Monthly update 2 - September 2005
In brief: Trevor Garrett has been appointed Chief Executive of the newly established Charities Commission. Work on both establishing the Charities Register and associated forms is progressing satisfactorily. The booklet Guide to the Charities Act is now available.
Trevor Garrett Appointed Chief Executive of the Charities Commission
Trevor Garrett (pictured right) has been appointed Chief Executive of the newly established Charities Commission. The Board is confident that Mr Garrett will provide the leadership and vision needed as he takes the Commission through its establishment phase and the creation and implementation of the Charities Register.
"The Board was very impressed with the calibre of the applicants for the job, however Mr Garrett’s particular experience and expertise made him ideally suited to the position of Chief Executive," said Mr Ashton, Chair of the Charities Commission Board.
Mr Garrett comes to the role following an impressive career in the State sector spanning a number of years. Most recently Mr Garrett was establishment Chief Executive, of the Casino Control Authority. He also has extensive experience in working alongside and within the community and voluntary sector, as a consequence of senior roles within the Department of Internal Affairs which included oversight of the Ministry of Recreation and Sport and the New Zealand Lottery Grants Board.
"My initial focus", said Mr Garrett, "will be on building up a strong, motivated team as the Commission moves to address the challenges in implementing the provisions of the Charities Act 2005. By the middle of next year the Charities Register needs to be open to receive registrations and this, in turn, will require the development of resources and support to enable the Charitable sector to meet the requirements for registration."
"At the same time I want to move quickly to establish a positive and constructive relationship with the charitable sector which will be necessary for the Commission to fulfil its functions", said Mr Garrett.
"The Board has made very clear its expectation that the Commission is to work with the charitable sector in fulfilling its role under the Charities Act", ended Mr Garrett.
The Registration Process
Work on both establishing the Charities Register and associated forms is progressing satisfactorily. The goal is to have the Register open to receive registrations in May/June of 2006. Charitable organisations will then have until the end of March 2007 to file their registration forms if they wish to maintain continuity of their tax exempt status.
Forms Workshops
The workshops held by the Commission to ensure that the draft forms, including registration forms, were being developed along the right lines have now been completed. The Commission is aware that more organisations wanted to be involved than was possible at this stage. However, once the feedback received has been analysed and appropriate changes made to the draft forms they will be going up on the Commission’s website so that the wider sector has the opportunity to comment.
If you would like to be informed when this happens please ring 0508 242 748 and your email address can be added to the Commission’s electronic data-base. Once you are on the data-base you can easily be advised of developments as they occur.
Resources
The booklet Guide to the Charities Act is now available either electronically from the Commission’s website or by ringing the Commission’s free line 0508 242 748. (Please remember that registration will not commence until mid-2006.)
Download from http://www.charities.govt.nz/news/updates/electronic-guide.htm
Over the next few months, information aimed at assisting organisations with their preparations for registration will become available from the Commission, or downloadable from the Commission’s website.
The Commission’s website is the best place to check for the latest information regarding registration requirements and the process, assistance with registering and information about such issues as group registration.
Communicating with the Charitable Sector
Trevor Garrett is keen to meet as many people from organisations within the charitable sector as possible. Like Board members he is accepting speaking engagements and welcomes the opportunity these engagements will provide to meet people from the charitable sector; to provide information about the commission and to gain feedback.
For information visit: www.charities.govt.nz
Free phone: 0508 242 748
These updates will be provided monthly.