9 CRR-NY 335.4NY-CRR
9 CRR-NY 335.4
9 CRR-NY 335.4
335.4 Statewide SEFA council.
The commissioner shall establish up to six geographic regions of the State. The statewide SEFA council shall consist of two representatives from each region who shall be selected by a majority vote of the chairpersons of the local SEFA committees within each region. Selection of the representatives shall be made biennially and recorded with the statewide SEFA council by December 31st of each corresponding year.
(a) The statewide SEFA council shall:
(1) be composed of two local SEFA committee chairperson, or their designee from each region. Each region shall also designate one alternate member to serve in the absence of a designated statewide SEFA council member. All members of the statewide SEFA council shall be employee participants, as defined in section 335.2(i) of this Part;
(2) adopt a written conflict of interest policy and by-laws for conducting business and meetings. The by-laws shall include, at a minimum, the term of office for statewide SEFA council members; required member training; provisions for the election of a chairperson, public notice of its meetings, meetings open to the public, a procedure for the public access to records; and compliance with the Public Officers Law;
(3) conduct eligibility screenings and make decisions regarding the eligibility of all statewide organizations that have timely applied or recertified, for participation in SEFA pursuant to section 335.6 of this Part. Additionally, the statewide SEFA council shall review and make final determinations after a local SEFA committee rejects or removes a local organization. An appeal from an eligibility decision made by the statewide SEFA council may be made in accordance with article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules. The commissioner is a necessary party to an appeal made in accordance with article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules;
(4) oversee and provide centralized services to the annual solicitation campaign, the local SEFA committees and the federated community campaigns including, but not limited to, the campaign directory, statewide marketing materials, training and training materials, campaign reporting systems, database systems, internet services, website development and website maintenance;
(5) maintain a uniform naming and numbering system in consultation with the Office of the State Comptroller to identify participants that shall be used by all local SEFA committees in campaign materials, distributions, and accounting; and maintain a list of each participant by name, number, campaign, the percentage of total support and revenue spent on administration and fundraising, as described in section 335.6(b)(2)(ii) of this Part, and the statement described in section 335.6(b)(2)(v) of this Part. The list is to be used in the preparation of the campaign directory. The campaign directory for all campaign areas is to be prepared, approved, and published by the statewide SEFA council. Title to campaign materials and intellectual property rights remain with the State of New York.
(b) The statewide SEFA council shall annually adopt a budget and may select, subject to the approval of the commissioner, one of the FCCM, or other charitable organization, to serve as the statewide campaign manager (SCM), in support of the annual solicitation campaign, the statewide SEFA council, and the statewide SEFA cabinet. The statewide SEFA council may select such charitable organization to serve in that role for up to three calendar years, subject to annual renewal following a review of performance. A request for application (RFA) shall be used by the statewide SEFA council to solicit the services it needs, in a form approved by the commissioner. The statewide SEFA council’s selection shall be subject to the approval of the commissioner. Once selected, the chosen organization shall enter into a memorandum of understanding with the statewide SEFA council.
(c) The budget of the statewide SEFA council may include funds to reimburse a federated community campaign, or charitable organization, that it retains. The amount budgeted by the statewide SEFA council is to be included on a pro rata basis in the budgets of each of the federated community campaigns named under this Part. The pro rata amount shall be included as an expenditure in each federated community campaign’s acting under the authority of this Part. The pro rata amount to be included in the budget of each of the federated community campaigns is to be computed on a basis that is proportionate to the contributions received during the prior campaign in each campaign area, divided by the total contributions of the prior year’s annual solicitation campaign. Payment must be made at least quarterly. If after demand by the statewide SEFA council for payment, the federated community campaign fails for more than 90 days to make payment of its allocated share, the unsatisfied claim by the statewide SEFA council must be reported when the information is so requested on any vendor responsibility questionnaire completed by the FCCM, as required by agreement.
Example: contributions in the campaign area = $100,000; total contributions raised by in all campaign areas under this Part = $8,000,000; the pro rata share percentage = $100,000 ÷ $8,000,000.
The use of SEFA by donors implies that donors reasonably believe the federated community campaign is in compliance with these regulations. Contributions designated to the federated community campaign shall be first used to make any past due payment to the statewide SEFA council and must remain restricted and held in trust until the statewide SEFA council is fully paid. Failure to make timely payment is sufficient cause for revocation of the eligibility of the federated community campaign by the statewide SEFA council in accordance with section 335.9 of this Part.
(d) The federated community campaign, or charitable organization, retained by the statewide SEFA council shall:
(1) prepare a plan for performing or supporting the statewide SEFA cabinet and statewide SEFA council over the next annual solicitation campaign term;
(2) respond in a timely and appropriate manner to reasonable inquiries from participating organizations;
(3) maintain statewide SEFA council records and bank accounts separate from the federated community campaign’s internal organizational records and bank accounts;
(4) prepare and file the financial reports of the statewide SEFA council in the same manner as the financial reports described in section 335.7(c)(5) of this Part.
(e) The decisions of the statewide SEFA council, with respect to admission, shall be final and binding and appealable only as provided by paragraph (a)(3) of this section in recognition of the belief and conviction that the distribution of voluntary contributions of State employees should be solely the decisions of such employees or their authorized representatives.
(f) The statewide SEFA council shall maintain a statewide campaign directory that must be exclusively used in all campaign areas by all federated community campaigns under this Part 335. To promote efficiency, the statewide campaign directory shall, to the extent possible, be digitally published and printing of SEFA campaign directory shall be minimized. All campaign materials, including the statewide campaign directory, shall be free of excessive or disproportionate publicity in favor of any one participant or federation of charitable organizations or category of service and shall include the disclosures required by article 7-A of the Executive Law. The statewide campaign directory shall notify employees of their right to make a choice to contribute or not to contribute; and to give a confidential contribution in a sealed envelope. Title to the statewide campaign directory, including all intellectual property rights, remains with the State of New York.
(g) The SEFA campaign directory shall:
(1) state that funds designated to a particular participant charitable organization are provided directly to that charitable organization, minus a specified percentage to cover the administrative fees of the campaign;
(2) provide the names and addresses of the federated community campaigns for each campaign area;
(3) describe how individuals may obtain a copy of the financial reports of each federated community campaign;
(4) utilize the participant numbering system established by the statewide SEFA council;
(5) include the statement and description required by Executive Law section 174-b, subdivisions 1 and 2, respectively; and
(6) include the percentage of total support and revenue spent on administration and fundraising as described in section 335.6(b)(2)(ii) of this Part, or, if more current, the percentage included with the participant’s most recent recertification under section 335.9 of this Part.
9 CRR-NY 335.4
Current through September 15, 2021
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