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The Florida Senate

2011 Florida Statutes

Title XXXIII REGULATION OF TRADE, COMMERCE, INVESTMENTS, AND SOLICITATIONS
Chapter 496 SOLICITATION OF FUNDS Entire Chapter
SECTION 404
Definitions.
F.S. 496.404
496.404 Definitions.—As used in ss. 496.401-496.424:
(1) “Charitable organization” means any person who is or holds herself or himself out to be established for any benevolent, educational, philanthropic, humane, scientific, artistic, patriotic, social welfare or advocacy, public health, environmental conservation, civic, or other eleemosynary purpose, or any person who in any manner employs a charitable appeal as the basis for any solicitation or an appeal that suggests that there is a charitable purpose to any solicitation. It includes a chapter, branch, area office, or similar affiliate soliciting contributions within the state for a charitable organization which has its principal place of business outside the state.
(2) “Charitable purpose” means any benevolent, philanthropic, patriotic, educational, humane, scientific, artistic, public health, social welfare or advocacy, environmental conservation, civic, or other eleemosynary objective.
(3) “Charitable sales promotion” means an advertising or sales campaign conducted by a commercial co-venturer which represents that the purchase or use of goods or services offered by the commercial co-venturer are to benefit a charitable organization. The provision of advertising services to a charitable organization does not, in itself, constitute a charitable sales promotion.
(4) “Commercial co-venturer” means any person who, for profit, regularly and primarily is engaged in trade or commerce other than in connection with solicitation of contributions and who conducts a charitable sales promotion or a sponsor sales promotion.
(5) “Contribution” means the promise, pledge, or grant of any money or property, financial assistance, or any other thing of value in response to a solicitation. “Contribution” includes, in the case of a charitable organization or sponsor offering goods and services to the public, the difference between the direct cost of the goods and services to the charitable organization or sponsor and the price at which the charitable organization or sponsor or any person acting on behalf of the charitable organization or sponsor resells those goods or services to the public. “Contribution” does not include bona fide fees, dues, or assessments paid by members, provided that membership is not conferred solely as consideration for making a contribution in response to a solicitation. “Contribution” also does not include funds obtained by a charitable organization or sponsor pursuant to government grants or contracts, or obtained as an allocation from a United Way organization that is duly registered with the department or received from an organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under s. 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code and described in s. 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code that is duly registered with the department.
(6) “Department” means the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
(7) “Division” means the Division of Consumer Services of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
(8) “Educational institutions” means those institutions and organizations described in s. 212.08(7)(cc)8.a. The term includes private nonprofit organizations, the purpose of which is to raise funds for schools teaching grades kindergarten through grade 12, colleges, and universities, including any nonprofit newspaper of free or paid circulation primarily on university or college campuses which holds a current exemption from federal income tax under s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, any educational television or radio network or system established pursuant to s. 1001.25 or s. 1001.26, and any nonprofit television or radio station that is a part of such network or system and that holds a current exemption from federal income tax under s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The term also includes a nonprofit educational cable consortium that holds a current exemption from federal income tax under s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, whose primary purpose is the delivery of educational and instructional cable television programming and whose members are composed exclusively of educational organizations that hold a valid consumer certificate of exemption and that are either an educational institution as defined in this subsection or qualified as a nonprofit organization pursuant to s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
(9) “Emergency service employee” means any employee who is a firefighter, as defined in s. 633.30, or ambulance driver, emergency medical technician, or paramedic, as defined in s. 401.23.
(10) “Federated fundraising organization” means a federation of independent charitable organizations which have voluntarily joined together, including, but not limited to, a united way or community chest, for purposes of raising and distributing contributions for and among themselves and where membership does not confer operating authority and control of the individual organization upon the federated group organization.
(11) “Fundraising costs” means those costs incurred in inducing others to make contributions to a charitable organization or sponsor for which the contributors will receive no direct economic benefit. Fundraising costs include, but are not limited to, salaries, rent, acquiring and obtaining mailing lists, printing, mailing, and all direct and indirect costs of soliciting, as well as the cost of unsolicited merchandise sent to encourage contributions.
(12) “Law enforcement officer” means any person who is elected, appointed, or employed by any municipality or the state or any political subdivision thereof and:
(a) Who is vested with authority to bear arms and make arrests and whose primary responsibility is the prevention and detection of crime or the enforcement of the criminal, traffic, or highway laws of the state; or
(b) Whose responsibility includes supervision, protection, care, custody, or control of inmates within a correctional institution.
(13) “Membership” means the relationship of a person to an organization that entitles her or him to the privileges, professional standing, honors, or other direct benefit of the organization in addition to the right to vote, elect officers, and hold office in the organization.
(14) “Owner” means any person who has a direct or indirect interest in any professional fundraising consultant or professional solicitor.
(15) “Parent organization” means that part of a charitable organization or sponsor which coordinates, supervises, or exercises control over policy, fundraising, and expenditures or assists or advises one or more of the organization’s chapters, branches, or affiliates in this state.
(16) “Person” means any individual, organization, trust, foundation, group, association, entity, partnership, corporation, society, or any combination of them.
(17) “Professional fundraising consultant” means any person who is retained by a charitable organization or sponsor for a fixed fee or rate under a written agreement to plan, manage, conduct, carry on, advise, consult, or prepare material for a solicitation of contributions in this state, but who does not solicit contributions or employ, procure, or engage any compensated person to solicit contributions and who does not at any time have custody or control of contributions. A bona fide volunteer or bona fide employee or salaried officer of a charitable organization or sponsor maintaining a permanent establishment in this state is not a professional fundraising consultant. An attorney, investment counselor, or banker who advises an individual, corporation, or association to make a charitable contribution is not a professional fundraising consultant as the result of such advice.
(18) “Professional solicitor” means any person who, for compensation, performs for a charitable organization or sponsor any service in connection with which contributions are or will be solicited in this state by the compensated person or by any person it employs, procures, or otherwise engages, directly or indirectly, to solicit contributions, or a person who plans, conducts, manages, carries on, advises, consults, whether directly or indirectly, in connection with the solicitation of contributions for or on behalf of a charitable organization or sponsor, but who does not qualify as a professional fundraising consultant. A bona fide volunteer or bona fide employee or salaried officer of a charitable organization or sponsor maintaining a permanent establishment in this state is not a professional solicitor. An attorney, investment counselor, or banker who advises an individual, corporation, or association to make a charitable contribution is not a professional solicitor as the result of such advice.
(19) “Religious institution” means any church, ecclesiastical or denominational organization, or established physical place for worship in this state at which nonprofit religious services and activities are regularly conducted and carried on, and includes those bona fide religious groups which do not maintain specific places of worship. “Religious institution” also includes any separate group or corporation which forms an integral part of a religious institution which is exempt from federal income tax under the provisions of s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and which is not primarily supported by funds solicited outside its own membership or congregation.
(20) “Solicitation” means a request, directly or indirectly, for money, property, financial assistance, or any other thing of value on the plea or representation that such money, property, financial assistance, or other thing of value or a portion of it will be used for a charitable or sponsor purpose or will benefit a charitable organization or sponsor. “Solicitation” includes, but is not limited to, the following methods of requesting or securing the promise, pledge, or grant of money, property, financial assistance, or any other thing of value:
(a) Any oral or written request;
(b) Making any announcement to the press, on radio or television, by telephone or telegraph, or by any other communication device concerning an appeal or campaign by or for any charitable organization or sponsor or for any charitable or sponsor purpose;
(c) Distributing, circulating, posting, or publishing any handbill, written advertisement, or other publication that directly or by implication seeks to obtain any contribution; or
(d) Selling or offering or attempting to sell any advertisement, advertising space, book, card, coupon, chance, device, magazine, membership, merchandise, subscription, sponsorship, flower, admission, ticket, food, or other service or tangible good, item, or thing of value, or any right of any description in connection with which any appeal is made for any charitable organization or sponsor or charitable or sponsor purpose, or when the name of any charitable organization or sponsor is used or referred to in any such appeal as an inducement or reason for making the sale or when, in connection with the sale or offer or attempt to sell, any statement is made that all or part of the proceeds from the sale will be used for any charitable or sponsor purpose or will benefit any charitable organization or sponsor.

A solicitation is considered as having taken place whether or not the person making the solicitation receives any contribution. A solicitation does not occur when a person applies for a grant or an award to the government or to an organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under s. 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code and described in s. 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code and is duly registered with the department.

(21) “Sponsor” means a group or person which is or holds itself out to be soliciting contributions by the use of any name which implies that the group or person is in any way affiliated with or organized for the benefit of emergency service employees or law enforcement officers and which is not a charitable organization. The term includes a chapter, branch, or affiliate which has its principal place of business outside the state, if such chapter, branch, or affiliate solicits or holds itself out to be soliciting contributions in this state.
(22) “Sponsor purpose” means any program or endeavor performed to benefit emergency service employees or law enforcement officers.
(23) “Sponsor sales promotion” means an advertising or sales campaign conducted by a commercial co-venturer who represents that the purchase or use of goods or services offered by the commercial co-venturer will be used for a sponsor purpose or donated to a sponsor. The provision of advertising services to a sponsor does not, in itself, constitute a sponsor sales promotion.
History.—ss. 4, 26, ch. 91-208; s. 1, ch. 93-174; ss. 1, 19, ch. 94-287; s. 558, ch. 97-103; s. 3, ch. 98-299; s. 1, ch. 99-307; s. 8, ch. 2000-228; s. 44, ch. 2002-295; s. 60, ch. 2003-1.