Privacy Policy

The Monadnock Humane Society Donor Privacy Policy

MHS and its Board of Directors (“Board”) are committed to maintaining the rights and privacy of its donors. MHS has put in place this Donor Privacy Policy (“Policy” or Guidelines”) to honor this commitment.

Effective Date

These Policy Guidelines shall become effective March 22, 2016.

Amendment and Review

1. Responsibility for review of these policies and recommending amendments shall be that of the Board. These Guidelines shall be reviewed annually and whenever they become inconsistent with IRS regulations or other applicable state or federal laws.
2. To amend these Guidelines, a written amendment shall be prepared by the Executive Director or the Executive Director’s designee and submitted to the Board to be placed on the agenda of the next Board meeting.

Purpose of Data Collection

MHS collects and uses personal information such as name, address, telephone number and e-mail addresses when a donor voluntarily provides this information to us or we obtain the information through public documents and reports. MHS maintains a record of each donor’s giving history for IRS reporting purposes and to analyze in order to make more accurate operations budget projections.

Privacy Guidelines

MHS does not share or sell the names and addresses of its donors with other organizations. In addition, MHS’ agents for online donations have guaranteed that they will not sell, rent, or trade personal information to anyone.

Donors may opt out of receiving any or all of MHS communications. A donor’s preferences will be maintained on our database and will never intentionally be violated. MHS may contact a donor periodically (infrequently) to verify that the donor’s preferences are still in force, particularly if information has been received that suggests preference indicators that are in conflict.

1. Personal account number information is never disclosed for any purpose.
2. While MHS encourages donors to allow publication of their gifts to encourage others in the community toward philanthropy, all requests for anonymity will be respected.

How do we use your information?

MHS may use donor information to provide better customer service on our website and in marketing materials, such as mailings, newsletters, and invitations. Information gathered will help MHS serve our donors accordingly:

• To personalize our service and to allow us to deliver the optimum type of content and product offerings
• To allow MHS to better service our constituents in responding to their customer service requests.
• To quickly process transactions.
• (We provide an “opt out” opportunity for all our constituents. Please notify MHS to “opt out” of receiving emails, mailings, newsletters, other forms of communication or to maintain confidentiality and anonymity of donations.)

While the default for gifts within a given year is to be included in the Annual Report unless anonymity has been requested, no information about inclusion in a will or estate will ever be published without the donor’s active consent.

How does MHS protect information?

Online and offline: MHS has implemented a variety of security measures to maintain the safety of personal information. To prevent unauthorized access, maintain data accuracy, and ensure the proper use of information, we have established and implemented appropriate physical, electronic and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information we collect. Personal information is contained behind secured networks and is only accessible by a limited number of persons who have special access rights to such systems, and are required to keep information confidential. MHS has secure server implementation, and all sensitive/credit information supplied is transmitted via secure technology to be only accessed as stated above. All offline transactions are kept confidential and processed through secure systems.

Commitment to Donor Rights

MHS believes that our donors have specific rights, and will act in a fashion consistent with that belief. Donor rights are as follows:

1. The right to be informed of MHS’ mission, of the way MHS intends to use donated resources, and of its capacity to use donations effectively for their intended purposes.
2. The right to be informed of the identity of those serving on MHS’ governing board, and to expect the board to exercise prudent judgment in its stewardship responsibilities.
3. The right to have access to MHS’ most recent financial statements.
4. The right to be assured their gifts will be used for the purposes for which they were given.
5. The right to receive appropriate acknowledgement and recognition or to remain anonymous if desired.
6. The right to be assured that information about their donations is handled with respect and with confidentiality to the extent provided by law.
7. The right to expect that all relationships with individuals representing organizations of interest to the donor will be professional in nature.
8. The right to be informed whether those seeking donations are volunteers, employees of MHS or hired solicitors.
9. The right to have the opportunity for their names to be deleted from mailing lists.
10. The rights to feel free to ask questions when making a donation and to receive prompt, truthful and forthright answers.

Situations Not Contemplated by this Policy

Should situations be encountered that are not covered by the Guidelines outlined within this Policy, MHS will act in a professional manner that demonstrates ethics and integrity and protects the privacy of Donors.