NonProfit Pro

(Press release, March 19, 2015) — FrontStream has announced the release of a platform integration that now offers a complete range of tools for CSR teams to offer their employees in their philanthropic efforts. This enables businesses to develop more impactful social responsibility and employee engagement programs by giving employee donors the ability to set up fundraising campaigns for any of the nearly 2 million nonprofit organizations in the U.S. and Canada.

In coming up with the idea to hold a “Philanthropic Challenge on Economy and Finance” at its 2015 annual meeting scheduled for the end of April, the Council on Foundations presumably had to have drawn some justification, something that convinced them that a “contest” (the COF announcement includes a link to “official contest guideline [sic] rules” would be a good thing for the Council to pursue for an industry or sector ostensibly devoted to a deliberative process.

Recent tweets from folks you should follow.

Nonprofits could see important changes in tax policy from Congress during the current session even though a broad tax overhaul is unlikely to advance this year, according to a leading tax expert in the House. Provisions like the charitable deduction are unlikely to change this year. But other areas of charitable tax policy are up for grabs, said Harold Hancock, tax counsel for the House Ways and Means Committee.

The Red Cross style of ombudsman, which is similar to those used by many colleges and other large nonprofits, is not well understood. Some view it as an effective mechanism to manage complaints, but critics say it is at best a diversion from dealing with criticism and at worst a snare to catch whistle-blowers before they go public.

Do fundraising writers get writer's block? Does every writer? All writers talk about it. Some play complicated psychological tricks on themselves to prime the pump when the well goes dry.

Is there anything about your donors in your nonprofit's mission statement? Probably not. It's a pretty rare occurrence if there was. At Veritus Group we believe nonprofits need to change their mission statements to not just include donors but to make them half of the mission.

Tweets from South by Southwest (#SXSW).

Recent tweets on nonprofit technology (#nptech).

Authorities have revoked the tax-exempt status of nonprofit Blue Shield of California, potentially putting it on the hook for tens of millions of dollars in state taxes each year. The move by the California Franchise Tax Board comes as the state's third-largest health insurer faces fresh criticism over its rate hikes, executive pay and $4.2 billion in financial reserves.

The state quietly stripped the San Francisco insurer of its exemption from California income taxes in August. The company held that since its founding in 1939.