By-Law and Policies

The Grand River Conservation Foundation (GRCF) is a registered charity that supports Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA) approved projects and programs. The GRCF Board of Directors is governed by applicable legislation and its By-law (349KB PDF).

Since 1965, the GRCF has supported key projects of the GRCA by requesting and receiving donations from the community.The GRCF has accumulated considerable personal information, both qualitative and quantitative, about our current, former and prospective donors. "Personal information" includes any information, recorded or not, about an identifiable individual. This includes information in any form, such as: name, home address, home-related contact information, opinions and beliefs, birthdates and other identifying data.

Purpose

Collecting personal information about donors is essential to the GRCF's ability to provide customized stewardship, to update donors on GRCF accomplishments and challenges, and to advise donors how their contributions are being used.As a registered charity, the GRCF acts in compliance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) to ensure that donor and third party information is adequately protected.

Principles

The GRCF observes the following privacy principles when collecting, maintaining and using personal information:

Accountability: the GRCF is responsible for maintaining and protecting the personal information in its possession and shall designate a Privacy Officer who is accountable for compliance with this policy and PIPEDA.

Identifying Purposes: the purposes for which personal information is collected shall be identified before, or at the time, the personal information is collected.

Consent: the individual's consent will be obtained for the collection, use or disclosure of personal information. Consent may be expressly obtained (for example, in a signed consent, email, or completed donor pledge form) or implied.

When the GRCF receives personal information from donors that enables us to provide a service, such as processing a donation, consent to allow the GRCF to deal with that personal information in a reasonable manner would be implied. When consent is given verbally, the GRCF will confirm the verbal consent with subsequent correspondence.

Accuracy: The GRCF will keep personal information as accurate, complete and up-to-date as as possible in order to fulfill the purposes for which it is to be used.

Limiting Collection: The personal information the GRCF collects shall be limited only to that which is necessary for the purposes identified. Information shall be collected by fair and lawful means.

Limiting use, disclosure and retention: Personal information shall only be used or disclosed for the purposes for which it was collected, unless an individual has otherwise consented or when it is required or permitted by law. Personal information will be retained only as long as necessary for the fulfillment of those purposes.

Safeguards: Physical, electronic and procedural safeguards will be employed to protect GRCF systems and all personal information under our control against unauthorized access and use.

Openness: The GRCF will provide information to individuals about our policies and procedures relating to the management of personal information that is under our control.

Individual's Access: On written request to our Privacy Officer, donors will be informed of the existence, use and disclosure of their personal information that is in the possession of the GRCF, and may be given access to that personal information as required and permitted by law. Individuals are entitled to challenge the accuracy and completeness of that personal information and have it be amended as appropriate.

Challenging GRCF Compliance: An individual shall be able to challenge the GRCF's compliance with the above principles by submitting their concerns in writing to the Privacy Officer.

Implementation

The GRCF has designated the Secretary-Treasurer as Privacy Officer, who is accountable for compliance with the above principles. The personal information collected may be used for the purpose for which it was collected, as provided in this Privacy Policy. Personal information may be used to:

• Process a donation and issue a tax receipt;

• Respond to questions or inquiries;

• Send informational, fundraising or promotional communications;

• Recognize donors;

• Carry out other purposes that are disclosed and where consent is obtained; or

• To carry out any other purpose permitted or required by law.

Electronic donor records will be password-protected in a dedicated GRCF database that is only accessible by a limited number of individuals specifically responsible for GRCF work.

Hard copy donor records and any related reports will be kept in locked cabinets, in an access-controlled building. Qualitative information will be accurately recorded, in hard copy and electronically, in a fact-based and objective manner (i.e. a manner that would be appropriate were an individual to view their own information).

The GRCF will not sell, disclose, barter or trade its donor lists with any organization or individual, including the Grand River Conservation Authority. In some circumstances, we may be required to provide personal information to third parties for legal or regulatory purposes.

Limited information may be shared with specific employees of the GRCA in circumstances where they are providing assistance to the GRCF, e.g.: a donation request.

The GRCF will ensure that any third-party contractors it engages will conform to this policy, where applicable.

Individuals or organizations will have the option to decline information updates, and ask to be removed from the GRCF database.

Training will be provided to appropriate staff including the individual designated as Privacy Officer.

This policy will be subject to regular review to ensure its currency related to legislation and regulations.

Donors may ask for further information with respect to the GRCF Privacy Policy, request a hard copy of this policy or initiate a challenge to compliance by directing their enquiry in writing to the Privacy Officer, Grand River Conservation Foundation, 400 Clyde Road, PO Box 729, Cambridge, Ontario, N1R 5W6.

Investments of the Grand River Conservation Foundation (GRCF) are pooled and managed by a third party investment manager on a discretionary basis, with oversight from an Investment Committee appointed annually by the Board of Directors. All investment decisions are made according to a Board-approved Investment Policy.

The objectives of the Foundation's investment activities are:

• to provide high yields at prudent levels of risk; and

• to protect the Capital in the funds, and to protect against inflation and achieve growth.

This is accomplished within a policy framework that specifies a percentage range for equities and fixed income securities within the GRCF portfolio, as follows:

Equities

• Total equities: minimum 35%, maximum 70%

• Foreign equities: minimum 0%, maximum 35%

• Any one equity: minimum 0%, maximum 7%

Fixed income securities

• Total fixed income securities: minimum 30%, maximum 65%

More information is available on the types of investments upon request. Investments will not be made in real estate, non-marketable securities (other than GICs or similar instruments) or any "non-arm's length" transaction. Results are monitored by the Investment Committee on a quarterly basis and reported to the GRCF Board of Directors regularly.

All Endowed Funds and any other funds that are not expected to be required for projects of the Foundation or operating expenses within two years will be transferred to a Long Term Investment Account. The funds held in the Long Term Investment Account will be invested at the sole discretion of the Foundation's Investment Manager in accordance with the Foundation's guidelines outlined in this policy.

The GRCF is considered a "charitable organization" by Canada Revenue Agency; 3.5 per cent of fund balances must be spent annually. Income from most funds is disbursed annually. For a smaller number, disbursements are made at the discretion of the fund holder.

The Grand River Conservation Foundation (GRCF) is a registered charitable organization under the Income Tax Act (ITA). Its charitable registration number is 11894 6045 RR0001. The GRCF’s primary purpose is to request and accept donations from the private sector (individuals, corporations, businesses, GRCFs and organizations/groups) to be used for priority projects of the Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA.)

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to set out types of gifts that may be accepted by the GRCF and who may accept them, and to offer guidelines for accepting and receipting gifts. This policy applies to all donations received by the GRCF.

In all of its practices the GRCF will adhere to the policies of the Canada Revenue Agency and any other applicable law. This policy will be reviewed periodically, and updated as necessary, by the GRCF Board of Directors through the Finance and Administration Committee. In situations where the application of this Policy to a particular gift is not clear, the staff of the GRCF may review the application of this Policy with legal and accounting advisors where necessary and seek the approval of the Board wherever appropriate.

Gift Acceptance Principles

Gifts to the GRCF may be made on an outright basis or the donor may direct the GRCF to hold the gift in a fund. The gift may be unrestricted or contain restrictions.

Authority to Accept Gifts

The Executive Director or the Secretary-Treasurer, or designate, may accept gifts of cash or near cash that are not subject to any restrictions, or other gifts permitted by this policy.

The Executive Director or the Secretary-Treasurer are authorized to negotiate gift agreements with prospective donors. Prior approval of the Board of Directors may be sought before accepting any gifts if the nature of the gift is exceptional or may raise concerns for the GRCF.

Issuing Donation Receipts

The GRCF’s charitable receipting practices are undertaken in accordance with the requirements of the ITA and CRA. The GRCF’s practice is to issue donation receipts for gifts of $10 or more made directly to the GRCF. Donations made online will receive a receipt for their gift from the third party organization that processes the donation e.g. canadahelps.org. Any gifts received from other registered charities will receive a non-charitable receipt.

Gift Agreements

Where a potential donation carries specific restrictions or obligations to be undertaken by the GRCA or the GRCF, the GRCF will request that a donor enter into a gift agreement. Such agreements may be reviewed by the GRCF’s legal counsel where necessary. The GRCF will consider only those restrictions that will not be unreasonably difficult to administer.

Agreements will normally be signed by the GRCF Chair and the Secretary-Treasurer. A donor cannot impose, change or remove restrictions after the gift has been made. Agreements will generally contain a clause to provide the GRCF with the power to vary the restriction in the event that it becomes impossible or impractical for any reason to fulfill.

The GRCF may also enter into pledge agreements with donors with respect to gifts to be made over a period of time. Some gifts may be made as a naming opportunity and are subject to the joint GRCA/GRCF Naming Opportunities Policy.

Gifts Held in a Fund

Funds held by the GRCF are to be invested and disbursed in accordance with the GRCF’s Investment Policy and any applicable legislation. In general, the establishment of any new fund will require a formal gift agreement.

The GRCF holds a Grand River Conservation Fund within each of the Kitchener and Waterloo, Cambridge, Brant and Guelph Community Foundations (CFs). Where a donor wishes to establish a new endowed fund, the GRCF will ask the donor to consider the suitability of creating such a fund within one of GRCF’s partner community foundation funds. If the donor elects to do so, their gift will be subject to that CF’s policies and procedures.

Returning a Gift

In general, once a gift has been received by the GRCF and an official donation receipt issued, the property becomes a charitable asset and cannot be returned to the donor at law.

Reallocation of Donations

All donations are accepted in good faith and will be used for their intended purpose, in keeping with the rules and regulations of the Canada Revenue Agency. The GRCF Board reserves the right, however, to re-allocate donations in extenuating circumstances.

Administration Charge

An administrative charge is applied to donations received by the GRCF to offset general expenses e.g. administrative support, general offices expenses, etc. The administrative charge is a percentage approved by the GRCF Board in accordance with Board-approved practice.

Types of Gifts Accepted

A valid gift is a voluntary transfer of property without consideration. The GRCF generally accepts gifts in the form of cash or near cash, deferred gifts or gifts-in-kind where applicable.

Accepted gifts to the GRCF are eligible for an official charitable donation receipt that may be claimed as a non-refundable tax credit for an individual donor or tax deduction for a corporate donor on the donor’s income tax return.

Donations are accepted only for priorities of the GRCA. Donations that come with direction that a specific third-party individual or group that is a non-qualified donee receive the funds will not be accepted.

The GRCF reserves the right to decline a gift if it does not meet the definition of “gift” as set out by the Canada Revenue Agency or it is not deemed to be of use or meeting its mission or the mission of the GRCA. Gifts not mentioned in this Policy or other policies of the GRCF will require individual review.

The GRCF will keep all information, data, or other communications with donors strictly confidential in accordance with its Privacy Policy. However, the GRCF reserves the right to disclose such information where it is required to do so at law.

Cash and Near Cash

The GRCF accepts gifts of cash and “near cash” such as donations by cheque, credit card and funds electronically transferred. Following receipt of the gift, the GRCF will issue to the donor an official charitable donation receipt for the amount of the gift in accordance with CRA guidelines.

Gifts received after the end of the year may not be added to the previous year's donations unless the gift was postmarked in the previous year (for example, a cash gift made by way of a cheque that was mailed and postmarked in December but not received by the GRCF until January).

Gifts-in-Kind

Gifts-in-kind refer to a gift of property other than cash or near cash.

Acceptance: Before accepting a gift-in-kind, the GRCF will undertake such due diligence steps as it determines necessary. In order to be accepted, the gift-in-kind must be determined to be beneficial to GRCF’s objectives for its intrinsic purpose, for use in fundraising purposes (e.g. an auction item) or for sale with the proceeds applied toward the GRCF’s purposes.

Proposed gifts-in-kind will be evaluated to determine whether the costs to the GRCF associated with receiving or managing the gift, such as maintenance, insurance and repair, can be accommodated prudently. Occasionally, associated costs might weigh against the acceptance of a gift.

Receipting: Prior to issuing a charitable receipt for a donation in kind, the GRCF will determine its Fair Market Value (FMV) as of the date of the donation and will maintain documentation about the FMV. If the fair market value of an item cannot be reasonably determined, a charitable donation receipt will not be issued. 

Donation of Services: Contributions of services are not property and therefore may not be receipted. However, an official donation receipt may be issued if a person provides a service to the GRCF, the GRCF pays for the service, and the person then returns the payment to the GRCF voluntarily as a cash gift in separate transactions.

Real Estate

Potential gifts of conservation lands will be referred to the GRCA’s Property Department for consideration under the GRCA Land Acquisition Policy.

Deferred Gifts

A deferred (or planned) gift is a commitment made in the present with benefit to the GRCF, deferred to a future date. Planned gifts generally accepted by the GRCF are:

Bequests: Cash or near-cash bequests are accepted on a specific or residual basis and may be directed to be used for current or deferred needs. In the latter case, the bequest may be held in a fund. Gifts-in-kind made by bequest are subject to the principles of this policy.

In general, donors considering a bequest are encouraged to discuss their intentions with the GRCF, in order to ensure that the GRCF is able to carry out their wishes. If the bequest does not meet the principles of this policy the decision will be communicated to the legal representative of the estate. Attempts will be made to achieve a mutually acceptable gift agreement between the parties where possible.

In receiving a bequest, the GRCF may charge reasonable costs, including administration fees, to the income or capital of the gift as determined in the sole discretion of the GRCF Board in accordance with the policies of the GRCF.

The GRCF reserves the right to decline a bequest if, in the discretion of the GRCF, the legal, accounting, or other professional fees associated with administration of the estate exceed the amount of bequest or if an estate that has not been properly administered, and its trustees not having received appropriate compensation.

Following receipt of the bequest, the GRCF will issue to the estate a charitable donation receipt based on its fair market value. Any legal, accounting, or other professional fees borne by the GRCF in receiving the bequest from the estate of the donor will be deducted from the gift received.

Life Insurance

Gifts of life insurance may be made to the GRCF by:

• Irrevocably assigning the ownership and beneficiary rights of a paid-up life insurance policy to the GRCF, for which the GRCF may issue a charitable donation receipt for the eligible amount of the policy’s value (i.e., its cash surrender value less any loan outstanding on the policy.) Where the policy assigned is a term life insurance, the cash surrender value is nil.

• Irrevocably assigning the ownership and beneficiary rights of a life insurance policy to the GRCF on which premiums remain to be paid and by naming the GRCF as a beneficiary of a life insurance policy. In this case, the GRCF shall require assurance from the donor that he/she will continue to make donations towards paying future premiums for which they would receive a charitable receipt.

• In the event that premium payment donations do not continue to be paid for reasons other than the death of the insured, the GRCF will at the Board’s discretion reserve the right to maintain the policy or allow it to lapse.

• The GRCF may also issue a charitable donation receipt for the eligible amount of the policy (e.g. its cash surrender value less any loan outstanding on the policy).

• Where the GRCF is named as a beneficiary of a life insurance policy, it will issue a charitable donation receipt when the GRCF receives the insurance proceeds upon the death of the insured. No charitable donation receipt may be issued upon naming the GRCF as the beneficiary or for premiums paid for such a policy.

Publicly-Listed Securities

Common publicly-listed securities include a share, debt obligation or right listed on a prescribed stock exchange, a share of the capital stock of a mutual fund corporation, or a unit of a mutual fund trust.

The GRCF’s normal practice is to request that the donor’s investment broker facilitate an electronic transfer of donated securities directly to the GRCF’s Investment Account. In general, the GRCF’s policy is to liquidate gifts of securities as soon as possible after receipt. The value of a gift of electronically transferred shares is the closing bid price of the share on the date the shares are received in the GRCF’s account, with any loss to the FMV at the time of the transfer borne by the donor. Share certificates (hard copy) may be accepted and will be valued at the date received by the GRCF.