Op-ed originally appeared in the Richmond Times-Dispatch
It’s estimated that roughly 10 percent of all charitable donations in the U.S. are made during the final three days of the year. Given that animal shelters from Fairfax to Norfolk have experienced an uptick in homeless cats and dogs this year, Virginia residents should consider supporting their local pet shelter during that period.
Unfortunately, the shelter crisis is being made worse by a surprising source: the Humane Society of the United States. A new report from my organization, the Center for the Environment and Welfare, sheds light on how the Humane Society of the United States is vacuuming up donor dollars from communities into its Washington, DC-based coffers, while leaving pet shelters in Virginia and other states out in the cold.
Despite what many assume, the Humane Society of the United States is not affiliated with local humane societies across the state—or country—and does little to support them financially. In 2023, less than one percent of the Humane Society of the United States’s budget was reported as being sent to local pet shelters via financial grants, according to the organization’s new financial filings. And none of those recipients were located in Virginia.
Virginia is hardly alone. Some 29 states – most of the country – are completely ignored by the national Humane Society’s financial grants.
This has real consequences for local shelters. Many donors give money to the national Humane Society under the impression that this money is trickling down to the local humane societies in their communities. A 2023 poll of pet shelters found that around two thirds of shelters believe that this name confusion is hurting their fundraising.
Local shelters are trying their best to fight back against donor confusion.
Take the Chesapeake Humane Society, for example, which pointedly notes on its website that the “Chesapeake Humane Society is an independent 501(c)(3) charitable organization that receives no tax dollars or portions of donations made to national humane organizations.” Unfortunately, these local shelters often lack the resources and voice to communicate to donors that they need support just as much as the national Humane Society does.
If the money isn’t going to local shelters, where is it going?
Over $5 million is spent compensating the Humane Society’s executives. Another large chunk, some $55 million, is used for fundraising. Compare that to the paltry $767,000 that is granted to local pet shelters.
Even more shockingly, according to its latest tax return, the national Humane Society is sitting on almost $400 million in investments – including a staggering $100 million held in offshore accounts in Europe and the Caribbean. It begs the question, how can the Humane Society justify a nine-figure rainy-day fund while shelters in Virginia are desperate for resources?
This isn’t to say that the Humane Society does nothing good for animals. But if it wants to prioritize keeping money in investment accounts over supporting pet shelters, then animal lovers should respond accordingly. The best way to support homeless cats and dogs in Virginia is to donate locally. They sorely need support going into 2025.
Jack Hubbard is a Virginia resident and the Executive Director of the Center for the Environment and Welfare.