A community foundation is a tax-exempt public charity created by and for the people in a local area. It enables people with philanthropic interests to easily and effectively support the issues they care about - immediately or through their will or estate plan. The United States has more than 700 community foundations serving citizens in urban and rural communities in all 50 states. Collectively, community foundations hold more than $31 billion in assets and make local grants of approximately $2.6 billion annually.
In 2000, the Council on Foundations and leaders of the community foundation field created National Standards to aid community foundations in establishing legal, ethical and effective operational practices that would show the foundations' transparency and financial responsibility in light of the increased public scrutiny of foundation practices. In addition, National Standards were developed to distinguish community foundations from other philanthropic vehicles, build the capacity of community foundations to carry out their missions, and assist the field with self-regulation in a manner viewed positively by the Internal Revenue Service.
