Release Date: 03-28-2006

For information, contact:

Elizabeth Jenkins
(202) 467-6134
elizabethj@independentsector.org

(Washington, D.C.) -- The Panel on the Nonprofit Sector, comprised of leaders from charities and foundations across the country, has created a special Advisory Committee on Self-Regulation of the Charitable Sector. 

The new committee will help the Panel make recommendations on how best to strengthen self-regulation within the charitable community. The sector has a long tradition of self-regulation, and the Panel will build on the work of various organizations and subsectors that have already developed standards, accreditation, and training. 

"Many parts of the charitable sector already are seriously engaged in 'policing' themselves," said M. Cass Wheeler, chief executive officer of the American Heart Association and co-convener of the Panel. "But there is room for improvement and the committee will advise the Panel on how our sector can take greater responsibility to ensure our organizations are living by the highest ethical standards."

The Advisory Committee will be led by co-chairs:

• Joel L. Fleishman, director of the Samuel & Ronnie Heyman Center for Ethics, Public Policy, and the Professions at Duke University's Terry Sanford Institute of Public Policy; and
• Rebecca W. Rimel, president and CEO of The Pew Charitable Trusts.

"Throughout the Panel process, we heard from charitable organizations that they are looking for guidance on what they can do voluntarily to strengthen their operations," said Diana Aviv, president and CEO of Independent Sector and executive director of the Panel on the Nonprofit Sector. "We want to ensure that the recommendations made by the Panel are helpful to organizations of all sizes and with a variety of missions."

The Panel on the Nonprofit Sector was convened by Independent Sector at the encouragement of the leadership of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee. Last June the Panel released a major report to Congress consisting of over 120 recommendations to strengthen the transparency, governance, and accountability of the charitable sector.

The Panel is continuing its work to develop recommendations on financial reporting standards, improvements to the Forms 990 and 990-PF, sample governance policies, and self-regulation by charitable organizations. 

The members of the Advisory Committee on Self-Regulation of the Charitable Sector will be announced on the Panel website as soon as its formation is complete.