Volume One Number Four

Professional Query

Can we use the Internet to do board business?

The short answer is "no".

This question, raised by Bitsy Bidwell from the Arts Commission on behalf of a constituent, comes up more and more these days as email, instant messaging, chat rooms and online meeting services become more familiar.  The text of the Washington state nonprofit corporations law says that notices have to be in writing, and participants in a valid meeting must all be able to hear each other simultaneously.  These provisions preclude using the Internet to take official action.

The Washington State Bar Association has proposed some first steps toward use of the Internet for nonprofit boards that will be in the hopper for the legislature to consider in the next session.

[[[Read more about this proposal...click here]]]

Follow-up

More on the possible conversion of Premera Blue Cross to a for-profit

If the Insurance Commissioner decides, in March, to allow this change at all, then the Attorney General will consider the plans to use some of Premera's assets to create a nonprofit organization.  Those plans will need separate approval before any conversion could occur (see page 4 of this .pdf file of an Attorney General's memo on the subject).

Meanwhile, the Insurance Commissioner has scheduled public hearings on the proposal across the state in December and a formal adjudicative proceeding in Tacoma in January.  The schedule for the hearings (along with extensive information about the proposal) is on the Insurance Commissioner's website.

The Seattle Times has been following this subject closely; a review article published November 21 is on the newspaper's website. It reports that several consultants have issued reports that urge the state to reject the idea.

News about Nonprofits and Their Work

• The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation distributed 5.3% of its net assets in both 2001 and 2002 -- .3% more than the minimum -- the Puget Sound Business Journal reported October 10.  Controller Gwen Sherman noted that the foundation's distributions from 1998 to 2002 ended up totalling $592,583,346 more than the minimum specified by federal law.

• The annual report on commercial fundraising was published by Secretary of State at http://www.secstate.wa.gov/charities/activities_report.aspx. As is the case every year, the report documents that some fundraising is discouragingly expensive, and that some clients receive only a small fraction of the money raised in their name. Looking through the list, it's clear the many of the organizations that hire commercial fundraisers are not "charities" in the everyday sense of the word.  That's because the Washington state charitable solicitations law requires registration by anyone who makes a "charitable appeal."

• One of the four retired British Airways Concorde supersonic airliners is now at Seattle's Museum of Flight.

• The Washington Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals held its 15th annual Philanthropy Day event on November 18.  Honored this year were:
  
  • Outstanding Philanthropists: Susan & Jeffrey Brotman
  • Outstanding Philanthropic Organization: Northwest Children’s Fund
  • Outstanding Philanthropic Corporation: Starbucks Coffee Company
  • Outstanding Philanthropic Small Business: Broetje Orchards
  • Outstanding Philanthropic Foundation: Paul G. Allen Foundations
  • Outstanding Young Philanthropist: Korri Shimizu, Federal Way High School

News from The Evergreen State Society

• Holiday Gift Ideas If you are looking for suggestions for stocking stuffers for your favorite nonprofit enthusiast (or to add to your own wish list for the upcoming holiday season) you might want to look at the page on the Internet Nonprofit Center that lists books and videos where nonprofits figure largely in the story.  See “Stereotypes of Philanthropy in Popular (?) Culture.” Links in this file make it easy to order the books from Amazon.Com (and The Evergreen State Society receives a small royalty when you do that.)

• We have begun work on Nonprofits in Washington: 2004, an updated version of the report issued in 1994 and 1999.   It's a pleasure to report that it will be freely available on the World-Wide Web thanks to the sponsorship of Clark Nuber and that the Seattle Foundation, Davis Wright Tremaine and the Greater Everett Community Foundation are among the first to sign on to underwrite research for the new edition.

Coming Soon

• Zia Gipson will lead a discussion exploring organizational values at the BrownBag on December 18 at Antioch University Seattle.

• And mark calendars for the 10th Annual Nonprofit Leadership Conference featuring Jan Masaoka from San Francisco’s CompassPoint on April 1, 2004, at the Meydenbauer Center in Bellevue.

• No Schmoozefest or Civil Society breakfast in December; check the website for plans for 2004.

Details about these and other events are online at http://www.tess.org

Observing Nonprofits

Observing Nonprofits is an occasional publication of The Evergreen State Society, sent by email to members and supporters. A few days after publication, it is also emailed to a wider audience of people interested in nonprofits in Washington state and simultaneously posted on the Society’s website at http://www.tess.org

Managing Editor: Marie Sauter, MNPL

Send news for future issues of Observing Nonprofits

Write the Editor to submit announcements, links and observations for future issues of this online newsletter.

To subscribe

Observing Nonprofits is a benefit of membership in The Evergreen State Society. To learn more about membership options, visit http:://www.tess.org/pages/join.html.

Observing Nonprofits is also circulated on a delayed schedule to readers of NonprofitNetworking (a free email service of The Evergreen State Society). To add your address to the NonprofitNetworking list, send email to nonprofitnetworking-request@tess.org.