philanthropyOz Blog

Gandel’s $7m donation to the arts

Melbourne property magnate John Gandel and his wife Pauline have donated $7 million to the National Gallery of Australia, to be used to buy artworks and to help fit out a new reception hall that will open next month as part of the gallery’s $107 million redevelopment.
NGA Council Chairman Rupert Myer said the gallery’s new function space had been named Gandel Hall in perpetuity in recognition of the gift from a couple who were among the gallery’s founding donors when it opened its doors in 1982.
Australian donors used to loathe being named for fear of appearing boastful but in recent years they have adopted the American attitude that, by being outed, they might foster greater philanthropy here.

» Read the Australian Financial Review article, 26 August 2010 (Link available for AFR subscribers only)

» This story has been added to our Major Donations page

Transatlantic Community Foundation Network’s focus on Australia

Recently the Transatlantic Community Foundation Network (TCFN) spoke with Philanthropy Australia’s Andrew Lawson, to discuss issues and developments affecting Australia’s community foundations.

Their July 2010 newsletter featured this discussion covering historical development and sustainability of community foundations, Victorian State Government initiatives, as well as outlining formative stages of the emerging Fremantle Foundation.

You can read the article on the Community Foundations Gateway, download the full newsletter here, or visit the TCFN website to download this and other recent issues of their newsletter.

Towards a Manifesto for a Thriving Not for Profit Sector

“Just as Governments depend on a thriving Not for Profit Sector for community well-being, so the Sector depends on Government for policy, regulation and funding support.”

Pro Bono Australia are urging the not-for-profit sector to take advantage of this election period to send a clear message to Julia Gillard, Tony Abbott and Bob Brown about how the Australian Government can improve and strengthen its support for the not-for-profit sector. To this end they have developed a short survey for you to express your opinion.

The survey, developed in collaboration with the Centre for Social Impact, is based on the recent Productivity Commission report on the Contribution of the Not for Profit Sector. It asks which Productivity Commission recommendations you would like the next Government to implement and, for some, how you would like them implemented. It includes questions about sector wages, funding, and regulatory burdens.

The deadline for completing the survey is 3 August 2010. Find and fill out the survey on the Pro Bono Australia website.

The Giving Pledge: Buffett and Gates encourage wealthiest Americans to give

Warren Buffett has joined Bill and Melinda Gates in a new campaign urging billionaires to pledge the majority of their wealth to philanthropy, either during their lifetime or after death. The campaign follows meetings they have been holding across America to encourage other billionaire donors to commit at least 50% of their wealth to philanthropy.

Warren Buffett, who has committed to pledging 99% of his wealth to philanthropy either during his lifetime or at death, explains his reasons in his own Philanthropic Pledge:

Millions of people who regularly contribute to churches, schools, and other organizations thereby relinquish the use of funds that would otherwise benefit their own families. The dollars these people drop into a collection plate or give to United Way mean forgone movies, dinners out, or other personal pleasures. In contrast, my family and I will give up nothing we need or want by fulfilling this 99% pledge.

The reaction of my family and me to our extraordinary good fortune is not guilt, but rather gratitude. Were we to use more than 1% of my claim checks on ourselves, neither our happiness nor our well-being would be enhanced. In contrast, that remaining 99% can have a huge effect on the health and welfare of others.

More information is available at The Giving Pledge website: http://givingpledge.org/

Major donation to gallery

Sidney Nolan’s First-Class Marksman sold for $5.4 million yesterday. Sold by The Vizard Foundation, the National Gallery of Victoria will benefit from a “substantial donation” from the proceeds to the gallery, as well as another unspecified share to a program for underprivileged communities and an Indigenous curator training program at the University of Melbourne.

Further details on the donation

Resources to help victims of recent international disasters

The Australian Taxation Office has released an information sheet for people seeking to make donations to help victims of the recent typhoons in the Philippines and Vietnam, the tsunami in Samoa, American Samoa and Tonga, and the earthquakes in Indonesia. The ATO advises that rather than setting up a new organisation to collect money, it will be quicker and simpler for donors to operate through existing approved funds.

More information is available from the bulletin on the Nonprofit News Service section of the ATO’s website.

Several of Philanthropy Australia’s Associate Members are accepting donations for victims of the disasters.

The Australian Red Cross is running appeals for each disaster-affected region:

• Typhoon Ketsana Appeal 2009 (Philippines and Viet Nam)
• Indonesia Earthquake 2009
• Pacific Tsunami (Samoa and Tonga)

Save the Children Australia is also accepting donations for the affected regions.

World Vision Australia is also accepting donations for emergency relief.

Private Ancillary Fund Guidelines Released: New regulatory regime commences

The final Guidelines for Private Ancillary Funds have been released. The Guidelines can be downloaded from: http://www.comlaw.gov.au/comlaw/Legislation/LegislativeInstrument1.nsf/0/46B098606729DA20CA25763C00058CD6?OpenDocument&VIEWCAT=item&COUNT=999&START=1

There is also an explanatory statement which provides some explanation and clarification on the Guidelines, which we recommend that Members and interested parties read. It can be accessed by clicking on the tab reading “ES/SuppMaterial” at the above link.

The final Guidelines contain several differences to the draft version, including abolition of the requirement for PAFs to prepare and maintain a distribution strategy. Both the Guidelines and the Explanatory Statement include much of the clarification which Philanthropy Australia had requested in its response to the Draft Guidelines.

The new regulatory regime governing Private Ancillary Funds (PAFs) commences today, 1 October 2009. The ATO has advised Philanthropy Australia that they will be contacting existing PPFs to advise them of the changes and of the steps they will need to take to transition from a PPF to a PAF. They expect the transition period to take some months and are developing materials to help existing PPFs with the transition process.

ATO on revocation of charitable status; Good governance tools

The Australian Taxation Office has released a bulletin on recent reviews of a number of charitable funds, and provides an example of a fund which had its charitable status revoked because it was found that the fund had not been applied for the charitable purposes for which it was established. The fund in question had its charitable status revoked for three years and will be required to pay income tax and lodge tax returns during that time.

Indications that a fund may not be applied for its charitable purposes include:

• investment that benefits private entities
• excessive accumulation of investment income
• making distributions for non-charitable purposes

The ATO advises that charitable organisatiosn regularly review their entitlement to endorsement, tell the ATO in writing if the organisation is no longer entitled to endorsement, and avoid problems through good governance. More information is available from the ATO’s bulletin at: http://www.ato.gov.au/nonprofit/content.asp?doc=/content/00209848.htm

One tool to help assist charitable funds to operate with good governance is the Trustee Handbook published by Philanthropy Australia. It is specifically designed to assist philanthropic trusts and foundations and is available for free download from the PhilanthropyWiki. Trustee Seminars are planned for October 2009 to accompany the Handbook - watch this space for more details.

The latest edition of Australian Philanthropy journal focuses on governance and regulation in philanthropy and is a must-read for updates in this vital area. See the Journal page on our website to read selected articles and subscribe.

Victorian Bushfire - tax amendments and interim reports

The Assistant Treasurer, Senator Nick Sherry, and the Hon Bill Shorten MP, Parliamentary Secretary for Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction, today announced that the Rudd Government will amend Federal tax law to allow the Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund to conduct a broader range of charitable and community activities. The amendments to the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 will apply retrospectively from 29 January 2009 and will apply only to the Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund, giving it extra flexibility to support bushfire‑affected communities as they recover and rebuild. The new provisions will enable the Fund to:

• Provide for long-term assistance to orphaned minors, under the age of 18, without the need for annual assessments;
• provide reimbursements to individuals or organisations for performed eligible charitable activities;
• provide a discretionary payment of up to $15,000 to assist households for the period in which they are in transitional housing;
• provide a grant of up to $10,000 to affected primary producers to use for repair and restoration of farm activities, including re-fencing of properties;
• and establish what is called a ‘look-through provision’ so, if a family has a farm in a trust or company, they will also be eligible for assistance.

For more information see the Assistant Treasurer’s press release.

The Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority has released its six-monthly report into the reconstruction and recovery efforts. The report is available for download from VBRRA’s website.

The 2009 Victorian Bushfire Royal Commission has released its interim report into the February 2009 bushfires. The interim report makes recommendations of measures that could be implemented to make Victoria safer for the next fire season. It is available to read or download from the Royal Commission website.

Australian Report on Managing in a Downturn released

PricewaterhouseCoopers, the Fundraising Institute Australia and the Centre for Social Impact have just released ‘Managing in a Downturn’, the report of a survey into the impact of the global financial crisis on Australian not-for-profit organisations. The survey was conducted in April and May 2009 and draws upon a similar survey conducted in the UK last year (reported previously). It focuses on the impact of the downturn in the past six months and the anticipated future impact over the next year.

Among the highlighted findings are that three-fifths of survey respondents reported a decrease in their income over the past six months, and almost one third had experienced a drop of more than 10%. Two-thirds of respondents expected a further drop over the next year. In response to their deteriorating economic expectations, a third of respondents had already implemented some cost reductions and more expect to do so in future. Smaller organisations are suffering more than larger ones, which tend to have larger cash reserves.

The full report is available for download from the Centre for Social Impact website.