The Office of the Attorney General William Tong

Headshot of Attorney General William Tong

● Registration
● Guidance for Donors 
● Wise Giving Tips
● Helpful Websites
● Tips for Charitable Giving
● Connecticut Law
● Guidance on Governance and Best Practices for Non-Profits
● Guides and Publications
● Charitable Trusts and Probate Court Practice
● Hospitals
● Disaster Relief
● Reports
● Watchdog Organizations/Information for Donors
● Useful State and Federal Agency Websites
● Press Releases
● File a Complaint

 

Registration - Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection

Guidance for Donors

Wise Giving Tips

Helpful Websites - Resources for Nonprofits

Cybersecurity Resources for Non-Profits

Alliance for Nonprofit Management - www.allianceonline.org/ - The Alliance for Nonprofit Management is a professional association of individuals and organizations whose mission is improve the management and governance capacity of nonprofits. Its web site includes information about resources available to not-for-profit organizations.

American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) - www.aicpa.org - The AICPA's web site has extensive information on accounting standards and procedures. It is a valuable source of a wide variety of information on accounting issues for board members.

Boardnet USA - www.boardnetUSA.org - Boardnet USA is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to strengthen the governing and management capability of nonprofit boards of directors by bringing qualified leadership into service as board members. Boarnet assists boards in defining their board recruitment objectives and then conducting a targeted search for business, professional and community leaders with the desired expertise, diversity of perspective and resources. Its web site is a resource designed to enable potential board members--and nonprofit boards needing leadership--to find each other.

 

BoardSource, Inc. - www.boardsource.org - has a wide range of material designed to assist board members in carrying out their duties. Its nine pamphlet Governance Series,beginning with Ten Basic Responsibilities of Nonprofit Boards, is a source of basic information for board members and includes other suggested resources.

 

CompassPoint - www.compasspoint.org- CompassPoint is an electronic newsletter for members of nonprofit boards of directors. Board Café offers a menu of ideas, information, opinion, news, and resources to help board members in carrying out the responsibilities of their board service.

 

Council on Foundations - www.cof.org - The Council on Foundations is a membership organization of more than 2,000 grant making foundations and giving programs worldwide. It provides leadership expertise, legal services and networking opportunities, among other services, to its members and to the general public. Its web site contains information of interest to not-for-profit boards.

 

Foundation Center, The - www.foundationcenter.org - The Foundation Center's mission is to strengthen the nonprofit sector by advancing knowledge about U.S. philanthropy. It collects, organizes and communicates information on U.S. philanthropy, conducts and facilitates research on trends in the field, provides education and training on the grant seeking process and promotes public access to information and services through its web site and print and electronic publications and five library/learning centers.

  

Independent Sector (IS) - www.independentsector.org - is a national coalition of nonprofit organizations of all sizes as well as Fortune 500 corporations with commitments to community involvement. IS advocates on behalf of and provides educational services to the nonprofit sector.

 

National Association of State Charity Officials - www.nasconet.org. This site is maintained by the National Association of State Charity Officials (NASCO). NASCO members are employees of state agencies that regulate not-for-profit organizations and their fund raisers. The site provides information concerning the registration and reporting requirements applicable to not-for-profits that conduct activities and/or raise funds in the various states.

 

Urban Institute, The - www.urban.org - The Urban Institute is a nonprofit nonpartisan policy research and educational organization established to examine the social, economic, and governance problems facing the nation. It provides information and analysis to public and private decision makers to help them address these challenges. It maintains extensive databases of information on the not-for-profit sector.

 

Unified Registration Statement - http://www.multistatefiling.org/ - This site posts the registration that is accepted in most states that require registration of charitable organizations. It also contains information concerning the registration and reporting requirements of the states.

 

Connecticut Law

Connecticut General Statute §3-125 (Duties of the Attorney General)

Connecticut General Statutes §45a-514 (Statute of Charitable Trusts)

Connecticut General Statutes §47-2 (Statute of Charitable Uses)

Connecticut General Statutes §§21a-175-190l (Solicitation of Charitable Funds Act)

Connecticut General Statutes §33-1000 et seq. (The Connecticut Non-stock Corporations Act)

Connecticut General Statutes §21a-430 (Donation Bin Act)

Connecticut General Statutes §45a-535 – 535i (Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional Funds Act)

Connecticut General Statutes §§45a – 541 – 541l (Connecticut Uniform Prudent Investor Act)

Connecticut General Statutes §§45a – 542 – 542ff (Connecticut Principal and Income Act)

Guidance on Governance and Best Practices for Non-Profits>

Guidance on Best Practices: Connecticut Association of Non Profits

Guidance on Governance: Connecticut Association of Non Profits; Panel on the Non Profit Sector; IRS information on Governance and related topics

Suggested guidelines for setting up a charity: Starting & Building a Nonprofit; Starting a Nonprofit; IRS Info on "How to Apply to be Tax Exempt"

Stayexempt.irs.gov – an IRS site created especially for 501(c)(3) organizations wishing to maintain their tax exempt status

Guides and Publications

BBB Wise Giving Alliance Guide on Crowdfunding for Charitable Causes

Community Foundations in Connecticut - Provides information and links to all community foundations located in CT

CT Council for Philanthropy - Provides useful information on Connecticut private foundations

Foundation Center - A website to look up a charity’s IRS Form 990 and other valuable information as well as private foundations and their IRS Form 990-PF

Guidestar - A website to look up a charity’s IRS Form 990 and other valuable information

Charitable Trusts and Probate Court Practice

Connecticut Probate Court Rules of Procedure (effective July 1, 2013)

Connecticut Probate Court

Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional Funds Act (UPMIFA)

Connecticut Prudent Investor Act

Connecticut Principal and Income Act

Hospitals

Disaster Relief Resources

  • Disaster Relief Guide – Disaster relief resources, suggestions and advice for both donors and charities
  • The Disaster Philanthropy Playbook - a compilation of philanthropic strategies, best practices and lessons learned that have saved and galvanized local economies, nonprofits, and vulnerable populations from entering into a permanent downward spiral in the wake of a disaster.

Reports

Watchdog Organizations/Information for Donors

American Institute of Philanthropy - www.charitywatch.org

 

Better Business Bureau Metro New York - www.newyork.bbb.org

Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance - www.bbb.org
The BBB publishes standards for not-for-profit organizations that are used in its evaluations of charities and which are posted on its web site. The standards address issues such as governance, financial accounting, program efficiency and public disclosure. The web site also contains guidelines for implementation of the standards.

 

Charity Navigator - www.charitynavigator.org - Charity Navigator rates organizations that solicit the public and provides information to prospective donors.


GuideStar - www.guidestar.org - GuideStar is a national database of that posts financial reports and other information on over 850,000 tax-exempt U.S. charitable organizations on its web site. It is a source of information about the operations and finances of nonprofit organizations.

 

American Institute of Philanthropy (Charity Watch)

 

Useful State and Federal Agency Websites

Internal Revenue Service - www.irs.gov - posts all IRS forms and instructions and many brochures drafted to assist non-profit boards in completing their annual financial filings with the IRS and in carrying out their other responsibilities. The IRS also has specific pages concerning Applying for Tax Exempt Status and Federal Tax Obligations of Non-Profit Corporations. If you can't find the information that you want on the IRS web site, call its toll-free number - 1-877-829-5500 - set up especially for those who have questions about tax-exemption and tax-exempt organizations.

 

Press Releases

File a Complaint

Questions and/or Complaints

Disclaimer

The State of Connecticut is not responsible for the contents of any off-site pages referenced through links. The responsibility for content rests with the agencies/organizations that are providing the information. These links are provided as an information service only. It is the responsibility of the web surfer to evaluate the content and usefulness of information obtained from other sites. Please see Disclaimers and Permissions of the State of Connecticut.

The Connecticut Office of the Attorney General urges you to seek legal counsel as our office is prohibited by statute from giving any legal advice or counsel.