Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of Terms

By creating an account, accessing, or using the Donation Transparency platform (donationtransparency.org, app.donationtransparency.org) (the “Service”), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service (“Terms”). You are entering into this agreement with Donation Transparency, a company organized under the laws of the State of Georgia.

2. Our Mission: Radical Transparency

Our Service is unique. We exist to provide the public with verifiable, real-time financial transparency for fundraising. This mission defines your obligations as a user.

A. The Transparency Commitment

By registering as a “Receiver” (a user collecting funds), you agree to:

1. Connect your bank account via Plaid to our platform.
2. Allow our platform to retrieve and publicly display your transaction data.
3. NOT disconnect your account or revoke access to hide specific transactions while actively soliciting or holding funds raised through our platform.
4. Acknowledge that any attempt to obscure, manipulate, or hide financial data is a material breach of these Terms.

B. “Transparency Violations” & Prohibited Conduct

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate any account that undermines the integrity of our platform, including:

• Hiding Data: Disconnecting bank feeds to obscure spending history.
• Layering: Moving raised funds to an unconnected account to hide their final use.
• Stripe Violations: Engaging in any activity on Stripe's Restricted Businesses List (e.g., gambling, adult content, illegal items).
• Fraud: Providing false identity information or engaging in misleading fundraising.

3. Eligibility and Registration

• Age: You must be at least 18 years old to use the Service.
• Residency (Receivers): To ensure compliance with transparency laws and avoid conflicts with international privacy regulations (such as GDPR), Receiver accounts are currently restricted to residents and entities of the United States.
• Donors: Donors may be located anywhere where Stripe accepts payments.

4. Fees and Payments

A. Receiver Fees (Fundraisers)

• Platform Fee: We do NOT charge a platform fee to Receivers for funds raised.
• Stripe Fees: You acknowledge that Stripe charges standard processing fees (e.g., 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction), which are deducted automatically.

B. Donor Fees

• Transaction Reporting Fee: To support the operation of our transparency infrastructure, we charge Donors a fee of $1.29 or 1.5%, whichever is greater, on top of the donation amount.

C. Taxes

You are solely responsible for determining, collecting, reporting, and paying any applicable taxes resulting from your use of the Service.

5. Termination and Funds Handling

A. Voluntary Termination

You may stop using the Service at any time. However, if you delete your account while actively soliciting funds or holding a balance, we reserve the right to refund pending donations to donors to protect the integrity of the platform.

B. Involuntary Termination (For Cause)

If we terminate your account for a Transparency Violation (e.g., hiding data) or fraud:

1. Fund Review: We will work with Stripe to review your account status pursuant to Stripe's terms, which may result in a freeze of payouts pending investigation.
2. Refunds: We reserve the right to issue refunds to Donors for any funds that have not yet been irrevocably paid out to your bank account.
3. Liability: You are liable to us for any chargebacks, refunds, or fees we incur due to your violation.

6. Refunds and Disputes

A. General Refund Policy

All donations are final and non-refundable. However, we may grant refunds at our sole discretion in cases of:

• Technical errors (e.g., double billing or duplicate donations within 24 hours).
• Fraudulent activity verified by Stripe.
• Verified Transparency Violations by the Receiver (as described in Section 5.B).

B. Chargebacks

If a Donor files a chargeback:

1. Receiver Liability: The Receiver is solely responsible for the disputed amount and chargeback fees.
2. Indemnification: You agree to reimburse us for any costs we incur defending against chargebacks related to your campaign.

7. Financial Services Partners

Our Service relies on third-party partners:

• Stripe: You must agree to the Stripe Connected Account Agreement.
• Plaid: You acknowledge and agree to the Plaid End User Services Agreement.

Service Availability: We are not responsible for outages or interruptions caused by Stripe, Plaid, or banking networks (“Force Majeure”).

8. Content and Intellectual Property

• License: You grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to use, display, and distribute your content and public financial data in connection with operating the Service.
• Data Rights: You confirm that you have the right to share the financial data you connect to the platform.

9. Disclaimers and Liability

A. “As Is” Service

The Service is provided “AS IS” without warranties of any kind. We do not guarantee that the financial data displayed is 100% accurate or complete, as it depends on third-party bank feeds.

B. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by Georgia law, Donation Transparency shall NOT be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising from your use of the Service. Our total liability shall not exceed the greater of $100 or the amount of fees we have earned from your transactions in the last 12 months.

10. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

A. Governing Law

These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Georgia, without regard to its conflict of law provisions.

B. Arbitration & Class Action Waiver

Any dispute arising from these Terms shall be resolved through binding arbitration in Atlanta, Georgia. You waive any right to participate in a class action lawsuit or class-wide arbitration.

Exception: Either party may seek injunctive relief in a court of competent jurisdiction to enforce the “Transparency Commitment” (Section 2.A) or to stop “Transparency Violations” (Section 2.B) to prevent immediate harm to the platform's reputation and integrity.

11. Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found to be unenforceable or invalid, that provision shall be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary so that these Terms shall otherwise remain in full force and effect.

12. Changes to Terms

We reserve the right to modify these Terms at any time. If we make material changes, we will notify you by email or through the Service. Your continued use of the Service after such changes constitutes your acceptance of the new Terms.

13. Contact Us

If you have questions about these Terms, please contact us at:

• Email: support@donationtransparency.org