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Pricing

Picture of Anzi By   ·  5 minute read

Listen to this page read aloud by a human:

Community Blueprints: STEWARDSHIP (read aloud by Anzi)
7:56

 

We're seeking open feedback on our Community Blueprints until June 10!

If you want a say in how this community will operate, you can add your feedback at the bottom of this page.

To peruse the rest of our Community Blueprints, click here.

Sliding Scale

We never turn anyone away because they can't pay.

If a member can’t afford the suggested prices, they can always choose to pay $0.

We use a Sliding Scale to determine how much to pay.

Our sliding scale is in effect 100% of the time for everything that has a price; that is, membership dues, ticket prices, event fees, vendor fees, etc. We use a list of social privileges, class privileges, and financial privileges as a tool to help us determine what pricing tier to choose within the Sliding Scale. This is just a tool for identifying what payment tier makes sense for each of us and it’s not here to judge us for how many boxes we do or don’t check off. Our scores aren't good or bad, they just are.

Sliding Scale
Add one point for each item below that feels true for you. Don’t overthink it; remember, it’s just a quick tool to gauge your financial privilege relative to DT4T’s membership on the whole so you can decide what to pay.

  • I have a savings account.

     

  • I went to college.

     

  • I don’t have any student loans.

     

  • I had student loans, but I paid them off.

     

  • I can afford takeout if I find myself without necessary groceries.

  • I can afford to hire a car if I need to be driven somewhere.

  • I’m white.

  • I’m not Black.

  • I’m not Indigenous.

  • I’m not Arab or of the Arab diaspora.

  • I’m not an immigrant.

  • My family has never been enslaved.

  • My family has never been displaced (ie, by gentrification, war, or colonization)

  • My family enslaved people in the past. (+10 points)

  • My family displaced people in the past. (+10 points)

  • I’ve never been incarcerated.

  • No one in my family has ever been incarcerated.

  • I grew up with two parents.

  • My family gives me a financial safety net.

  • I’m in contact with the people who raised me.

  • Growing up, I never worried that there wouldn’t be food on the table.

  • I know I can afford groceries next week.

  • I know I can afford next month’s rent.

  • I don’t have to pay rent.

  • I own my own home.

  • I have a safe home.

  • I’m able to work.

  • I have a salary.

  • I have health insurance.

  • I have never done sex work.

  • I have never done survival sex work.

  • I’m not trans.

  • I’m not a trans woman.

  • I can afford to buy clothes, makeup, etc. that reflect my gender.

  • I’ve never needed gender-affirming healthcare.

  • I’ve never struggled to access gender-affirming healthcare.

  • I’ve never struggled to be believed by my doctors.

  • I have a doctor(s) who understands my illness or disability and is treating me for it.

  • I don’t have a terminal illness.

  • Members of my support system understand my disability or illness.

  • People perceive me as cis (whether or not it’s correct).

  • People perceive me as straight (whether or not it’s correct).

  • I’m in a monogamous or primary partnership.

  • I’m married.

  • I am able to leave my home on my own.

  • I am able to perform Activities of Daily Living for myself.

  • I am able to use the computer by myself.

  • I’ve never had to go to a food pantry.

  • I’ve never spent a night in a shelter.

  • I have never lived in a car.

Tier 1: 0-12 points
Tier 2: 13-25 points
Tier 3: 26-37 points
Tier 4: 38-50 points

If the cost per person for an Event or Gathering is $X, our sliding scale tiers will be:

Tier 1: 25% of X
Tier 2: 75% of X
Tier 3: 125% of X
Tier 4: 175% of X

So, if we're hosting an Event that costs $10 per person to run:

Tier 1: $2.50
Tier 2: $7.50
Tier 3: $12.50
Tier 4: $17.50

Again, these are only suggested prices; everyone pays exactly how much they want to, every time, even if it’s $0.

Pricing for DIY Events & Gatherings

Hosts can ask for a modest fee to participate in their Event or Gathering.

Charging money for Events, Groups, & Gatherings is optional. We do not try to profit off of other members, but we do believe Hosts can and should be compensated for their labor and ideas. Pricing should reflect the average cost per person of running the event.

Here's what that means in practice:

Let’s say a Host spends $50 on N95 masks to hand out at their event. They are expecting about 25 people to show up. That puts the cost of masks at $2 per person. This will be a big focus of their energy for about 3 weeks, so we estimate the cost of the Host’s labor at $3 per attendee; one dollar per week. (There’s no perfect calculation for this, so we just trust our guts to assign a dollar amount to our labor.)

Therefore, they should set the average cost per person around $5. That’s $2 per person for the masks and $3 per person for the Host’s labor. 

The Sliding Scale tiers for that event would look like this, reflecting the $5 cost per person:

Tier 1: $1.25 (25% of $5)
Tier 2: $3.75 (75% of $5)
Tier 3: $6.25 (125% of $5)
Tier 4: $8.75 (175% of $5)

If everything goes as planned and 25 attendees purchase tickets at an average price of $5, the sales will be $125. That’s $75 in profits once we subtract the cost of the masks. (25 attendees x $5 per person average - $50 for masks = $75). 

If there’s a profit, as there is in this example, the Host then pays out 15% to DT4T and keeps the rest. In this case, the Host would earn $63.75 and DT4T would earn $11.25. The reason part of the profits go to DT4T is to cover the infrastructure and Stewardship costs associated with running the event. If there is no profit, the Host keeps all the money earned.

If there are multiple Hosts running a given Event or Gathering, they must decide in advance how they will split the Hosts’ share of the profits.

All of these figures will be submitted in advance of the Quarterly Forum for review, comment, and approval by the community at large, in the form of a Proposal.

Rarely, we open our events up to non-Members for a higher fee.

Typically, this privilege is reserved for events that:

  • are organized in collaboration with another community or group;

  • are good opportunities for prospective Members to learn about us; or
  • will educate on topics that everyone has a right to know about, such as Public Health information.

As a rule of thumb, the cost per person for Non-Members should be twice as much as the cost per person for Members. Non-Members do not have the option of paying $0, but the Sliding Scale is still in effect.

Pricing for Membership Dues

All Members pay monthly Membership Dues. This covers our administrative expenses.

Our monthly cost per person is $8, which puts our sliding scale tiers at:

Tier 1: $2
Tier 2: $6
Tier 3: $10
Tier 4: $14

As always, Members also have the option to pay $0, but we encourage everyone to pay at least $1 if we can to help keep our administrative processes running.

Have thoughts on what you just read?

There are three ways you can add your feedback!

  1. Fill out the comment form below.

  2. Email your comments to Feedback@disabilit4t.org. 

  3. Submit your feedback anonymously using this encrypted web form.