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Website Privacy Policy

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We’re a nonprofit. Does our website need a privacy policy?

Yes, California nonprofit organizations are subject to privacy laws, including the California Online Privacy Protection Act (CalOPPA), which requires operators of commercial websites or online services that collect personally identifiable information from California consumers to post a conspicuous privacy policy on their website. While nonprofit organizations may not be explicitly stated in the law, if your nonprofit website collects personal information from California residents, it’s advisable to have a privacy policy to comply with CalOPPA and to demonstrate your commitment to protecting users’ privacy. Additionally, having a privacy policy can help build trust with your website visitors and donors.

The key elements of a policy include:

  • Identification of the Operator – that’s probably your nonprofit.
  • Types of Personally Identifiable Information (PII) Collected – for example, names, email addresses, etc.
  • Purpose of Data Collection – why you collect the information and what you do with it
  • Third-Party Sharing – do you share it? If so, why and to whom
  • User Rights – especially how they can change or delete their data
  • Data Security Measures – how you protect the data
  • Policy on Cookies and Tracking Technologies
  • Changes to the Privacy Policy – how you notify of changes.
  • Contact Information – how can a user contact you.
  • Effective Date – date the policy went into effect.

For further reference: Making Your Privacy Practices Public from the California Department of Justice

Keep It or Toss It?

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Digital technology makes it so easy to create and store files. Over time, you can easily amass thousands of files (I have 26,443 on my laptop and counting). We don’t need all those files, and the more there are the harder it becomes to find the ones you do need. That’s where a document retention policy comes to the rescue.

There are files you want to keep. There are files you need to keep. The rest you can delete (or if they are on paper, shred and discard). A document retention policy tells you which are which and, for those you need to keep, how long you need to keep them. It’s also a policy that helps make sure you are in compliance with IRS regulations and keep your tax-exempt status.

If your nonprofit has not adopted a document retention policy yet, this is a good time to start the process. Familiarize yourself with the IRS regulations. Then, look at some samples and templates. Pick one that seems to best fit your organization and then customize. Finally, and most importantly, make sure everyone is familiar with the policy and follows it—including you!

Here are some good starting places:

Mileage Reimbursement for Volunteers?

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Should our nonprofit reimburse volunteers at the business rate because nonprofits are businesses? Or should we reimburse at the rate for charitable organizations?

First of all, whether or not to provide mileage reimbursement to your nonprofit’s volunteers is optional. So is the rate at which you choose to reimburse them. But there is an important caveat!

The IRS reimbursement rate for charitable mileage is currently 14 cents per mile. If a volunteer itemizes deductions and keeps track of miles driven for charitable purposes, that amount can be a deduction. But, if you choose to reimburse the volunteer at a higher rate, the volunteer must report the difference as income.

If you choose to offer mileage reimbursement to your volunteers, it is good practice to adopt a written policy that makes it clear what trips qualify, when and how the reimbursement will be made, and what documentation the volunteer must submit in order to be reimbursed.

Here are some sound resources on this topic:

Policy or Procedure?

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Setting policy is an important responsibility of the board of directors of a nonprofit organization. Determining procedures is not. That’s why board members need to know the difference!

Policies are general statements that express principles or requirements of behavior for the organization. They don’t change often. What are some examples of basic policies nonprofits should have in place?

  • Conflict of Interest
  • Whistle Blower
  • Document Retention and Destruction
  • Gift Acceptance
  • Financial Control
  • Investment

By contrast, procedures lay out the steps and processes by which the policies will be implemented. They do change, as often as needed, to make sure they are working right.

When a nonprofit has paid staff, generally it is the Board’s responsibility to establish polices and the staff’s responsibility to develop the procedures to implement the policies. In an all-volunteer nonprofit, the job of developing procedures probably should be delegated to a committee. In either case, the goal is for the board as a whole to work at the level of policy and strategic direction, and avoid “micromanaging” the organization.

Two good resources to learn more:

What Governance Policies Should Your Nonprofit Have?
Creating Nonprofit Policies

Conflicts of Interest

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“Looking at the agenda, does anyone see that they may have a potential conflict of interest?”

As president of a nonprofit board of directors, I routinely ask that question at the beginning of each board meeting. Rarely does anyone speak up, and we go on about our business. We also have a conflict of interest policy and each board member must sign an annual acknowledgement that they have received and read a copy. When it comes to conflict of interest, our board is on top of things, right?

Not necessarily. At a recent meeting of leaders of some of our Spokes member organizations, the topic of conflict of interest came up. These leaders were concerned that their board members did not have a very sound understanding of what constitutes a conflict of interest. That prompted me to do a little research and guess what? I learned that my own concept of conflict of interest, while not wrong, was far too narrow.

Duality of Interests

First of all, the concept of conflict of interest relates to more than direct financial gain. Let’s imagine a board needs to hire a general contractor for some job. Let’s also imagine that one of the board members happens to be a general contractor. We probably all would say that board member should recuse him or herself from the discussion and decision on what contractor to hire for the job. On the other hand, what about a board member who also serves on the board of another nonprofit in the same community. Is that a problem? Could be!

Two considerations can help us to a broader, more complete understanding of conflict of interest. First, we need to think in terms of ethics rather than legality. An action can be strictly legal yet not necessarily the right or good thing to do. Second, we need to remember that among the three “duties” that board members owe to their organization is the Duty of Loyalty—essentially, that they will put the organization’s welfare first.

As the National Council of Nonprofits puts it, “Conflicts can be nuanced and have more to do with a “duality of interests” than a financial conflict.”

What now?

Based on my new understanding, I want to go back and re-read our conflict of interest policy. Are we following it? Does it reflect this broader concept? Does it say anything about how we will manage conflicts of interest that do come up? What should we consider adding or changing? My hunch is there will be work to do.

Want to educate yourself and/or your board on this topic? Here are some excellent resources to share.

Conflicts of Interest | National Council of Nonprofits

Charity Conflicts of Interest: A Guide – Non Profit News …

Nonprofit Conflict of Interest: A 3-Dimensional View – Blue …

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