The Chongqing Civil Affairs Bureau recently released new charity regulations outlining detailed provisions on how charitable organizations should carry out activities, as well as how other organizations and businesses can participate.
The “Chongqing Charity Regulations” were approved by the 35th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Fifth Chongqing Municipal People’s Congress, and will come into effect on Sept 1.
There are 33 articles in the Regulations. Article 6 specifies that the China Charity Day will be held on Sept 5 each year as part of the Chongqing Charity Week. And Article 20 proposes educating people about the work of charities through the establishment of a platform. This will involve carrying out theoretical research on charitable organizations, cultivating a “charity culture” in the Sichuan-Chongqing area, incorporating charity education into the school curriculum, and publicizing the work of charities in the media.
The Regulations propose that municipal, district/county (autonomous counties) civil affairs departments, and other relevant departments should strengthen the daily supervision and inspection of charitable organizations and activities in accordance with the law. This will include inspections of major charitable projects, fundraising activities, property management, information disclosure and more.
The Regulations also make detailed provisions for charitable organizations to carry out public fundraising online. Charities are encouraged to use technologies such as big data, cloud computing, and blockchain to help launch charitable activities, develop online charitable projects, and enhance their fundraising capabilities.
The new regulations also make detailed provisions on employing those with serious illness stating that individuals can seek help from charitable organizations, work units and urban and rural community organizations. The regulations also state that the person seeking help will be responsible for the authenticity of the information they provide.
