Watchdog Watch

April 9, 1998 | Read Time: 2 minutes

Following are summaries of recent reports by the Council of Better Business Bureaus’ Philanthropic Advisory Service.

The service reports on whether charities meet standards for fund raising, governance, financial management, and public information. The service cautions that it does not approve or disapprove of charities, and it urges potential donors to evaluate the importance of variations from the standards. The service also notes that charities’ practices may change at any time.

In the list of organizations that do not meet the standards, information is given only on 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; World-Wide Web http://www.bbb.org.

American Cancer Society, 1599 Clifton Road, N.E., Atlanta 30329. Meets all standards.

Christian Relief Services, 8815 Telegraph Road, Lorton, Va. 22079-1530. Meets all standards.

Friends of Animals, 777 Post Road, Suite 205, Darien, Conn. 06820. Meets all standards.

National Cancer Coalition, 320 Andover Park East, Suite 245, Seattle 98188. As of February 2, the National Cancer Coalition had not responded to the bureau’s request for current information about its finances, programs, and governance. The bureau is unable to determine if N.C.C. meets its 23 standards.

National Foundation for Cancer Research (also known as Cancer Research Laboratories Foundation), 7315 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 500W, Bethesda, Md. 20814. Meets all standards.

National Humane Education Society, P.O. Box 837, 521-A East Market Street, Leesburg, Va. 20176. Does not meet the standard calling for the soliciting organization’s financial statements to present adequate information to serve as a basis for informed decisions, including, but not limited to, accurate presentation of all fund-raising costs, nor the standard calling for the soliciting organization to have an independent governing body whose directly and/or indirectly compensated board members constitute not more than one-fifth of the total voting membership of the board or executive committee.