AG releases report on professional fundraisers - NEWS10 ABC: Albany, New York News, Weather, Sports

BOSTON (AP) - The attorney general's office says just 45 cents of every dollar raised for charity by professional fundraising organizations in 2010 actually went to charity.

The office announced Thursday that professional fundraisers raised more than $367 million from Massachusetts residents last year, nearly $39 million more than in 2009. Of that, just 45%, or about $166 million, ended up in the hands of a charitable organization.

The 2010 numbers were actually an improvement over 2009, when 43% of money raised by professional fundraisers went to charity.

Some of the professional solicitors returned more than 90% of the money they raised to the charities that hired them. Others, however, returned just 4 or 5%, and in some cases, spent more than they raised.

Online: Attorney general's charity report, http://www.mass.gov/ago/docs/nonprofit/professional-solicitations-2010.pdf

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