Recently, the River Reporter, a notoriously anti-natural gas publication but, I hasten to add, a newspaper that has always been fair to me, ran an editorial challenging our raising of the Park Foundation?s influence on the natural gas debate.   They laid out their case nicely, but missed the point completely when they said ?The Park Foundation Conspiracy, in the end, boils down to nothing more than the fact that the Park Foundation funds opponents of hydro-fracking, while EID supports hydro-fracking.?

Anyone with a background in non-profits knows their are different types of non-profits under the law.  Some are charities, some are business organizations and some are political organizations.  While there is always some overlap, a charity cannot engage in significant political activity, which is exactly what occurs when the Park Foundation ?funds opponents of hydro-fracking.?  It?s not a small point and charities violating this prohibition run the risk of losing their tax-exempt status.  Yet, the Park Foundation proceeds merrily along, getting the plaudits of its allies in the cause who seem not to care about the proper role of a non-profit who gets to earn and spend money on the pet causes of its funders without paying taxes on any of it.

http://eidmarcellus.org/marcellus-shale/park-foundation-political-s...