AMC Executive Director pay

Several weeks ago there was a thread about the AMC auctioning some of their old signs on ebay. The starting price was $100 per sign. I posted a reply in which I included a link to a Boston Herald article showing how much the AMC Executive Director earned in 2007. The VFTT moderator replied to my post, informing me that the topic I brought up didn't relate to the thread.
http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=33358

I decided to contact AMC and ask them about the Herald story. I sent an email on Nov 29th; sent another one on Dec 4th; then made a phone call to the Executive Director's office on Dec 7th; and then sent one more email on Dec 14th. As of Dec 16th they have not replied.

I would imagine several members of this site (as well as several who lurk) are past, present, or future AMC members.

One last note: In the first email below I said I wouldn't edit the emails in any way. I have to admit I just fixed a spelling error in one of the emails.

Below are the three emails I sent, one of which includes a description of the phone call I made:



November 29th

Dear Sir / Ma'm

A year or so ago I came across this online report from the Boston Herald listing the total pay of top executives of non-profit organizations.
http://www.bostonherald.com/projects/non_profit/
This total pay includes salary, benefits, any bonus and other reimbursements.
The report shows that the total pay in 2007 for Andrew Falender, Executive Director of the AMC, was $304,466.00

A few questions:
1) Does this report accurately reflect the total pay for Andrew Falender in 2007? If not, what was his total pay in 2007?
2) What was the total pay of the AMC Executive Director in 2008?
3) What was the total pay of the AMC Executvie Director in 2009 (at this point maybe a projection would suffice)?

I just received a letter from the AMC asking me to renew my lapsed membership. All the left-wing junk mail I started
receiving after joining the AMC wasn't enough to make me quit the AMC (but it was close, believe me). What DID in fact
make me leave the AMC was reading about its Executive Director making over $300k. So now, about one year after leaving
the AMC, I received the renewal request. This is what prompted this email.

I would appreciate it if you could answer my three questions above. I would think, as a 501(c)(3) organization, the AMC wouldn't
hesitate to make that information public.

Full disclosure: I will be posting my email and your response on the "Views From The Top" hiking bulletin board website (vftt.org).
I will not edit the emails in any way, but I will exclude your name if you wish.

Thank you.





Dec 4th

Sometimes emails get lost or accidentally deleted. So I'm sending this email again just in case. Thank you in advance for your response.




Dec 14

Hi

Regarding my two unanswered emails below: I called the AMC on December 7th and spoke with a woman in the Executive Director's office. She told me my emails had been forwarded to the Executive Director, who then forwarded them to the Chief Financial Officer (or someone of a similar title). She said the CFO was preparing an answer for me and would reply to me via email by the end of the week (December 11th).

I'm just writing to let you know I haven't received a reply yet. I'm sure at this point you'd like me to just go away...but you have to admire my persistence, no?

As of 2007, has salary was $276K according to Charity Navigator This might seem to be high, but is not out of line for similar sized non-profits. As I have stated before, non-profits are in the business of rasing funds to support their mission. If you don't support their mission or how much their leadership is paid, don't donate. Each person must make there own decision.

I tend to support smaller local organizations with less overhead, but have donated to the AMC in the past.

501(c)3 and 501(c)6 organizations have to file IRS Form 990. One of the schedules of this form requires the org to list the salaries of their highest paid employees. These organizations are also required to make these forms available for public viewing. Does not mean they need to mail you a copy but they need to let you see it if you ask, May need to go to their HQ to do so.

From the Charity Navigator site

Where does the data come from?
We base our evaluations on the financial information each charity provides annually in its informational tax returns, or IRS Forms 990. This document is created from the charity's professionally audited books and is signed by an executive at the organization affirming it to be factual. Charities submit it under oath to the IRS as the truth and also deliver it to their state attorney general as required by law.

Rules of financial disclosure are Here

Now I know why Andy Falender always looks so happy in photos in the AMC magazine.

FWIW: As an example: (I have nothing against Federal Employees):

the linked article said:

As USA Today explained, “when the recession started, the Transportation Department had only one person earning a salary of $170,000 or more. Eighteen months later, 1,690 employees had salaries above $170,000.”

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So in relative terms, I'm willing to assume the Executive Director of the AMC earns what he is paid.

There are many similar sized non-profits that are less efficient, accomplish less and pay their people more.

Isn’t it great when government creates wealth with our tax dollars?

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I like this line best.

I'm just mad because I'm not in line!

Just one in a long list of reasons not to support the AMC in any way. Remember this is the organization that charges members to help do trail maintenance.

FORM 990 for AMC 2007

http://dynamodata.fdncenter.org/990_pdf_archive/046/046001677/046001677_200712_990.pdf

gotta love the non reponse.. a few years ago, I had a similar non reponse asking about why all the huts aren't open on a selve serve basis up high..


still waiting to hear back...

His salary is on pg 32 of the document. Nice find Tucco!!

An Executive Directors salary that is less than 1.5% of expenses is actually on the lower end of the scale. I have seen many that are 5-10% or even more!

I'm only stating that the Exec's pay is not out of line, and not trying to debate the other issues.

There are several things the AMC does that upset me. This isn't one of them.

Geez, I don’t think I’m going to get much more than 8 hours sleep tonight, worrying about this issue.

Hope the weather holds for Saturday though.

David Metsky said:

There are several things the AMC does that upset me. This isn't one of them.

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Couldn't agree more.

I just had a friend phone me last night after attending a slide show at Joy St. Open to all, with a pot luck first. He was so enthusiastic over how much the AMC does, and does for free.

If people choose not to see all the good the AMC does, that's their business, but I see no point in this discussion. It isn't productive. Let's focus our energies elsewhere.



Brian

Who cares how much he makes?

I'm not a member (nor particularly fond of the AMC) and have no idea even what an executive director does. But I assume that he does whatever an executive director does and does it well. And that's what it costs to get an executive director.

Now if you could perform at the same or higher level for $30k instead of $300k, then by all means forward them your resume and cover letter and maybe they'll fire him and hire you. There's a reason that some jobs pay more than others, they have higher qualifications.

Besides the President of the United States makes more than that and the US government is a non-profit organization. I don't hear anyone complaining about his salary. Or for another large non-profit example, how much does the Pope make?

B the Hiker said:

I just had a friend phone me last night after attending a slide show at Joy St. Open to all, with a pot luck first. He was so enthusiastic over how much the AMC does, and does for free.

If people choose not to see all the good the AMC does, that's their business, but I see no point in this discussion. It isn't productive. Let's focus our energies elsewhere.

Brian

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Brian -

I'm glad that you see no point in this discussion, but considering some of the responses so far, there are several people on this site that disagree with you. And considering that VFTT is a Discussion Board, I think this is a perfectly appropriate place to have open dialog. Like, for instance, you could post about some of the things that the AMC does do for free.

Meanwhile, I could post that the AMC charges over $100 for people to join them on trail maintenance trips. Or that they charge excessively high prices at "their" mountain huts build on federal land. Or that they chose to remove a perfectly functional bunk room at Crawford Notch and replace it with a palace.

My problem isn't with the fact that the President makes so much money. As has been pointed out, he gets paid on par for the organization. My problem is that the AMC is the kind of organization that requires a President that makes 300K. The AMC is a big machine and much of what they do is centered around feeding that machine.

They do no cater to hikers - they cater to wealthy eco-tourists. If you happen to be a wealthy eco-tourist, you probably LOVE the AMC. Sure, the do some very good things. But any bloated, self-serving organization can site the good things that they have done. I just happen to believe they do much more harm than good. I would trade the MATC for the AMC any day.

SteveHiker said:

...Or for another large non-profit example, how much does the Pope make?

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Didn't I read awhile back they gave him Spain, and a country to be named later? Maybe something to do with the Inquisition?

OTH, maybe I'm confusing him with Michael Palin.

Yah gotta love those big red hats though.

SteveHiker said:

...how much does the Pope make?

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He's paid is souls, which are decreasing in value from what I've seen of the general public.

But seriously, I don't do a lot with the AMC, so I could care less what any of them make, it matters not to me. If I deem the expenses too great at the huts, I simply won't stay at them, which is the case in the summer season. If I don't like what they do, I simply don't participate and support them, which is the same anywhere.

chomp said:

Meanwhile, I could post that the AMC charges over $100 for people to join them on trail maintenance trips.

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Pathetic.