Anti Groups lobby for Hotel Heiress Fortune
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Anti Groups lobby for Hotel Heiress Fortune





Hotel heiress Leona Helmsley left her fortune and estate to the dogs. The nation’s canines are in line for a as much as an $8 million financial boost!

Although Helmsley’s will does not explicitly say where she wished her money to go, she had drawn up a two page mission statement concerning her posthumous wishes. Her primary wish was to provide for dog welfare. The amount could be anywhere from $5 to $8 billion.

Should Helmsley’s wealth be donated, according to her mission statement, it would be the largest animal welfare donation ever recorded.

Helmsley passed away in August, 2007 at the age of 87. In her will she left $12 million to her dog, Trouble, excluding her grandchildren from the fortune. A judge later reduced proceeds to the dog to $2 million and awarded the grandchildren part of the fortune.

Helmsley’s fortune is being lobbied for donations by anti groups such as the Humane Society of the United States and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. The IRS has reported that the trust will be worth almost 10 times the combined assets of all 7,381 animal-related nonprofit groups in 2005. According to the Times, HSUS and PETA could receive up to $400 million per year from the money left by Helmsley. This amount is three times the HSUS’ annual income. The groups claim that the money would be very useful and go to good causes. The HSUS says that this could help with issues such as dog fighting, overpopulation and rabies, while PETA says that the money would help out drastically with spay and neuter programs.

Anti groups have said they would apply for funds and make suggestions should this money go through to animal welfare groups. Ingrid Newkirk, president of PETA, claims Helmsley’s brother used to donate to her organization. He is one of five trustees of the estate. According to CNN, Wayne Pacelle noted that charities must spend 5 percent of their assets per year, which would make their budget $400 million a year. That’s three times above their average annual budget.

Although Helmsley wanted the fortune to go to the care of dogs, some caution that the groups being considered to receive the money should be looked at closely before such a large sum is handed over. Only five percent of the HSUS yearly budget goes to helping animal shelters. PETA has not had a good track record with dogs in its care. PETA has been under the microscope for the death of 95 percent of dogs in their care.

If the money is awarded for the care and welfare of dogs, it should be donated to smaller organizations.

Few final decisions have been made about Helmsley’s will at this time. Since the mission statement is separate from the will, it is not a legally binding document. However, her lawyers insist that her written intentions will be taken into consideration.
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