As the financial arm of the CFC, it would be much harder than getting the CFC to become a charity. The CFC would no longer be in control of the funds which consist of the Pugi fund and the proceeds of the sale of life memberships. Trying to do so would require a two thirds majority of the voting members and probably similar majorities of life members and regular members and possibly even junior members and honorary members. The effect of doing this would be to substantially dispose of all of our assets which triggers certain consequences under the NFP act and likely under our constitution. It would also be likely in this COVID environment remove our safety net and would likely make it harder to find people willing to serve as members of the board because the board members are responsible even two years after they leave the board for the CFC in the event of bankruptcy.
Last edited by Vladimir Drkulec; 08-26-2021 at 06:28 PM.
Patricia, there is little chance that a national body like the CFC who do not comply with the «*official language act*» be recognized as a charity or something like. The CFC only operates in english and this last since its foundation. The promotion you are talking about happen only in english.
Patricia, There is little chance that a national federation get a charitable status or something like if it do not comply with the Language official act. It’s the same for any national program coming from the Federal government. The promotion you are talking about operates only in english.
If being a charity was such a wonderful thing, the CFC would have done more to keep that status back when the option was still on the table. I think some are over estimating the difficulty and hurdles present to become a charity. Others are over-estimating the benefits of becoming a charity in the absence of an effective fundraising campaign.
If we were able to raise $50,000 per year or more year over year then it would be worth the extra overhead and red tape to be a charity which would be about $5000 per year for an audit every year, the last time I checked.
We do fall short on providing bilingual services but I doubt that is a precondition for charitable status based on other charities that I am aware of. We do not discriminate against players from Quebec. Perhaps we need to do a better job of publicizing what we do.
Last edited by Vladimir Drkulec; 08-26-2021 at 11:02 PM.
Those criteria applies to Canadian amateur athletic associations, but it is far from obvious that chess is athletic.
As a former CFC Treasurer, I can say that discrimination against mind sports is rampant in the Federal Grant system. I did strongly protest to the Minister about the condition, now well hidden from public eyes, stating that chess, droughts, bridge, scrabble and similar activities are unworthy of Federal Funding. The Minister did refuse to remove this blatant discrimination. In 2021, the conditions for getting Federal Grants are sent only to qualified applicants, which mean that they are hidden from the general public, presumably to hide the continuing discrimination,
I agree. Many outsiders believe that a Charitable Status is marvellous, but those who have practical experience being a director of a Registered Charity often disagree.
The main obligations of a registered charity are to:
devote its resources (funds, personnel, and property) to its charitable purposes and activities (not everything the CFC does is Charitable)
file its annual Form T3010, Registered Charity Information Return, within six months of its fiscal year-end
meet its annual spending requirement (disbursement quota) (minimum amount to spend, per year, for the attainment of our Charitable goals)
keep adequate books and records in Canada, and make them available for review by the Canada Revenue Agency on request (audit fees)
make sure that official donation receipts are complete and accurate when issued (issuing a single bad receipt could lead to serious problems)
control and direct the use of all its resources (funds, personnel, and property)
maintain its status as a legal entity
Also, a registered charity should inform the Charities Directorate of any changes to the charity's mode of operation or legal structure. Examples include a change in address, directors, legal or operating name, purposes, activities, or governing documents.
For more information on the obligations of a registered charity, see Checklists for charities. If a registered charity does not meet its obligations, it may be subject to a penalty and may have its registered status revoked.
There is a lot of administrative overhead and audit fees that require that the Charity collect a significant amount of money to offset the extra costs.
The advantages of a Registered Charities are well known, the drawback are more secret, but are very real and could impact the CFC.
Last edited by Pierre Dénommée; 08-27-2021 at 12:59 PM.
Chess can be charitable if sold properly. Chess institute of Canada was registered as the charitable organization several years ago.
Though I don’t know any national sport organizations with the charitable status.
In principle the organization shall prove that it does not spend donated monies “for bonuses” to get them periodically.
.*-1
Most national sports organizations that are athletic, recognized by the Canadian Olympic Committee and funded by Sport Canada don't need to be charities because they can issue receipts for donations which opens the door for corporate donations and sponsorships.