Let's Get Honest! Absolutely Uncommon Analysis of Family & Conciliation Courts' Operations, Practices, & History

Post Title: The National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-SAFE, looks like Move-the-Money Shell Games around $57M HHS grants (1995-2016), with case-sensitive short-link ending “-3fW.”  Being published April 6, 2018 “as is” except adding this information, a border, and establishing a certain font, after years buried on my blog as a draft.  This post is under 2,000 words.

Post was originally drafted — sometime AFTER the HHS Grants database underwent a facelift removing the ability to search by EIN# — possibly 2016, possibly 2014, definitely after 2013. Being published now because I had occasion to refer to it, remembered writing it, and (as sometimes happens on this blog) thought I’d already published it!  Blog search on the 1-800-799-SAFE telephone number above pulled up results from 2012, 2011, 2016. When I first revisited it today (April 6, 2018) and hit “save draft” the prior year simply did not show. On hitting “save draft” a second time, a prior revision date of April 2, 2016 shows, which in context makes sense as original drafted date.

[[April 2018 Notes: url to the now-expired logo inside red borders above MIGHT be found via Internet Archive Search: and is “http://www.thehotline.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/hotline-logo4.png” if readers want to search for an earlier version.  Nowadays I use more screen shots (with or without captions) to avoid this problem…The next-door image which hasn’t expired yet has upload date “2013/09”]]

(www.hotline.org; this is out of Austin, Texas)** (**see next quote)

Since we were just given the specific award number* — here’s the TAGGS.hhs.GOV reporting of it (I searched by Award#).  Notice in column headings that the Award name and the Recipient name are same, which they normally aren’t’.  Click HERE [=”https://tinyurl.com/TAGGS-HHSgov-90EV0426″%5D to see it on HHS site (Link saves search specifications, not search results).   *That is, for the HHS component, not the Dept. of Justice component.  If giving one award#, why not give the grant award# from the Office for Victims of Crime also? //LGH Apr 2018

If you click on the “Recipient Name” it should read (“Other, Special Interest Org.”) same as the tax return, which I’m showing below:

As re-run 4/6/2018; see next image:

TAGGS basic (not “Advanced”) search, re-run of Specific HHS grant 90EV0426 shows one more result in 2016, but not for 2017, though one existed. Click image to enlarge.||Note: Running “ADVANCED” entity (not specific grant#) search again in 2018 pulls up a 2017 grant, awarded Aug. 2017, same Award # (90EV0426) amount >$7.7M — but this was NOT included in a 2018 BASIC run specifying that award# the same day (See captioned image nearby). Something is “off” or heavily delayed data entry at the TAGGS level for a Summer 2017 award not to show over a half year later, by Spring 2018. This shows a discrepancy between Basic & Advanced search results, something I’ve noticed happens — a lot — on this database!)

Now please click on my “Advanced Search” of the same organization name, I picked several columns and did not select any years (which defaults to “All Years” — since 1995).  This table has 3 pages of results (3rd page, small) and at top, as you can see, reports $57 MILLION of grants, and 53 distinct awards.  Other things you may see is that this named organization is getting BOTH the SVDC grants (much smaller) and the hotline grants, which while they started fairly small in 1995 or so, they are now up to $4 million a pop.

You also, I hope may notice under the “DUNS#” column (not shown above), which is an identifier, that up until perhaps 2008, there were two different ones in use, but afterwards, only one.

Illustrates discrepancies in TAGGS database and (w/ rest of post contents publ 4/6/2018) obstacles connecting entity name to specific, continuing EIN# (I.e., 3 EIN#s and changing entity names are involved, but on TAGGS now EIN# can no longer be searched, just DUNS# or (unreliable substitutes) entity name. Obviously affects quality control, ability to compare with IRS filings. Also, Advanced Srch shows more results (image top row) than basic search, even on same grant# (here, 90EV0426) ¾ yr later!

I know something very unusual about this hotline, as to Tax Returns. I discovered an “anomaly” between the group that HHS was funding (millions of dollars over time) and the actual recipient organization by that name in Texas. As I recall it, I discovered this (some years earlier) by plugging in the EIN# to TAGGS.hhs.gov.  However, TAGGS.hhs.gov user interface, where viewers can search the grants, as I just discovered (and of course reported immediately to any readers) has recently gotten a facelift and “Search Recipient by EIN#” seems to be “off” the menu of options.

Nevertheless, I see an organization at a PO Box in Austin Texas, by this exact same name (National Domestic Violence Hotline) which for SEVERAL years in a row, starting with Fiscal Year (begins Sept. 1, ends Aug. 31 the next calendar year) 2007 reflected contributions & grants of exactly 0.00, i.e. ‘nothing.’   At the above link (and below, I provided six FY2007 Form 990 EZ annotated images during post 2018 update), on top left, you can see “Initial Return” checked.  Each subsequent year (and I just checked them) still reads “$0” funds received — until the last year shown in the next table, they filed a ‘Schedule N” Dissolution.  They said there were no assets to distribute.  This organization filed several years in a row as a completely empty “drawer” at that PO Box.  People are not always consistent labeling even their own organizations on tax returns, but I did notice that in (I believe it was) Year 2009, it picked up the name “foundation” — but without checking “name change” on the heading.

• Question:  WHY would anyone form and file tax returns for a blank 501© for several years, then after it received no funds, close it down?

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