Newspapers / Philanthropy Journal of North … / July 1, 1994, edition 1 / Page 4
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Nonprofits Philanthropy Journal of North Carolina Public right of way A coalition of 23 nonprofits groups has called on Congress to protect public access to the high-tech information highways now under construction. July/August 1994 Working with people Winston-Salem family advocate retiring Sarah Austin retires this month alter a long career at Family Seryices in Winston-Salem where she rose from family cotinselor to chief executive. Her lessons and accomplish ments have piled up along the why;.. By Susan Gray Winston-Salem ; ; rf she could do it aU again, she / would be retiring now from f politics rather than social Work. ’ “But that wasn’t an area that women went into at that time,” says Sarah Young Austin, 67, dressed casually in a beige pants suit and dragging on a Carlton. ; Aiistin steps down as chief exec utive officer of Family Services Inc. in Winston-Salem on July 31, ending PROFILE nearly half a century of commitment to social work. Her words must shock Forsyth County residents. For Sarah Austin - a tou^-talking, chain-smoking, big- hearted family advocate - embodies social work. She joined Family Services, a nonprofit counsehng agency for fam ilies grappling with adoption and child-rearing problems, as a family counselor in 1951. By 1984, she had worked her way up to chief. Along the way, she picked up a masters degree in social work at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and heaps of coveted honors, including the Irvin B. Sperry Award and the state social worker of the year award. UNC alumni even coined a phrase in her honor: The Sarah Sarah Young Austin is stepping down after 31 years with Family Services in Winston-Salem. Photo by Susan Gray Austin approach to social work. Translation: Tireless commitment, professional leadership and poUtical savvy. And School of Social Work graduates continue to seek her out for advice and jobs. But Austin simply smiles and shrugs her broad shoulders at these accolades. “1 just love the contacts and the people 1 work with and being able to help who ever 1 can,” she says, smil ing and tapping ash from her Carlton into a large ceramic ashtray on her desk. “God knows, this many years in social work. I’ve always worked with excellent people. And that’s the secret. We all pool togeth er rather than against each other.” That’s vintage Austin. Down-to- earth, direct. Laughter - a deep throaty variety from pack after pack of cigarettes - Look for FAMILY, page 5 Letting the sunshine in Nonprofit lobbyists support state’s new reporting rules Nonprofit lobbyists in North Carolina generally are support ive of a proposed state law that would extend reporting re quirements for lobbying activi ties. But a similar change in federal lobbying laws is being criticized by nonprofit groups as too burdensome. By Barbara Solow A s a lobbyist for the non- profit PubUc School Forum / \ of North Carolina, Jo Ann Norris knows she has fewer resources at her disposal than rep resentatives of for-profit organiza tions. So when her organization was mistakenly cited in newspaper arti cles, last year as among the 10 biggest spenders on lobbying the General Assembly, It rankled. Norris, who is associate execu tive director of the forum, says she meticulously reports every lobbying- related expense and meeting - to a degree that other more well- endowed organizations may not. “The Public School Forum spent $24,000 on lobbying last year,” Norris says. “When 1 look at folks ADVOCACY like Glaxo [which spent close to $67,500], I wonder what Is going on” with newspaper reports about lob bying. The Secretary of State’s Office - which handles registration of lobby ists in North Carolina - does not have breakdowns on how much of the approximately $5.4 million spent on lobbying last year was on behalf of nonprofits. But under a proposed new law, that type of information would become more readily available to the public. Senate Bill 398 would amend the state’s existing lobbying law to require: • Paid lobbyists and their client organizations to register with the state and pay a $75 fee. Currently, only the lobbyists must register. • Increased disclosure of lobby ing activities and expenses. • Inclusion of fees paid to lobby ists and the names of legislators they contact in reports filed with the Secretary of State. The bill would not apply to unpaid lobbying activities or so- called “goodfl^ lobbying” that does not involve discussion of specific legislation. The last change in the lobbying law was made in 1991. State Sen. Fountain Odom, the measure’s primary sponsor, says the purpose of the new rules is to increase public access to informa tion about lobbying activities. “There ought to be as much sun shine in the process as possible so that people can decide whether a particular group or individual has influence,” he says. “North Carolina politics has been known for a long time as being very squeaky clean and we want to continue that.” The proposed state law appears to have the general support of non profit lobbyists and good govern ment advocates who say it ^ pro vide a more accurate picture of who spends what to influence whom. “The legislature is awash in money,” says Patricia Watts, execu tive director of Common Cause /North Carolina. “Anytime we can get meaningful disclosure about who is spending what and why a lot of nonprofit agendas are blocked, it’s a good thing.” By contrast, attempts to tighten federal lobbying rules have been Look for ADVOCACY, page 5 Rewriting the rules new TatHeeinonprofit^iakenofe: The state has just passed a new Nonprofit Corporations Act. The new law, which look effect July 1, is designed to pro\ide the public with more information about nonprofit organizations, The measure requires nonprof its to file annual reports with the - Secretary of State's office that include their address, a descrip tion of actmties, a list of officers and directors and whether or not the organization has memberships. 'ITie reports are separate from those that must be filed annually with the Internal Revenue Seivice. The new law also provides for new kinds of partnerships between nonprofits and other groups. For example, it includes proHsions for mergers between nonprofit and for-profit companies. David Massey, genera! counsel to the secretaiy of state, says the law will “give the public a better idea of what's going on” in the non profit sector and will “put nonprof it law closer to the evolved state of . business law.” The measure is the first major overhaul of the Nonprofit .Act since it was passed inl957. / While they agree with the need to update the rules, staff members of the North Carolina Center for Nonprofits have some concerns about the new law’s effect. “WTiile it’s very pro-forma in terms of the information required, the failure to complete those [annual report] forms tatII result in organizations being administra tively dissolved,” says .Leslie Takahashi, program associate for the center. "Those are very serious consequences.” And while the state plans to mail out notices about the new rules to nonprofits on the anniver- saiy of their incorporation, the N.C. Center is w'orried that some may fall through the cracks. “The way they are going to con tact nonprofits is to contact their regstered agent,” Takahashi says. “That may be someone who is no longer with the organization. We’ve been trving to alert the state to the fact that nonprofits are dif ferent from business corpora tions.” , . • „ She invites anyone with ques tions about the new law to contact the N.C. Center at (919) 571-0811. Information is also available from the Secretarv of State’s Office at (919) 733-515(1. BRIEFLY Land Loss project receives Kellogg grant The llund Loss Prevention Project has received a $9j93)t;4d grant from the W.KvKellogg Foundation to administer a statewide part nership of farmers, agricultur al organizations, universities and community groups that willworicto ensure the eco nomic vitality of Tar Heel farming. Center on philanthropy receives grant The Indiana University Center on Philanthropy has received a grant of $5.7 million from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to continue its mission to improve the understanding and practice of philanthropy. The center supports educa tion and research on the nonprofit sector and nonprof it fundraising. Asheboro hospice to expand The Center of Living Hospice of Randolph County has won state approval for d rtew in patient and residential facility in Asheboro. The new facility will provide care for 16 ter minally ill patients. Center of Living was founded in 1981 by a group of Randolph County physicians. Rex Hospital publishes history book Rex Hospital in Raleigh has published a book marking its 100th birthday. "Rex Hospital: A Centennial Celebration," is a 112-page book with more than 150 photographs from the hospi tal's past. The hospital has also opened a history exhibit near the main lobby.
Philanthropy Journal of North Carolina (Raleigh, N.C.)
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July 1, 1994, edition 1
4
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