Ellicott City, MD – February 8, 1999: As of Feb. 1, 1999 the Internal Revenue Service has classified the Military Pagan Network Inc. as exempt from federal income tax under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code as an organization described in section 501(c)3. This is an advance ruling and begins August 28, 1997 and expires December 31, 2001. During the advance ruling period we will be treated as a publicly supported organization and not as a private foundation.
John Machate, the Coordinator of the network states, “As the Coordinator, I hope to use this status to get public funding for our educational projects.” No public funding exists for the Network at this time, outside of the extra donations made by members. Thunderpaw Internet Services and BW Internet Services are corporate donors, both provide support for e-mail list services and Thunderpaw also provides domain hosting, web design, and e-mail support.
Founded in 1992,incorporated in 1997 the Military Pagan Network Inc. acted as a store and group information resource for Neopagans in the military. The corporation now provides material regarding various Neopagan religions to the Chaplaincy, as well as fulfilling its original goal of providing contacts near military bases around the world. In 1997 the corporation expanded its services to include assisting military members with the proper handling of harassment and discrimination.