Secretary Coffman and General Suthers Promote Wise Charitable Giving

Research for giving should start with 2007 annual report and state’s website

Denver, December 20, 2007 – Attorney General John Suthers joined Secretary of State Mike Coffman to encourage residents to research charities prior to their year-end giving. The joint press conference also rolled out the state’s 2007 Annual Report on Charitable Solicitations as a resource for potential donors.

“As Coloradans plan for their year-end donations to many of these worthwhile causes, my office is here as a resource to shed light on how those dollars will be spent,” said Coffman. “These contributions can certainly be a win-win for the deserving charities and the taxpayer.”

In Colorado, all charitable organizations and paid solicitors that solicit contributions must file disclosure forms with the Secretary of State’s Office. That information is then made available on the Secretary of State’s web site through a searchable database and an annual report. Residents can use the system to identify charities’ financial information or their purposes or missions.

“During the holiday season, our charitable contributions can bring shelter to the homeless, hot meals to the hungry, and wide smiles to needy children,” said Attorney General Suthers. “I encourage Coloradans to do their homework this year and ensure that their charitable donations make it into the hands of those who need it most.”

With respect to telephone solicitations, potential donors can check to see how much paid solicitors actually pass along to the charity and the total raised during a particular campaign. According to the 2007 report, all registered charities spent on average $10.30 to raise $100 through a variety of means, which is relatively good by industry standards. However, the relatively few telephone campaigns employing paid solicitors cost $51.33 for every $100 raised. While this is cause for concern, potential donors should keep in mind that donations raised over the phone account for less than 1% of all donations raised by registered charities, and that only 224 out of 5,000 charities used paid solicitors in 2007. The vast majority of charities are using your donations efficiently and compassionately.

Both Coffman and Suthers particularly warned seniors and their caregivers to be wary of potential scams. They encouraged potential donors to abide by the following three rules for giving:

• Watch out for charities with names that sound similar to well-known organizations
• Do not pay in cash, donate by check made payable to the charity,
• Certain well-known charities will never solicit donations over the phone, and
• Research the charity’s disclosure and financial statements on the Secretary of State’s web site.

Colorado residents will now also have access to the state’s 2007 annual report. The report analyzes and illustrates the registered charities and the subsequent solicitation campaigns for the past year.