I. General Guidelines for Gift Acceptance
A. Gift Size: All gift and pledge commitments, regardless of size, designation, or gift type will be respectfully considered and gratefully accepted except in the instances where a gift may be contrary to Missouri State Parks Foundation’s best interests, or
outside the scope of Missouri State Parks Foundation’s mission. Further, Missouri State Parks Foundation reserves the right to accept or reject any gift. Missouri State Parks Foundation will provide assistance to potential donors to discuss priorities, the donor’s interest, and the various ways to give.
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B. Restricted/Unrestricted Gifts: Missouri State Parks Foundation accepts both restricted and unrestricted gifts if the Board of Directors determines that the conditions can be agreed to. Restricted gifts will only be accepted if they support the outlined objectives of the current campaign or specific fundraising initiative. Further, acceptance of restricted gifts imposes fiduciary and administrative responsibilities on Missouri State Parks Foundation to ensure that the funds are used for the purpose(s) for which they were given. Therefore, five (5) percent of each restricted gift will be used to fund the core operations which make restricted programs possible. Additionally, before accepting a restricted gift, Missouri State Parks Foundation must ensure that the restrictions can be enforced and will be used in accordance with the terms and conditions of the gift, and that reasonable provisions are made if that purpose proves too restrictive or the funds cannot be so applied.
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Missouri State Parks Foundation will not accept gifts that violate the terms of Missouri State Parks Foundation’s governing documents or gifts that are for purposes outside of our mission. In order to meet the costs of proper management and accounting of the funds and the monitoring of compliance with the donor’s restrictions, a portion of every restricted gift may be reserved to meet those costs.
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C. Designation of Gifts. Gifts to the Missouri State Parks Foundation should be made in the name of “Missouri State Parks Foundation” and will be received, held and administered under the direction of the Board of Directors.
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D. Confidentiality. All information concerning donors and prospective donors will be confidential. No information will be released (distributed, sold, or shared) to the general public without securing the prior written or electronic permission of the donor. All donative instruments will be deemed confidential to the extent permitted by law. However, a donor may authorize public announcement of any feature of an agreement.
E. Independent Legal/Tax Advice. Donors will be encouraged to secure the advice of independent legal and/or tax counsel as well as speak with financial advisors in matters relating to their gift. The Missouri State Parks Foundation will not provide advice about the tax, legal implications or other treatment of gifts.
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F. Pledges. Pledges will be made in writing and commit to a specific dollar amount that will be paid according to a fixed time schedule. The recommended maximum pledge period is five years.
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G. Acknowledgement/Recognition. MSPF will acknowledge and recognize all gifts appropriately according to its gift acknowledgement plan and procedures and as further described in these Gift Acceptance and Recognition Policy Requests for donor’s anonymity will be honored to the extent permitted by law.
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H. Use of Legal Counsel. Missouri State Parks Foundation shall seek the advice of legal counsel in matters relating to acceptance of gifts if appropriate.
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I. Tax Compliance: MSPF’s policy is to comply with Internal Revenue Service reporting requirements and all other aspects of state and federal tax law.
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J. Designation of Funds. Unless specifically otherwise specified, all gifts to the Missouri State Parks Foundation will be designated to our general fund, or as otherwise determined by the Executive Director.
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K. Gift Agreements. Gift agreements for restricted gifts are key mechanisms to help ensure that both the donor and the Missouri State Parks Foundations have come to a mutual understanding of the terms and conditions of a donor’s gift, including the intent in making the gift and any restrictions placed on the use of the gift, and the Missouri State Parks Foundation’s acceptance and use of the gift, including the ability or inability to make modifications to the gift upon the occurrence of particular events or circumstances. Donors must direct any gifts for restricted purposes in writing.
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Written gift agreements are required for donor-advised funds, endowed funds, and for all gifts of $50,000 or more. The Missouri State Parks Foundation will work with a prospective donor and his or her advisors to develop a written gift agreement that will include, but is not limited to: (i) explicitly addressing the donor’s intent, (ii) specific, realistic and measurable restrictions on the Foundation’s use of the donation, if any, (iii) addressing the Foundation’s use of the funds over time, including specifying changes which may be made depending on future developments, (iv) an agreement that once the gift is made to the Missouri State Parks Foundation, the funds no longer belong to the donor and may not be administered or directed by the donor, etc.
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II. Gift Receipting and Acknowledgment
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A. Tax Receipts. Missouri State Parks Foundation acknowledges the receipt of gifts, upon request, in writing. Requests are acknowledged with an official charitable receipt that includes, at a minimum, the name of the donor, gift amount, gift date and designation of the gift. This document is deemed to be the official acceptance of the gift and its related terms and conditions, as well as official certification of the donation for income tax purposes.
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B. Gift Acknowledgements. Acknowledgement of all gifts made to the Missouri State Parks Foundation shall be the responsibility of the Executive Director or designee. If the value of a non-cash gift is $500 or more, IRS may require donors to file certain form(s) to comply with its regulations pertaining to non-cash charitable contributions; donors should consult with their tax advisor.
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DONOR BILL OF RIGHTS
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Philanthropy is based on voluntary action for the common good. It is a tradition of giving and sharing that is primary to the quality of life. To ensure that philanthropy merits the respect and trust of the general public, and that donors and prospective donors can have full confidence in the nonprofit organizations and causes they are asked to support, we declare that all donors have these rights:
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1. To be informed of the organization’s mission, of the way the organization intends to use donated resources, and of its capacity to use donations effectively for their intended purposes.
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2. To be informed of the identity of those serving on the organization’s governing board, and to expect the board to exercise prudent judgment in its stewardship responsibilities.
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3. To have access to the organization’s most recent financial statements. 4. To be assured their gifts will be used for the purposes for which they were given.
5. To receive appropriate acknowledgement and recognition.
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6. To be assured that information about their donation is handled with respect and with confidentiality to the extent provided by law.
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7. To expect that all relationships with individuals representing organizations of interest to the donor will be professional in nature.
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8. To be informed whether those seeking donations are volunteers, employees of the organization or hired solicitors.
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9. To have the opportunity for their names to be deleted from mailing lists that an organization may intend to share.
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10.To feel free to ask questions when making a donation and to receive prompt, truthful and forthright answers.