The Ministry of Culture of Ukraine, in collaboration with the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy, has developed a draft law on philanthropic activity in the cultural sphere.
Draft Law No. 14276, submitted by [First Deputy] Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, aims to distinguish between the concepts of "philanthropy" (metsenatstvo) and "charity," as the current model does not account for the long-term nature of cultural projects, nor for the participation of civil society institutions as intermediaries and implementers of cultural initiatives.
What the draft law proposes:
- Introduction of new terms, specifically: "patron of culture," "philanthropy activity in the sphere of culture," "philanthropy aid," "beneficiary," and "recipient of philanthropy aid" (supplementing Article 1 of the Law of Ukraine "On Culture");
- Expansion of the principles of state policy in the sphere of culture: it is proposed to supplement the list of state policy directions with provisions on establishing interaction between subjects of philanthropy activity and encouraging patrons of culture (amendments to Article 4 of the Law of Ukraine "On Culture");
- Introduction of Article 28¹ "Philanthropy activity in the sphere of culture," which will define directions of philanthropy activity, including support for the material and technical base of cultural institutions, implementation of cultural projects, etc.;
- Introduction of Article 28² "State support and guarantees of philanthropy activity." This refers to non-material forms of state support for patrons of culture, specifically state awards, honorary distinctions, etc.;
- Amendments to the Law of Ukraine "On Charitable Activities and Charitable Organizations," aimed at eliminating duplication of legal regulation of culture in the sphere of charity and clearly distinguishing between charitable and philanthropy activities.
Overall, the proposed changes aim to modernize legislation and offer potential benefits to public and charitable organizations. For civil society organizations, particularly charitable organizations, the document opens new opportunities for resource mobilization and the implementation of cultural projects. At the same time, there are no tax incentives for patrons, which may limit the practical effectiveness of the new model.
Detailed analysis of the document at the link.
__________________________________________________________________________
Institutional support for UCIPR activities is provided by East Europe Foundation within the framework of the "Phoenix: The Power of Communities" project, with the support of the European Union. The content of the created materials is the sole responsibility of UCIPR and does not necessarily reflect the position of East Europe Foundation and the EU.
Read also: Restoration of USR Open Data: Analysis of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine Order