Читать книгу The Law of Fundraising - Bruce R. Hopkins - Страница 38

As is attested to throughout the book, the methods and extent of government regulation of fundraising are controversial. This section provides the viewpoints of a seasoned regulator of charitable fundraising.⁵⁸

Although the charitable sector makes significant contributions to society and has been experiencing astonishing growth, it is no different from any other sector of the economy in that it has its share of unscrupulous individuals who seek to profit by defrauding innocent donors out of their hard-earned income and, in some cases, their lifetime savings. These fraudulent schemes harm not only contributors, who respond in the mistaken belief they are helping charitable causes, but also the charitable community, in that each new scandal hurts legitimate charitable organizations by increasing skepticism in the giving public.

The states have the difficult, but essential, tasks of protecting their citizens from charlatans who prey on their charitable natures while challenging them to recognize that all are benefited when worthy charitable organizations are generously supported. The role of the states becomes even more critical when major governmental cutbacks shift the responsibility for relieving many of society's burdens to the charitable sector. The purpose of the states' charitable solicitation acts is to protect the states' residents and legitimate charitable organizations.

The state charitable solicitation acts generally serve two important purposes: (1) they allow the public to get basic information about organizations asking for contributions so donors can make better, more informed charitable giving decisions; and (2) they help protect state residents from charitable solicitation fraud and misrepresentation.