Government may regulate collections

With charity organisations engaging professionals to raise funds for them nowadays, the Government feels that it is time to look into laws to regulate the collection of public donations.
“The use of these methods requires us to re-look how collections are carried out in this country to ensure the true spirit of collecting donations is present,” said Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil yesterday.
“The Welfare Department, which comes under my ministry, does not have power to rule on how donations can be split between charities and the companies they hire.”
Shahrizat said the current 70:30 ratio between charity and a third party falls under the Income Tax Act.
“In fact, this basis was amended to 50:50 by the Inland Revenue Board on Jan 1,” she said.
The Welfare Department has only the power to control the amount a non-governmental organisation can collect, she said.
Shahrizat said the Rules for Donation Collections by Organisations and The Public circular issued in June 1987 by the Prime Minister’s Department gave the Welfare Department the authority to control and approve donation collections by NGOs.
“This circular is for administrative purposes and it does not have enforcement or prosecution laws,” she said, adding that there was also the House to House and Roadside Collections Act whereby police approval is required.
Shahrizat was responding to Umno Youth Public Complaints Bureau chairman Datuk Subahan Kamal’s statement in a newspaper that the split between the charity and a company should be 90% to charity and 10% to the company.
Source