The work of the Panel on the Nonprofit Sector has affected the nonprofit community and public stakeholders in several important ways. The Panel has helped to inspire an unprecedented nationwide dialogue on the part of the nonprofit community about how charitable organizations should be regulated, and the role and potential of self-regulation. The Panel’s many field hearings, conference calls, public comment periods, and advisory and working groups involved thousands of individuals, many of whom continued these conversations in other forums.

Many of the Panel’s recommendations were enacted into law through the Pension Protection Act of 2006, which represents the most comprehensive charitable reform legislation in a generation. The IRS also incorporated many of the Panel’s recommendations into its extensive redesign of the Form 990. Numerous congressional hearings have also referenced Panel recommendations and reports.

As the Principles for Good Governance and Ethical Practice continues to circulate throughout the nonprofit community, institutions of all sizes are using them as a guide to ensure high ethical standards. In one notable example, the Smithsonian Institution referred to the Principles when retooling its own governance and operations.