[Owasp-leaders] OWASP charitable status (was: Re: OWASP Election)

Thu Oct 8 17:38:01 UTC 2015

Good to see this move to a discussion about our organisation structure 
and not a election campaign one.

I like to take this one step further:
In fact this should at first not be about technical organisational 
structure.
*The key question is what we want to do and then we see whether the 
organisational structure fits that or needs to be changed.* So we should 
think about what are the new actions we want to take and the things that 
we no longer want to do, that would require us to change from 501(c)3 to 
501(c)6?

What are the underlying real reasons to change?
And of course also what are the disadvantages of changing?
So far I have not heard much about that...
I really like to understand what is the need, what is the underlying 
reason for that?

Maybe one data point I can offer from my last two years at the board:
Over the last two years, I did not encounter much problems with our 
current structure. I do not recall cases where we really wanted to do 
something and couldn't, just because we were a 501(c)3. That was not the 
problem. Nor did I feel "oh gosh, wouldn't it be so much better being a 
501(c)6 now....". Don't get me wrong, there definitely are differences 
and actions that are non-compatible with a 501(c)3, but IMHO this was 
never a problem. And IMO the spirit of our open sharing community and 
our aim to make the world a more secure place feel well aligned with the 
spirit of a 501(c)3.

To conclude: My personal experience so far is that our current structure 
works well for our community and we don't have much problems with 
restrictions from it. But if someone sees an actual problem and need to 
change, I would love to hear more about it and understand it better. 
Please help me understand what is the issue for you? And let us discuss 
which activity we want to do that would need us to change the 
organisation in order to allow us to do it?

Best regards, Tobias

On 08/10/15 17:35, psiinon wrote:
> From http://www.nonprofitlawcenter.com/resDetails.php?item_ref=247
>
> What is the purpose of an IRC § 501(c)(6) organization?
>
> A4: The purpose of this type of organization is to serve its members
>
> I dont think that what OWASP should be about - we should be all about 
> helping others (to be more secure) not about helping OWASP members.
>
> Q5: What are the functions of an IRC § 501(c)(3) organization?
>
> A5: The functions of an IRC § 501(c)(3) organization can be 
> multitudinous. There are endless types of programs that serve 
> charitable, educational, and like ends.
>
> OK, so I'm new to this legalise and definitely dont really understand 
> the differences, but that sounds much more appropriate for OWASP.
>
> Simon
>
>
> On Wed, Oct 7, 2015 at 7:57 PM, Tom Brennan <tomb at proactiverisk.com 
> <mailto:tomb at proactiverisk.com>> wrote:
>
>     To be fair Jim OWASP is not a scientific research or a religious
>     focus.  It is focused on “trying to raise awareness for software
>     security"
>
>     This was discussed during the interview have a listen here
>     https://soundcloud.com/owasp-podcast/owasp-board-interview-milton-smith-tobias-gondrom-tom-brannen
>
>
>     I also wish to draw your eyes and those of the other members (660+
>     on this leaders list) to the legal review of 501(c)3 vs. (c)6 that
>     are BOTH non-profit status
>
>     http://www.nonprofitlawcenter.com/resDetails.php?item_ref=247
>
>     This is not a GOP debate — this is a group of (9) people that are
>     volunteering to help the organization continue to grow globally
>     and locally.
>
>     Tom Brennan
>     973-506-9304 <tel:973-506-9304>
>
>>     On Oct 7, 2015, at 2:47 PM, Jim Manico <jim.manico at owasp.org
>>     <mailto:jim.manico at owasp.org>> wrote:
>>
>>     Tom is trying to shift OWASP away from a charity to a 501c6 trade
>>     association.
>>
>>     If you want to drop our charity and focus on vendor relations
>>     then vote for Tom.
>>
>>     If you care about open source, serving the community, and our
>>     values of vendor neutrality and non-commercialism then please
>>     consider other candidates.
>>
>>     --
>>     Jim Manico
>>     Global Board Member
>>     OWASP Foundation
>>     https://www.owasp.org <https://www.owasp.org/>
>>     Join me at AppSecUSA <http://appsecusa.org/> 2015!
>>
>>     On Oct 7, 2015, at 1:42 PM, Tom Brennan <tomb at proactiverisk.com
>>     <mailto:tomb at proactiverisk.com>> wrote:
>>
>>>     OWASP Foundation Inc., announced the 2015 International Board of
>>>     Director candidates and I am throwing my hat in the ring again.
>>>
>>>     I am requesting your support and vote this October 7th 2015 –
>>>     WHY ME you ask…. read, watch and hear the details here:
>>>
>>>     http://www.proactiverisk.com/2016-owasp/
>>>
>>>     Semper Fi,
>>>     Tom Brennan
>>>
>>>
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>
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> -- 
> OWASP ZAP <https://www.owasp.org/index.php/ZAP> Project leader
>
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