Monthly Archives: November 2012

Nov 27 2012
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Floyd Keene, Tax & Legal

Save the Charitable Tax Deduction from the Fiscal Cliff

By Floyd Keene, The Triple EEE Foundation

Currently, the charitable tax deduction (CTD) is under attack. As our nation approaches the “fiscal cliff,” limiting the CTD for wealthy taxpayers is one part of a possible fiscal cliff remedy.

  • Recently on national TV, Sen. John McCain said he is “very much opposed” to a tax raise but would support closing loopholes such as the CTD.
  •  For years, the Obama administration has submitted budget proposals that limit charitable deductions for persons above the 28% tax bracket.

Wait! Is this really happening? The Democrats and at least one major Republican agreeing on something? It could happen. And the victim would be the American people (giver and receiver alike) that the CTD serves.

THE NEW REALITY

There is a new reality in our nation that is likely to continue no matter how the fiscal cliff is vaulted, and no matter which party wins future elections:

  1. There will be less government spending on social programs, and
  2. There will be an ever-increasing need for social programs, caused by a slow-growth economy and aging population base

These are truisms. Together they create an environment where there is a greater need than ever before for private social spending. Reducing the CTD in such an environment is, put simply, an irrational public policy motivated by political compromise rather than logical thinking. Continue reading →

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Nov 20 2012
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Gerald P. McCarthy, Tax & Legal

Foundations and Lobbying: Sorting Out the Do’s and Don’ts


By Gerald P. McCarthy, Virginia Environmental Endowment

“If your foundation is not engaging in public policy, you could be missing out on one of the most effective tools in your foundation toolbox,” said Jerry McCarthy in his first post on PhilanthroFiles. Here he takes a look at the Do’s and Don’ts of lobbying.

“Can we lobby?” “What are the rules about foundations and lobbying?”

These are such scary questions for some foundations that the answers aren’t even pursued. And no wonder; it is part of the U.S. Tax Code, which ranks as one of the most complex compilations of rules ever fashioned. Thus, many foundations prefer not to deal with this. They are missing out on some of the most effective work they can accomplish.

Here are some ways you can engage. Continue reading →

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Nov 16 2012
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Andy Carroll, Leadership

Philanthropy and Complex Problems, Part I: Being Real about What is Daunting

By Andy Carroll, ASF

In the wake of the recent election campaign, I’ve been thinking about our country being divided, and things being “stuck.” We know that by collaborating we could accomplish big things, but we still don’t come together. Conflict, disagreement, and gridlock are common in our national discourse, at a community level, and also within organizations, friendships, and families.

Sometimes it seems like humanity, in the words of one popular songwriter, is a “bunch of whining, fighting shmoes.”

The important work of many small foundations–to build opportunity, promote health, reduce hunger and suffering, and protect the environment—is often undercut or compromised by disagreements between competing factions. And divisiveness is only one among a set of “complex problems” that ensnarl the work of foundations and the nonprofits they support. Another complex problem is culture that is embedded and resistant to change.

I don’t think complex problems are acknowledged openly enough. Many funders who keep asking how they can have more impact eventually come up against challenges that are too big for them to solve alone. Continue reading →

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Nov 13 2012
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Leadership, Suzanne Skees

It’s About Trust: Balancing Relationship with Risk in Social Entrepreneurship

By Suzanne Skees, Skees Family Foundation

The Skees Family Foundation and Th3rd Plateau co-hosted a dine-around for social entrepreneurs and their funders at the ASF 2012 National Conference last month. We had an “oversold” turnout of about forty highly engaged professionals, with a perfect balance: half funders and half entrepreneurs. Even our organic, locally sourced, family-style dinner was cooked by an Opportunity Fund microentrepreneur. The food and conversation surpassed our wildest hopes—and the input from attendees got me thinking even more deeply about risk and trust, and why we fund very early-stage social entrepreneurs.

Upaya Social Ventures

Our India client Draupadi; two neighbors sharing advice on their new jobs; ultra-poor kaccha house in Godha Village. (c) Upaya Social Ventures

The Indian sun broils down on our heads near the thatched-roof hut where 60-year-old Draupadi stands wringing her slim hands. She’s complaining about her arthritis and her three goats.

I’m in Uttar Pradesh, visiting a social enterprise we fund through U.S.-based Upaya Social Ventures. Draupadi’s skeptical of us because of her experience with local milkmen who charge high-interest loans and pay fluctuating prices. She’s stressed, because none of her new goats are milking. “Don’t worry,” her neighbor Saraswati assures her, “the milkman pays you only 15 rupees, but this company pays much more.” She explains that Draupadi will receive a steady weekly salary all year, through the milking and dry seasons.

As we do here in the U.S., Draupadi takes her friend’s word for it, and she takes a measured risk. After all, she used to get only a few days’ manual labor per month, hauling stones, bricks, or water at construction sites. “This job is better,” she admits. Continue reading →

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Nov 07 2012
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Impact & Evaluation, Lindsay Matush

Ask Your Way to Impact: Nonprofit Dialogue

Vision-Success

By Lindsay Matush, The Brown Sisters Foundation

How can a small foundation with a limited grantmaking budget leverage its resources to make an even greater impact? In Part One of this three-part series, ASF member Lindsay Matush shared questions to ask other funders – conversation-starters she used to gather information as she sought to maximize her foundation’s impact. In this article, Part Two, she offers questions to ask nonprofit organizations. Part Three will explore the value of foundation self-assessment on the road to achieving greater impact.

When small foundation leaders meet with nonprofit organizations, it is important for us to ask great questions that get beyond the answers we can find in an annual report or theory of change. I approach nonprofit leaders not as organizations that need our resources to do their work, but as partners who are working toward the impact we both want to achieve. Continue reading →

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Nov 02 2012
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Grantmaking, Jennifer Ratay

Grantee Capacity Building: First, Do No Harm

ASF 2012 National Conference In Session

In session at ASF 2012 National Conference, October 7.

By Jennifer Ratay,The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation

Strong grantees and their talented leaders are the engines that power the success of foundations. This is true of small and large foundations alike.

During the Association of Small Foundations’ 2012 National Conference session titled “Capacity Building, Stronger Nonprofits, Improved Outcomes,” TCC Group’s Paul Connelly led a panel of leaders from the Leighty Foundation, Arbor Brothers, and Row New York in exploring approaches to strengthening the organizational capabilities of grantees.

“Capacity building”—an abstract term with countless definitions—typically embraces efforts to improve the leadership, management, strategies, or systems of nonprofit organizations. When done well, it typically leads to higher levels of nonprofit performance and a better chance that the beneficiaries of nonprofits’ work reap improved results. Continue reading →

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