Maryland tells Sheriffs organization to stop fundraising

The Baltimore Sun reported yesterday that the National Organization of Deputy Sheriffs was ordered to immediately stop all fundraising in the state of Maryland.

Last Thursday, Maryland's secretary of state told the North Carolina-based organization it had committed nine violations of state charity regulations.

According to the state, violations include misleading potential contributors, implying that the state has endorsed the organization, using unregistered professional solicitors, submitting false statements to the state and misrepresenting the reasons why funds are being solicited.

Here is a funny video of a resident in Maryland confronting a door-to-door canvasser from the organization. It's funny to the fundraisers reaction to being asked if he is running a scam.

If you look at the website for the National Organization of Deputy Sheriffs, you won't see any mention of the ban in the state of Maryland. However, if you Google the organization, you will see that the state of Virginia has been warning its citizens away from the group since last year.

It's a shame these kinds of warnings are only offered state by state. Perhaps its time we start thinking about a federal agency with enforcement powers. Sure, it might seem scary, but any fundraiser who has had to fill out dozens of different state registration forms might be willing to consider one federal registration process.