Understanding a PMA

We often get asked, what is a PMA?   A Private Membership Association (PMA) is a group of individuals who join together under a private contract to engage in activities or provide services, products, asserting their constitutional rights to free assembly and association to operate outside of public regulations and government oversight. Members agree to a private contract that outlines the organization's rules and activities, which are conducted in the private domain rather than the public. This structure allows groups, such as those in alternative healthcare or specific industries, to operate independently of typical state and federal licensing and regulations. 

• Private Domain: PMAs operate in a private domain, meaning their activities are not subject to the same public laws and regulations that govern public businesses. 
• Private Contract: Members enter into a private contract that governs their relationship and the organization's activities, rather than being subject to public regulations. 
• Constitutional Rights: The ability to form a PMA stems from the constitutional rights to freedom of speech and association, which the Supreme Court has upheld as inseparable. 
• Autonomy and Independence: PMAs aim to provide members with a degree of privacy and autonomy, allowing them to conduct services or pursue shared interests free from government interference. 

If you believe in FOOD FREEDOM, like drinking raw milk, eating beef raised and butchered without chemicals, eating beef free of Nitrates and Nitrites.. Chances are you believe in FOOD FREEDOM and may no longer trust certain three lettered agencies; when it comes to food(s). Some of the big three lettered agencies have failed the same public they were created to protect; just to name a few: systematic regulatory failures, insufficient scrutiny of 'food additives', allowing misleading labels and marketing, while placing more emphasis on quantity over quality.

Therefore, starting and operating a PMA (is a personal choice), which may allow the 'organizing farming business' and it's private members a little freedom, and autonomy, when it comes to Food Freedom.  

Yes, a Private Membership Association can establish themselves completely legally, without governmental interferance, allowing its members to gather and associate based on shared interests or goals, most importantly, it is protected by the First and Fourteenth Amendments.  

• First Amendment:  In simple terms, the First Amendment guarantees that the government cannot take away your fundamental rights to freedom of speech, religion, the press, assembly, and petition. 
• Fourteenth Amendment: This amendment ensures PMAs can set their own bylaws, standards, and procedures without undue external intervention.

Bottom Line:  A PMA, can operate as a business by asserting members' First Amendment rights to freedom of association and contract, functioning in a private domain separate from government jurisdiction, not as a statutory corporation. 

As a Christian farming family, we believed in farming 'God's Way'.  The land and all its creatures were gifts from God, we were merely humble servants entrusted with caring for both the land and its creatures. It was our duty to enhance them both not make them worse, by using chemicals and insecticides that could harm the land, nor by feeding 'harmful junk' to the animals, which fed the people. The land and animals we cared for were more than 'possessions' and weren't meant as instruments of production, but as a way to help those less than fortunate, or those who didn't have access to certain foods. 

This doesn't mean steers, lambs, etc., weren't butchered, they were raised ethically, the way God would have raised them, with love and respect. Even in death the animals were cherished. We especially didn't believe in loading up animals, causing them undue stress, to take them to a butcher.  Unfortunately, there weren't any USDA Butchers; who made farm visits.  Our traveling butcher was only State Certified (meaning) by law we weren't allowed to sell any of our beef or pork if we used his services. But; we weren't going to place undue stress on our animals over mans law. This is where we get into the reasons behind why we chose to create our Faith Based Farming Trust Organization. 

Some organizations hide behind being a faith based organization to evade taxes. We highly advise against doing so. Not only is it malicious, but paying business taxes is part of being a business. We chose to be a Faith Based Trust Organization to have the extra protection of religious persecution surrounding our Private Food Club and its principles.

You do not need to establish a Trust in order to operate a PMA. We started our farm 'Hayes Valley Farms' as a corporation. We personally kept our corporation alone, and established a Faith Based Trust Organization, for the 'private food club' side of our farm products if you will. Our farms' farm trust was officially called Hayes Valley Farms Family Trust of God'. With its own EIN (Employee Identification Number), basically like a social security number for your business/organization. 

We chose to create a Faith Based Trust Organization for the 'food club side' of our farm, for the simple reason, it had more protections from persecution, and it showed we were truly rooted in religious beliefs that served the community by providing social, health, and welfare services, such as caring for those in need, promoting justice, and supporting community well-being (which included foods free from harmful chemicals).  

Some farms choose to establish an LLC vs a Trust or Corporation. Neither are exempt from a lawsuit:

 Key Differences in Lawsuits 

• Limited Liability: 
  • LLCs: Provide limited liability, protecting members' personal assets from business lawsuits and debts. 
  • Corporations: Offer similar limited liability, separating the corporation's debts and lawsuits from the personal assets of shareholders
  • Faith Based Trust:   Assets within a regular trust are vulnerable to lawsuits. Assets can be protected from future creditors if structured as an irrevocable trust. 

A revocable trust is flexible, allowing the creator to change or cancel it, but offers no asset protection or estate tax benefits while alive, becoming irrevocable upon death. 

An irrevocable trust is permanent and cannot be modified without beneficiary consent or court approval, but provides asset protection from creditors, reduces estate taxes, and is used for long-term estate and Medicaid planning. The choice between them depends on your financial goals, with irrevocable trusts offering greater protection at the cost of control.  

The availability and rules for modifying a trust vary significantly by state.