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Today, the role of philanthropy is expanding and so are its
responsibilities. This online SDGrantmakers Update is published
by San Diego Grantmakers to help you meet the challenge. Our
mission is to connect, teach, develop, and inspire a diverse
group of foundations and corporations to stimulate effective
philanthropy in the San Diego region. For more information,
visit www.SDGrantmakers.org.
"We
cannot live for ourselves alone. Our lives are connected by
a thousand invisible threads, and along these sympathetic
fibers, our actions run as causes and return to us as results."--Herman
Melville
November
is Celebrating Philanthropy Month!
SD Grantmakers sponsored AFP's National Philanthropy
Day 2005 luncheon on November 9. National Philanthropy Day
was first celebrated nationwide in 1986; while locally AFP
has recognized outstanding philanthropists, volunteers, organizations
and professionals since 1972. The annual celebration provides
an opportunity to reflect on the meaning of giving and all
that is made possible through the generosity of San Diegans
and others from around the world.
Community
Foundation Study Results
According to a new survey from the Columbus
Foundation, community foundations comprise one of the fastest-growing
sectors of philanthropy in the United States, and are an increasingly
popular vehicle for giving among locally focused donors.
Survey of the Community Foundation Field, the foundation's
eighteenth annual snapshot of the field, reports that 636 community
foundations in the U.S. received a total of $4.2 billion in
gifts in 2004, up 10 percent from the previous year's figure;
made $3 billion in grants, up 15 percent; and saw the market
value of their assets reach $39.4 billion, up 13 percent. The
report also notes that annual grant distributions by community
foundations have tripled since 1996, and that community foundations
as a whole maintained a payout rate of 8 percent of their assets
in 2004. For the fourth consecutive year, the Tulsa Community
Foundation led the nation's community foundations in gifts received,
with $272 million. Two California foundations --the San Mateo-based
Peninsula Community Foundation and the Community Foundation
Silicon Valley in San Jose -- occupied the second and third
positions on the list, with gifts of $156.2 million and $137.1
million, respectively. To browse or download the complete report,
click
here.
Hurricane
Tax Package Doubles Charitable Deductions
Gifts
to private foundations do not qualify for the additional deduction
From an October 27 New
York Times article by Stephanie Strom:
A little-noted provision in the tax relief package to aid
victims of Hurricane Katrina is shaping up as a windfall for
charity and a drain on government coffers. It allows donors
who make cash gifts to almost any charity by the end of this
year to deduct an amount equal to virtually 100 percent of
their adjusted gross incomes, double the normal limit of 50
percent of income. The tantalizing prospect has set off a
financial scramble among some wealthy donors and charities
vying for their dollars....Some institutions, primarily universities,
are encouraging big donors to take advantage of the favorable
tax treatment and make sizable gifts or fulfill their pledges.
Essentially, some donors may shift into 2005 gifts that would
have been made in future years.
The
San Diego Foundation Celebrates its 30th Anniversary by Announcing
San Diego's Largest-Ever Endowment Initiative
On October 15 at The Foundation’s 30th anniversary event,
The
San Diego Foundation announced San Diego’s largest,
region-wide endowment drive ever to be initiated. Named Endow
San Diego, the effort is a multi-year initiative designed
to inform and inspire San Diegans to understand and support
endowments. The newly announced initiative focuses on building
permanent endowments for citizens and organizations committed
to improving the quality of life in San Diego’s communities.
Last year, The San Diego Foundation completed a survey of
nonprofits in the area and found that more than 70% of responding
organizations do not have endowments and over 80% of them
have no formal planned giving program. This puts many of the
region’s important and essential programs at constant
risk of losing funding. Endowments allow nonprofit organizations
to add to their current fundraising needs by focusing on longer-term
giving. Endow San Diego will work with nonprofit agencies
to build permanent endowments, ensuring that the quality of
life in San Diego is not only upheld but bettered for future
generations. SDG-member Qualcomm
and KPBS are The San Diego Foundation’s partners in philanthropy
and play a crucial role in ensuring the success of Endow San
Diego.
As part of the mission of Endow San Diego, The San Diego
Foundation marked the Foundation’s 30th year by establishing
the Nonprofit Partnership Program, which is sponsored by SDG-member
Wells
Fargo. This newly formed group will be organized to specifically
develop a planned giving tool kit and to convene forums and
educational seminars on various related topics—all designed
to aid nonprofits in building endowment funds to support their
organization/cause.
Board
Self-Assessment Tool Now Available
From FN&C NOW: The
Center for Effective Philanthropy is now making its Comparative
Board Report (CBR)-a self-assessment tool for improving board
effectiveness-broadly available to foundations. The CBR, which
was tested earlier this year by more than 50 foundations,
presents comparative data on board member perceptions, as
well as board structures and practices, based on confidential
surveys of foundation trustees and CEOs. The CBR process takes
approximately 10 weeks to complete and assists CEOs and trustees
with informed and guided conversations about their own performance.
To read more, click
here.
Tax
Reform Panel Recommends Incentives for Charitable Giving
From the Foundation
Center: The President's Advisory Panel on Federal Tax Reform
has issued its final report, which includes six recommendations
designed to strengthen incentives for charitable giving, Tax
Analysts reports. In addition to recommending a number of sweeping
changes to the federal income tax system, the report, Simple,
Fair, and Pro-Growth: Proposals to Fix America's Tax System,
dedicates four pages to improving incentives for charitable
giving. The recommendations include creating a deduction for
all taxpayers for charitable contributions that exceed 1 percent
of income; allowing tax-free distributions from individual retirement
accounts (IRAs) to be made directly to qualified charitable
organizations; requiring reports for large charitable contributions
claimed as deductions; allowing taxpayers to sell property and
donate the proceeds to charity; improving rules for valuing
gifts of property to charities; and taking effective action
to ensure better oversight of tax-exempt organizations. Although
the report does not call for changes to rules governing exempt
organizations, it does stress the need for better oversight
and governance of the sector. To read or download the complete
report (307 pages, pdf), click
here.
Upcoming
Programs
DISTINGUISHED
SPEAKER SERIES 2005:
Diana Aviv, President & CEO, Independent Sector
November 14, 2005
11:30am-1:30pm
Institute for Peace & Justice, University of San Diego,
Conference Rooms C&D
Sponsored by SEMPRA
ENERGY
Diana Aviv is the president and CEO of INDEPENDENT
SECTOR, the national leadership forum for America's
nonprofit organizations, foundations, and corporations.
Collectively representing tens of thousands of charitable
groups in every state across the country, INDEPENDENT SECTOR's
mission is to advance the common good by leading, strengthening,
and mobilizing the independent sector.
INDEPENDENT SECTOR leads the nonprofit community by promoting
effective public policies to help not-for-profit initiatives
thrive, identifying emerging trends facing the nonprofit
sector, strengthening nonprofit accountability, and providing
the "meeting ground" for leaders in philanthropy
to address challenges facing the sector.
Free for SDG Members, $40 for SDG invited guests.
RSVP to programs@SDGrantmakers.org.
Give & Take: Knowing How Much
to Keep and How Much to Give Away
January 17, 2006
5:30pm-7:30pm
High Tech High: 2861 Womble Rd, San Diego, CA
San Diego
Social Venture Partners presents Claudia Sangster,
discussing "Knowing How Much to Keep and How Much to
Give Away." Is much of your giving because somebody
asks, or do you give strategically? You will learn:
- How to map financial security for yourself and your family
- To take a long-term view of your giving over time
- How to give strategically
Join us for appetizers and cocktails with this dynamic
speaker! Claudia Sangster, Director of Philanthropy Services
with Harris myCFO, Inc. and President/Executive Director
of the myCFO Foundation is a former president and current
member of the Planned Giving Round Table of Southern California,
a member of the National Committee on Planned Giving, a
board member of the Prostate Cancer Research Institute,
and a faculty member of the American Institute for Philanthropic
Studies at California State University, Long Beach. She
is a former president and current member of Pepperdine's
Board of Associated Women and a member of the state bar
associations of Texas and California, and the American Bar
Association.
Attendance is free. RSVP
to programs@SDGrantmakers.org.
Other Events of Interest
University of San Diego Nonprofit
Leadership & Management Program
Ethics Dialogue Series
2nd Thursdays, 7:30-9:00am
USD Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice
San Diego, CA
December 8: Is total transparency a prerequisite
for ethical behavior?
January 12: What obligations does tax-exempt status
create for serving communities?
February 9: What are the ethical responsibilities
of governing boards?
March 9: How do we ensure ethical financial management?
April 13: What are nonprofits' ethical responsibilities
to employees?
May 11: How do charities and funders define their
ethical responsibilities to each other?
Each session is free and includes breakfast. Register online
here,
or by phone at (619) 260-7442.
PRI
Makers Network First Annual Conference
January 18-20, 2006
Palo Alto, CA
The PRI Makers Network, a new association of grantmakers
who use program-related and other investments to accomplish
their philanthropic goals, is pleased to present its first
annual conference, co-sponsored by the Stanford University
Graduate School of Business' Center for Social Innovation.
The PRI Makers Network's mission is to provide a forum for
networking, professional development, collaboration and
outreach to funders, including those not currently making
PRIs or other social investments. Conference registration
is online at the network's
new website. For a hard copy of the brochure, or to
inquire about membership in the Network, please contact
Kim Honor,
(202) 833-4690 ext. 7. The PRI Makers is administered
as a special project of Neighborhood Funders Group.
Innovation
Funders Network 2006 Summit: "Networks, Innovation and
Social Change"
January 30-31, 2006
San Francisco, CA
Over the past decade, the emergence of the internet,
cellular phones and other innovations has brought about profound
social and economic change. We are now living in a networked
society. These networks provide new ways to collaborate, express
ourselves politically and culturally, address social and economic
issues, and build local and global communities. The Innovation
Funders Network 2006 Summit will convene funders and invited
affiliate organizations and thought leaders from around the
world to explore the role of innovation and networks in the
nonprofit and philanthropic sectors. We will consider different
funding models including traditional and corporate philanthropy,
social venture, peer to peer investing, online fundraising,
microfinance. We will explore the use of these networks to
foster collaboration amongst funders. Please join us as we
create strategies that best leverage innovation to achieve
our social missions. Click here
for more information.
For questions or comments about SDGrantmakers or our online
update, visit www.SDGrantmakers.org
or contact Nancy Jamison, 619/744.2180
Nancy@SDGrantmakers.org.
Feel free to comment, suggest article ideas, or submit news
items to nancy@SDGrantmakers.org
-- We're always happy to hear from you. This online update
is a service to San Diego Grantmakers members. Copies
of past editions are archived here: News
You Can Use.
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