Buffett money confounds Gates foundation
What I’d call a “good complaint” from the Gates foundation, reported by UPI:
NEW YORK, Aug. 13 (UPI) — The Seattle-based Bill and Melinda Gates charitable foundation is in turmoil over the disbursement of Warren Buffett’s $31 billion endowment.
The charity’s purse nearly doubled in June when Buffett announced his gift and was awarded a fourth seat on the charity’s board. The foundation will now have to distribute $3 billion annually, or a little more than twice what it distributed last year, based on U.S. tax law, the New York Times reported Sunday.
The charity is facing the prospect of doubling its staff to about 600 people to handle the additional money, Chief Operating Officer Cheryl Scott told the Times.
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At least the Gates Foundation has a sustainable path. Imagine an alternative scenario, where a disaster hits an area, and donations ramp up. A non-profit that was taking in $1 million a year, may find themselves with $10 million. They would naturally ramp up their infrastructure, say from 8 people to 50 people. But then the disaster passes, donations drop to $2 million a year - still better than before - but now they have an unsustainable infrastructure and have to lay people off and scale back. Next generation solutions such as Artists of Change will focus on the creation of more sustainability for philanthropic organizations.
Comment by Tyler | August 19, 2006