Begin with what the policy is trying to achieve – what is the goal of DGR concessions?
The goal of the DGR process should be to encourage community involvement, engagement and ownership of issues they are concerned about. Encouraging civil society to own their issues of concern is not only good public policy, it is very good economic policy. Governments around the world acknowledge the benefit of community involvement and actively seek to promote philanthropy.
If the charity sector accepts government restrictions on its public voice, it will be a sad day for Australian democracy and it will mean that free speech is for sale in Australia, writes David Crosbie, CEO of Community Council for Australia in Pro Bono News, 20 July 2017:
Calling charity CFOs..
We are inviting your interest in a CFO Roundtable with Treasury in Melbourne (20 July) or Sydney (21 July).
At hand is an important issue that could affect capital flow into the sector: Treasury are considering the implications of changes to the treatment of ancillary fund loans and other forms of investment to DGR charities.
A successful and transparent charity delivering on its purpose should not be sucked into discussions about whether it should be spending 10 per cent or 15 per cent on its overheads, writes David Crosbie, CEO of Community Council for Australia in Pro Bono News, 6 July 2017: Give Me Knowledge, Not Numbers.
Welcome to the Winter edition of CCA News. In this issue, an update on the Open Letter to the Prime Minister regarding the future of the ACNC; discussions with Assistant Minister Michael Sukkar on the need to #fixfundraising; latest on news and moves related to advocacy by charities; and reviews looking at reform to DGR and Human Services.
In the face of a targeted campaign to limit advocacy, the charities sector must not become divided, writes CCA CEO David Crosbie in Pro Bono News, Divide and Conquer, 22 June 2017:
Charity leaders from across the sector have written to the Prime Minister concerned about the future of the Australian Charities and Not for profits Commission following the surprising and disappointing news that ACNC Commissioner, Susan Pascoe AM will not be re-appointed for an additional term and will step down on 30 September 2017.
This week has highlighted how important it is for us to be brave in our advocacy and stand up for democracy, writes David Crosbie, CEO of the Community Council for Australia (CCA) in Pro Bono News.
Charities in Australia currently enjoy some of the strongest legal protections in the world to engage in advocacy, but we should never take these protections for granted, writes David Crosbie in Pro Bono News.
The federal budget of so called “fairness” has in some ways reset the government’s priorities and reflects the influence the charity sector can have through effective advocacy, writes David Crosbie, CEO of Community Council for Australia in Pro Bono News, 10 May 2017.
If there is one value that is most often cited as a core Australian value, it is fairness.