Be wary when making holiday donations, South Carolinians warned
COLUMBIA, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) - The season of giving is now upon us – and a lot of South Carolinians will be opening their wallets and checkbooks over the next month to causes they care about.
But how do you know if charities are making the most of donations?
South Carolina Secretary of State Mark Hammond wants folks to be wary of charities that might take advantage of that kindness.
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“There’s some organizations out there that send very little toward their charitable purpose, and a lot of their revenue that they receive through donations are eaten up by professional fundraisers,” he said.
He recommends you do your research before opening your wallet.
You can look up organizations through the secretary of state’s public database to find out how their donations are being spent.
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- Each year, the South Carolina Secretary of State’s Office recognizes 10 charities as “angels” – that follow state law and spend at least 80% of their revenue on charitable work. Here’s this year’s list:
- Cliffs Residents Outreach Inc., Travelers Rest, 93.2%
- Habitat for Humanity of Horry County, Myrtle Beach, 83.7%
- Keepin’ It Real Ministries, Columbia, 95.4%
- Laurens County SAFE Home, Laurens, 81.2%
- Mary Sunshine House, Central, 82.6%
- Neighbors Together Inc., North Charleston, 83.3%
- PlaySafe, Anderson, 82.2%
- PS I Love You Ministries, Spartanburg, 94.3%
- Sea Turtle Patrol Hilton Head Island, Bluffton, 95.9%
- The Mary Ann Morris Animal Society, Bamberg, 99.3%
“We want to do everything we can to educate our charitable donor,” Hammond said.
This information is also available through the free “Give Smart SC” app.
“It will tell you if the charity is ed. It will tell you how much is going toward the charitable purpose,” Hammond said “We do everything we can to find charities that are not ed, to bring them into compliance.”
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People can call or email the Secretary of State’s Division of Public Charities to learn more about an organization before they donate.
If you have concerns about a charitable organization, you can file an online, confidential complaint with the Secretary of State’s Office.
“Last year, we received over 750 complaints, 150 of those complaints online, and the revenue that we collected from fines to nonprofit organizations increased by 50%, so the public is our eyes and our ears out there,” Hammond said.
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And he has one final piece of advice for South Carolinians in the giving spirit.
“We want everyone to give from the heart,” he said, “but we want them to give smart.”
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