Legal & Disclosures

The Birthday Smiles Project is a nonprofit corporation organized under the Texas Business Organizations Code, Chapter 22, and operated exclusively for charitable purposes. We are based in Pflugerville, Texas, and are run entirely by volunteers.

No part of our net earnings will inure to the benefit of any director, officer, member, or private individual, except for reasonable compensation for services actually rendered. We do not participate in political campaigns on behalf of, or in opposition to, any candidate for public office.

Our application for recognition of exemption under Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3) is pending with the Internal Revenue Service. We have not yet received a determination letter.

Because that recognition is still pending, we make no claim that contributions to The Birthday Smiles Project are deductible as charitable contributions under section 170 of the Internal Revenue Code. Nothing on this site should be read as tax advice. Please consult your own tax advisor.

Once the IRS issues a determination letter, we will publish it here along with our Employer Identification Number, and we will make our Form 1023 application and our annual Form 990 series returns available for public inspection as required by federal law.

We are not currently soliciting or accepting monetary donations from the public. This website does not process payments and does not collect payment card information.

Texas does not require general registration of charities for solicitation. Even so, we will not solicit funds in Texas or in any other state until we have federal tax-exempt recognition and have completed any charitable solicitation registration that the relevant state requires.

If we begin accepting contributions, we will publish a written gift acceptance and refund policy, issue written acknowledgements for contributions of $250 or more as required by IRS rules, and clearly state at the point of giving whether a contribution is deductible.

We may accept in-kind gifts such as toys, cake, party supplies, printing, or use of a venue. We review each offer and may decline anything that is unsafe, used in a way we cannot verify, recalled, or unsuitable for children. We do not appraise donated property or place a value on it for tax purposes.

Volunteers who may have direct, unsupervised contact with minors or vulnerable adults must complete our screening process, including a criminal background check, before taking part. Volunteers are never left alone one-on-one with a child unless a parent, guardian, or partner organization staff member authorizes and supervises the activity.

We obtain written consent from a parent or legal guardian, or from the responsible partner organization, before photographing or naming any child, and we honor any request to withdraw that consent. Volunteering with us does not create an employment relationship and is unpaid.

The photographs on this website are illustrative stock or generated images. They do not depict real beneficiaries, real volunteers, or events we have hosted. We have not yet held a celebration, and we make no claims of past results or impact.

Descriptions of our programs are statements of intent about what we plan to do. They are not guarantees of future activity or outcomes.

We serve and welcome people without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, Texas, or local law. The same policy applies to our volunteers, board members, and partners.

We aim to meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA. If you encounter a barrier on this site, email us and we will work with you to provide the information you need in an accessible form.

The Birthday Smiles Project name and logo, and the text of this website, are the property of The Birthday Smiles Project. If you believe material on this site infringes your copyright, email us with a description of the work, the location of the material, and your contact details, and we will investigate and remove infringing material promptly.