Reports on Charities

Following are summaries of recent reports by the Council of Better Business Bureaus´ Philanthropic Advisory Service and the National Charities Information Bureau.

Those two private organizations report on whether charities meet standards for fund raising, governance, financial management, and public information. The organizations do not approve or disapprove of charities, and urge potential donors to evaluate the importance of variations from the standards. They also note that charities´ practices may change at any time.

For organizations that do not meet the standards, information is given only on those standards that are not met. Those organizations meet all the other standards.

Copies of the full reports are available from the Council of Better Business Bureaus, Philanthropic Advisory Service, 4200 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, Va. 22203; http://www.bbb.org; and the National Charities Information Bureau, 19 Union Square West, New York 10003; http://www.give.org.

BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU

Anxiety Disorders Association of America, 11900 Parklawn Drive, Suite 100, Rockville, Md. 20852; http://www.adaa.org. As of March 27, the organization had not provided current information about its finances, programs,and governance. The bureau is unable to determine if the A.D.A.A. meets its 23 standards.

Catholic Relief Services, 209 West Fayette Street, Baltimore 21201-3443; http://www.catholicrelief.org. Does not meet the standard calling for the soliciting organization to provide on request an annual report that contains information about the organization´s financial position.

Gladney Center for Adoption, 2300 Hemphill Street, Fort Worth 76110; http://www.gladney.org. Does not meet the standard calling for the soliciting organization to provide on request an annual report, or the standard calling for the soliciting organization to provide on request complete annual financial statements. The bureau notes it is unable to verify compliance with 15 other standards.

Heifer Project International, P.O. Box 8058, Little Rock, Ark. 72203; http://www.heifer.org. Meets all standards.

National Multiple Sclerosis Society, 733 Third Avenue, Sixth Floor, New York 10017-3288; http://www.nmss.org. Meets all standards.

National Youth Leadership Forum, 1110 Vermont Avenue, N.W., Suite 330, Washington 20005; http://www.nylf.org. Does not meet the standard calling for the soliciting organization to have an adequate governing structure that, among other things, ensures any policy-making decisions are made by no fewer than three persons.

Paralyzed Veterans of America, 801 18th Street, N.W., Washington 20006; http://www.pva.org. Meets all standards.

Save the Children Federation, 54 Wilton Road, Westport, Conn. 06880; http://www.savethechildren.org. Meets all standards.

Special Olympics, 1325 G Street, N.W., Suite 500, Washington 20005-3104; http://www.specialolympics.org. Meets all standards.

St. Matthew Publishing, P.O. Box 21210, Tulsa, Okla. 74121. As of May 31, the organization had not provided current information about its finances, programs, and governance. The bureau is unable to determine if St. Matthew Publishing meets its 23 standards.

United Children´s Fund, 1747 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Suite 1000, Washington 20006. As of April 11, the organization had not provided current information about its finances, programs, and governance. The bureau is unable to determine if UCF meets its 23 standards.

NATIONAL CHARITIES INFORMATION BUREAU

Conservation International Foundation, 2501 M Street, N.W., Suite 200, Washington 20037; http://www.conservation.org. Does not meet the standard calling for the organization to have no more than one paid staff member, usually the chief staff officer, who shall not chair the board or serve as treasurer, or the standard calling for the organization to provide an annual report that includes an explicit narrative description of the organization´s major activities, presented in the same major categories and covering the same fiscal period as the audited financial statements.

MAP International, 2200 Glynco Parkway, P.O. Box 215000, Brunswick, Ga. 31521-5000; http://www.map.org. Does not meet the standard calling for the organization not to have a persistent deficit in net current assets.