The Law of Tax-Exempt Organizations, 7th Edition

Book Description

Nonprofit organizations face a special set of rules governing everything from how they charter their organization, to their methods of measuring unrelated business income, and how they lobby (and if, in fact, they should continue to be allowed to lobby).

Nonprofit lawyers, accountants, and directors need an easy-to-use reference work in understandable language to help them comprehend the issues and make informed decisions.

This core volume (ISBN 0471-196290) is supplemented annually.

The 2002 Cumulative Supplement (ISBN 0471-443425)includes:

New information on: relief of the poor, constitutional law framework, business leagues, public use of facilities, taxation of social clubs, and the sale of club assets.
New and revised sections on Internet activities, ancillary joint ventures, and state action doctrine.

This supplement updates the core volume, Hopkins/The Law of Tax-Exempt Organizations, 7th Edition (ISBN 0471-196290).

Customer Reviews:

An excellent technical resource.......2001-04-26

The nonprofit sector is a huge part of the American economy. Nonprofits range from multinationals to your local little league. While, technically, the same body of tax laws applies to all of them, the level of sophistication varies as dramatically as the size of the nonprofit. And while the big nonprofits can afford to buy expertise, smaller nonprofits have to manage more of the tasks themselves. This book can help.

Hopkins' book is an excellent reference for attorneys and accounts and nonprofit executives with some knowledge of nonprofit tax laws work. It's not likely to be useful to and it's not written for the average volunteer. This is a fairly technical resource, and while nonprofit tax law gets a lot more complicated than Hopkins, this is a very good middle-level resource.

If I have any criticism of Hopkins it's this: in recent editions he has removed important subjects from this reference and spun them off into separate books at equally high prices. Most of the treatment of charitable donations, for example, is now in a different book. Private foundations are now in a different book. Excess benefits transactions are in a different book. You can spend a ton of money on Professor Hopkins. It costs him one star in my rating.

Even so, as a basic entry point, this book is indispensable. I've attended seminars by Prof. Hopkins and read most his books, and he is very knowledgeable and does a good job at the difficult task of translating IRS-speak into comprehensible language. This book should be a part of every nonprofit lawyer and accountant's library.

Very comprehensive "hornbook.".......1999-08-13

In mid-1999 I read this treatise in conjunction with the author's one day course on the Law of Tax Exempt Organizations. The book is essentially a "hornbook:" a summary of law geared towards lawyers and accountants, rather than the casual reader. It would be especially helpful for lawyers and accountants in outside firms who counsel a variety of different tax exempt organizations and are confronted with questions of how to structure an organization or several related organizations. The material is valuable but no easy slogging, so if you can take the course (which in mid-1999 was approx. $230 and included the book), it would be worth the extra $70 or so.

The single most important treatise on the law of nonprofits.......1998-06-09

US nonprofit boards, officers, senior managers, and funddevelopment professionals have enough to contend with without alsoracing to keep pace with the accelerating changes in the multi-faceted law of tax-exempt organizations.

As with his prior editions, Hopkins has managed to address, within the covers of a single volume well, actually, he added another book to more fully cover private foundations!

This is definitely a must-have book for anyone working for or with US nonprofit organizations, such as board members, officers, senior staff, fund development staff or fund-raising consultants, grantwriters, attorneys and accountants advising tax-exempt organizations, and anyone else requiring a single-volume treatise covering the law of tax-exempt organizations.

The Nonprofit Sector: A Research Handbook, Second Edition
Average customer rating:

Comprehensive--Yet Practical

A Very Rich Book

The Nonprofit Sector: A Research Handbook, Second Edition

Manufacturer: Yale University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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State of Nonprofit America

Charity, Philanthropy, and Civility in American History

The Foundation: A Great American Secret; How Private Wealth is Changing the World

Strategic Giving: The Art and Science of Philanthropy

Nonprofits and Government: Collaboration and Conflict

ASIN: 0300109032

Book Description

The second edition of The Nonprofit Sector provides a novel , comprehensive, cross-disciplinary perspective on nonprofit organizations and their role and function in society. This new, updated edition keeps pace with industry trends and advances as well as with the changing interests and needs of students, practitioners, and researchers. As before, every chapter has been written to stand on its own, providing sufficient background for the reader to follow the argument without referring to other chapters—allowing readers to selectively choose those chapters that are most relevant to a particular course, interest, or issue.

The Nonprofit Sector: A Research Handbook includes twenty-seven new or updated chapters. Relevant chapters from the previous edition have been refined, and new chapters have been added to fill in gaps, making this the authoritative reference for all who want an accessible, perceptive, and all-inclusive rendering of the nonprofit sector. The contributors—prominent scholars in their respective fields—carefully reflect upon the variety of changes in the rapidly growing world of nonprofits, examining a wide array of organizations, international issues, social science theories, and philanthropic traditions and covering a broad range of topics including the history and scope of nonprofit activities in the United States and abroad, the relation of nonprofits to the marketplace, government-nonprofit issues, key activities of nonprofits, aspects of giving to and joining nonprofits, and nonprofit mission and governance. For anyone who wishes to have a deeper understanding of the nonprofit sector, this remains the essential guide.

From reviews of the first edition:

"[This book] is the closest thing to a 'bible' of nonprofit sector research and state-of-the-art social science knowledge as currently exists."—Dennis R. Young, Public Administration Review

"Invaluable to anyone currently engaged in research or policy decisions involving nonprofit organizations or, for that matter, considering becoming involved.”—Jerald Schiff, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management

"An exceptionally useful resource.”—Mark D. Hughes, The Philanthropist

Customer Reviews:

Comprehensive--Yet Practical.......2007-02-05

This volume is meant primarily to be a textbook for master's or Ph.D. level students. Nonprofit theory and cutting edge research is covered by the known academics in the field. The reference section is superb, leading one to further articles to explore an area in more depth. Yet the practioner will also find this book helpful in many ways, trends in funding and volunteering, up-to-date research brought to the practioner's world, etc. Even if you are not a student, if you work in the nonprofit sector you will find this book to be extraordinarily helpful.

A Very Rich Book.......2006-12-07

Handbooks tend to be daunting reading. So you can imagine my surprise when, after reading it through the first time, I found myself wanting to read it through again! This is a very rich book that will be useful to a wide range of readers from experts to beginners in nonprofit sector research.

Beginners will benefit from the comprehensive nature of the collection. The broad coverage will serve as a fine map to guide those who are looking for paths to follow into nonprofit sector practice and research. Like an MRI scan, the depth of each chapter will serve as a map of the ever expanding theoretical and practical knowledge base of the contemporary nonprofit sector.

Readers who have some nonprofit sector experience will find themselves turning again and again to the chapters related to their area of research and practice. The experience of re-reading some of the chapters three and four times each allowed me to appreciate the depth of scholarship embedded in the theories and empirical evidence presented on each page. This is the kind of book you'll want to keep nearby, because something of value will be there to meet you at each read.

Experts in the field are going to find a lot here to their liking as well. The scope of the subject matter covers research from so many disciplines that, no matter what your interests are, you'll find something here that relates to your particular field of research. The volume also presents scholars with many well documented glimpses into the state of the art research on the full gamut of nonprofit sector issues.

The creation of a handbook that is broad in scope, deep in research detail, and useful to both beginners and scholars is something to be celebrated by all those involved in the nonprofit sector. Congratulations to those who worked on this project. You have pulled off a most difficult of tasks for the second time.

Splendid Legacy: The Guide to Creating Your Family Foundation

Average customer rating:

WHAT A WONDERFUL TOOL

Splendid Legacy: The Guide to Creating Your Family Foundation
National Center for Family Philanthropy (U. S.)
Manufacturer: National Center for Family Philanthropy
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Introduction | Investing | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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Creating a Private Foundation: The Essential Guide for Donors and Their Advisers
Inspired Philanthropy: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Creating a Giving Plan, 2nd Edition
The Handbook on Private Foundations, Third Edition
The Legal Answer Book for Private Foundation
The Foundation: A Great American Secret; How Private Wealth is Changing the World

ASIN: 1929455062

Book Description

The first and only comprehensive guide designed especially for donors and families who are starting family foundations is now available from the National Center for Family Philanthropy. Splendid Legacy: The Guide to Creating Your Family Foundation helps donors, families, and their advisors create a detailed blueprint for their family foundations to fulfill their hopes and goals.

If you have recently started a family foundation, are seriously considering starting one, or are seeking to renew the mission, programming, and administration of your family foundation, Splendid Legacy is for you.

Splendid Legacy is the only resource guide that…

Is designed specifically to meet the needs of the founders of family foundations.

Addresses the full range of considerations in starting a family foundation, including values, mission, hopes for family involvement, governance, legal issues, ethics, funding the foundation, grantmaking, communications, investments, and management.

Offers dozens of stories and vignettes from the experiences of family foundations to illustrate how family considerations affect key decisions.

Splendid Legacy helps you translate the passions values, and dreams for your philanthropy and your family's participation into a comprehensive and practical action plan for setting up the foundation. The combination of the personal and practical makes this guidebook most unique and most relevant to the needs and aspirations of giving families.

Dozens of charts, checklists, and pull-quotes throughout make Splendid Legacy inviting and easy to read. The guide is 258 pages and includes a comprehensive glossary, sample policies and forms, and list of resources.

Customer Reviews:

WHAT A WONDERFUL TOOL.......2002-10-02

This book is a wonderful tool for any trustee whether new or seasoned.!!!

It is splendidly laid out and easy to navigate.

Every possible problem has been addressed and solved for the family planning to start a new foundation.

Along with that, there is information that can vastly enhance those who are newly appointed to longstanding boards of old established family foundations.

I was very impressed with this book and plan to suggest our foundation buy copies for all board members, associates and staff members.

Best regards,

Bonnie

Book Description

A must-have guide that enables managers and trustees of private foundations, as well as their lawyers and accountants, to successfully navigate today's increasingly complex tax laws and reporting requirements

Private foundations are the most regulated of nonprofit organizations. Burdened with laws written over thirty years ago, which have become more complex and intricate, private foundations are forced to operate in a harsh legal environment. An operational or reporting mistake, no matter how innocent or inadvertent, can lead to immense tax and other penalties.

To reap the charitable, tax, and other economic advantages of private foundations while avoiding the perils lurking in the myriad of tax-law traps, you must be fully informed about the basic legal requirements and the many subtleties and current developments affecting private foundations.

Written by two of today's leading authorities on the laws regulating private foundations, The Legal Answer Book for Private Foundations provides this critical information in an efficient and comprehensible fashion. In clear, easy-to-understand language, the authors provide expert guidance on everything from how to set up a private foundation to how assets are invested, how funds are distributed to grantees, and how to avoid self-dealing.

You'll find answers to such critical questions as:

What are the legal definitions of private foundation and public charity, and what constitutes a disqualified person?
Just what are the private foundation rules and what are the penalties for violating them?
What assets are involved in the calculations of the mandatory payout requirement?
How are self-dealing rules avoided?
What is an excess business holding?
Do foundations have to file annual returns with the IRS?
What are the alternatives to private foundations?

Book Description

There are over half a million high-net-worth individuals in the United States. Already 5 percent of them have private foundations, and interest in setting up charitable organizations is on the rise--due to the estate and tax-planning advantages offered by foundations and the growing desire of many to give back to the community. Creating a Private Foundation is a straightforward and authoritative guide for individuals and families looking at the pluses and minuses of creating a foundation, as well as for the advisers who serve these high-net-worth clients. It explains the reasons for establishing a foundation, the steps for setting one up, and tips for avoiding common pitfalls. Author Roger Silk covers the ins and outs of private foundations from the perspective of both philanthropists and the professionals who work with them.

Customer Reviews:

private foundation fundamentals.......2006-03-09

The book is more for donors than advisors. I does not provide enough of the necessary essential legally technical information.

Useful Primer.......2003-11-01

Unwitting new philantrophists sometimes end up with bureaucratic creatures that do exactly what the donor did not want. This book is full of practical advice on how to avoid unpleasant surprises if you set up a foundation of your own, such as finding out that you have no control over its activities.

It also gives a succinct review of investment problems. Foundations can potentially last for many generations. But they can easily mismanage themselves into oblivion in short order. The authors identify seven deadly investment sins.

For example, foundations don't need to frequently redeem their investments, but some mistakenly invest in liquid assets and lose returns as a result. They would be better off with non-traditional investments like private-equity, income producing real estate, hedge funds, and timber.

Many foundations fail to diversify, unwittingly taking on risk. THey start with stock from the founder's company and continue to hold a concentrated position, exposing themselves to the vagaries of that business. In 2002 the David and Lucille Packard Foundation was forced to cut its donations drastically when Hewlett-Packard stock fell.

IN short, an easy-to-read, useful guide.

Creating Private Foundation.......2003-06-16

A great great book to give to your existing Private Foundation clients, as well as those considering their options. The book hits on several key points among many others - which are the reason to formalize your investment policy statement(IPS) and donor intent issues. The author is correct that too often good intentions fail to result in effective results. It deals with other vehicles like charitable lead trusts (CLTs) and charitable remainder trusts (CRTs) as well as donor advised and support organizations. It is a big picture book not a technical how to for the attorney!

Foundations and Evaluation: Contexts and Practices for Effective Philanthropy

Average customer rating:

An excellent resource!

Foundations and Evaluation: Contexts and Practices for Effective Philanthropy

Manufacturer: Jossey-Bass
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Strategic Giving: The Art and Science of Philanthropy
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Good to Great and the Social Sectors: A Monograph to Accompany Good to Great

ASIN: 0787970778

Book Description

“Gathered together in this unique book on evaluation and effective foundation practice are the experienced-based perspectives and measured insights of both seasoned practitioners and key philanthropic thought leaders. Foundations and Evaluation is a substantial think piece for grantmakers of any size.”--Dorothy S. Ridings, president and CEO, Council on Foundations

“Foundations and Evaluation explores the intersection between organizational effectiveness and evaluation and demonstrates the need for commitment to evaluation throughout the foundation. . . . A good read for both newcomers to evaluation and those with more experience, written by some of the most highly respected leaders in the field.”--Kathleen P. Enright, executive director, Grantmakers for Effective Organizations

Download Description

Gathered together in this unique book on evaluation and effective foundation practice are the experienced-based perspectives and measured insights of both seasoned practitioners and key philanthropic thought leaders. Foundations and Evaluation is a substantial think piece for grantmakers of any size;--Dorothy S. Ridings, president and CEO, Council on Foundations

Foundations and Evaluation explores the intersection between organizational effectiveness and evaluation and demonstrates the need for commitment to evaluation throughout the foundation. . . . A good read for both newcomers to evaluation and those with more experience, written by some of the most highly respected leaders in the field.;--Kathleen P. Enright, executive director, Grantmakers for Effective Organizations

Customer Reviews:

An excellent resource!.......2004-09-15

As a nonprofit fundraiser/trainer, I often advise clients and students to include an evaluation component in their grant proposals. Sometimes it is hard to see the value of this expenditure, and nonprofit clients especially tend to see as a diversion of funds from their "real" work. This book goes a long way to answering these questions, for funders and grantees alike. The four short essays by prominent foundation presidents who have embraced evaluation in various ways provide a fascinating peek into foundation executive thinking and action. In particular, the perspective by Hodding Carter III provides a dose of reality and fortitude, in a vibrant writing style that's sure to entertain as well as inform. The first of two sections of chapters addresses foundations as a unique context for evaluation, with several forays into critical issues, including a history of foundations' use of evaluation, challenges in foundations' use of evaluation, foundation-grantee relationships, etc. The second set of chapters is more applied, including practical and non-technical coverage of making judgments about what to evaluate, adapting evaluation to foundations, evaluation for small foundations, evaluative thinking for grantees, appraising program effectiveness evidence, and communicating results to different audiences. All of these chapters should appeal to evaluators and evaluation users alike. Overall, the book is well edited, the writing is non-technical and quite accessible, and the range of topics is exciting. A book like this has been long overdue.

Broken Trust: Greed, Mismanagement, And Political Manipulation at America's Largest Charitable Trust (A Latitude 20 Book)

Average customer rating:

Very highly recommended reading
A Must-Read for Followers of Non-Profit Organizations
Very disappointing
Great Read!
A biased perspective?

Broken Trust: Greed, Mismanagement, And Political Manipulation at America's Largest Charitable Trust (A Latitude 20 Book)
Samuel P. King , and Randall W. Roth
Manufacturer: University of Hawaii Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Nonprofit Organizations & Charities | Industries & Professions | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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Lost Generations: A Boy, a School, a Princess (A Latitude 20 Book)
Land and Power in Hawaii: The Democratic Years
Hawaii's Forgotten History: 1900-1999: The Good...The Bad...The Embarrassing
House of Many Gods: A Novel
IZ: Voice of the People

ASIN: 082483044X

Book Description

Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop was the largest landowner and richest woman in the Hawaiian kingdom. Upon her death in 1884, she entrusted her property--known as Bishop Estate--to five trustees in order to create and maintain an institution that would benefit the children of Hawai`i: Kamehameha Schools. A century later, Bishop Estate controlled nearly one out of every nine acres in the state, a concentration of private land ownership rarely seen anywhere in the world. Then in August 1997 the unthinkable happened: Four revered kupuna (native Hawaiian elders) and a professor of trust-law publicly charged Bishop Estate trustees with gross incompetence and massive trust abuse. Entitled "Broken Trust," the statement provided devastating details of rigged appointments, violated trusts, cynical manipulation of the trust's beneficiaries, and the shameful involvement of many of Hawai`i's powerful.

No one is better qualified to examine the events and personalities surrounding the scandal than two of the original "Broken Trust" authors. Their comprehensive account together with historical background, brings to light information that has never before been made public, including accounts of secret meetings and communications involving Supreme Court justices.

Customer Reviews:

Very highly recommended reading.......2007-01-06

Written by district court judge Samuel P. King and law teacher Randall W. Roth, Broken Trust: Greed, Mismanagement & Political Manipulation at America's Largest Charitable Trust is the true story of greed, corruption, and mismanagement that plagued the "nation's wealthiest charity" according to the Wall Street Journal circa 1995 - the Bishop Estate, legacy of Hawaiian Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, who created the trust to maintain the educational institution of Kamehamea Schools and therefore benefit the children of Hawaii. In August 1997, four respected leaders of the native Hawaiian community and a professor of trust law publically accused the Bishop Estate's trustees with gross incompetence and severe trust abuse, to the point of being criminal, in a statement titled "Broken Trust". Now Broken Trust: Greed, Mismanagement & Political Manipulation gathers never-before-public information concerning the entire sordid matter, especially highlighting how corruption flourished in the legislature, courts, and legal profession, and how the media and the native Hawaiian community neglected to take a stand against it - virtually the opposite; the community would often be coaxed into protesting attempts to reform the trust or limit the power of the trustees. Broken Trust is not only a case study, but also offers larger lessons about the dangers of unchecked power and civil responsibility, and is very highly recommended reading for American and Hawaiian history shelves in public, college, and private libraries alike.

A Must-Read for Followers of Non-Profit Organizations.......2006-08-29

As an attorney who serves on and counsels boards of non-profit institutions, I was espcially interested in this compelling tale of what amounts to a worst-case scenario. Princess Pauahi's last will left a trust corpus so large that it called for persons most experienced in management of investments. But for decades, the judge-appointed trustees (a decidedly amateurish lot) were insensitive to their awesome responsibility for providing high-level academic and cultural education to thousands of Hawaiian children, the beneficiaries under the last will of the Princess. This is a close account of the bumps and warts of trustees who have succumbed to temptation, from which we learn that trustees, regardless of the scale of assets under their administration, and regardless of the particular political system and the courts that have the duty to supervise them, need to be held to account regularly.

Very disappointing.......2006-08-17

I read a review of this book in a newspaper and was very intrigued. I really knew nothing about the Bishop Trust scandal. After having read this book, I can say I still really know nothing about the Bishop Trust scandal. I think I got more of a coherent account from the review than I did from this book. The book makes it abundantly clear that the publishing of the orginal "Broken Trust" stories in the local newspapers was a water shed event. I think the authors pat themselves on the back for their work more times than I can ever count. I wish that they had just reprinted the newspaper articles, because the book never really gets into the details. There are lots of stories about the evil trustee and her battle with the gallant school adminstrator. There is a lot of insinuation about corrupt politicians. But there is never really a good case put forth for why all of the players did what they did. Just what was the personal gain from it all? A few free trips to Vegas? I would still love to know the facts about what happened and why, but I was very put off by the gossipy tone of this book.

Great Read!.......2006-06-26

Wow! This book FAR exceeded my expectations. In addition to the mind-boggling stuff previously reported by the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and 60 Minutes, "Broken Trust" includes fascinating stories about the early days of the trust, an eye-opening indictment of Hawaii's judiciary (especially the chief justice), and anecdotes that regularly had me laughing, crying, or mad as hell. My only problem with this book was that once I started reading, I couldn't put it down.

A biased perspective?.......2006-04-16

Comparing "Lost Generations" by J. Arthur Rath and Roth & King's book on the Bishop Estate scandal, I was struck by the somewhat overly critical coverage of Attorney General Bronster's legal maneuvers by Roth & King. I don't think that Roth & King were able to achieve an unbiased journalistic approach to the subject matter because of their personal involvement. Although factually rich, I found "Lost Generations" a much better read.

Don't Just Give It Away: How to Make the Most of Your Charitable Giving

Average customer rating:

A Must Read For Humanitarians
CEOs and Board Members, This Book is For YOU!
Rafferty puts us firmly in control when making donations.

Don't Just Give It Away: How to Make the Most of Your Charitable Giving
Renata J. Rafferty
Manufacturer: Chandler House Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Personal Finance | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Inspired Philanthropy: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Creating a Giving Plan, 2nd Edition
Begging for Change: The Dollars and Sense of Making Nonprofits Responsive, Efficient, and Rewarding for All
Beyond the Grave revised edition: The Right Way and the Wrong Way of Leaving Money To Your Children (and Others)

ASIN: 1886284326

Book Description

The first and only book to blow the whistle on wasted contributions, Don't Just Give It Away shows readers how to tune out fundraising hype and make their donations to charity really count.

Customer Reviews:

A Must Read For Humanitarians.......2006-09-02

After reading this book, I now understand why those with deep pockets, like Paul Newman and Doris Buffett, turn to Rafferty for guidance in setting up a not-for-profit organization. In this book she not only provides excellent guidelines as how to set up and run a philantrophic organization, she explains how to systematically analize one from top-to-bottom (Chapter 8 "Due Diligence"). Rafferty teaches the reader how to define ones on goals so as to maximize the "return on investment" in philantrophic giving (Appendix 1). Both board member and donor alike will benefit from this book! (I own this book)

CEOs and Board Members, This Book is For YOU!.......2002-03-17

CEOs and Board members, don't be fooled. This book is NOT just for donors - it's for YOU!

Here's the way I figure it: If a book advises donors on what to look for when "investing" in a NonProfit, doesn't it make sense that NonProfits use that same book to help make their organization worth investing in?

NonProfit leaders should think of this book as one of those magazine cover stories that says "What Men Should Look for in a Woman" (or vice versa!). As a woman, I'd sure want to know what men are being advised to look for! And as NonProfits seeking donors, we should all want to know what those donors are being advised to look for in a worthy NonProfit. That's why this book is such a valuable tool.

In my NonProfit consulting work, I've used the fundraising and marketing insights from Ms. Rafferty's chapters on donor motivation when creating marketing plans, because it forces a NonProfit to think like a donor. And the chapters on performing due diligence ("Ten Warning Signs: Where to Look for the Bodies") are a GREAT checklist for ensuring your organization's ducks are in a row.

Being a NonProfit author myself, my favorite compliment is when a reader says their copy of the book is all marked up - that the pages are dog-eared and the spine cracked from use. Well, my copy of Ms. Rafferty's book is not only yellow from highlighting, but the book automatically opens to the sections I love.

So do your NonProfit a favor - don't be fooled into thinking this book is only for donors. Buy it, incorporate its messages into your marketing and fund development efforts, and watch your organization flourish.

Rafferty puts us firmly in control when making donations........1999-05-31

Most of us in this audience have spent years (and some, decades) on the inside of one nonprofit organization or another, wondering, "How can our organization attract more (or even more) charitable donations?"

We've established annual fund drives, grant-seeking programs, fielded special events, and maybe even launched planned giving programs. Some of us are in one stage or other of a capital campaign on the way toward meeting our six-, seven-, eight-, or even nine-figure goals.

Collectively, we've done a fantastic job. In 1997 alone, Americans gave us $143 billion, most of that in the form of direct gifts or bequests. We expend nearly $500 billion per year, control more than $800 billion in assets, employ nearly 11 percent of the American workforce, represent nearly eight percent of the American gross domestic product, and constitute 20 percent of the American service economy.

The money flows. Donors more or less leave us alone to spend it as we see fit and as long as we don't break some law or line our own pockets, things hum along nicely. As those of us who have been on the inside know, there is typically little or no investigation by most donors prior to the gift, much less once the gift has been made.

From our vantage point - on the inside looking out - all is well with the world. Few donors would think to ask hard questions before making a donation, much less to follow up on a donation to see that we've been wise stewards of it. That is why Renata J. Rafferty's new book, Don't Just Give It Away, How to Make the Most of Your Charitable Giving, is so startling. Written not by an outsider with an axe to grind, but by one of us, Rafferty turns things on their head by asking the public, "does it seem that $143 billion of 'social progress' was achieved through the activities of the charitable sector? How much of that $143 billion did you and your family contribute, and do you believe it was used as wisely as it could have been?"

Rafferty contends that while, in her more than 20 years in the charitable arena, she has "witnessed the integrity and industry of the men and women . . . who commit their lives - professionally and or as volunteers - to make this world a better place for all of us," she has also seen "waste and poor financial management that substantially eroded the value" of contributions. . . ."

"Like a leaking faucet that accumulates in wasted gallons," writes Rafferty, "minor misuses of each of our charitable investments add up. In fact, they amount to huge amounts of donated money annually that could have - and should have - been applied to programs and services for the community . . . but weren't. And that's why we don't see $143 billion worth of progress from our contributions."

Notice the shift by Rafferty from the industry insiders' perspective to that of the donors'? This is an insider breaking ranks, throwing open the door to the closet, and shining a bright light on, well, if not "skeletons," the family's closely-guarded secrets.

Every once in a while a book comes along which, though written with down-to-earth clarity and simplicity, carries within its covers a clarion call to reverse the flow of power and unsettle the status quo in an entire facet of society. This is that book.

Don't Just Give It Away teaches donors to conduct their giving "as thoughtfully and insightfully - and personally - as (they) approach . . . financial investing." She walks the reader through the process of defining philanthropic goals, finding a charity that fits those goals, performing due diligence on that charity, and tracking what the charity does with the gift after it's been given.

My favorite chapter - and one that poorly-run nonprofit organizations would do well to keep out of the hands of donors - is Chapter 9's "Ten Warning Signs: Where to Look for 'The Bodies.'" A sampling:

--You are discouraged or barred from a site visit or board meeting;

--Financial records are unavailable, unintelligible, or generally in disarray;

--There is no written strategic or business plan for the organization;

--Fewer than 70% of the board members have made a financial contribution to the organization within the last twelve months;

--And more.

It's occurred to me that one sign of a healthy organization is its enthusiasm in providing Rafferty's book to prospective and existing donors. An organization that is well managed and healthy will have nothing to fear, and perhaps much to gain, in educating its donors about such things. Indeed, arming donors with this kind of information - as simple as providing them a copy of this book - is one way to strengthen our nonprofit sector.

One thing the book is not is a "technique" book. Rafferty makes it clear she is not instructing donors on "how" to structure a gift - that's what attorneys and other advisors are for, she says - but on how to ensure that giving is done with maximum impact. I can imagine one pitfall is locating advisors who will understand, and add value to, the process described by Rafferty. The book is concise enough, though, that a donor might wish to provide a copy to any advisor assisting in the gift-making process.

Not surprisingly, Don't Just Give It Away has already attracted quite a few fans, including Paul Newman who, in the book's Foreword, writes: "I wish Don't Just Give It Away had been written years earlier - I could have used it. I'm delighted that it's here now and that I can share this book with friends, family, and colleagues who are searching for their own ways - more personal ways - to make this world a better place through wiser charitable giving." Newman should know. To date, his company, Newman's Own, has contributed over $100 million to charities worldwide from after-tax profits.

Harnessing the Power of the Charitable Remainder Trust
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Harnessing the Power of the Charitable Remainder Trust
Leland E. Hoffman, Jr. Marc D. Hoffman
Manufacturer: PhilanthroTec, Inc.; 7th edition(June 15, 2005)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Spiral-bound
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ASIN: 0965469220

Product Description

_Harnessing the Power of the Charitable Remainder Trust_ is the definitive learning guide for planned giving specialists and professional advisors interested in the design, implementation, and operation of one of the most widely used and flexible gift planning vehicles in use today. Written by Marc D. Hoffman and Leland E. Hoffman, Jr., with legal editing by Fred J. Marcus, J.D., LL.M. and Douglas K. Freeman, J.D., LL.M., Harnessing the Power of the Charitable Remainder Trust contains numberous case studies, examples, and hundreds of citations designed to help the reader understand the practical application of trust design variables and their effect on trustors, income recipients, and charitable remaindermen.

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