The site is set up in my name, so i'm assuming i'll own any funds on the site. I don't have any intentions of attempting to make a profit from GRB and have set up a dedicated checking account to house any funds we get from ads/patreon/mods that will only be used for supporting GRB.
If money from the above sources end up exceeding the cost of hosting, the Mods will look at using any extra funds for generating content and trying to drive new members to the forum. If we can't find an effective way of doing that, then I'll have to pay taxes on what we don't spend and keep it saved to pay for future hosting costs.
Basically, if you decide to contribute to the site please know that your contributions are absolutely appreciated and that we have no intentions to abuse the responsibility of maintaining this site and community.
If you have any questions feel free to PM a mod or ask in this thread.
Here is the GRB legalese from our resident Mod Lawyer:
Gateway Redbirds is not a 501c3, or other form of nonprofit corporation. The purpose of accepting contributions is strictly to cover the cost of hosting, running, maintaining, and promoting GRB in any way the moderator team may deem necessary. However, GRB is not organized as a tax-exempt entity, and GRB makes no representations as to whether contributions are tax-deductible (assume they are not!), although to be clear GRB is not providing financial, legal, tax, or other professional advice.
As stated above, contributions will only be used to pay hosting fees for GRB and for any software necessary, in the discretion of the moderators, to improve site performance and functionality. Contributors are not allowed to impose restrictions on the use of their contributions.
Most importantly, while we often joke about "GRB Premium," whether any member makes a contribution or not will be kept strictly confidential (based on how you contribute through Patreon). Whenever possible, the mods themselves won't even know whether a user has made a contribution (this is based on a setting in Patreon when you contribute). There will be no change in status or treatment for any member based on whether or not that member has contributed to GRB or will in the future. At the same time, that means that members can still have posts removed, or suspensions or bans imposed, regardless of whether that member has made a contribution. Any contribution made by a member in such an instance remains the property of GRB. The moderator team won't make moderation decisions based in any way on contributions received, or likely to be received in the future. Making a contribution to GRB doesn't constitute ownership of GRB or an ownership interest in GRB.
We're going to use a third party provider to accept contributions. Please read the terms of service of that provider regarding confidentiality of your user information, liability, charges and refunds, etc. We will set up an option to make recurring donations (monthly, annually, whatnot) but you're free to change or cancel that at any time.
