September 17, 2009

New Endowment Rules Signal Caution for Charities

By H. Woods Bowman

As a result of the market gyrations of the past year, nearly 15 percent of endowments have lost some of the principal that donors invested, according to the Urban Institute. Also affected by the downturn are quasi-endowments — unrestricted funds designated by a board of directors to function like an endowment. They are resources that organizations may be tempted to liquidate in a crisis.

Until recently this would have been illegal in most states. In the past three years, 43