MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR THE 2007 CAM CONFERENCE

CAM will be hosting its next conference in Long Beach, California, February 21-23, 2007. Like 2006, this conference will bring together a diverse group of museum professionals from across California for a stimulating and enjoyable exchange of ideas, perspectives, and resources. Long Beach's waterfront will be the backdrop for a notable conference with the newly expanded Museum of Latin American Art, the Aquarium of the Pacific, and the Long Beach Museum of Art hosting evening events.

The conference will take place at the Coast Long Beach Hotel, 700 Queensway Drive in Long Beach. CAM has reserved a block of rooms for Wednesday, February 21-Friday, February 24, 2007 at a discounted rate of $115.00 plus tax. For a room with a bay view, the group rate is $135.00 plus tax. For additional information, see http://www.calmuseums.org/conferences_and_workshops/2007overview.html or contact the CAM Office at (831) 471-9970 or cam@calmuseums.org. We hope to see you in Long Beach!

EXHIBIT HALL, SPONSORSHIPS, AND ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITIES FOR 2007 CAM CONFERENCE

Planning for the 2007 CAM conference is underway and the guidelines for being an exhibitor, advertiser, and/or sponsor are now available. You can download a pdf version (190 KB) of the “Vendor and Consultant Prospectus” at http://www.calmuseums.org/conferences_and_workshops/Vendor_Consultant_Prospectus.pdf. This prospectus is for consultants and museum vendors who wish to showcase or advertise their products and services at the conference or support this professional development program through sponsorships.

To be listed in our preliminary conference program, which will be sent to 2,500 California museum professionals, business associates should send in their Vendor Contracts by September 1, 2006. There is no additional fee for this extra exposure—the Vendor Contract just needs to be received by the deadline! Please feel to contact the CAM office at 831-471-9970 or cam@calmuseums.org if you have any questions.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

HAVE YOU LOOKED UP YOUR MUSEUM ON ONLINE NONPROFIT RATING SITES?
There are several online organizations that classify and "rate" nonprofit organizations and list this information on their websites. Many post information directly from a nonprofit's IRS Form 990 while others give the nonprofit a rating or critique their data. These online nonprofit rating systems can be misleading depending on how a nonprofit institution reports its program expenses and other information on its IRS Form 990. We strongly encourage you to take some time to see if your organization is listed on these websites since this information is available to the public and could impact future donations. Some websites to check: Charity Navigator at http://www.charitynavigator.org/; GuideStar at http://www.guidestar.org/; and American Institute of Philanthropy at http://www.charitywatch.org/.

AAM ADVOCACY ALERT AND CALL TO ACTION
The American Association of Museums (AAM) released a call to action on July 15, 2006 to members of its Museum Advocacy Team. The call to action addressed FY 2007 appropriations, charitable reforms and incentives, and orphan works legislation. For additional information or to view AAM's advocacy update, see http://www.magnetmail.net/actions/email_web_version.cfm?recipient_id=15406937&message_id=202188&user_id=Museum.

CALIFORNIA CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL ENDOWMENT BOARD MEETING JULY 27, 2006
The Board of the California Cultural and Historical Endowment (CCHE) will meet on July 27, 2006 at 10:00 AM in Oakland, California. They will be reviewing projects reserved for funding in rounds one and two and have a preliminary discussion about round three. There will also be a public tour of the Oakland Museum of California immediately following the meeting. The agenda is posted on the CCHE website at http://www.library.ca.gov/cche.

CAC OFFERS FUNDING FOR ACCESSIBILITY TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
The California Arts Council (CAC), in collaboration with the National Arts and Disability Center at UCLA, announced the CAC's Art and Technical Assistance Program Guidelines. The purpose of the Program is to enhance opportunities for participation in the arts by people with disabilities. The CAC and National Arts and Disability Center will make available grants up to $1000 for professional development and/or technical assistance activities that support efforts in making programs and services accessible to people with disabilities. The program does not fund capital expenditures or purchasing of equipment. For additional information, contact Beth Stoffmacher, Technical Assistance Coordinator for The National Arts and Disability Center at University of California Los Angeles, at Phone: (310) 825-5054 or bstoffmacher@mednet.ucla.edu or visit the CAC website at http://www.cac.ca.gov/ (information will be available soon).

IRS INCREASES FEES FOR CHARITIES APPLYING FOR TAX EXEMPTION
The Chronicle for Philanthropy recently reported that the IRS will raise the fees it charges charities to apply for tax-exempt status. Organizations seeking first-time rulings that they qualify as charities generally will pay $750, up from the previous rate of $500. A reduced fee of $300 — double the previous rate of $150 — will apply to organizations with annual gross receipts of $10,000 or less during the previous four years, and to new groups that expect revenues of that size during their first four years.

IRS ISSUES PRESS RELEASE REGARDING NONPROFITS AND POLITICAL CAMPAIGN ACTIVITIES
This election season the Internal Revenue Service reminds charities to avoid becoming involved in political campaign activities. In a news release, the IRS highlighted new procedures, including educational efforts, to address situations in which it is alleged that a section 501(c)(3) organization has violated the ban on such activities.  The new procedures were developed as a result of a recent compliance initiative addressing campaign intervention by section 501(c)(3) organizations. For view the press release and resources, see http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=157879,00.html.

REPORT ON FOUNDATIONS RELEASED BY FOUNDATION CENTER
In June, The Foundation Center released its Foundation Yearbook: Facts and Figures on Private and Community Foundations, which documents changes in the actual number, giving, and assets of all active U.S. foundations from 1975 through 2004 and includes estimates of foundation giving through 2005. The report provides an overview of the state of foundation giving in the current year and beyond; comparisons of foundation activities by foundation size; and breakdowns of foundation resources by geographic location and grantmaker type. For additional information or to download a free pdf copy of the Foundation Yearbook, see http://www.fdncenter.org/gainknowledge/research/nationaltrends.html;jsessionid=HJOTVRJ14HKKFTQRSI4CGW15AAAACI2F.

NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE HUMANITIES' INTERPRETING AMERICA'S HISTORIC PLACES
NEH invites proposals for public programs that exploit the evocative power of historic places to address themes and issues central to American history. “Interpreting America’s Historic Places” grants support public humanities programs that use one or more historic sites to interpret important topics in American history. Projects can interpret a single historic site, a series of sites, whole neighborhoods, communities or towns, or larger geographic regions. September 12, 2006 is the deadline for proposals for both Consultation Grants and Planning Grants for Interpreting America’s Historic Places. January 23, 2007 is the deadline for proposals for Implementation Grants. For additional information, visit http://www.neh.gov/grants/guidelines/historicconsult.html, call 202-606-8269, or send an e-mail to publicpgms@neh.gov.

NONPROFIT FINANCIAL DATA NOW AVAILABLE THROUGH LIBRARIES
GuideStar launched LibraryServices@GuideStar, which provides library patrons with onsite and remote access to nonprofit information. The service allows users to: search more than 1.5 million nonprofits using 12 search fields; view financial data, including revenue tables, expense tables, and balance sheets; access all available IRS Forms 990; sort extensive search results by income, category, IRS subsection and availability of IRS Forms 990; and print full reports. For additional information about this service, see http://www.guidestar.org/about/press/060622_library.jsp.

Get the Word Out in CAM e-News!
Please email the CAM office at cam@calmuseums.org to list any announcements pertaining to professional development programs, grant opportunities, or related opportunities in future editions of CAM e-News and on the CAM web site. Since it is not possible to include all the details of an announcement, please include a phone number, web site address, or email address so interested parties can get additional information. Please do not exceed a limit of 150 words per listing. All announcements are subject to editing by CAM personnel.