Watchdog Watch

Following are summaries of recent reports by the BBB Wise Giving Alliance. This private group reports on whether charities meet standards for fund raising, governance, financial management, and public information. The alliance does not approve or disapprove of charities, and urges potential donors to evaluate the importance of variations from the standards. It also notes 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 Wise Giving Alliance, 4200 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, Va. 22203; http://give.org.

African Medical and Research Foundation, 19 West 44th Street, Suite 710, New York, N.Y. 10036; http://www.amref.org. Does not meet the standards calling for a charitable organization to: (1) have a board policy for assessing, at least every two years, the organization’s performance and effectiveness and for determining actions to achieve its mission; (2) have an accessible annual report that includes financial information such as net assets, income, and expenses; and (3) include on Web sites that solicit contributions the same information recommended for annual reports, as well as the mailing address of the charity and electronic access to its most recent IRS Form 990.

All Nations, 12411 Wornall Road, Suite 400, Kansas City, Mo. 64145; http://www.allnations.us. As of December 2006, the organization had not provided current information about its finances, programs, and governance. The alliance is unable to determine if All Nations meets the standards.

America’s Athletes with Disabilities, formerly known as the U.S. Organization for Disabled Athletes, 8630 Fenton Street, Silver Spring, Md. 20910; http://www.americasathletes.org. As of December 2006, the organization had not provided current information about its finances, programs, and governance. The alliance is unable to determine if America’s Athletes with Disabilities meets the standards.

American Council of the Blind, 1155 15th Street, N.W., Suite 1004, Washington, D.C. 20005; http://www.acb.org. As of December 2006, the organization had not provided current information about its finances, programs, and governance. The alliance is unable to determine if the American Council of the Blind meets the standards.

American Federation of Police and Concerned Citizens, 6350 Horizon Drive, Titusville, Fla. 32780; http://www.aphf.org/afp_cc.html. As of December 2006, the organization had not provided current information about its finances, programs, and governance. The alliance is unable to determine if the American Federation of Police and Concerned Citizens meets the standards.

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, 120 Wall Street, 22nd Floor, New York, N.Y. 10005; http://www.afsp.org. Does not meet the standard calling for a charitable organization to have a minimum of three evenly spaced meetings per year of the full governing body, with the majority of board members attending each meeting in person.

American Pregnancy Association, formerly known as America’s Pregnancy Helpline, 1425 Greenway Drive, Suite 440, Las Colinas, Tex. 75038; http://www.americanpregnancy.org. As of December 2006, the organization had not provided current information about its finances, programs, and governance. The alliance is unable to determine if the American Pregnancy Association meets the standards.

American Society on Aging, 833 Market Street, Suite 511, San Francisco, Calif. 94103; http://www.asaging.org. As of December 2006, the organization had not provided current information about its finances, programs, and governance. The alliance is unable to determine if the American Society On Aging meets the standards.

Appalachia Service Project, 4523 Bristol Highway, Johnson City, Tenn. 37601; http://www.asphome.org. As of December 2006, the organization had not provided current information about its finances, programs, and governance. The alliance is unable to determine if the Appalachia Service Project meets the standards.

Cancer Recovery Foundation of America, also known as the Cancer Recovery Foundation Children’s Project, 6380 Flank Drive, Harrisburg, Pa. 17112; http://www.cancerrecovery.org. Does not meet the standards calling for a charitable organization to: (1) have a board of directors that provides adequate oversight of the charity’s operations and staff; (2) have a board policy for assessing, at least every two years, the organization’s performance and effectiveness and for determining actions to achieve its mission; (3) submit to its governing body for approval a written report outlining the results of a performance and effectiveness assessment and recommendations for future actions; (4) include in its financial statement a breakdown of expenses (such as salaries, travel, and postage) that shows what portion of those expenses is dedicated to program activities; and (5) have an accessible annual report that includes a roster of officers and members of the board of directors and financial information such as net assets. As of December 2006, the organization had not provided complete information about its finances. Therefore, the alliance is unable to determine if the Cancer Recovery Foundation of America meets one additional standard.

CancerCare, formerly known as the National Cancer Foundation, 275 Seventh Avenue, 22nd Floor, New York, N.Y. 10001; http://www.cancercare.org. Meets all standards.

EngenderHealth, 440 Ninth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10001; http://www.engenderhealth.org. Does not meet the standards calling for a charitable organization to have a board-approved annual budget for its current fiscal year that outlines expenses for major program activities, fund raising, and administration; and to take action to ensure that privacy concerns of donors are respected in the collection, dissemination, and securing of personal information, and allow donors opportunities to have their names removed from solicitation lists. As of November 2006, the organization had not provided complete information about its governance. Therefore, the alliance is unable to determine if EngenderHealth meets one additional standard.

Joyce Meyer Ministries, P.O. Box 655, Fenton, Mo. 63026; http://www.joycemeyer.org. Does not meet the standard calling for a charitable organization to have an accessible annual report that includes a roster of officers and members of the board of directors. As of December 2006, the organization had not provided complete information about its donor privacy, effectiveness measures, finances, fund raising, governance, and solicitation materials. Therefore, the alliance is unable to determine if Joyce Meyer Ministries meets 14 additional standards.

Mazon: A Jewish Response to Hunger, 1990 South Bundy Drive, Suite 260, Los Angeles, Calif. 90025; http://www.mazon.org. Meets all standards.

Native American Heritage Association, 410 Sheridan Lake Road, Rapid City, S.D. 57702; http://www.naha-inc.org. As of December 2006, the organization had not provided current information about its finances, programs, and governance. The alliance is unable to determine if the Native American Heritage Association meets the standards.

Near East Foundation, 90 Broad Street, 15th Floor, New York, N.Y. 10004; http://www.neareast.org. Meets all standards.

Ocean Conservancy, 2029 K Street, N.W., Suite 500, Washington, D.C. 20006; http://www.oceanconservancy.org. Meets all standards.

Parkinson’s Disease Foundation, 1359 Broadway, Suite 1509, New York, N.Y. 10018; http://www.pdf.org. Meets all standards.

Plan USA, formerly known as Childreach, 155 Plan Way, Warwick, R.I. 02886; http://www.planusa.org. Meets all standards.

Veterans Fund, P.O. Box 160441, Nashville, Tenn. 37216. As of December 2006, the organization had not provided current information about its finances, programs, and governance. The alliance is unable to determine if the Veterans Fund meets the standards.