Professional Fundraisers Call on Congress to Ban Percentage-Based Fundraising

ARLINGTON, Va., Dec. 17 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In the wake of a recent
Congressional hearing which found that many veterans' charities are spending
excessive amounts on fundraising, the Association of Fundraising Professionals
(AFP) has reiterated its call to Congress to prohibit the unethical practice
of percentage-based fundraising.

Percentage-based fundraising, whereby a fundraiser receives a set percentage
of every dollar raised, is considered unethical by AFP and other fundraising
organizations. The AFP Code of Ethics specifically bans the practice, and AFP
has developed a position paper outlining why the practice is unethical.

"If you examine the charities that have extremely high fundraising costs,
including several of the groups highlighted during the hearing, you'll almost
always find that these organizations pay their fundraising firms on a
percentage basis," says Paulette V. Maehara, CFRE, CAE, president and CEO.
"The one single reform proposal that would make the most difference in
stopping fraud and strengthening public trust in the charitable sector would
be for Congress to ban percentage-based fundraising."

On Thursday, Dec. 13, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee held
a hearing that examined the fundraising and spending habits of charities that
serve veterans. Several groups were found to have very high fundraising costs
(87 percent of higher), resulting in very little money going to charitable
programs.

Charities that pay for-profit fundraising firms through percentage-based
fundraising often say that they do not have the resources to raise funds on
their own and are receiving funds they otherwise would not normally receive.
However, percentage-based fundraising is considered unethical because through
its use:

-- charitable mission becomes secondary to personal gain

-- donor trust can be unalterably damaged

-- there is incentive for self-dealing to prevail over donors' best interests

-- the very philanthropic values on which the voluntary sector is based are
undermined.

Maehara also refutes the notion that percentage-based fundraising is the only
alternative for organizations. "There are many ways you can structure a
contract with a fundraising firm using a set fee or salary without
percentage-based fundraising," said Maehara. "I'm happy to talk with any
charity that wishes to do so."

But Maehara also stressed that the fundraising firms that use percentage-based
fundraising also have a responsibility to change their practices. AFP recently
amended its code of ethics to include business organizations as members so
that fundraising firms can abide by the association's ethical standards, such
as the prohibition on percentage-based fundraising.

"These are causes that are near and dear to the hearts of all Americans, but
the public's generosity is being abused," said Maehara. "Congress needs to act
to ban percentage-based fundraising so that the public can rest assured that
charities and their fundraising firms are putting the needs of donors first."

Copies of AFP's Code of Ethics and its position paper on percentage-based
fundraising are available on request.

The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) represents more than 29,000
members in 196 chapters throughout the world, working to advance philanthropy
and ethical fundraising through advocacy, research, education and
certification programs. For more information, visit http://www.afpnet.org.

SOURCE Association of Fundraising Professionals

Michael Nilsen, Director, Public Affairs, of the Association of Fundraising
Professionals, +1-425-890-6628