Petrelis Files

HRC Withholding Griffin's Salary Info?

(HRC shares only a single year's IRS 990.)

Last Friday, I posted a copy of the letter sent to Chad Griffin at the Human Rights Campaign asking a few easy questions. What's his salary, would he follow the lead of PFLAG and the San Francisco LGBT Community Center and post nine years' IRS 990s, post the latest IRS 990 when it's available this month, and when would his hold his first formal town hall in San Francisco.

I heard from HRC's Fred Sainz on Friday:

Thanks for your email. I am at the NGLJA [National Gay and Lesbian Journalist Association meeting in Las Vegas] and will be back in the office on Monday. I promise to review your thoughts then. Have a good weekend. 

 (PFLAG publishes nine-years' of their IRS filings on their site.)

In response, I asked if he was the third deputy at HRC, Griffin being the head honcho with Cathy Nelson and David M. Smith as his two top deputies and Sainz coming after those two in the HRC chain of command. His first reply on Monday:

What is a third deputy? LOL I am working on your questions. Petrelis, you are funny. That made me laugh...hard. Be back in touch. 

Still no substantive answer and no date when one would come. Sainz's second note on Monday:

I promise you I am working on it. We are busy so allow me some time. 

When is HRC not busy with sending top deputies to conferences around the country or working on elections and ballot proposition or monitoring Congress and the federal agencies? Why is Sainz, on Griffin's behalf, taking this long to give me answers?

In my opinion, Griffin was ready from Day One to not only take the helm at HRC but also totally prepared for the multiple duties of the executive director, including addressing essential fiscal transparency matters.

(SF's LGBT Community Center posts nine years' of IRS 990s.)

Four months ago is when he was picked to lead HRC and we should have learned his salary info by now. Publishing nine years' of IRS 990 should take no more than 2-3 hour to scan and post. An announcement if and when a public forum will be held in San Francisco, a request put to Griffin in early June, should have already come out.

If HRC is not withholding his salary info, where is that info? Is the minimal commitment to scant fiscal transparency under Joe Solmonese going to change and expand? What about better democratic engagement with the grassroots that doesn't attend HRC dinners?

The Washington Blade reports that there are about 150 employees working at HRC. Sure would be cool if one of them answered my questions.