There’s a question we’d like to ask Rudy, and it’s got nothing to do with Florida: why did his little nonprofit, a tax-free organization which had no office space of its own, buy so much office furniture? Where exactly did they put it?
This was an organization that had no employees of its own and was effectively a side project of Giuliani Partners — but it had about $15,000 in furniture, purchased without paying taxes (also, $1700 in computer equipment). Now, the contact address for the Giuliani Center is the Giuliani Partners office. Perhaps the for-profit Giuliani Partners company was furnished tax-free by the Giuliani Center? Maybe it wasn’t — but then where did all that furniture go?
As a refresher, we’re not talking about Giuliani Partners, but Rudy’s other, nonprofit venture, The Rudolph W. Giuliani Center for Urban Leadership, Inc. Now, the only thing we remember these folks doing is taking over Giuliani’s mayoral letters and not letting anyone else at them until they had been privately, secretly processed. Their tax records bear this out — the only major expenses they have are for archiving and storage, back in 2004, a one-time expense that ceases once the city reclaims the records. Sure, they take some money in, but they don’t spend it, and they don’t pay anyone, other than their accountant.
They do lose a little money — namely, the depreciation in value of their sole physical asset, their furniture.
And if the 990 forms of Rudy’s 501c3 raise questions, can you imagine the questions that might come up if we could see actual financial records for his private operation?
For the curious: Giuliani Center – 2004 Form 990
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