As such, we are not able to review and critique their minutes. Charities are not required to make their Board meeting minutes available to the public. (More) An official record of the events that take place during a board meeting ensures that a contemporaneous document exists for future reference. Furthermore, it is problematic because it is an indicator that the organization is not financially secure.ĭocuments Board Meeting Minutes. And although employees and trustees are permitted to make loans to charities, this practice can also result in real and/or perceived conflict of interest problems for the charity. And the IRS is concerned enough with the practice that it requires charities to disclose on their Form 990 any loans to or from current and former officers, directors, trustees, key employees, and other "disqualified persons." Furthermore, some state laws go so far as to prohibit loans to board members and officers.
This practice is discouraged by sector trade groups which point to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act when they call for charities to refrain from making loans to directors and executives. (More) Making loans to related parties such as key officers, staff, or Board members, is not standard practice in the sector as it may divert the charity's funds away from its charitable mission and can lead to real and perceived conflict-of-interest problems. In this case, we deduct 15 points from the charity's Accountability and Transparency score.ĭoes Not Provide Loan(s) to or Receive Loan(s) From Related Parties. No Credit: The charity did not have its audited financials prepared by an independent accountant.In this case, we deduct 7 points from the charity's Accountability and Transparency score. Partial Credit: The charity's audited financials were prepared by an independent accountant, but it did not have an audit oversight committee.We check the charity's Form 990 reporting to see if it meets this criteria.įull Credit: The charity's audited financials were prepared by an independent accountant with an audit oversight committee. Often at smaller charities, it falls within the responsibilities of the finance committee or the executive committee.) The committee provides an important oversight layer between the management of the organization, which is responsible for the financial information reported, and the independent accountant, who reviews the financials and issues an opinion based on its findings. (It is not necessary that the audit committee be a separate committee. They should be prepared by an independent accountant with oversight from an audit committee. (More)Īudited financial statements provide important information about financial accountability and accuracy. In this case, we deduct 15 points from the charity's Accountability and Transparency score.Īudited Financials Prepared by Independent Accountant. No Credit: There has been a diversion of assets within the last two years and the charity's explanation on Schedule O is either non-existent or not sufficient.In this situation, we deduct 7 points from the charity's Accountability and Transparency score. Partial Credit: There has been a diversion of assets within the last two years and the charity has used Schedule O on the Form 990 to explain: the nature of the diversion, the amount of money or property involved and the corrective action taken to address the matter.
This metric will be assigned to one of the following categories:įull Credit: There has been no diversion of assets within the last two years. If the charity does report a diversion, then we check to see if it complied with the Form 990 instructions by describing what happened and its corrective action. We check the charity's last two Forms 990 to see if the charity has reported any diversion of assets. (More)Ī diversion of assets – any unauthorized conversion or use of the organization's assets other than for the organization's authorized purposes, including but not limited to embezzlement or theft – can seriously call into question a charity's financial integrity.
Our analysts check the Form 990 to determine if the independent Board members are a voting majority and also at least five in number.
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(More) The presence of an independent governing body is strongly recommended by many industry professionals to allow for full deliberation and diversity of thinking on governance and other organizational matters.
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