Representatives Kaufert and Hintz Looking for Co-Sponsors of Gift Investment Bill (LRB 1349)

Email message from Rep. Dean Kaufert (R-Neenah), Rep. Gordon Hintz (D-Oshkosh), and Sen. Randy Hopper (recalled) to all legislators:

We are introducing the following legislation at the request of local officials in our area.  This legislation would allow a public library or school board to transfer a gift, bequest, or endowment to a charitable organization for management purposes.  The charitable organization must agree in writing to use the gift, bequest, or endowment to provide financial or material support for the school district or library and to comply with the terms of the gift, bequest, or endowment.

The rationale behind the legislation is to provide school districts and public libraries increased flexibility and financial management resources.  In some cases school boards or libraries do not have individuals with the investment and management expertise to adequately manage significant gifts received to benefit their organization.  This legislation would allow them to contract with a charitable organization that already has investment professionals on staff to manage the gift on behalf of the school or library.

If you would like to co-sponsor this legislation, please contact us at 266-5719 or reply to this e-mail by August 15, 2011.

LRB 1349 Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau.   Under current law, the school board of a school district may receive gifts or grants of money, furniture, and other property, and must use or invest the gift or grant in the manner specified by the donor or grantor. In the absence of specific direction regarding the use or investment of the gift or grant, the school board may determine how to use the gift or grant in accordance with the law applicable to trust investments.


This bill allows a school board to transfer unrestricted donations made to the school board to a charitable organization exempt from federal income tax under the


Internal Revenue Code (IRC), provided the organization agrees in writing to use the donation to provide financial or material support for the school district and to comply with any terms of the donation.


Under current law, the library board of a public library may transfer donations made to the library to the treasurer of the municipality or county in which the library is located; entrust them to a public depository; transfer them to the library board’s financial secretary; or transfer them to a charitable organization exempt from federal income tax under the IRC that has as its purpose providing financial or material support to the public library. This bill permits the library to transfer a donation to any charitable organization exempt from federal income tax, provided the organization agrees in writing to use the donation to provide financial or material support for the public library and to comply with any terms of the donation.