Our COO addresses your top concerns about trends and challenges in our industry!
From Phil Stolberg, Chief Operating Officer
Read Time: 5 minutes
We recently sat down with the authority on all things philanthropy – BDI’s own COO, Phil Stolberg – to have a candid conversation about what’s on his mind lately. Take a minute to read an excerpt of this conversation to get his insights and input on some of the most popular questions about what’s going on in our nonprofit industry… concerns that are most likely on your mind as well!
1. Many nonprofits are losing their employees to companies who promise to pay higher, give more flexibility, etc. Do you have advice for how nonprofits can retain employees?
Without question, this reality we find ourselves in requires even greater measures of HR innovation, flexibility and candor to keep employees happy. Recently, BDI’s HR Director, McKennah Williams, shared several practical, time-tested insights that are still relevant when navigating today’s challenges. Click here to read this great article from McKennah, who answers this question in greater detail than I could!
2. Can you provide a brief update on the Universal Charitable Deduction laws?
The Universal Charitable Deduction of $300 for an individual and $600 for married couples expired on December 31, 2021. It appears that an extension of this benefit for 2022 will be connected to a number of other tax legislation issues that will not be addressed by Congress until this fall. The unfortunate result of this delay means that the non-for-profit community will not be able to inform and encourage donors to take advantage of this benefit until very late in the calendar year.
3. What’s next in national privacy legislation?
Even though there’s a tremendous amount of rhetoric in the media and in Washington, D.C., it appears that Congress will not take action addressing this issue until next year. The Nonprofit Alliance, along with several other organizations sensitive to the importance of drafting national legislation that recognizes and protects the nonprofit community, are actively working with both the House and the Senate to set the stage for action in 2023. In the meantime, I discussed this topic in our February 2022 Inspire issue – you might find the attached overview helpful.
4. Can you share a quick Postal Reform Bill update?
Recently, Congress finally passed the Postal Reform Bill that transferred $50 billion of retirement health care costs to Medicare. This critically important legislation brings tremendous relief to the Post Office. Unfortunately, the bill did not include provision limiting future postal rate increases. Over the past several years, postal rate increases were, at least, partially justified to address postal employee retirement benefits. The general consensus is that without Congressional action, we will continue to experience substantive nonprofit postal rate increases, possibly as early as next fall.
5. Many nonprofits are considering cryptocurrency donations. What do they need to know before getting started?
For guys like me, the world of cryptocurrency is fascinating, exciting and extremely confusing! Recently, Matt Hayes, President and Co-Founder of Engiven, shared at the 2022 Empower Summit BDI hosted in beautiful San Diego at the end of March. Matt helped to unravel some of the crypto mysteries and, more importantly, define options for receiving donated crypto. You can also check out this helpful article from the National Council of Nonprofits or contact Engiven for more detailed information.
We hope this candid conversation with our wise and wonderful COO, Phil Stolberg, is helpful in explaining the current state of philanthropy and answering your most pressing questions. If there’s something you’d like to learn more about – or that Phil didn’t cover – feel free to send us an email. We’d love to chat more about what’s on your mind and discuss any other questions you may have about industry trends in 2022!
Click here to read more “Inside Philanthropy” on our website.
