Resident questions Port Hueneme Police Explorers' nonprofit status; city manager says group has an extension and expects to resolve taxes

A written public comment submitted to the Jan. 21 Port Hueneme City Council meeting raised concerns about the Port Hueneme Police Explorers post 9988 and its nonprofit registration and tax status, urging the city to exercise additional diligence when awarding community benefit funds.

The comment said the group was listed as delinquent on a third-party nonprofit review platform and questioned whether previous funding or contracts had been awarded without adequate vetting. The commenter cited a reference to “Title 11 section 312” and argued that organizations not in good standing with the registry of charities and fundraisers may not solicit donations in California.

City Manager addressed the council following the written comment, saying staff had responded to the submitter and provided three clarifications: the city has created a Community Benefit Fund application process that will be rolled out in the next month to vet applicants; the Port Hueneme Police Explorers post currently has an extension for their 2023 tax filing and staff said they expect the issue to be resolved before the extension ends; and that the Explorers had previously performed work for the city at a lower cost, producing savings to taxpayers of about $75,000 compared with prior contracts.

The city manager said, in part, “I just wanna note that, for any concerns related to the explorers, we are aware that they have an extension, currently for their 2023, tax taxes. And they are currently working on that.” He added that the city’s new application process will provide a vetting mechanism for community benefit fund awards.

No council action was taken on the written comment; staff said it would continue to follow up and keep the public informed.