The Productivity Commission has released its draft report on the contribution of the Australian not-for-profit sector.

The report makes a number of draft recommendations aimed at:

• building a better knowledge base through a national measurement framework, and a Centre for Community Service Effectiveness for the promotion of best practice evaluation
• smarter regulation, including a more coherent endorsement process for tax status to be administered by the proposed Registrar, and a new definition of 'charitable purpose'
• promoting giving through a broader scope of gift deductibility, the promotion of planned giving and national harmonised fundraising regulation
• facilitating social innovation and sector development through a variety of initiatives
• reforming government purchasing and contracting arrangements
• building more effective relationships with governments, including through the establishment of an Office for Not-For-Profit Sector Engagement to implement reforms.

The draft report has been released to encourage public discussion and to inform the Commission's final report. Interested parties are invited to make a submission by 24 November 2009. The final report will be handed to the Federal Government in December 2009.

The draft report is available from the Productivity Commission's website.