Cash donations collected for the project will be made by __ as the project trustee and held in trust and paid solely to fund the acquisition of the property. If the purchase is not completed by a certain date, the amount of the donation deposited by the donor under this agreement will be refunded to the donor. The donation will not be recognized as receiving from the recipient unless the donor waives in writing a right to reimbursement of the donation, whether under this Agreement or otherwise under applicable law. Here`s an example of Lynne Wester`s language from Donor Relations Guru that you should have reviewed by your general counsel and then had in your donation agreement: “Consideration” is a legal term that means something of value you received for a promise. If a person who makes a promise receives nothing in return, the law does not require that the promise be kept unless the court finds a legally sufficient substitute for the consideration. To maximize the applicability of a promise, the gift agreement should include at least one, and preferably all of the following substitutes to consider: Example: The conservation organization wants to acquire a property that is important to its mission. It has sufficient funds for the deposit, but must rely on donor contributions to pay the balance. Before risking losing a non-repayable down payment or investing other significant amounts of money in due diligence, the conservation organization must be assured that the donor is keeping its promises to provide the funds necessary to conclude the agreement. The Restricted Gifts guide provides information on topics related to restricted gifts and how to draft a donation agreement. If a contribution is not voluntary, it is not a donation deduction for federal income tax purposes.
This begs the question: if someone enters into a legally binding agreement to donate goods or money to an organization, is the contribution still considered voluntary? Fortunately, the courts have confirmed that a donation can be voluntary, although its terms of payment are governed by a legally enforceable donation agreement. If, at any time, the donor does not behave without due regard to public morality and decency, or if the donor commits an act or becomes involved in a situation or event that tends to humiliate the donor in the community, or that results in the donation in public contempt or scandal, or that materially and negatively affects the charity`s reputation or business, Whether or not the information becomes public, the charity has the right to withdraw the donor`s recognition rights under this Donation Agreement. In addition to gift, purchase and gift/purchase combination contracts, below you will find an example of a deposit agreement and an example of a cooperation agreement. A pawn contract can be used to accept a loan of recorded audio material, often with the intention that the loan is then converted into a gift. A cooperation agreement can be used to commemorate a joint project in which both parties participate in order to achieve mutual benefit. B, for example, a project for the joint digitization of the recorded sound material, with a digital copy kept by each party. A moral clause or moral clause is a small but important segment that you can add to your gift contracts. A moral clause is used to define certain circumstances that would be embarrassing or detrimental to an organization`s reputation and values.
According to Lynne Wester, nonprofits need to protect their organizations from unreasonable risks. Most not-for-profit organizations rely on the goodwill of the public to attract donors. Having a close connection with someone whose name has been severely damaged can tarnish the reputation of the nonprofit and affect their ability to get support. The article by AICPA.org deals here with considerations in the negotiation and design of gift contracts. Unless otherwise agreed, a donation will generally not be refunded once it has been received by the organization. A provision of the donation contract may make this clear. For example: A provision may be included in the donation agreement to specify that the donation will be returned to the donor if the cash or other items delivered never became the property of the recipient. For example: Some other Philanthropy Works questions and points to consider when creating your formal written agreement: A donation agreement, sometimes called a charitable donation agreement, provides written proof of a donation or donation given to a nonprofit in the United States. A donation agreement is important for both parties: the non-profit organization (often referred to as the recipient) and the donor person or organization (often referring to as the donor). The non-profit organization must keep accurate records of donations received, but the donor must also keep records of the donations it gives.
Having accurate financial records on file helps both parties maintain internal records and also plan for tax time. ConservationTools.org, which is administered by the Pennsylvania Land Trust Association, has been very thorough in creating a useful guide to donation agreements from the perspective of a conservation organization. You can check it here. *This has also been included in section 11 of the gift contract template above. Contracts (whether or not they are donation agreements) often begin with a recitation of a nominal consideration such as “for a consideration of $1.00” and may continue to add a phrase such as “and another good and valuable consideration, the receipt of which is hereby confirmed”. The purpose of the reciting of the nominal consideration is to ensure that the promises contained in the document are recognized as a binding contract if there is no actual consideration between the parties (as in a donation agreement). Consider [the easement holder`s] mutual promises to assume responsibility for the management of a preservation easement on the donor`s property and the donor`s promise to provide stewardship funding as required in accordance with this Agreement. Examples of donation agreements provided by the Association of Donor Relations Professionals and Tulsa County.
A donation agreement can provide this documentation. It can also set expectations and understandings to ensure a satisfying experience for both the donor and the recipient. One of the challenges is to distinguish the circumstances that require a gift agreement from the large number of times a simple promise is enough. If a donation is made for a specific purpose, nothing is said about whether it can be used for other purposes, and the stated purpose does not materialize, disgruntled donors can claim that they have been misled by the organization`s representations to their detriment. Or they can claim that the gift was conditional on the occurrence of an event that did not occur, and due to the absence of this condition, they are entitled to a refund. A provision that gives the recipient the right to use the donation elsewhere avoids these claims. It is also useful in happy circumstances that more money is collected than necessary. For example: Conservation organizations dedicate time to employees and ensure that various expenses are incurred to make a conservation easement donation. The organization needs protection to ensure that it is fully reimbursed, whether the easement is made or not. In addition, the organization must take into account that any easement added to its portfolio increases the risk of future enforcement actions.
Before investing in the preparation of the easement, the organization needs a firm agreement on the amount and timing of contributions to cover the organization`s expenses in the short term (up to the end date of the easement) and in the long term (for the management and execution of the easement on an ongoing basis). A pledged contribution may encourage an organization to take action or adopt an action plan desired by the donor. Motivated by the amount of the expected contribution, the organization may move forward with an otherwise unfeasible program or project. It can make public announcements, ask other donors to contribute to the effort and, if not, put its reputation on the expectation that the necessary funds will be available. An organization may want a donation agreement to protect it from these vulnerabilities. Donations to Save the Park must be used for the purposes described in this Agreement and for other purposes specified by the organization in order to obtain open spaces and create outdoor recreation opportunities in the Township of Greene. .