California Bar Foundation

“The Executive Director and accounting consultant provide all requested information to the CPA firm retained to conduct the annual audit and prepare tax forms. After the CPAs prepare a first draft of Form 990, the Executive Director and accounting consultant carefully review the completed Form 990 and provide the CPAs with any corrections, edits, or changes. Once the Executive Director and accounting consultant have completed their review, a second Form 990 draft is circulated to all Board members. The President and Audit Committee Chair are asked to carefully review the Form 990 and provide feedback. After the Form 990 draft is considered final, the President and Audit Committee Chair, on behalf of the Board, are asked to sign the confirmation form that is sent to the CPAs and allows them to finalize the Form 990.”

“The Foundation's Conflict of Interest Policy (CIP) applies to "interested persons", defined as any director, principal officer, or member of a committee with Board delegated powers, who has a direct or indirect material financial interest, as defined in the CIP. All new members of the Board of Directors are presented with a copy of the CIP when their first Board terms begin. Board members are required to sign the CIP Annual Affirmation and Disclosure Statement upon joining the Board and every year thereafter that they remain on the Board. The Executive Director keeps a record of the signed Affirmations and Disclosure Statements and any disclosures by interested persons. The CIP sets forth the process for handling any potential conflicts as well as violations of the Policy.”

“Each year, the Personnel Committee, which is made up exclusively of Board members, conducts a performance evaluation of the Executive Director and makes a recommendation regarding her compensation package. The Committee solicits input regarding the Executive Director's performance from Board members and others outside the Board. The Committee reviews comparability data regarding executive director salaries from a number of sources, including the Center for Non-Profit Management and other national surveys. In its deliberations, the Committee also weighs the desire to reward excellence, encourage retention, and avoid replacement costs. The Committee presents its evaluation and salary recommendation to the full Board of Directors, which approves any adjustments to the Executive Director's compensation package.”

“The Organization's governing documents, conflict of interest policy, and financial statement are available to the public upon request. Also, a summary financial statement is included in the annual report.”