FTC's Crackdown on Fraudulent Charities Made More Complex by States' Lack of Action in Registering Non-Profits

NEW YORK, NY, Jun 01 (MARKET WIRE) --
Success in the recently announced campaign by the Federal Trade
Commission (FTC Announces "Operation False Charity") to crack down on
fraudulent charities may actually lie in the hands of the FTC's partners
in the effort -- 61 Attorneys General, Secretaries of State and other law
enforcers in 49 states and the District of Columbia -- according to
Martignetti Planned Giving Advisors, LLC.

"The problem of fraudulent charities is real," said Tony Martignetti,
Esq., Managing Director of Martignetti Planned Giving Advisors, a New
York-based consultancy group that advises non-profits. "But it's harder to
spot fraudulent charities when up to 90% of non-profits fund-raising in
major states like California, New York and Florida aren't even registered
there."

With non-profits controlling about 10% of the U.S. economy, or
approximately $1.5 trillion, it was only a matter of time that federal and
state agencies would catch up to the non-profit sector in combating fraud,
noted Martignetti.

"Charity registration and licensing throughout the 50 states have long
been a regulatory morass that most non-profits avoided," he added.
"Enforcement by the states has been nearly non-existent and many states
don't have penalties for noncompliance." Martignetti noted that the IRS'
new Form 990 -- signed under penalty of perjury by an officer of the
non-profit -- makes it illegal to avoid state registrations because it
calls for a list of the states in which a copy of the Form 990 is
required to be filed.

"A non-profit can only answer that, however, after it researches every
state, figures out where to register, then searches out whether those
states require its 990," Martignetti said. "A question on Schedule G asks
where 'the organization is registered or licensed to solicit funds or has
been notified it is exempt from registration or licensing.' Again, a
substantial amount of research is required to confidently answer."

Martignetti Planned Giving Advisors has addressed those issues with its
newly published e-manual Charity Registration: State-by-State Guidelines
for Compliance. Organized by state, the e-book is fully clickable and
searchable. This is the only state-by-state manual available for the
entire registration and licensing process, including filing forms.

"The sector is now too big to be left largely unregulated, especially in
the current environment of enhanced enforcement in the for-profit sector,"
said Martignetti. "I have long been concerned that the trend of increased
regulation will hit the non-profit sector at both the national and state
levels. The FTC's crackdown is just the tip of the iceberg."

About Martignetti Planned Giving Advisors

Based in New York, Martignetti Planned Giving Advisors, LLC is a Planned
Giving consultancy that works with a wide range of educational, cultural,
social service, religious and healthcare institutions to create donor
opportunities by building planned gift programs. For more information
about Martignetti Planned Giving Advisors, go to www.mpgadv.com.

For More Information:
Rosalia Scampoli
Marketcom
Email Contact
www.marketcompr.com
212-537-5177 ext. 7

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