Only 3% of charities make financial revisions called 'common' by Iris Kirby House fundraising foundation
Just three out of every 100 Canadian charities file revisions to their public financial reports — a practice the fundraising arm for Iris Kirby House called "common" in dismissing media inquiries earlier this month.
IKH Foundation Inc. resubmitted its most recent charity information return to the Canada Revenue Agency on July 4, to correct significant discrepancies.
The revisions were for the fiscal year ending in March 2015, more than 15 months earlier.
In total, 32 lines were changed, including an increase of more than $100,000 in total revenues for the year.
The foundation blamed staffing issues, deadline pressures, and the charity's auditors for the mistakes.
"It is important for you to be aware that the T3010 that was filed with CRA for year ending March 31, 2015 had to be amended," Glenn Furlong, chair of the foundation's board of directors, noted in an email earlier this month.
"Our auditors at KPMG, due to timelines had to file our return by the Sept. 30, 2015 deadline. As a result, which is common, once the audited financial statements were completed, the T3010 form had to be amended. Therefore your questions are centered around inaccurate data."
The T3010 is the public information form every Canadian charity is required to file each year.
CBC News had asked the foundation about its inaccurate T3010 financial information, which remained on the CRA website as of last week.
The revised IKH Foundation numbers have now been posted by CRA.
T3010 revisions, by the numbers
But according to data provided by the Canada Revenue Agency, such revisions don't appear to be common at all.
CRA says there are approximately 86,000 registered charities in Canada.
Over the last three years for which there is full data, roughly three per cent of charities have made such changes:
- 2012 = 2,725 charities made an amendment (3.1 per cent);
- 2013 = 2,767 charities made an amendment (3.2 per cent);
- 2014 = 2,238 charities made an amendment (2.6 per cent).
For 2015, 1,148 charities made an amendment. But CRA cautions that, as of last month, only two-thirds of charities had filed their returns for that fiscal period. So that number may grow.
Iris Kirby House officials have not agreed to any interviews with CBC News about financial transparency issues over the past 18 months.
Last week, however, they did speak with The Telegram, NTV and VOCM.
Conflict between province and board
Shelter officials and the Newfoundland and Labrador government are now locked in public conflict over financial transparency and accountability.
Last week, the province laid out a number of conditions Iris Kirby House must meet for any additional funding to be provided to its shelters.
The board of directors fired back, issuing a news release saying they felt "bullied" and "harassed" in their dealings with the government.
They alleged that the province has another agenda — "to force the closure of Iris Kirby House under a false claim of transparency while saving money at the expense of battered and abused women in our community."
Iris Kirby House officials have also been critical of past CBC News coverage of financial transparency at the shelter.
Their lawyer, Harold Smith, recently alleged that the CBC is being used by critics to "intentionally harm" Iris Kirby House funding and "impair its good work in the community."
