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Non-profit Industry NOTE: There were an estimated 161,000 non-profit and voluntary organizations operated in Canada in 2003, posting $112 billion in revenues. |
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TORONTO - One of Ontario's big hospital charities has fired its CEO and called in the police after forensic accountants turned up serious money and charity management problems. (Toronto Star) PREVIOUS: Boss hires own firm Jim Szeman
MONCTON - Beverly Lumsden, who now goes by Beverly Mitchell, is wanted on fraud charges in Alberta in connection with the Canadian Progress Club and the Rotary Club. Moncton-area police have not received any complaints about Mitchell or the charity she founded in Riverview in May, called The Grasshopper Foundation. (CBC)
LONDON - The reports, which are for the year ending 31 August 2010, show three chains – Ark Schools, Harris Federation and the United Learning Trust - awarded already high-earning staff performance-related bonuses, or increased their pension, salary and bonus packages from the previous year. (Guardian UK)
NEW YORK - The Long Island-based Coalition Against Breast Cancer (CABC) solicited $9.1M from the public over the past five years. Almost all of it was spent on fundraiser fees, salaries and benefits packages and personal purchases. (Fox)
IRS revokes non-profit exemptions WASHINGTON – The Internal Revenue Service announced that approximately 275,000 formerly tax-exempt organizations have lost their charitable status as a result of failing to file the proper forms. (Forbes) REPORT: IRS automatic revocation of exemption list
Nearly $15M of Canadian charitable donations were sent overseas to groups the taxman has labelled terrorist organizations, according to a federal audit. The audit states that International Relief Fund for the Afflicted and Needy Canada (IRFAN-Canada) used "deceptive fundraising" to support Hamas. (Toronto Star) PREVIOUS: Charity loses licence CRA news release
CHARLOTTETOWN - A 38-year-old Charlottetown woman faces four charges in connection with money missing from two non-profit groups - the PEI Federation of Agriculture and the PEI Agriculture Sector Council. (CBC)
Charities' records 'falsified' TORONTO - The Canada Revenue Agency revoked the status of Daniel Mokwe's charities, Revival Time Ministries International and Operation Save Canada's Teenagers. (CBC) MORE: Charities have status revoked
Biathlon Canada loses charity status OTTAWA - The Canada Revenue Agency has revoked the charitable status of a national amateur sports body based in Ottawa. Biathlon Canada is the governing body for the shoot-and-ski sport, and it provides financial support for the national team. (CBC)
The Oshawa Hospital Foundation's chief executive officer is using his own company to run fundraising events for the foundation, including lotteries and gala concerts. Jim Szeman, the supercharged, quick-talking boss of the foundation, said his company Uncommon Results - registered in BC but doing work in Oshawa - provides great service for the foundation he runs. (Toronto Star)
Wholesale 'charitable donations' According to CRA, more than 65,000 Canadians had been reassessed as of December 2008. As a matter of policy, CRA reviews all donation arrangements where donors receive tax receipts in an amount greater than the amount actually paid.(QMI) PREVIOUS: Giving World giving index 2010
Native housing association taken over EDMONTON - Three directors of an aboriginal housing association in Edmonton wrote cheques to themselves with public money worth nearly $700,000, court records suggest. (CBC)
Christ Apostolic Church International - Canada, a Toronto-based charity, has been stripped of its charitable status and faces serious allegations from the Canada Revenue Agency. (CBC)
Native health officials face charges ROSE VALLEY - Three officials from the Yellow Quill First Nation in SK have been charged with theft, after RCMP investigated how money from the Aboriginal Healing Foundation was spent. (CBC) |
Philanthropy in Canada is in the midst of unprecedented upheaval. An uncertain economy threatens to send already dwindling donations from an aging base of givers into permanent decline, while deficit-fighting governments are cutting their support and imposing tougher regulations on agencies that issue tax receipts for the money they collect. (Globe & Mail) MORE: Special interest groups Corporate giving coming with more strings attached Globe life: giving Rewriting rules
OTTAWA - Canadian taxfilers reported making charitable donations of just under $8.3B in 2010. That's a 6.5% increase over 2009. Statistics Canada reports the number of donors also increased - 2.2% to just over 5.7M. (CP) REPORT: Charitable donations 2010 Improper giving tax trouble
19 of Canada’s 100 largest charities do not release their full audited financial statements to the public and refused to provide them to an independent agency that evaluates charities. The website, charityintelligence, breaks down revenue, program costs and fundraising expenses in reports on each of Canada’s 100 richest charities, measured by annual revenue. (Toronto Star) MORE: Charity goes from $0 to $60M in a year
GENEVA - The global economic crisis has claimed a new victim: a $22B health fund that has saved millions of lives in Africa and other low-income regions during the past decade. Wealthy donors in Europe and elsewhere are drastically cutting back on contributions to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. (Globe & Mail) MORE: Global Fund halts funding
BRUSSELS - Britain and the international community stand accused of turning a blind eye to widespread human rights abuses in Ethiopia, by providing billions of dollars of aid despite evidence that it is used as a tool of political oppression. (Bureau) MORE: 'Aid as weapon of oppression' EU ignoring warnings Problem with foreign aid Meles Zenawi
BARRIE - Gordon Ashton, 78, of Innisfil, Ont., has been charged with two counts of fraud over $5,000 and one count of breach of trust. Earlier this month, Neil McKinnon, an 86-year-old Midhurst, Ont., man and former executive board member at the ANAF, was charged with two counts of fraud over $5,000, three counts of theft over $5,000 and criminal breach of trust. (QMI)
REGINA - The Kids First program was being administered by the Regina Circle Project, but at the end of this month it is losing over $400,000 in funding. Low income parents will still have access to supports, just not at the Circle Project. The numbers show that the program was receiving $442,000 a year, yet providing support for only 32 families. That works out to just under $14,000 per family. (CTV)
Charity's registration revoked An audit of the Kitchener, Ont.-based Organ Donation and Transplant Association of Canada found the organization was spending more money on fundraising and administration than on its stated charitable mission. (CityNews)
TORONTO - Only one in four dollars donated to a special pool of money at the Islamic Society of North America Canada (ISNA Canada) actually reached the needy. Mismanagement of more than $600,000 is among the findings in a scathing audit obtained by the Star. (Toronto Star)
The CRA documents reveal that the charity, Canadian Ptach Society Inc., was "endeavouring to make peoples’ illnesses fit the criteria” of a special tax credit intended for disabled Canadians with taxable income. (CBC) DOCUMENT: CRA: Canadian Ptach Society .pdf National Benefit Authority
Charities want their ‘rightful share’ VANCOUVER - Charities that get money from provincial gambling revenues launched an attack on the government saying they are being short-changed. BCACG represents about 1,000 non-profit community service organizations and speaks for the non-profit sector that includes about 5,000 groups. (Vancouver Province) MORE: AB charities face cutbacks if funding changed
IQALUIT - An outside audit of the Nunavut Housing Trust has revealed that the territory's housing corporation ran up $60M in cost overruns due to a flawed budget, supply shortages and higher labour costs. The audit report by Deloitte and Touche found a number of problems with how the $200M housing trust was managed over the past four years. (CBC) |
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OTTAWA - BC aboriginal groups opposed to the Northern Gateway pipeline proposal have received almost $16M in funding between 2008 and 2010 from Coast Opportunity Funds (COF), a group connected to foreign foundations that fund anti-oilsands projects. (QMI) Hearings off to controversial start |
Gateway Pipeline .pdf China has our forests, now our oilfields too Furor over funding allegations Tides Canada throws legal muscle at Krause Gregor Robertson Charity with very long tentacles Robertson and charity funding questions |
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OTTAWA - There are around a million charity workers in Canada. The agency's database shows more than 6,000 of them earned above $120,000 last year. A few hundred made over $350,000. Another 12,000 workers made between $80,000 and $120,000. (CP) |
When it comes to charitable fundraising, fundraisers fare best |
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MOGADISHU - A much-delayed African Union summit held to raise money to tackle famine in Somalia and drought in the Horn of Africa held on Thursday raised $351M officials said, but activists questioned the figure. Out of the $351M announced by Jean Ping, chairman of the AU commission, $300M came from the African Development Bank, to be spent over a four-year period, not to be used to bridge a $1.4B shortfall aid groups say they need for the emergency. (Reuters) |
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PORT-AU-PRINCE - More than 200 non-profit groups and governments around the world rushed to Haiti's aid after the Jan. 12 quake. But the absence of construction cranes and stalled progress on major projects such as hospitals and schools has many people wondering: Where did all that money go? (Miami Herald) Report on transparency of relief organizations |
Death toll may have been inflated Accused wired cash to presidential candidate Non-profit's financial director arrested Haitian kids see some hope in aftermath of quake |
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The World Bank is recommending a major difference in the way aid is spent. A quarter of the world's population live in states affected by conflict. In a report the World Bank says that there should be far more focus on building stable government, and on justice and police, than on health and education. (BBC) World development report 2011 Harper stresses accountability |
19,300 participants & 6,238 abstracts Conference ends with call for more resources Clinton, Gates want value for money Researchers reveal treatment breakthrough Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria How to help without getting scammed |
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TORONTO - ORNGE has paid $11M to lawyers - taxpayer money used to create its now bankrupt for-profit companies, two closed charities and to raise funds on Bay Street. (Toronto Star) |
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More than half the money raised in the name of charity by Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment was spent on fundraising and administration last year. And the story is much the same at many professional sports foundations across Canada, a Star investigation has found. (Toronto Star) MORE: High costs trip up sports charities |
LUSAKA - More than $300M of health funding to Zambia is being suspended by the Global Fund to fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria. It said it was concerned about alleged corruption in connection with one or more grants to the health ministry. (BBC) MORE: Zambia dismisses fears of health crisis Africa progress report 2010 |
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VANCOUVER - On April 8, the CRA sent out a news release announcing that, as a result of its investigation, three people from Victoria were being charged with tax evasion after allegedly selling $7.6M in charity receipts for as little as one-tenth of their face value. (Vancouver Sun) |
ST JOHN'S - A St. John's court heard how an accountant who stole from local charities built and then destroyed the trust of people she claimed to help. Jacqueline Feltham has already pleaded guilty to charges of theft and fraud over $5,000. Feltham defrauded Brighter Futures of almost $215,000. (CBC) |
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A representative for Bono's charity has spoken out after the organisation came under fire for spending more money on wages than on good causes. (QMI) MORE: Non-profit mails media $wag to 'help' hungry Charity defends spending Charities have been good for us |
WASHINGTON - When the poor need legal services but cannot afford them, they turn to Legal Services Corp. (LSC), a federally funded program that provides the poor with legal services (AP) REPORT: Federal Legal Aid vulnerable to fraud |
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TORONTO - A bogus AIDS charity that claimed it was curing disease in Africa with more than $200M in life-saving drugs has been shut down by the Canada Revenue Agency. The Orion Foundation, whose boss had a sideline business involving high class escort agencies, was operated for the “private gain” of the boss and fellow directors, a federal audit concluded. (Toronto Star) |
VICTORIA - An environmental group that released half a dozen chickens in MLA Ida Chong's constituency office earlier this week has apologized for its actions. Will Horter, executive director of Victoria-based Dogwood Initiative, says his group didn't technically hatch the plan, but the activists who carried it out are associated with Dogwood. (CTV) PREVIOUS: Humane Society criticizing use of live chickens Chickens chucked |
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Subsidies have been good for us MEXICO CITY - When Mexico and the US were entering a landmark free trade agreement 16 years ago, one thing was clear: Mexican farmers would initially find it difficult to compete with heavily subsidized US agricultural products. The solution: Mexico created a special fund to dole out cash to the poorest and smallest farmers. (LA Times) |
OTTAWA - That's the price tag for a seat on the proposed Interim Haitian Recovery Commission that is expected to be one of the key announcements to be made this week at the New York international donors' conference on Haiti. (CP) MORE: Canada's aid agencies discuss reconstruction 2010 Haiti earthquake |
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MONTREAL – The head of a non-profit agency overseeing Canada’ shift to electronic medical records has racked up more than a $1M taxpayer-funded retirement pension - after a mere six years on the job, a QMI investigation shows. (QMI) |
Charities worried by new focus OTTAWA - Some Ottawa charities fear they will lose their United Way funding as a result of the group's new focus on specific goals and measurable results. (CBC) MORE: United Way: focus and goals NGOs' expect your tax dollars |
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Researcher barred from funding CALGARY - Officials at the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) say they have barred the scientist from funding "indefinitely." (CanWest) |
OTTAWA - A request by the Interac Association to allow the debit payment processor to become a for-profit business was turned down by the federal Competition Bureau. (CP) |
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Boys & Girls have been good for us WASHINGTON - A group of Republican senators is questioning high salaries and expensive travel bills for executives at the Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA), raising issues that could jeopardize millions in federal funding for the national charity. The four senators said they were concerned that the chief executive of a charity that has been closing local clubs for lack of funding was compensated nearly $1M in 2008. (AP) |
Aid program marred by 'ripoff' TORONTO - An 80% markup for wheelchair vendors who are often closely associated with the doctors and therapists prescribing them. These are just a few of the problems rampant in the program that helps the chronically ill and elderly get wheelchairs in Ontario - a $347M-a-year cash cow that Auditor General Jim McCarter says is getting milked of scarce health-care funds. (Sun Media) REPORT: 2009 annual report .pdf |
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TORONTO - "As a registered charity, CFPAF will receive a royalty fee of $2.25 for every set of regular series plates sold with the yellow ribbon graphic and $4.50 for every set of personalized licence plates," says Sarbjit Kaur. Sun reporter Don "Pistol" Peat did the math and determined the charity gets 1.43% of the sale of the $314 plates and 2.89% on the $77.75 set. (Sun Media) MORE: Ontario offers 'Support Our Troops' plates 'Support Our Troops' |
Appointed pension board members flee LOS ANGELES - The president of Los Angeles' largest employee retirement system has resigned, becoming the 6th pension appointee to quit over the last six months. Eric Holoman stepped down last week from the Los Angeles City Employees' Retirement System board (LACERS) after Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a law placing new limits on private financial work performed by publicly appointed pension board members. (LA Times) |
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TORONTO - A Canadian charity has lost its licence after auditors found most of the $184M it recorded during one year as charitable donations had gone offshore to a Bermuda company. (Toronto Star) MORE: CRA revokes status of 2 charities |
While people worry about fraud or wasteful spending at big charities, abuse often occurs much closer to home - at the trusted local PTA or soccer club. (MSNBC) REPORT: An investigation of fraud in non-profit organizations .pdf |
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Non-profit has been good for us LOS ANGELES - Theirs is a classic tale of entrepreneurial success - except their wealth comes from running a non-profit that is sustained by taxpayer dollars. Federal law says that executive pay must be "reasonable" - a vague standard that regulators and watchdogs say essentially allows nonprofits to set their own limits. (LA Times) |
Ottawa targets rogue charities OTTAWA - Charities that use the bulk of their donations on high-priced fundraisers, or lie to donors to get money, face tough new rules making it easier for the government to suspend or revoke their charitable status. MORE: Charities Directorate Consultation on proposed guidance on activities outside of Canada Recession hurting charities across Canada |
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TORONTO - The SickKids Foundation gave former president Michael O'Mahoney a $2.7M golden parachute when they showed him the door early this year, documents reveal. . (Toronto Star) MORE: SickKids copes with drop in donations SickKids loses top-paid fundraisers |
OTTAWA - Police have charged the past president of the Leitrim Minor Hockey Association with stealing more than $130,000 from the volunteer organization. David Lawrence Barker, 54, has been charged with 14 charges of fraud over $5,000, forgery, money laundering and criminal breach of trust. (Sun Media) |
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VANCOUVER - 53% of BC’s non-profits were hit by a drop in revenue this fiscal year, according to the survey of non-profit groups conducted by the Vancouver Foundation in September. (Vancouver Sun) REPORT: Weathering the storm survey 2009 .pdf Recession takes toll on Calgary charities |
Non-profit lobbying group a political force WASHINGTON - The US Chamber of Commerce (USCC) is building a large-scale grass-roots political operation that has begun to rival those of the major political parties, funded by record-setting amounts of money raised from corporations and wealthy individuals. (LA Times) |
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DTES's mysterious non-profit machine VANCOUVER - Navigating the labyrinth of Downtown Eastside non-profit groups is no easy task. It is something former Vancouver Burrard MLA Lorne Mayencourt tried over several years without any luck. (Vancouver Province) |
OTTAWA - The CRA ruling found that Healing and Assistance Not Dependence Canada expended a “proportionally negligible amount” of its income on charitable activities, making it ineligible to grant tax receipts. (Ottawa Citizen) |
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Non-profit cuts ties with national program Officials in the Yukon say the national Breakfast for Learning organization wants to consolidate its programs, operations and fundraising out of its Toronto head office, which would mean dissolving all its regional boards. (CBC) PREVIOUS: National breakfast for learning |
Walk into almost any store this month, and you'll be hit with a wash of pink products - pink clogs, pink vegetable peelers, pink cleaning products, even pink food - sold in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. (Daily Finance) MORE: Think before you pink Pink overload Companies seek social media experts |
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Non-profit quiet about missing funds VICTORIA - Court records show the BC Association of Aboriginal Friendship Centres (BCAAFC) took legal action in 2008 to recover $186,732.26, allegedly taken by its former financial co-ordinator Leah Bussieres (also known as Leah Norman) over a period of three years. (CBC) |
WRHA, Health Canada cut off charity WINNIPEG - Over the past seven years, International Hope Canada has sent 25 40-foot containers filled with hospital beds, crutches, canes, wheelchairs, unused sutures and bandages overseas to community hospitals in the Third World. (Winnipeg Free Press) MORE: Health authority says no to hope |
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VANCOUVER - An employee has embezzled more than $400,000 from the BC Amateur Softball Association, the organization's president Dennis Bidin said. (Vancouver Sun) |
Charity theft after biker fundraiser VANCOUVER - The Westcoast Motorcycle Ride for Dad was robbed of up to $22,000 after its annual ride in Surrey. More than 1,800 riders came out to support the cause. (CTV) |
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TORONTO - Uwe Marshner, 60, is wanted for fraud, laundering proceeds of crime and two counts of uttering a forged document. Marshner was the program general manager of Rouge Valley's mental health program. (Sun Media) |
No more roadkill moose for charities ST. JOHN'S - Charitable organizations in Newfoundland and Labrador are upset after the provincial government recently discontinued the donation of roadkill moose meat, saying the decision strips them of a vital source of fundraising. (CP) |
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LONDON - Staff at a government-backed fund supposed to help some of the poorest people in the world have been awarded £65M ($97M) in bonuses. The fund was part of the Department for International Development (DFID) until it was part-privatized in 2004. Charity workers say the government has allowed the fund, Actis, to skew Britain’s priorities overseas in its pursuit of high returns by depriving poor rural communities of investment. (Times online)MORE: Inside the poverty goldmine |
WINNIPEG - The former head of a Manitoba addictions treatment centre was sentenced to three years in prison for an elaborate fraud scheme that robbed the federal government of several million dollars. Perry Fontaine was also ordered to pay a restitution order of $2.36M, which is the amount he personally received through the scam. (Winnipeg Free Press) MORE: Former director jailed Virginia Fontaine Memorial Treatment Centre Controversy Health Canada report |
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Student loan charity under fire WASHINGTON - For 20 years, Catherine Reynolds has guided the non-profit student loan charity Educap as it's lent billions of dollars to hundreds of thousands of college students. (CBS) MORE: Loan charity's high-flying guests exposed Who is Catherine Reynolds? Probers looking at mayor Daley’s international travels |
BLANTYRE - Ex-Malawian President Bakili Muluzi has been arrested, accused of stealing $11M in donor money, says the country's Anti-Corruption Bureau. The ACB said Mr Muluzi had been charged on 80 counts of allegedly siphoning aid cash into his private account. (BBC) PREVIOUS: CIDA-Malawi government assistance project (GAP) |
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Kids' charity has licence yanked TORONTO - The Children's Emergency Foundation (CEF) was exposed by the Toronto Star in 2007 as one of six health charities that raised tens of millions of dollars in Canada but spent 70% of the money on telemarketers and other expenses. (Toronto Star) PREVIOUS: Charitable empire has high costs |
No church cash in alleged scheme TORONTO - The Canadian ministry behind 100 Huntley Street said that church money was not misappropriated by two of the TV show's hosts who have been suspended over alleged links to a $14.1M Ponzi scheme. (CP) MORE: Huntley St hosts suspended during probe |
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MARDAN - A banned jihadi charity accused of links to November's Mumbai attacks has resurfaced in north-western Pakistan, where it is running an extensive aid programme for people fleeing fighting in Swat. (Guardian UK) MORE: Displacement camps: a study in contrasts |
TORONTO - Want to have sex with a high-priced call girl without your wife or boss knowing? Or, how about actually earning money by making charitable donations? James Arion, formerly James Aryan, formerly Eleftherios "Terry" Kambouris, is your man. (Toronto Star) |
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NANAIMO - The employees of a charity that said it was sending boatloads of medical supplies and other aid overseas have been caught using donations to fly between their summer home on a BC island and their winter getaway in Nice, France. The audit of the Universal Aide Society also slammed the charity's relief shipment brokering scheme and it named other charities that participated but are still operating. (Toronto Star) |
LONDON - Hundreds of millions of dollars have been wasted on rural water projects in Africa because the donors and aid agencies that built them ignored maintenance, a new report claimed. London-based research organization the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) said about 50,000 water supply points across rural Africa had failed, representing a loss of $215 to $360M US dollars. (AFP) |
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OTTAWA - The Canadian Arab Federation (CAF) has lost its bid for an injunction to prevent Immigration Minister Jason Kenney from cutting funding to the group, which he says supports terrorist organizations. (Toronto Star) PREVIOUS: CAF taking Kenney to court Feds end some CAF funding Ottawa undertakes audit of hatred, terrorism 'Zionist campaign' CAF letter asks PM to muzzle minister Subsidizing hatred Big Brother |
Charity stripped of its status OTTAWA - A charity has been stripped of its status after issuing more than $169 million in income tax receipts, but paying out just $2,200 to a qualified cause. The Canada Revenue Agency stripped The Millennium Charitable Foundation of its charitable status, saying the group was operating for the private benefit of tax shelter promoters. (CP) PREVIOUS: Taxman strikes out Little League Baseball CRA revokes charitable status Charity suspension |
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Sponsor has to pull out of Easter fundraiser DARTMOUTH - Cadbury has been the major sponsor for 7 years, providing about 25,000 chocolate eggs that are scattered around the park. But Cadbury has recently joined the Children's Food & Beverage Advertising Initiative, which prevents member companies from marketing to children under 12. (CBC) |
Job training: taxpayers taken for a ride VICTORIA - At least one company that helps people on welfare find jobs was billing the government for services it never provided, billed more than once when it did provide services and charged an administration fee of as much as $18 to distribute a $6.40 bus ticket. (Tyee) |
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Next chapter in battle of the non-profits TORONTO - A prominent animal cruelty investigator with the Toronto Humane Society (THS) was arrested and paraded out in handcuffs before the media, and another OSCPA agent was fired from his job and arrested for allegedly tipping off the THS that they'd be targeted for investigation. (QMI) |
'Bad blood' between non-profits |
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WATERLOO - Waterloo Regional Police and the RCMP say Imagine Adoption agency founder Susan Hayhow and general manager Rick Hayhow were arrested. (CP) |
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Corruption has doubled since 2007 KABUL - Corruption in Afghanistan has doubled in the two years since 2007, according to a survey by anti-corruption charity Integrity Watch. Afghans paid nearly $1B in bribes in 2009, with almost a third of those surveyed saying they had had to pay a bribe to obtain a public service. More than half said state corruption was fuelling the Taliban's growth. (BBC) |
Afghan perceptions of corruption 2010 BC aid worker one of the victims CIDA to reduce liability for aid workers |
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Fund's charitable status revoked TORONTO - Just $1 out of every $100 donated to the Choson Kallah Fund of Toronto in certain years went to relieve poverty, an audit by the federal charity regulator concluded. (Toronto Star) RELATED: Fewer, but larger, donations in 2007: StatsCan StatsCan: Charitable donors 2007 |
Tsunami funds diverted to tourism KERALA - According to a report by the London-based Tourism Concern, the Kerala state government has allocated almost £10 million of the central government’s Tsunami Rehabilitation Programme money to the state tourism board, Kerala Tourism. (Telegraph UK) |
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MONTREAL - A Montreal charity, H.B. Arts Foundation Ltd., has been stripped of its charitable status by the Canada Revenue Agency. Between 2003 and 2006, H.B. Arts purportedly received in excess of $13 million in donations and paid $650,611 in professional fees. In the same period, it reported a meagre $15,344 in charitable activity, the CRA said. (Montreal Gazette) |
OTTAWA - Foreign aid officials and critics alike are asking if a program that helped Canadian firms make icewine and lingerie in China is the best way to fight global poverty. Now, critics are wondering why the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) still sends aid to one of the world's emerging economic superpowers. (CP) RELATED: China becomes 3rd largest economy |
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Orphans' Fund sale harpooned by red tape VANCOUVER - CKNW planned to hold its annual Orphans' Fund herring sale in New Westminster on Sunday. But last week Department of Fisheries and Oceans officials canned the event because of a 2006 ruling in the federal Court of Appeal. (Vancouver Province) MORE: Noah's Ark Retold: 2007 Canadian version |
Nonprofit spends $0 on its charitable purpose LOS ANGELES - The charity, launched by a scandal-ridden Los Angeles chapter of the Service Employees International Union, had total expenses of about $165,000 for 2005 and 2006, and all of the money went to consulting fees, insurance costs and other overhead, according to its Internal Revenue Service filings. (Los Angeles Times) |
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The International Charity Association Network (ICAN) embellished the amount of donations it received over a three-year period as well as the amount of good work it did in the community, says the federal charity regulator. (Toronto Star) |
Hard to see which programs help Ottawa and Ontario have implemented myriad programs from language training to mentoring to help newcomers integrate into the Canadian labour market, but are they working? (Toronto Star) RELATED: Study tracks refugees' progress |
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Church stripped of charitable status HAMILTON - The Dominion Centre of Canada was stripped of its charitable status. (CTV) MORE: Gucci divine Church denies misusing funds |
Charity co-founder stole over $128K VICTORIA - A founding member of the Help Fill a Dream Foundation pleaded guilty to fraud over $5,000. (Times Colonist) |
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WASHINGTON - Canadian mining entrepreneur Frank Giustra was among the top tier of wealthy donors to Bill Clinton’s private foundation, ranking alongside Microsoft chairman Bill Gates and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on a complete list of contributors released for the first time by the former president. (CanWest) Clinton Foundation contributors list |
Vetting Bill Clinton Bill Clinton Clinton - Giustra sustainable growth initiative Clinton undermined Saudi bombing probe |
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VANCOUVER - Rocky Mountain Return Center Ltd., which runs a recycling depot in New Westminster, was found to have been paid excessive fees by Encorp Pacific, a non-profit corporation that oversees the recycling of most beverage containers in BC. (Vancouver Province) |
Charity loses appeal against tax police OTTAWA - A Supreme Court decision reaffirms that tax cops can snoop through a charity's records to audit its donors. In a 4-3 ruling, the court dismissed Redeemer Foundation’s appeal in its case against the Minister of National Revenue (Canada Revenue Agency). (Hamilton Spectator) JUDGMENT: 2008 SCC 46 |
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Charities being held to account TORONTO - A total of 120 charities have signed a new code of ethics that promises donors honesty and more bang for their buck. "These charities are aspiring to be the best in the way they conduct fundraising. They want to be ethical and they want to be known to be ethical," said Georgina Steinsky-Schwartz, president of Imagine Canada. (Toronto Star) PREVIOUS: Watchdog sets charity rules List of 'ethical' charities |
NEW YORK - Two prominent national non-profit groups are reeling from public disclosures that large sums of money were misappropriated in unrelated incidents by an employee and a former employee. The groups, Acorn, one of the country’s largest community organizing groups, and the Points of Light Institute, which works to encourage civic activism and volunteering, have dealt with the problems in very different ways. (New York Times) |
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LUXEMBOURG - The European Court of Justice has given the EU three months to inform al-Barakaat International Foundation why its funds were frozen. (BBC) PREVIOUS: EU court rules on suspected terror funds Golden Chain UN suppression list |
Red Cross yet to spend $200M of tsunami cash OTTAWA - More than three years after the Asian tsunami devastated several countries, $200 million of the $360 million donated to the Canadian Red Cross has still not been spent. (Toronto Star) |
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An Islamic charity with ties to Al Qaeda and the Taliban is now collaborating with an unlikely new partner: UNICEF, the United Nations’ Children’s Fund. UNICEF has signed a “memorandum of understanding” with the International Islamic Relief Organization (IIRO), a Saudi charity of massive scope that keeps branches in more than 20 countries and has over 100 offices worldwide. (FOX) |
CALGARY - In his statement of claim, filed with the Court of Queen's Bench, Kenneth Robertson argues he helped found the Light Up the World Foundation in 2001 and was terminated without sufficient notice or compensation in March 2007. The six-page document names the foundation and the University of Calgary, where the non-profit organization is based, as defendants. (Calgary Herald) |
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Overseer of Rama profits eats up millions OTTAWA - Millions of Casino Rama dollars meant to help lift First Nations out of poverty have been swallowed by legal fees, unexplained expenses and payments to at least one band that doesn't officially exist, suggest newly released audits. (Toronto Star) MORE: Probe urged in Rama payouts |
Banyan Tree charitable foundation OTTAWA - Revenue Minister Gordon O'Connor said Tuesday his department will consider delisting the Banyan Tree charitable foundation after the Canada Revenue Agency called it a sham. (CBC) PREVIOUS: Foundation still registered as charity Donors owe millions |
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Non-profit’s lottery distributes school funds VICTORIA - The BC Government came under fire for allowing a parent organization to distribute $1 million in provincial grants for playground equipment using a random lottery. (Vancouver Sun) PREVIOUS: Poorest 30% of schools ineligible Political hopscotch over playgrounds Playground politics West side parents not allowed to give away playground grant |
OTTAWA - Canadian tax experts warn taxpayers to steer clear of charity donation programs that earn a profit for the donor. So-called tax shelter gifting arrangements undermine federal and provincial charitable tax credit provisions and hurt the charities they are supposed to be aiding, tax experts say. (Edmonton Journal) REPORT: Kicking a gift horse in the teeth .pdf |
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Fundraiser dogged by controversy TORONTO - Red Fridays Foundation is a registered business founded by Brian Muntz, but it accepts - and, indeed, solicits - donations. Muntz has not applied to the Canada Revenue Agency to be a registered charity, but says he intends to. (Toronto Star) MORE: 'Red Rally' rolls down Highway of Heroes |
BBC sorry for keeping charity cash LONDON - The BBC today apologized for keeping £106,000 made from premium-rate phone calls on about two dozen shows that should have been given to charity. The issue involved the BBC Worldwide subsidiary Audiocall, which provides premium-rate phone lines to many BBC shows. (Guardian UK) |
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OTTAWA - New value-for-money audits to better track how Indian Affairs spends billions of dollars will catch misappropriation, lax reporting and - in rare cases - fraud, says the minister in charge. (CTV) |
ICAN suspended by Federal regulator TORONTO - The federal charity regulator has taken the rare step of suspending a Toronto charity that claims to have given $244 million in aid to the poor – but hasn't provided the proof to back that up. (Toronto Star) |
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Sikh Temple terror links alleged VANCOUVER - More than five years after a Surrey Sikh temple was denied charitable status for alleged terrorist links, it is still raising funds, holding weekly prayer services and hosting community events like last April's controversial Vaisakhi parade. The groups running the temple are both registered non-profit societies in BC, despite a secret Canada Revenue Agency report that said they "may be functioning as part of a support network" for the terrorist International Sikh Youth Federation. (Sun) PREVIOUS: Sikh Terrorists |
Charitable empire has high costs The pleas for cash are delivered by charities whose names alone could soften even the most callous into making a donation. Cancer Recovery Foundation. Childhood Asthma Foundation. Children's Emergency Foundation. Starting from addresses around Toronto and now from his new, three-storey lakefront house in Muskoka, 57-year-old fundraising consultant Craig Copland has helped create an empire of health charities that has taken tens of millions of dollars from Canadians. (Toronto Star) MORE: Xentel DM board of directors Xentel DM |
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SCC says kids sports leagues aren't charities OTTAWA - Groups that promote and organize youth sports do not qualify for charitable status under the Income Tax Act, the Supreme Court of Canada said Friday in a ruling with consequences for volunteer and community sporting bodies across the country. (CanWest) JUDGMENT: AYSA v. Canada, 2007 SCC 42 |
Native group misspent $6.4M, audit reveals WINNIPEG - A Manitoba native group misspent more than $6 million in federal health-care funds on exotic trips and unjustified payments to the organization's CEO, a federal audit has revealed. MORE: Audit of Anishinaabe Mino-Ayaawin Inc. (AMA) 1998-2005 Funding irregularities referred to RCMP $7M misspent, health-care audit finds |
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OTTAWA - The North American Missing Children's Association, a national organization that solicits donations door to door, has had its registered charity status revoked after an investigation by the Citizen into the group's finances. (Ottawa Citizen) |
United Way chair fined for Livent misconduct TORONTO - The head of the United Way in Canada and two other auditors face fines and legal costs totalling $1.55M for professional misconduct in the Livent Inc. accounting scandal. (Toronto Star) |
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UN turns blind eye to million dollar aid fraud UN - Tsunami reconstruction funds worth $500 million (US) are being lost to fraud and corruption because of the failure by the United Nations to implement its own anti-fraud measures. (SMH) |
Canada's coffers have been cheated of more than $1.4 billion by scams that provided taxpayers with inflated charitable receipts they used to reduce their income tax. (Toronto Star) |
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Few Canadian charities audited OTTAWA - Fewer than 1% of charities are audited in Canada, despite a post-9/11 crackdown on terrorist financing, the Air India inquiry heard Thursday. University of Toronto law professor David Duff testified that the Canada Revenue Agency was auditing more charities in the mid-1990s when concerns arose because the terrorist Babbar Khalsa had been given tax-exempt status. (CanWest) For Hezbollah: cheap smokes, fake Viagra |
Despite billions wasted, more foreign aid needed Canada Revenue officials doing what they can Information on suspicious charities stalled for years, inquiry told Agency unclear how terror information used Millions in terrorist assets flowing free Tracking the funding of terror Vancouver Sun: Air India bombing Air India Inquiry Air India Flight 182 Aid not reaching Afghan hospital CIDA criticized for lack of accountability |
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Funding scandal claims minister TORONTO A scandal over $32 million in grants to multicultural groups has cost Ontario Immigration and Citizenship Minister Michael Colle his job and jolted Premier Dalton McGuinty’s government with an election just 11 weeks away. (Toronto Star) Colle resigns over auditor's report Police arrest 6 more in HRDC probe HRDC - Grants and Contributions |
Organ Donation and Transplant Association Fundraiser for Colle links group that got 'slush fund' Colle aide's group tied to 'slush funds' Ontario 'slush fund' figure has peculiar ties Website exposes dodgy daycares Dirty little secrets: abuse in daycare |
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VANCOUVER - The Downtown Eastside Residents Association, long time housing advocates, and its executive director are facing a lawsuit alleging they owe $400,000 in unpaid rent and city taxes on three rental buildings. (Vancouver Province) |
BC sues non-profit housing agency |
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EDMONTON - A convicted fraudster's elaborate web of lies unravelled in court Friday before he was sentenced to 3½ years in prison for committing a $634,000 fraud. Lloyd Carr, a former executive director with the Alberta Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission, pleaded guilty in February to defrauding the government agency between 2004 and 2006. (Edmonton Journal) |
Former senior bureaucrat put behind bars Alta. agency director probed for theft Public donations list would put rumours to rest |
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The presidency of the national Metis organization remains in limbo after an Ontario judge suspended the operations of its elected body. The presidency has been in dispute since July 31, when the Metis National Council board of governors ousted Clem Chartier, of Buffalo Narrows, and replaced him with the president of the BC Metis, Bruce Dumont. (Saskatoon Star Phoenix) Cheques in mail, huckster on phone Residential school payouts a magnet for fraud, drug dealers Cabinet approves $2B residential school deal |
Three families, three ways to heal No going home for kids sent to foster homes Defending the biggest legal pay day in Canadian history Regina lawyer's fee: up to $40M Dispute delays payments to victimized natives Lawyers set to be paid $80M in school abuse deal Cabinet approves $2B residential school deal Woodlands survivor calls cheque an insult BC Institutional Legacy Trust Fund |
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VICTORIA - BC drivers who have their licences suspended under new drunk-driving prohibitions can't return to the road while they appeal their penalties. Even if an appeal is successful through the 21-day process - say, because a blood-alcohol reader malfunctioned or the police officer made a mistake - the driver would have lost his or her licence for that time, with no way to reverse the penalty. (Victoria Times Colonist) |
Police not charging enough drunk drivers When failure to police yourself becomes a crime MADD disputes donations charge Fundraising furor sparks audit at MADD MADD's outspoken founder punished MADD's costs' anger charity's volunteers |
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Charities admit fundraising mess TORONTO - Two prominent Canadian charities – Sick Kids Foundation and World Vision Canada – have admitted to using a discredited fundraising technique and are moving swiftly to clean up their act. (Toronto Star) Great charities can be found, but it takes legwork Charity tax dodge entangles parish Canadians suspicious of church charities Charities sue OPM over exclusion Corruption's take: $148 Billion EU reveals increase in aid fraud |
Charitable sector needs policing World's wealthiest "nonprofit" institution US donations to Africa outstrip Europe Nigeria to get $18B debt relief Aid stolen by Nigeria's corrupt rulers |
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Tax office rejects credits to BC literacy charity 2005 a record year for Canadian charitable giving Activity in non-profit sector outpaces economy Funding drying for climate change programs $425M for tsunami victims never arrived Canadian International Development Agency Audit says FEMA squanders Katrina Aid Following the Katrina money trail Consultants pocket $20B of global aid Canadian OXFAM cited for rank hypocrisy Charitable donations soar to $6.5B in 2003 Virginia Fontaine Memorial Treatment centre controversy |
Aid groups wearing out welcome Rally uses children as 'props' Charity's bingo licence on ice Where did the tidal wave of money go? For small donors, charity a matter of trust Federal fund gives millions to charity tax cheats Satellite account non-profit institutions 1997-2003 Charities put city on $9M hook Asian Tsunami: Where's the Canadian Aid? Aid groups have spent half of collected money Most of US budget spent on consultants Charities exert political influence Charities not always what they portray National Survey of Non-profit Organizations Non-profit institutions: Economic contribution Congress probes tax-exempt group actions Donors warned about professional fundraisers Some officers of charities steer assets to selves Where do charities get their revenue? |
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The conclusions of the Canadian Federation of Students recently released report on Muslim students were dutifully reported by the CBC, the Toronto Star and a dozen other media outlets. Less attention was paid to how the report reached these conclusions, and who comprised this task force. (Sun Media) |
Exotic dancers' 'stigma' too much for charity The Breast Cancer Society of Canada has rejected the offer of thousands of dollars from a fundraising group of exotic dancers in Vancouver. Exotic Dancers for Cancer holds an annual charity event in memory of a former dancer who lost her life to the disease. (CBC) |
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HAMILTON - The Morgan Firestone Foundation, which dispenses millions of dollars a year to Canadian charities, has launched an investigation into its own financial affairs. (Hamilton Spectator) MORE: Dowhaniuk's sudden resignation shocks his friends |
REGINA - Department of Community Resources officials first became aware of problems at the Oyate Safe House in July 2003 - just over two months after the ill-fated Regina facility opened its doors. (Regina Leader-Post) PREVIOUS: Oyate Safe House anything but safe Oyate House for teens riddled with problems |
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EDMONTON - Alberta's biggest charity walk, which raises millions of dollars from thousands of participants each year, spends about 40 cents of every dollar on costs, according to information on its website. "One hundred per cent of all donations go directly to Alberta Cancer Foundation," according to the website. The foundation contracts the organization of the walk to a company called CauseForce Inc., but Linda Mickelson, CEO of the foundation, wouldn't say how much the firm charges, citing confidentiality. MORE: CauseForce CEO Brian Pendleton |
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TORONTO - A pair of Canadian non-profit organizations the RCMP says raised millions of dollars for Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tigers rebels have been ordered to forfeit all their belongings to the federal government. The Federal Court ruled the property of the World Tamil Movement of Ontario and the World Tamil Movement of Quebec was owned or controlled by a terrorist organization and therefore had to be forfeited. (National Post) Assets from the World Tamil Movement Tamils angry to see group on list Canada brands Tamil group as terrorist front Non-profit group added to terrorism list |
Status revoked Charity status revoked Tamil terror group's manual revealed Tamil Tigers operations manual Tamil movement held to account Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam LTTE Alleged terrorist financier once headed Vancouver non-profit Tigers use pressure to raise funds, police say |
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Muslim charity convicted of funding terrorism DALLAS - The leaders of what was once the largest Muslim charity in the United States were found guilty of acting as a front for Palestinian militants in the largest terrorism financing prosecution in American history. (AFP) |
Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development |
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WASHINGTON - The quarterly report by US auditors also warns that corruption abounds in the country, and that billions of dollars budgeted to the Iraqi government remains unspent. (CTV) MORE: 5 names in alleged Iraq contracting scam Auditors say billions wasted in Iraq |
Studies fault charities for veterans WASHINGTON - 8 veterans charities, including some of the nation's largest, gave less than a third of the money raised to the causes they champion, the American Institute of Philanthropy (AIP) says in a report. (Washington Post) RELATED: As mistrust grows, loyalty goes National Center for Charitable Statistics (NCCS) Outcome indicators project |
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LOS ANGELES - Connie Rice knew it all along. She knew that Hector Marroquin, veteran of the 18th Street Gang and a self-proclaimed anti-gang activist, was still in the life. (LA Weekly) PREVIOUS: Did City Hall fund a gun runner? Broken bridges |
Americans donated $295B in 2006 NEW YORK - Americans gave nearly $300 billion to charitable causes last year, setting a new record and besting the 2005 total that had been boosted by a surge in aid to victims of hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma and the Asian tsunami. (AP) |
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America’s 25,000 cotton farmers receive subsidies totalling some $4B, allowing them to undercut their developing competitors. The subsidies were ruled illegal by the World Trade Organisation three years ago, yet only 10 per cent have been dropped so far, and Washington still pays many times more in subsidies to these farmers than it gives in aid to Africa each year. As a result, world cotton prices are now at the lowest since the Great Depression of the 1930s. (Times online) |
Non-profit is lucrative for founder When he launched the first National Night Out in 1984, Matt A. Peskin envisioned an event in which people across America would turn on their lights and sit on their porches in a symbolic gesture to fight crime. His organization, the National Association of Town Watch, devoted about a third of its budget in 2005 to pay Peskin a $255,000 salary and $42,000 in benefits, according to the group's most recent tax filings. (Philadelphia Inquirer) RELATED: The NonProfit Times |
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Rev. Al soaks up boycott bucks NEW YORK - Anheuser-Busch gave him six figures, Colgate-Palmolive shelled out $50,000 and Macy's and Pfizer have contributed thousands to the Rev. Al Sharpton’s charity. In some cases, they hire him as a consultant. The cash flows even as the US Attorney's Office in Brooklyn has been conducting a grand-jury investigation of National Action Network's finances. (NY Post) |
Investigation of Sharpton an offshoot |
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Ask your non-profit organization if they spend more than 20% of their income on their own care and feeding. If yes then they are a business and not a non-profit no matter what the Canadian laws and the volunteers assume is taking place. – Chris |
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