Contact:                                                                                                       
Valerie Venezia, VP Membership & Marketing
vvenezia@nycon.org

NYCON CEO Named to Attorney General’s Leadership Committee

July 15, 2011 – New York City – Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman recently announced that NYCON CEO Doug Sauer would be one of the prominent nonprofit leaders appointed to the Committee for Nonprofit Revitalization. The task force, composed of 29 leaders in the nonprofit sector from across New York State, is charged with presenting a series of recommendations to the Attorney General to reduce the regulatory burdens and costs on nonprofits while strengthening nonprofit accountability.

"I'm honored that Attorney General Schneiderman has asked us to bring NYCON's statewide perspective and expertise to this important collaborative effort," said Doug Sauer. "We’re proud to represent 3,000 small to moderately sized member nonprofits who provide critical services in communities across New York. It’s a testament to the Attorney General’s initiative that he is seeking the input of these grass roots groups as he strives to help improve nonprofit efficiency, make oversight more effective and help increase the public's faith in our sector."

In addition to providing critical services to New Yorkers, nonprofits are also a driving economic force. Statewide, nonprofits employ between 17 and 18 percent of the workforce. In New York City alone nonprofits employ 500,000 people.

"For too long, New York’s regulatory framework has placed unnecessary burdens on nonprofits, which are simply untenable during these challenging financial times,” Attorney General Schneiderman said. “We must modernize the rules of the road so the nonprofit sector can thrive. We can be tougher on policing fraud without imposing needless burdens and costs on this vital sector of New York’s economy.”

Based on the key issues that the nonprofit sector has identified to the Attorney General's Office, the Leadership Committee’s activities will focus on the following:

·         Making recommendations on how to reduce regulatory burdens and more effectively address regulatory concerns;

·         Developing legislative proposals to modernize New York's nonprofit laws that would eliminate outdated requirements and unnecessary burdens while strengthening accountability; and

·         Proposing measures to enhance board governance and effectiveness, including through new programs to recruit and train nonprofit board members.

The Leadership Committee will be staffed by the Attorney General's Charities Bureau Chief, Jason Lilien, and will be charged with completing its work by the end of this year.

NYCON will be seeking the input of all current members on its website at www.nycon.org beginning in August. 

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About the New York Council of Nonprofits, Inc. (NYCON). NYCON has been working to help strengthen nonprofits and communities in New York State for over 84 years.  NYCON is a statewide, membership-based charitable nonprofit organization specializing in bringing nonprofits across New York State the services and training they need to achieve their nonprofit missions and goals. The Council’s diverse menu of programs and services includes training for nonprofit boards of directors, administration, and staff; providing insurance; legal services; information on public policy and ethics; financial management assistance; community needs assessments and planning; and a wide array of group purchasing programs. NYCON has offices in Albany, Buffalo, Poughkeepsie, Rochester, Oneonta and New York City. To learn more about NYCON, visit www.nycon.org.
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