New grant guidelines
pay off for charities

Public Service staff collecting information from not-for-profit organisations seeking Government funding will not be allowed to seek information already held by the Commonwealth under new guidelines issued this week.
   Minister for Finance and Deregulation, Senator Penny Wong said the revised Commonwealth Grant Guidelines was aimed at reducing red tape and improving collaboration between government and the not-for-profit sector.
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   “We support the important work of not-for-profit organisations and want to make it easier for them to continue to help the community,” Senator Wong said.
   She said the changes would also mean agency staff must not request information provided to the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) by organisations regulated by that body.
   “This means less duplication and less time spent providing the same information,” she said.
   Senator Wong said templates for low-risk grants had also been developed to ease the administrative and legal costs for organisations.
   “These Guidelines will improve our interaction with the not-for-profit sector and reduce unnecessary red tape and costs.”
   Assistant Treasurer, David Bradbury said the new Guidelines supported the ACNC’s implementation of a “report-once, use-often” reporting framework, which was based around a Charity Passport.
   “The Charity Passport is a collection of data that charities will report once to the ACNC to meet the baseline corporate and financial reporting requirements of Australian Government agencies,” Mr Bradbury said.
   “One of the key objectives of the ACNC is to reduce the regulatory burden currently imposed upon the NFP sector, which means ensuring that Australian charities don't have to provide the same information over and over again to Government.”
   Minister for Social Inclusion, Mark Butler said the Government was working to support and sustain “a vibrant, independent and innovative NFP sector”.
   “We look forward to continuing to deliver reforms that will strengthen the sector as it grows into the future,” Mr Butler said.
   The revised Guidelines can be accessed at this PS News link and will take effect from 1 June.

Edition 352, 12 March 2013

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