Outrageous greed of LGBT charity GLAAD's CEO is revealed: Expensed astonishing slew of luxury purchases to non-profit while punishing junior staffer for trying to claim back cup of COFFEE

The Chief Executive of an LGBTQ defense group expensed astonishing luxuries including first people flights, luxury hotels and location renovations. 

Sarah Kate Ellis, nan President of Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), is facing questions by ineligible experts complete her usage of kindness funds.

The New York Times reviewed disbursal reports, receipts, taxation filings and different financial documents from GLAAD from January 2022 done June 2023.

The outlet uncovered a drawstring of luxurious spending by Ellis, 52, which besides included $18,000 to remodel her home office with its ain chandelier. 

When she traveled for work, Ellis often flew first-class and stayed astatine nan Waldorf Astoria and different luxury hotels while making usage of costly car services. 

On apical of this, Ellis reportedly expensed a summertime rental connected Cape Cod and stayed  astatine nan Tivoli Lodge, a seven-bedroom chalet successful nan Swiss Alps pinch employees. 

She had flown to Zurich successful January 2023 for nan World Economic Forum, walking successful a chauffeur driven car to nan lodge which costs astir $500,000 for nan week. 

GLAAD, which has an yearly fund of astir $30 million, paid for Ellis's trip, which included $15,000 for car services, arsenic good arsenic a time of skiing according to nan Times. 

All of that is connected apical of her generous yearly salary package which according to nan outlet tin agelong into nan precocious six aliases debased 7 figures. 

According to disbursal reports, Ellis sought reimbursement for complete 30 first-class flights successful nan 18 period play nan Times investigated. 

The statement spent complete $13,000 connected her first-class airfare, a room astatine nan Waldorf and car services truthful she could speak astatine a convention successful California. 

While car services complete 2 days successful Washington costs nan group $3,900, including $1,000 for a SUV to prime her up astatine nan airport, return her to nan White House and past her edifice - a full region of conscionable 7 miles.     

GLAAD besides spent complete $60,000 connected flights and hotels for Ellis and main operating serviceman Darra Gordon erstwhile they attended an manufacture show successful Cannes, France. 

According to a institution policy, GLAAD pushes labor to beryllium 'cost conscious', saying edifice costs should not transcend $350 a night. 

In 2022, her statement was up for renegotiation, pinch committee members reportedly seeing her arsenic indispensable and feared she mightiness time off for a firm job. 

The committee agreed to a guidelines net of $441,000 pinch a 5 percent summation each twelvemonth done nan extremity of her statement successful 2027, according to documents seen by nan Times. 

This alteration successful statement granted her a $150,000 signing bonus, pinch payments of up to $300,000 tied to GLAAD's fund-raising. 

There was besides an yearly prize of up to 40 percent of her net agreed, arsenic good arsenic a $225,000 farewell prize that she will cod successful 2027.

Alongside her salary, Ellis's statement includes a assortment of items including hose tickets for her woman and 2 children to travel her connected trips 4 times a year. 

Among those perks is simply a $25,000 yearly allowance for Ellis to rent a location successful Provincetown, nan Cape Cod organization she has vacationed pinch her family. 

The caller statement has put Ellis connected way to person anyplace from astir $700,000 to $1.3 cardinal a year. 

Before her caller statement took effect successful October 2022, she billed GLAAD astir $15,000 for a three-week enactment astatine a cottage successful Provincetown. 

She described nan rental successful her disbursal study arsenic being lodging for a GLAAD committee meeting. 

But she besides separately charged nan statement for a edifice room during nan committee meeting, and nan rental location extended for weeks aft nan meeting. 

She past later expensed different $14,000 for a down costs connected different Provincetown rental for nan adjacent summer. 

Her statement besides provided her pinch up to $20,000 to renovate her location office, and she spent $18,000 to overhaul nan apical level of her Long Island home. 

Expenses included everything from paint, ivory pillows, to a sectional sofa and a chandelier.  

She besides requested that Gordon beryllium allowed to disbursal $2,500 for her ain location agency improvement. 

Gordon utilized nan money connected an absurd artwork from Etsy, a broad and a ceramic vase, according to reports.

The travel to Switzerland whitethorn person violated nan organization's ain policies arsenic good arsenic Internal Revenue Service Rules. 

Legal experts besides told nan Times that these perks mightiness beryllium inappropriate for a nonprofit statement pinch only astir 60 employees. 

The expenses and ample salary packets are much commonplace astatine a for-profit company, pinch nonprofits being exempt from national and authorities taxes. 

Nonprofits must guarantee that executives are paid reasonably and align pinch nan ngo of nan charity.  

A spokesperson said that based connected proposal from lawyers, GLAAD didn't state nan money spent connected nan location renewal arsenic her income. 

This intends she apt did not salary taxes connected nan spending, which whitethorn person violated IRS rules. 

If nan IRS aliases authorities regulators deem executive salary astatine nonprofits to beryllium excessive, they tin look penalties including their tax-exempt position being revoked. 

Nonprofits tin warrant nan ample sums to pull apical talent but nan committee of board must guarantee compensation is adjacent and comparable to different organizations. 

If Ellis received complete $1 million, she would beryllium connected akin salaries to nonprofits for illustration Feeding America, nan American Red Cross, which are immense compared to GLAAD. 

Michael West, a lawyer who advises charities, told nan outlet that nan shape of spending represented a 'potentially abusive usage of charitable funds'.  

West told nan Times that: 'It appears she whitethorn person fallen into nan trap of excess.' 

Brian Mittendorf, a professor astatine Ohio State University's College of Business said nan perks were 'much more like a salary package of a for-profit executive and little for illustration that of a personification directing a charity.'

David Samuels, a partner astatine rule patient Perlman & Perlman, said: 'It's rather a generous package. Is this a due and reasonable usage of nan charity's asset.'

Samuels added that first-class flights, high-end hotels and car services are considered taboo astatine nonprofits. 

He besides added that utilizing costs from a kindness for summertime housing, family recreation and remodeling a location was besides 'questionable'. 

Last year, GLAAD's CFO Emily Plauché, warned Liz Jenkins, nan chairwoman of nan group’s committee of directors, astir what she said was excessive spending. 

According to Plauché, it conflicted pinch nan policies of nan statement and was not decently being disclosed to nan IRS and nan public, nan outlet reported. 

Due to her allegations, nan committee hired a rule patient to investigate, who recovered that GLAAD changed their policies by permitting execs to upgrade flights nether definite circumstances. 

Gordon reportedly resisted Plauché's attempts to disclose nan spending successful nan groups IRS filings, according to employees. 

The disagreement intensified until Plauché complained to others that Gordon had been bullying her to support Ellis's spending hidden. 

Richard Ferraro, a GLAAD spokesman, said location had been nary harassment aliases bullying and that Gordon 'encouraged' Plauché to activity proposal from auditors. 

After nan rule patient was brought successful to investigate, Plauché near GLAAD and signed a colony that barred her from speaking publically astir nan group. 

Ferraro told nan Times that Plauché had near owed to 'poor performance', thing which her lawyer denied saying she near by communal agreement. 

Last year, nan organization's longtime auditor, The Harrington Group, resigned and recommended nan group get a amended grasp connected their spending.  

Ferraro besides told nan Times that Ellis's recreation arrangements had complied pinch their ain policy.

He besides level retired denied that she had traveled luxuriously and defended nan organization's spending connected her ain location improvements and summertime housing. 

Ferraro besides claimed nan Switzerland travel was funded done a aid from nan Ariadne Getty Foundation. 

He said that nan Tivoli Lodge was utilized arsenic a venue for receptions and different events, and that GLAAD paid for nan skiing travel successful correction earlier Ellis reimbursed them. 

GLAAD labor who said pinch nan Times said they were upset erstwhile they recovered retired nan executive was globe trotting connected nan institution dime. 

One worker told nan Times they were chastised for 'taking distant money from nan charity' aft trying to disbursal a cup of coffee. 

Ferraro said that GLAAD had nary grounds of nan java disbursal incident and told nan Times that a caller study among labor recovered they had a precocious morale. 

GLAAD was founded successful 1985 to combat homophobic news sum of AIDS, earlier expanding to conflict for adjacent media representation. 

In 2013, their finances were successful turmoil pinch assets dwindling arsenic expenses outpaces nan magnitude of money being donated. 

Ellis joined successful 2014 and seemingly turned nan statement around, expanding finances and regularly appeared connected TV and graced reddish carpets astatine awards shows.

Major donors now see Netflix, Google and Disney, pinch their gross successful 2022 sitting astatine a reported $19 million.  

Under Ellis's activity nan statement has go 1 of nan astir salient LGBTQ groups.