To address misinformation allegedly spreading on social media, televangelist Perry Stone created a YouTube video claiming he receives no book royalties for books produced and sold through his ministry and disclosed some of his ministries’ expenses.
“There are millions of people who assume that somehow Perry Stone gets a commission, or he gets a payment, or he gets a royalty from those sales. That is absolutely, totally 100% incorrect … if it takes me six months or a year to write a book and I spend hours, hour after hour after hour and we offer it and print it through the ministry, I get absolutely zero, nothing from those sales.”
While Stone may not receive book royalties, as part of a compensation package, he could be paid a flat rate to write books for his ministry.
Stone’s ministry has operated in a financially secretive manner for more than a decade. Because Stone does not reveal his salary, donors are unable to know if the ministry is providing excessive compensation, which is defined by the IRS as exceeding a million dollars annually.
The non-profit organization Voice of Evangelism Outreach Ministries, also known as Perry Stone Ministries, is based in Cleveland, Tennessee, where the Church of God has its headquarters and operates Lee University.
Understanding Tax Laws
The tax code does not prohibit non-profit organizations from paying large royalties to authors or researchers that work for the organizations.
For example, church curriculum developer The ReThink Group paid $1,425,236 in royalties in 2023, according to its Form 990.
However, if the non-profit organization publishes and sells a book that has nothing to do with its exempt purpose, the book revenue may be classified as unrelated business income and subject to taxation.
Financial Disclosures
In 2013, the Voice of Evangelism filed its last Form 990, disclosing to the IRS and the public how it spent donor funds. At the end of the 2012 fiscal year, the ministry had total assets of $41,657,794. That year the ministry reported total revenue of $17,832,658 and total expenses of $6,007,749.
(Screenshot: 2012 Statement of Expenses from Form 990)
During his recent February 3, 2025, YouTube video Stone disclosed the following expenses for last year:
Broadcast Airtime: $3,859,000
Bank and Card Processing Fees: $169,000
Conventions/Events: $296,000
Software/Internet: $267,000
Insurance: $429,884
Postage: $387,998
Printing: $501,017
Professional Fees (Legal Expenses): $79,000
Repairs and Maintenance: $683,695
Taxes and Licenses: $168,000
Note: All of these disclosed expenses add up to $6,840,594 or almost 55% of total spending for 2024. Note the glaring exclusion of his own salary!
Total Expenses: $12,530,000
Ministry Transparency and Donor Responsibility
In 1987 the late Florida pastor D. James Kennedy testified at a Congressional hearing, “I would think that if a person is going to give money to something, that they have … a responsibility to learn where it is going.”
Donor responsibility is rarely, if ever, discussed from the pulpit or religious television. For it to work, churches and ministries must honestly and thoroughly disclose how they spend donor funds.
If you enjoy this article, please share it on social media. If you would like to receive our monthly email newsletter about our investigations, containing recent articles …