Accountability, Transparency and Legal Compliance

1. Board and staff know about and adhere to all applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations and fiduciary responsibilities. The organization conducts a periodic internal review of compliance and provides a summary of results to the board and staff.
 
2. The organization has adopted a code of ethics and makes it publicly available.
 
3. The organization has a formal conflict of interest policy that meets minimum IRS standards and guidelines and ensures board and staff members adhere to this policy in all dealings.
 
4. A “whistleblower” policy and system are in place that allows individuals to report misconduct confidentially and without negative consequence for doing so.
 
5. The organization has a policy to respect and protect the confidentiality and privacy rights of clients, members, grantees, employees, donors, volunteers, evaluation participants and others in the organization, consistent with applicable law. It does not release or disclose information about those individuals or organizations without their specific knowledge, understanding and permission, except as required by law or appropriate standards of organizational transparency.
 
6. The organization prepares and makes available to the public annually a report that includes information about the mission, programs, basic financial data, board and staff members and volunteers.