(A) Purpose.
(1) The purpose of this policy is to establish a formal process for acceptance and documentation of donations made to the village. This policy provides a process when individuals, community groups, and/or businesses wish to make donations to the village. This policy also establishes the standards for village employees and village officials regarding the acceptance of gifts to the village.
(2) Donations may only be accepted when they have a purpose consistent with the village's goals and objectives and are in the best interest of Brewster. The village must always consider the public trust and comply with all applicable laws when accepting donations.
(B) Types of donations. Donations may be offered in the form of cash, real property, or personal property. Donation may be undesignated or designated.
(C) Acceptance of donations.
(1) Acceptance of undesignated donations of cash or tangible items.
(a) Undesignated donations means those donations that are given to the village without a specified use.
(b) All undesignated donations to the village, including offers to employees related to the village, shall immediately be reported to their appointing authority and submitted for consideration for acceptance to the appropriate entity.
(c) The appropriate village entity/individual shall review every donation and determine if the benefits to be derived warrant acceptance of the donation.
(d) Based on the value of the undesignated donation offered as outlined below, the appropriate village entity/individual to review said undesignated donation is:
1. Offers of donations of cash or items valued at $50 or below may be accepted by the department head.
2. Offers of donations of cash or items valued more than $50 and up to $1,000 may be accepted by the Village Administrator.
3. Offers of donations of cash or items valued more than $1,000 shall be accepted by Village Council.
(e) Offers of donations for gratuitous purposes (i.e., holiday gift baskets, cookies, hats, t-shirts, etc.) to any employee, department, or the village shall be made available to benefit all department/village employees and shall be in conformance with both state ethics laws and village ethics policy.
(2) Acceptance of designated donations of cash or tangible items.
(a) A designated donation means a donation that the donor specifies for a particular village department, location, or purpose.
(b) All designated donations to the village, including offers to employees related to the village, shall immediately be reported to their appointing authority and submitted for consideration for acceptance to the appropriate entity.
(c) The appropriate village entity/individual shall review every donation and determine if the benefits to be derived warrant acceptance of the donation.
(d) Based on the value of the undesignated donation offered as outlined below, the appropriate village entity/individual to review said undesignated donation is:
1. Offers of donations of cash or items valued at $50 or below may be accepted by the department head.
2. Offers of donations of cash or items valued more than $50 and up to $1,000 may be accepted by the Village Administrator.
3. Offers of donations of cash or items valued more than $1,000 shall be accepted by Village Council.
(e) Offers of donations for gratuitous purposes (i.e., holiday gift baskets, cookies, hats, t-shirts, etc.) to any employee, department, or the village shall be made available to benefit all department/village employees and shall be in conformance with both state ethics laws and village ethics policy.
(3) Specific types of donations of tangible property and/or designated donations. Review of donations for the following types of donations shall be by:
(a) Trees. Donation of trees and/or designated donations of cash for trees to be planted shall be reviewed and approved by the Tree Board, in accordance with policy the Tree Board adopts. Type of tree and location shall be determined by the Tree Board.
(b) Items for use in parks or buildings. In addition to review of donations outlined above, when donations of cash or tangible items, including but not limited to benches or kiosks, the Chairman of the Building, Parks, and Grounds Committee shall participate in the review. Specifications for items or equipment and location shall be determined by the Mayor, Village Administrator, and the Chairman of the Building, Parks, and Grounds Committee.
(c) Other. Other donations shall be reviewed for specifications and location if applicable shall be reviewed and approved by the Mayor, Village Administrator, applicable Council Committee Chair, and applicable Village Department Head.
(D) Donation of real property, easements, or other real property interests. Any donation of real property, easements, or other real property interests shall be accepted by Village Council.
(E) Criteria for the evaluation of donations. Criteria for the evaluation of donations shall include, but are not limited to:
(1) Consideration of an immediate or initial expenditure is required in order to accept the donation; and
(2) The potential and extent of the village's obligation to maintain, match, or supplement the donation.
(F) Acknowledgment of donations.
(1) Acknowledgment of the donation should be in writing and be the responsibility of the department head who is the beneficiary of the donation.
(2) Undesignated donations shall be acknowledged by the Village Administrator and/or Mayor.
(3) A copy of the acknowledgment should be forwarded to donors.
(4) Recognition of donations in the form of plaques or similar shall be standardized, in a form/size designated by the reviewing entity. The recipient/ family will receive a certificate and a card acknowledging the gift. The donors will be contacted prior to the planting of the tree.
(G) Donations are public record. All donations and/or reviews are public record. However, a donation may be done anonymously.
(H) Declined donations. The Village of Brewster reserves the right to decline any donation if, upon review, it is determined to not be in the best interests of the village and/or potentially a violation of village policy(s). The decision whether to accept or reject any donation is in the sole discretion of the village.
(Res. 12-2022, passed 2-7-2022)