Privacy Laws and the Not for Profits
7 June 2000 at 1:06 pm
The Fundraising Institute of Australia is looking at adopting a privacy code of conduct for the Not for Profit sector in the wake of the introduction of new Privacy Legislation into Federal Parliament.
The President of the FIA, David Zerman says the Institute welcomes the Legislation but warns that compliance costs could eat into the money raised by Australian Charities.
Mr. Zerman says all fundraising in Australia should be transparent, accountable and ethical and donors need to know that their personal information is stored and handled fairly by the organisations they give to.
He says while the Government should be congratulated for introducing privacy protection legislation, Charities and Not for Profits will be looking very closely to ensure that costs do not out weigh the benefits.
The Institute has made a submission to the House of Representatives Inquiry into the Privacy Amendment (Private Sector) Bill 2000 and has been invited to appear before the Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs on June 9, 2000.
The Privacy Legislation aims to give donors the right to opt in or opt out of having their personal information passed on.
For more information on the Legislation visit www.privacy.gov.au.
The Fundraising Institute of Australia can be found at www.fia.org.au.
