State attorneys general are at the forefront of protecting charitable assets and ensuring their lawful and intended use in the public interest. State attorneys general are tasked with investigating and, when necessary, initiating legal actions against charitable organizations; overseeing nonprofits during mergers, conversions and acquisitions; and reviewing actions taken by executors and trustees where a will or trust contains a charitable gift.

Resources

For teaching materials that discuss the policies of state attorneys general, and the hurdles, regarding their responsibilities on non profit oversight and regulations, see Week 12 of my Syllabus on The Role of the State Attorney General:

The materials here contain the chapter on Charities from NAAG’s publication exploring the role of State Attorneys General as well as a selection materials on specific cases and guidelines used by attorneys general in case selection.

Trusted Sources

NASCO

The National Association of State Charity Officials (NASCO) is the primary organization dedicated to state regulation of non profit organizations.

The site contains a summary of the laws of every state and a description of the enforcement officials in each state that are almost always within the Office of State Attorney General.

NASCO maintains a close relationship with NAAG and NAGTRI. An excellent description of the NASCO/NAAG relationship is found on NAAG’s website: Get To Know: National Association of State Charities Officials.

Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy

The Urban Institute’s Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy is the premiere source of information on non profit regulation and oversight.

Sr. Fellow Cindy Lott, a former Assistant Attorney General in Indiana, has long been the leader in improving the capacity of attorneys general in this critically important field.

In September of 2016, in conjunction with the National State Attorneys General Program at Columbia Law School’s Charities Regulation and Oversight Project and the generous contributions of the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the Urban Institute’s Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy released a comprehensive report on the state of state-level charities oversight.

Research Report: State Regulation and Enforcement in the Charitable Sector

Primarily authored by Cindy Lott, a team of researchers undertook a comprehensive state by state analysis of the regulatory landscape of the charitable sector, including jurisdiction, capacity, and regulatory/enforcement methods and outcomes.

The research project consisted of three major investigative components:

  1. State-specific background legal research regarding regulation and enforcement of the charitable sector within that state;

  2. Survey questions submitted to representatives within the respective state agencies overseeing charities enforcement; and

  3. Follow-up interviews with state regulators.

Although states, working both independently and in conjunction with the IRS, play a large role in regulating the charitable sector, very little data exists on the actual practices of, and resources for the state regulators.

From the Tierney Blog

For additional resources on charities see the Charities section of the National State Attorneys General Program at Columbia Law School (AGP) archive.

The National State Attorneys General Program at Columbia Law School created the Charities Regulation and Oversight Project ("Charities Project"). Developed and led by Cindy Lott, the Charities Project was the oldest and most comprehensive initiative of the Program.