Policy 306 - Donor Privacy
Purpose
To state our policy with respect to the privacy of our supporters.
Policy
Habitat for Humanity of Douglas County (Habitat) values its donors, volunteers, and prospects (hereinafter referred to as our “supporters”) and takes their privacy seriously. We will respect the privacy of information that we are privileged to have about our supporters. Our commitment to respect the privacy of our supporters extends to how we obtain, use, protect and share information about them. This privacy policy is intended to be applied in conjunction with related Habitat policies, including, but not limited to, our Donor Bill of Rights [noted below].
Principles, Actions, and Beliefs
- We will hold strictly all information concerning donors and prospects, including names, addresses, names of beneficiaries, nature and value of estates, amounts of provisions or gifts, etc., unless a donor or prospect grants permission to use selective information for purposes of referral, testimonial, example, recognition or publicity.
- We will not share, sell, rent, or otherwise offer information about supporters to other organizations except Habitat for Humanity International.
- We contractually require any person or organization providing services to Habitat to protect the confidentiality of supporter information.
- We have procedures in place to limit access to information to those employees and volunteers who need to know such information to fulfill our mission.
- We will use our best efforts to comply with the expressed wishes of any supporter who does not want their name used in any promotional material or wishes their gifts or services to be anonymous.
- We will collect, use and share information about our supporters among employees and volunteers only on a need-to-know basis and for the sole purpose of carrying out Habitat’s mission.
Donor Bill of Rights
Philanthropy is based on voluntary action for the common good. It is a tradition of giving and sharing that is primary to the quality of life. To assure that philanthropy merits the respect and trust of the public and that donors and prospective donors can have full confidence in the not-for-profit organizations and causes they are asked to support, we declare that all donors have these rights:
- The right to be informed of the organization’s mission, of the way the organization intends to use donated resources, and of its capacity to use donations effectively for their intended purposes.
- The right to be informed of the identity of those serving on the organization’s governing board, and to expect the board to exercise prudent judgment in its stewardship responsibilities.
- The right to have access to the organization’s most recent financial statements.
- The right to be assured their gifts will be used for the purposes for which they were given.
- The right to receive appropriate acknowledgment and recognition or to remain anonymous if desired.
- The right to be assured that information about their donations is handled with respect and with confidentiality to the extent provided by law.
- The right to be informed whether those seeking donations are volunteers, employees of the organization, or hired solicitors.
- The right to have the opportunity for their names to be deleted from mailing lists that an organization may intend to share.
- The right to ask questions when donating and to receive prompt, truthful, and forthright answers.
Collection and Use of Donor Information
Donor information is collected when a donation of funds, in-kind material, or labor is received. The information collected is entered into our database – name, mailing address, telephone, and email address, and communication preferences.
We will use donor information for the sole purpose of carrying out Habitat’s mission, for example: soliciting donations of funds, in-kind material, and labor in addition to communicating results and updates.
For further information, please contact the Habitat office at (320) 762-4255.
