Procedure: Fundraising and gift administration

Purpose

To outline the procedures governing the University’s fundraising activities and administration of gifts to the University which give effect to the ANU Fundraising and Gift Administration Policy.

Definitions

The ANU Foundation is the governance framework for all gifts to the University.

A bequest is a gift written into a will.

Cash equivalents are defined (in accordance with AASB Standard 107) as short-term, highly liquid investments that are readily convertible to known amounts of cash and which are subject to an insignificant risk of changes in value.

Cultural gifts are cultural items donated to public art galleries, museums, libraries and archives in Australia through the Australian Government Cultural Gifts Program.

D and E ledgers are accounting ledgers within the University’s finance system used to identify gift funds. These funds are managed under the ANU Foundation framework.

Designated funding, also known as tied or restricted funding, means funding that is restricted for one or more specific purposes.

Donation means a gift made during a donor’s lifetime or a gift from an organisation.

Donor means an individual or organisation that has made a gift or gifts, including documented pledge commitments, to the University.

Endowed funds are funds established within the E ledger by a gift to the University to support an activity or activities in perpetuity.

Expendable funds are funds established within the D ledger by a gift to the University and disestablished once all monies are expended or the fund.

A gift to the University is defined (in accordance with ATO Taxation Ruling 2005/13) as a transfer of the beneficial interest in property, in which the transfer is made voluntarily and arises by way of benefaction, and from which the giver receives no material benefit or advantage.

A gift agreement is a form of gift documentation which summarises the mutual understanding between a donor and the University regarding the purpose of a gift, the payment schedule where applicable, and any recognition associated with the gift.

Grant means a philanthropic grant received from a charitable trust or foundation.

LTIP means the ANU Long Term Investment Pool.

Recipient unit is the ANU academic or organisational unit that will benefit from the gift.

Undesignated funding, also known as untied or unrestricted funding, means funding that is not restricted for any specific purpose and may be used at the discretion of the Vice-Chancellor for purposes that advance the University’s vision.

Unsolicited gift means a gift that was not negotiated or solicited by the University.

Procedure

Gift negotiation

1. ANU Advancement is authorised to negotiate donations, bequests and grants, collectively known as gifts, on behalf of the University. No other academic or organisational unit is authorised to negotiate gifts on behalf of the University.
2. Gifts are negotiated as either designated or undesignated funding.
3. Gifts are negotiated for either an endowed fund or an expendable fund.
4. ANU Advancement consults with the University Legal Office regarding the terms of bequests once a copy of the will, probate papers or other correspondence or documentation is received.
5. ANU Advancement consults with the relevant ANU Executive, College Dean or Director of the recipient unit regarding designated funding to ensure the gift can be implemented for its intended purpose.
6. ANU does not provide legal, accounting, tax or financial advice to donors regarding gifts to the University and encourages donors to seek independent professional advice.
7. Donors are responsible for all costs incurred from obtaining advice.

Gift acceptance

8. ANU Advancement is authorised to accept gifts up to $5M, unless the gift is sensitive and/or precedent-setting, in accordance with the Delegations Framework as follows:

1. Up to $50,000: Associate Director, Philanthropic Governance & Impact
2. Up to $2,000,000: Director, Philanthropy
3. Up to $5,000,000: Vice-President (Advancement)

9. The Vice-President (Advancement) is authorised to decline any gift on behalf of the University.
10. Where the value of a gift is $5 million or more, or the gift is sensitive and/or precedent-setting and it has not been declined:

1. the Vice-President (Advancement) consults with the relevant ANU Executive, College Dean or Director of the recipient unit regarding designated funding;
2. the Vice-President (Advancement) makes a recommendation to the Vice-Chancellor regarding acceptance of the gift after consultation regarding designated funding; and
3. the Vice-Chancellor decides whether to accept or decline the gift.

11. Acceptance of gifts to the ANU Library is governed under the ANU Library Collection Development Policy.

Gift documentation

12. All gifts, other than those received online or in response to a fundraising appeal, must be accompanied by gift documentation outlining the gift date, the donor’s name, the gift amount and the purpose of the gift, as per the ANU Advancement Gift Documentation Local Protocol.
13. Where a gift agreement is required:

1. the agreement must be signed by the donor, the relevant ANU Executive, College Dean or Director of the recipient unit, and the Vice-President (Advancement); and
2. the gift is not accepted until the agreement has been signed by all parties.

Gift types

14. Gifts may be accepted as cash or non-cash.
15. Non-cash gifts comprise:

1. Real estate: transfer of ownership of real estate;
2. Securities: transfer of ownership of bonds, shares or other financial instruments;
3. Gifts-in-kind: transfer of ownership of other forms of property; and
4. Cultural gifts: a gift made under the Australian Government Cultural Gifts Program.

Real estate and gifts-in-kind

16. ANU accepts real estate and gifts-in-kind on the basis that:

1. the cost to maintain the gift is in proportion to its value or benefit;
2. the gift is retained as a University asset, used in connection with University activities and managed at the discretion of the University; or the gift is disposed of for cash or cash equivalents, with the proceeds used to support the University’s vision at the discretion of the University; and
3. administration and maintenance of the gift is the responsibility of the recipient unit, and any related costs are paid from the operating budget of that unit.

17. Where a gift-in-kind requires valuation for receipting purposes:

1. A qualified University employee, knowledgeable in the field of the gift may appraise the fair market value of gift estimated to be worth up to $5,000.
2. For gifts of $5,000 or more, ANU accounts for the gift and provides a receipt based on an ATO Valuation Certificate provided by the donor. The donor bears all costs of valuation and any fees as requested by the ATO.

Securities

18. ANU may accept securities where the cost of accepting the gift is in proportion to its value and strategic benefit.

Gifts of securities:

1. are considered with reference to the ANU Socially Responsible Investment Policy;
2. are counted as received at the point of transfer, following owner verification by the University’s Custodian Bank;
3. are liquidated through the University’s external Transition Manager, via a process initiated immediately on receipt; and
4. are accounted for based on the Liquidation Report supplied by the external Transition Manager on completion of the liquidation process (including any associated commissions, fees and taxes).
5. A tax receipt for the market value of the trading stock is issued on the day the gift was accepted.

Cultural gifts

19. Where a gift is a new collection or contributes to an existing ANU Collection, it is governed under the ANU Collections Policy.
20. Gifts eligible for the Australian Government Cultural Gifts Program:

1. may be accepted by the following ANU Collections: Drill Hall Gallery; ANU Library; Noel Butlin Archives Centre; Social Science Data Archives; and
2. are qualified, valued and donated according to the Cultural Gifts Program process.

21. The recipient Collections Manager is responsible for progressing eligible gifts through the Cultural Gifts Program process. ANU Advancement is responsible for drafting the gift agreement and accounting for the gift within the ANU Foundation.
22. The donor is responsible for all valuation costs and other fees incurred by giving a gift through the Cultural Gifts Program.

Gift recording and acknowledgement

23. ANU Advancement is responsible for recording, receipting and acknowledging gifts to the University.
24. ANU Advancement manages donor and gift information in accordance with the ANU Privacy Policy, the Advancement Privacy Statement and the ANU Donor Charter.
25. ANU respects donors’ wishes for anonymity and does not disclose information regarding anonymous gifts unless required by law to do so.

Gift funds

Assignment of monies

26. All cash gifts to the University are assigned to either an endowed gift fund (E fund) or an expendable gift fund (D fund) within the ANU Foundation, as per the terms of the gift.
27. Gifts may be assigned to an existing fund or a newly established fund as per the terms of the gift.
28. The University may contribute to a gift fund only under the conditions of an approved matching gift agreement established during gift negotiation, as per the ANU Advancement Gift Matching Local Protocol.
29. The University does not apply fees or taxes to gift funds.

Fund types

30. Endowed funds:

1. have a minimum establishment threshold determined by the cost of funding the gift purpose in perpetuity;
2. are established to support an activity or activities in perpetuity; and
3. are invested in the LTIP and managed in accordance with the ANU Investment Policy, the ANU Investment Distribution Policy and the ANU Socially Responsible Investment Policy.

31. Expendable funds:

1. are established for immediate use with the funds to be fully expended within a specified timeframe;
2. are disestablished once monies are expended; and
3. are not invested in the LTIP.

Gift expenditure

Authorising expenditure

32. The relevant ANU Executive, College Dean or Director of the recipient unit holds authorisation for expending monies from designated gift funds.
33. The Vice-Chancellor holds authorisation for expending monies from undesignated gift funds.
34. All expenditure relating to gifts must be accounted for in the respective gift fund in the ANU Foundation.

Monitoring and review

35. ANU Advancement and ANU Finance & Business Services oversee management of the ANU Foundation and review gift fund expenditure annually.
36. ANU Executive, College Deans and Directors of recipient units provide an annual report to the ANU Foundation Board on the activities of their respective gift funds as part of the annual review process.
37. The Chief Financial Officer reports on the financial position of the ANU Foundation to the ANU Foundation Board and to donors.
38. The Vice-President (Advancement), or the relevant ANU Executive, College Deans, and Directors of recipient units, can initiate a review of a gift fund if:

1. the fund has not been utilised for two years or more;
2. the University can no longer fulfil the intended purpose either financially and/or academically;
3. there is conflict between the University and the donor; or
4. the gift or donor brings the University into disrepute.

Repurposing of funds

39. In the unlikely event that ANU cannot fulfil the original purpose of a gift:

1. ANU will seek to consult with the donor or the donor’s representative; and
2. ANU may redirect the funds to a purpose deemed most consistent with the wishes of the donor.

40. Repurposing of funds is approved by the Vice-Chancellor.

Impact reporting and donor stewardship

41. ANU Advancement is responsible for providing donors with an annual update on the impact of their giving.