2021 Annual Report on Charitable Solicitations in Colorado
Explanation of the Data
The information summarized in the annual report reflects the general financial condition and overall solicitation campaign results of charitable organizations registered to solicit contributions in Colorado. The totals do not reflect activity in Colorado alone. Information on total donations by Colorado residents must be culled from data contained in individual federal income tax returns, which can be found on the Internal Revenue Service’s web site (www.irs.gov) in the "Statistic of Income Bulletin."
In addition to the information provided in this report, the Secretary of State’s online charities database contains annually updated disclosure information filed by charities, paid solicitors, and professional fundraising consultants. These registration statements include basic identifying information about each registered entity, such as its location, legal entity status, place and date of formation, and executive personnel. Each charitable organization describes its charitable purpose, lists the composition of its board of directors, discloses its federal tax-exempt status, and files an annual financial statement listing revenues and expenses. Consumers are strongly encouraged to review these filings and to check an organization’s current status before deciding whether a particular organization is worthy of support.
Additional information can be requested from a charity directly. For example, the organization may publish its own annual report containing a detailed financial statement and other educational material concerning its mission and program services. Most charitable organizations registered with the Secretary of State also file a federal Form 990, 990-EZ, or 990-N annual information return with the Internal Revenue Service. If so, they are required by federal law to provide a copy of such forms as well as a copy of their IRS tax-exempt application upon request. More specific information regarding the federal public disclosure requirement is available at the IRS Public Disclosure Overview.
Evaluating results of solicitation campaigns
A charity’s total fundraising costs might not resemble those of a particular campaign run by a paid solicitor, so it is important to view any solicitation campaign in context. As long as the solicitation campaign results are considered alongside the overall financial information in a charitable organization’s annual registration statement, the information in the Secretary of State’s Annual Report on Charitable Solicitations can provide valuable insights. Consistently high fundraising costs may be a cause for concern and warrant a closer look by donors.
Here are some questions a person might ask that could provide more perspective to an individual fundraising campaign:
- Is the purpose of the campaign simply to raise as much money as possible, to acquire new donors for the future, to reinstate lapsed donors, or is it for some other purpose, which is merely a part of the overall fundraising strategy?
- Does the solicitation campaign directly serve some other program purpose of the charity beyond the raising of funds in this particular solicitation campaign?
- Are there other sources of revenue?
- Has the organization conducted similar campaigns in the past? Is this a newly-created organization?
- Are there donor restrictions on the use of funds, exceptional bequests, or a stigma associated with a cause and environmental or political events beyond an organization’s control?
The information in the Annual Report on Charitable Solicitations provides important clues as to whether or not donations solicited by professional fundraisers are being used as donors intended. While most donors understand that fundraising entails costs, many are not aware of the amount of those costs for a particular solicitation campaign, nor do they have an objective standard in mind regarding appropriate fundraising costs. States are not permitted to legislate limits on fundraising costs, but donors may consult industry standards established by charity rating services to evaluate the amount of a charity’s fundraising expense and other overhead costs.
Description of annual report data tables
The financial information summarized in the tables below is information that was on file with the Secretary of State’s Office as of November 30, 2021 at 11:59 PM. Financial reports are due by the 15th day of the fifth month following the close of an organization’s fiscal year (unless the IRS has approved an extension of the due date, in which case the Secretary of State applies an automatic three-month extension), so due dates vary. Nevertheless, the last 2020 financial reports due were those of calendar year organizations, whose accounting periods ended on December 31, 2020.
For a number of reasons, it is possible that a charitable organization could be registered now, despite not being listed in Table 11 or Table 12. Similarly, an organization listed in this report may have withdrawn its registration, allowed its registration to expire, or had its registration suspended, revoked, or denied, so the reader is encouraged to visit http://www.checkthecharity.com for the most current information on any charitable organization.