Craig Guy charity: $3K from $938K Hudson County, N.J. firm

HUDSON TV EXCLUSIVE — JERSEY CITY, N.J. — Hudson County Executive Craig Guy’s namesake tax-exempt 501(c)(3) charity, the Craig Guy Civic Association—granted Internal Revenue Service tax-exempt status in April 2023 as Craig Guy ran for Hudson County Executive and listing a $180,696.00-a-year Hudson County planning deputy director as its principal officer—accepted a $3,000.00 contribution from a law firm holding $938,187.50 in 2024–2025 county and county-authority legal contracts while filing only bare-bones IRS “e-Postcard” notices that disclose zero financial details to the public, according to federal tax records, state pension data, and New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) pay-to-play filings reviewed by Hudson TV.

When Hudson TV sent written questions Monday morning to County Executive Guy’s office and the Hudson County Democratic Organization (HCDO), which Guy chairs, asking about Guy’s role in the charity, what programs it funds, and whether it solicits or accepts contributions from county contractors, Hudson County Communications Director Mark Cygan replied at 10:35 a.m. EDT: “These questions should be directed to the Craig Guy Civic Association as I am the Communications Director for the Hudson County Executive’s Office.” Neither the HCDO nor Hudson County Deputy Director of Planning and Business Opportunity Francesca Giarratana—the official listed on the IRS Master File as the charity’s care-of officer—responded by Hudson TV’s Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. EDT deadline.

1. What the IRS Master File Shows—and What Form 990-N Leaves Out

According to the Internal Revenue Service Exempt Organizations Business Master File (updated Oct. 21, 2026 for EIN 92-2526444), the Craig Guy Civic Association received its IRS 501(c)(3) tax-exemption determination letter in April 2023 (`ruling_date: 2023-04-01`), during the spring of Guy’s first campaign for Hudson County Executive after serving as Chief of Staff to former County Executive Thomas A. DeGise.

Under federal tax law, 501(c)(3) public charities whose annual gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less are permitted to satisfy their annual IRS reporting requirement by submitting an electronic Form 990-N (“e-Postcard”) (`filing_requirement_code: 2`). Unlike a full IRS Form 990 or Form 990-EZ—which requires a charity to report its exact annual revenue, functional expenses, end-of-year cash balance, board members, and specific charitable grants—a Form 990-N contains only eight basic identifying fields and confirms that gross receipts did not exceed the $50,000 threshold. As a result, the IRS Master File lists $0 in reported assets, income, and revenue for the Craig Guy Civic Association through the tax period ended December 2025.

2. A $180,696 County Planning Deputy Director as Care-Of Officer

The IRS Master File lists the charity’s care-of officer as Francesca Giarratana in Bayonne, N.J. County records and New Jersey Department of the Treasury pension filings (`YourMoney Active Pension Members`, `data.nj.gov` resource `44xg-bswk`, current as of June 30, 2026) confirm that Giarratana is the Deputy Director of Hudson County’s Department of Planning and Business Opportunity, serving directly under the county administration led by Guy:

In addition to serving as the care-of officer on the IRS filings for the Craig Guy Civic Association, state campaign-finance filings with NJ ELEC show that Giarratana has personally made 11 itemized political contributions totaling $5,782.00 between September 2022 and April 2026 to Guy’s campaign committee and the county party organization he chairs:

• To Craig Guy for Hudson County Executive (7 contributions totaling $4,275.00): $625.00 on Sept. 29, 2022 (`DocId 3751203`); $500.00 on April 29, 2023 (`DocId 3751942`); $650.00 on Oct. 3, 2023 (`DocId 3787078`); $500.00 on April 23, 2024 (`DocId 3844525`); $500.00 on Dec. 17, 2024 (`DocId 3855517`); $500.00 on Sept. 29, 2025 (`DocId 3894896`); and $1,000.00 on April 2, 2026 (`DocId 3945129`).
• To the Hudson County Democratic Organization (4 contributions totaling $1,507.00): $500.00 on Aug. 2, 2023 (`DocId 3782821`); $500.00 on Sept. 27, 2024 (`DocId 3840652`); $7.00 on Nov. 5, 2024 (`DocId 3858236`); and $500.00 on April 10, 2025 (`DocId 3884187`).

3. How a County Law Firm’s Pay-to-Play Filing Revealed a $3,000 Contribution to the Charity

While 501(c)(3) charities are prohibited under federal tax law from intervening in political campaigns and are not required to disclose their donors publicly on Form 990-N, one contributor to the Craig Guy Civic Association surfaced in an unexpected place: New Jersey’s annual pay-to-play disclosure database (`Form BE`) maintained by the Election Law Enforcement Commission.

On its 2024 Form BE (`Vendor ID 11684`, filed March 28, 2025), the Secaucus law firm Waters, McPherson, McNeill, P.C. (300 Lighting Way, Secaucus, N.J.) disclosed a $3,000.00 contribution on Sept. 18, 2024 to Craig Guy Civic Association—alongside $30,100.00 in political contributions during 2024 and 2025 to Guy’s campaign committee and the HCDO:

During the same two-year period (2024–2025), Waters, McPherson, McNeill, P.C. reported $938,187.50 in public legal contracts with the Hudson County Improvement Authority and the County of Hudson on its sworn Form BE contract schedules:

4. County Spokesman Redirects Questions to the Charity; Five Questions Unanswered

On Monday, Oct. 26, 2026 at 8:54 a.m. EDT, Hudson TV sent a written request for comment to Hudson County Communications Director Mark Cygan (`mcygan@hcnj.us` and `hcexecoffice@hcnj.us`, copying County Executive Chief of Staff Karina Diaz at `kdiaz@hcnj.us` and the Hudson County Democratic Organization at `info@hudsoncountydems.org`) seeking comment from County Executive Guy and Deputy Director Giarratana by Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. EDT on five specific questions:

1. What is County Executive Guy’s role with the Craig Guy Civic Association, and did he authorize the use of his name for the 501(c)(3) organization?
2. What charitable programs or grants has the Craig Guy Civic Association funded in 2023, 2024, and 2025, and what were its exact annual revenues and expenses in each of those years?
3. Does the Craig Guy Civic Association solicit or accept contributions from firms holding contracts with Hudson County or county authorities, and what other county vendors or contractors contributed to the association in 2023, 2024, 2025, or 2026?
4. Does Giarratana’s work running the Craig Guy Civic Association comply with Hudson County’s ethics rules, and has she recused herself from any county planning or procurement matters involving donors to the association?
5. Is the Craig Guy Civic Association registered with the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs Charities Registration Section?

Less than two hours later, on Monday, Oct. 26 at 10:35 a.m. EDT, Cygan replied:

“Hi-
Thank you for reaching out. These questions should be directed to the Craig Guy Civic Association as I am the Communications Director for the Hudson County Executive’s Office.”

Neither Giarratana nor the HCDO responded by the Tuesday, Oct. 27 at 5:00 p.m. EDT deadline. Public records do not indicate any statutory violation in the formation of the 501(c)(3) organization or in Waters, McPherson, McNeill’s voluntary disclosure of its $3,000.00 contribution on its ELEC Form BE filing, which is not subject to campaign-contribution limits when made to a 501(c)(3) charity. However, because Form 990-N e-Postcard filings do not require donor or expenditure schedules, it remains unknown how much the Craig Guy Civic Association has raised overall or whether other county vendors have contributed to it. This report will be updated if Guy, Giarratana, or the Craig Guy Civic Association responds.

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Hudson TV asks: Should charities named after sitting elected officials and run by public employees be required to disclose all contributions from government contractors, even when their gross receipts are under $50,000? Share your take in the comments.

Have a tip or public records about Hudson County government or vendor contracts? Email info@hudsontv.com.