Money Talks

Our discussion is about charities this week.

Where to Give on this Giving Tuesday.

Everyone hopes that the organization to which you donate money is a reputable group.

In Mississippi, The Charities Division of the Secretary of State’s Office is responsible for the registration and regulation of all charitable organizations and fundraisers who solicit contributions in Mississippi. The division is also responsible for the investigation of charity complaints and/or violations to the State’s charitable laws.

Each year, the Secretary of State’s office kicks off a “Check your Charities” campaign during the holiday season. We encourage Mississippians to check their charities with the Secretary of State’s Office before they donate. Mississippians are some of the most generous in the nation, and the secretary of state’s office urges you to check your charity to ensure your hard earned dollars are wisely spent.​​

The website for the Secretary of State of Mississippi is        sos.ms.gov

They also have links to: American Institute of Philanthropy: Charity Watch, founded 25 years ago as the American Institute of Philanthropy (AIP), is an independent, assertive charity watchdog.

BBB Wise Giving: The BBB Wise Giving Alliance helps donors make informed giving decisions and promotes high standards of conduct among organizations that solicit contributions from the public. It produces reports about national charities, evaluating them against comprehensive Standards for Charity Accountability, and publishes a magazine, the Wise Giving Guide, three times a year.

Charity Navigator: Charity Navigator is an evaluator of charities. In their quest to help donors, their team of professional analysts has examined tens of thousands of non-profit financial documents. They use this knowledge to develop an unbiased, objective, numbers-based rating system to assess over 9,000 of America's best-known and some lesser known, but worthy, charities.

Other links at the Sec. of State’s website: Guide Star, ​Supporting Charities, IRS, Multi-State Filer Project, NASCO: the National Association of State Charity Officials, and Mississippi Center for Nonprofits​