations to all who have worked so hard to make this expansion possible!
Author? Lisa Boscola, bippy.
Sometimes irony can be pretty ironic.
35 comments:
What does this non-profit do with the other $241,000?
That is not alot of money to fund the mission of the non-profit, giving consideration to the expenses of running the organization.
Seems to me that Sam Bennett is getting fat off of the taxpayers, and her organization does little more than act as a cheerleader.
Personally, I think that the grant money her organization receives would be better suited going directly to moderate and low income families living in downtown areas to help them revitalize and beautify their homes. There are programs that loan money to families and place a lien on the property, and when they meet certain criteria the lien is removed and the money does need to be paid back. These programs are severely under-funded and would be a better use of this money.
I also think the Democrats of the 15th deserve a real candidate for Congress. Sam Bennett has had her chance and fell right out of the blocks. Time for her to step aside.
i've been a long time critic of the program. just because a new homeowner plants a couple of flower boxes, theres the libs who can't wait to give them a trophy(or a rake). sam herself wanted a trophy for moving from the west end to 15th st. the real owner of merit is the long time homeowner, who year after year has kept his property presentable, despite allentown's lowering quality of life. in defense of sam, she was lead astray by rendell's excessive, transparent handouts, funded by the overtaxed middle class. welcome to penna., state of entitlement .
Correction:
There are programs that loan money to families and place a lien on the property, and when they meet certain criteria the lien is removed and the money does NOT need to be paid back.
This is the kind of stuff that fatally flaws a candidate and a campaign. It will be like a constant dripping of acid rain on her credibility as a candidate. Shouldn't someone, somehwere have a talk with her, get her to take a hard look at reality and pull out of the Congressional race before she does herself and her Party even more damage? Where is the real political leadership in the Democratic Party? Can't anybody see through her manipulative routines and her self delusional mind games and realize that keeping her in the race guarantees that Dent will win and the Dems will, once again, have lost an opportunity to take the 15th?
BethlehemDem, I had the same question you did about the remaining $241k. I seem to recall reading that POM had another full-time employee. I looked in Guidestar, but couldn't find any reports for 2006.
What a flippin' waste of taxpayer money!
AND to the another anon - GOOD QUESTION about the leadership of the LV Democratic party.
let's see, the mayor of Allentown makes $61,000 and oversees a huge corporation of diverse services, hundreds of employees and real stressful responsibilities, she oversees a staff of two and gives certificates to people who make their house pretty and gets $110,000. Seems fair to me. NOT!
It will be like a constant dripping of acid rain on her credibility as a candidate. Love the imagery.
Is that a cheesesteak or a wad of cash fast eddie is about to inhale?
See Bernie you are all apeleptic over County Council, everyone has given up on this story. I can tell when you get worked up you use 'bippy' too often and you do your ghetto rap'playa'. Relax, besides Sam and BTNP are more interesting then Stoffa White and the nine dwarfs.
Enough of the Sam Bennetts out there playing politics in effort to achieve the "Holy Grail," a statewide/national office with all the trappings that come with that.
Our two party system is no longer functional. Both are in it for the wrong reasons.
thank god im an independent. you guys all got sucked in to the mc seriously flawed article.snippets of info from participants while detailed comparisons.half truths im sure.hats off to the reps the nixon legacy lives on. dirty tricks,leaks to reporters,etc etc etc although no snow to cry in the dems are just as bad. what a political system we have. where is FRANK RIZZO when you need him. the KING of philadelphia. vote independent
No Candidate should be giving out money to potential voters. This goes for Sam Bennett and Gary Bertsch.
From what I've heard, Properties of Merit has had invitations to expand into quite a few cities (can't give you the exact number right off the top of my head). Sam should focus on her non-profit and leave off the "running" for Congress.
Of course, this may just be part of a master plan to shame a real candidate into running. It starts to make sense: Bernie TNP's bizarre meltdown, Bennett's bizarre meltdowns. It may even be political blackmail: if no one steps up, the area Dems will make sure the party is so embarassing that no Dem will ever get elected to anything again!
Think about it, Bernie.
Anon 9:18,
The Sam story is more interesting to the LV, and is definitely the bigger story. But the county council story is more interesting to me. I've followed county council for years. It has always fascinated me.
Anon 11:35,
I heard an interesting tale this evening. Many people think this story was leaked by Dent, who would have nothing to gain by doing so until after the primary. But there is a faction within the local Democratic party that may be trying to hurt Bennett so they can launch a more credible candidate. This is being done secretly so that the blame can be laid at Dent's doorstep, the story goes. If true, it's very clever.
Come on, Bernie. They aren't that smart. She is running and nobody will stop her because nobody wants to go through the torture of dealing with her manipulative, passive agressive personality. How do you think she has gotten this far already? She is way round the bend and nobody has the time or energy to bring her back to reality. All these so-called "political leaders" would rather ignore her antics, avoid the issue and hope she goes away. Unfortunately that won't happen. Stand back and watch the train wreck.
the real melt down will start with cutting the head off the snake in 2008.dents at the ass end , watch him wiggle.
You guys clearly know nothing or next to nothing about how non-profit organizations work. But your ignorance is not stopping you from spewing uniformed opinions. Go do something worthwhile, will ya?
Wow! Looks like the MC struck a nerve!
How about Tish Mogan, standards for excellence officer at Pa Nonprofits? Does she know nothing, too? Here's what she says, "Anybody who is a candidate for the position should not be on the [compensation] committee or provide information for the committee to consider"
Quite simply, Bennett is an opportunist. Her role in her own salary demonstrates that.
look at it this way, suppose i was creating a non profit to promote tourism around the state with a board of directors and a paid office support person.we hired jennifer lopez at 1oo g's with a budget of 150 to promote state tourism
is that illegal or unethical? anyone can be on the compensation committe unless they recuse themselves when it comes to there own compensation. was that clear in the article? hmmmmmm ask the political reporter from the mc if anyone told him she did. a little fuzzy..... you all can jump the cliff like in the war of the worlds radio broadcast response. ill let it play out. the mc sells papers..... your allowed to guess the truth
from a reliable source i heard the board of directors sent a oped response to the article. as far as why it took so long to bring this story to the front page,diversion from the mc blasting dent on his pension choice scandel. its all about timing.i want sam to stay in the race and give dent a real fight.dent better get rid of his facial nervous tic because on camera and during a debate with sam he's toast. thats his fear of sam. remember 1960
1) Sam Bennett could not be elected constable, let alone a member of congress.
2) Her insistence on running is a dream come true for Dent.
3) You want to complain about Dent's "facial tic" and think that weill win you a race? Get real. What the MC reported about Bennett is only the sound of one shoe dropping, and she has a collection.
4) Speaking of facial tics, I can't wait to see all the replays of that drunken concession speech.
5) In a world of opportunists, bennett is queen.
6) The board sent an op-ed? Gee, half of them are quoted as telling the MC that Bennett's salary made them hesitate.
Bernie is absolutely right on this one.
Sam's appearance as a non-profit money grabber will stay with her throughout this campaign. She simply cannot win, having been painted by this kind of brush.
In checking, you'll find that over the years, her supportors have dropped-off based upon her "too slick" personna.
To the Democrats, I say. . .keep looking.
The use of Say Hello??
According to the Urban Dictionary:
it's a quote from the movie scarface which has become poular amoung people to say when they do things like expose their penis or pull out a gun, or a baseball bat, a chainsaw, flip someone off, etc.
Yes, I'm using it in that context, i.e., to do something shocking. In this case, I'm increasingly shocked by the connection to Rendell, Bennett's little friend. He arranged for a bullshit $110k grant so Bennett could run for congress without having to worry about money. He endorsed her when she ran for A-town mayor in '05, and then had to try and pull it back. I believe he also headlined a fundraiser for her. Now all the party bosses, well before the primary, are on the bandwagon.
I don't know about you, but I smell cheesesteak.
Unfortunately for Sam, there's another faction within the local Dem party, and it's pretty powerful. And I'm not talking Boscola, whose sun is setting. I believe this is the group that has managed to trash Bennett at every turn for what she is - a manipulative phony.
Who is this powerful faction? It's us. Regular dems tired of the fakes and of party bosses who ruin primaries.
In the debate against Ed Pawlousy and Louie Beligerante, two light weight debaters, Bennett looked like a deer in the headlights. For the record, Pawlowski won. She is a terrible debater. Doesn't prepare and doesn't know how to play off what her opponents say. Dent will eat her alive.
Say Hello to my worthless opinion. When BO gets fired up he gets fired up. Usually defending Stoffa and he can make me crazy. On this one I give the Devil(BO) his due. His take on Sam is pretty right-on. The entire point is not if you are or are not a non-profit expert but behavior perceived or actual. She has flaws. I have seen Dent debate and I have seen Sam debate. Neither are great. With Orlaski, Dent looked shell-schocked. But he appears sincere and Sam appears slick and confused. I am a lifelong Dem and I think she will get the nomination. I would prefer a better candidate but if no one steps up, I can't fault her for going for it.
Hey Anon 4:29, Where';s that op-ed from the b/d?? The only thing I see is are two goofy LTEs. One is whining that the paper is picking on Bennett because she's a girl. The other claims MC bias. Nothing from the b/d.
I find it fascinating that The Morning Call will post the articles on their website that condemn Properties of Merit, but the response from the Board of Directors, as printed in the paper, is nowhere to be found on their web site.
http://www.mcall.com/news/opinion/anotherview/all-right_col.5927468jul05,0,2491732.story
Last Updated: July 5, 2007
Properties of Merit board followed IRS rules on pay
By Jim Molchany
The board of directors of Properties of Merit was disappointed and dismayed by The Morning Call's July 1 story regarding our organization. We believe the story misrepresents our actions as a board and takes away from the efforts of our volunteers to improve communities here in the Lehigh Valley and elsewhere in the commonwealth. The story makes a number of assertions that are not supported by the facts. Here are the facts:
IRS guidelines on compensation were not ignored; instead, they were complied with fully. Both the headline and story said POM ''ignored'' 2002 IRS guidelines on compensation for nonprofit executives. Instead, those guidelines were closely followed in arriving at compensation for Sam Bennett, our executive director. Along with information and guidance provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Nonprofit Organizations, Abbot, Langer and Associates and GuideStar, a firm that compares compensation among thousands of non-profits nationwide, we used the IRS guidelines to arrive at a salary range for Ms. Bennett and set her compensation at the low end of that range. According to the IRS, the main purpose of its guidelines is to promote transparency.
It should have been acknowledged in the story that in an effort to maintain transparency, POM and Ms. Bennett provided The Morning Call reporter with many pages of documents regarding this matter and in February provided the Editorial Board of The Morning Call with details of POM statewide expansion, including budgets, strategic plans and compensation information. The compensation committee did not set Ms. Bennett's compensation, as the story implied; the entire board did. This was in its role under IRS guidelines as an authorized body of individuals who did not have a conflict of interest concerning the transaction. The compensation committee's job was to do the research and to recommend what Ms. Bennett's compensation should be. I led that effort, and we were guided by research suggested and provided by PANO, Abbot, Langer and Associates and GuideStar. Ms. Bennett did not lobby us nor try to influence our recommendations to the board.
I presented our recommendation that we choose a salary at the lower end of the range from our research. Again, Ms. Bennett did not lobby nor attempt to influence the board's decision, which was unanimous. Properties of Merit is a statewide organization headquartered in Allentown. I think the story downplayed the main reason for POM setting compensation for its executive director: As of last fall, POM began to expand its operations to the entire commonwealth. This is and will continue to be a major undertaking, requiring the executive director to run the day-to-day operations, start and nurture new groups in cities and towns all over Pennsylvania, act as development director and raise funds for expansion, plan and execute events all over the state, coordinate and guide the efforts of large networks of volunteers, and serve as the public face of a statewide organization, among other duties.
Between 1999 and 2006, POM operated only in the Lehigh Valley, during which time Ms. Bennett received no compensation at all. The work of POM was significantly increased by its statewide expansion last fall, as were the board's expectations of the executive director. It is important to us to say that we are very proud of our expansion plans. Also, POM has been recognized by our partners in government and private enterprise (including The Morning Call) as a force with the potential to create good in communities all over Pennsylvania. We want to repeat our strong disagreement with the tone and conclusions of the story. It was this board's responsibility to make these decisions. Before doing so, we sought impartial, expert guidance from PANO, Abbot, Langer and Associates and GuideStar, as well as a close reading of relevant IRS guidelines. Others may disagree with the conclusions we reached, and they are free to do so. Nevertheless, it was our decision to make.
Having done so, we stand by our decision, and we stand by the leadership of our executive director and founder, Ms. Bennett.
Jim Molchany of Allentown is the board president of Properties of Merit of PA Inc.
Copyright © 2007, The Morning Call
Anon, Thanks for taking the time to post the op-ed.
Board member Dave Evans: " thought it was a little steep. ... I very gently tried to point out how this would be viewed."
Board member Ralph Graber: "some uneasiness".
Board prez Molchany, author of the op-ed: "I was afraid it might even go higher."
Guidestar CEO Ottenhoff: "The decision now has to be based on what the organization is right now … or what you are expecting the person to do this year."
Bernie O'Hare's comments on this blog are slanderous and libelous.
Dude or dudette,
I stand by every word I wrote.By the way, slander is oral, not written.
But if you want to dance, I'm ready.
Yo, BO you go girl. I know Govt is your thing, especially County Govt. But with St. John in charge you really ought to take a look now and then at the non-profit world. Don't get me wrong alot of good org.'s with great people helping others for little compensation. On the other hand some of these folks who get regular doles from all levels of Govt., and a generous public have cash reserves and salary structures that are unbelievable. I continue to maintain if it was not for her run for Congress the MC would never have printed this story. Can you imagine how many other insider, inbreed stories like this are ignored. It's a damn shame Bernardo but it's who you know. It upsets me because many people donate their hard earned cash and time as well as org.'s that actually help people getting shortchanged. Sorry had to vent after reading that pompous BOD letter. I hope you continue to follow this story.
I've used Guidestar to look at a lot of the nonprofits. Most exec directors at our locals are not paid a lot of money. There are exceptions like Shelly Brown. The problem w/ guidestar is the info is usually 2-3 years old. But it's a good idea to look at all the nonprofits and how they compensate. I'll do that.
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