The strength of the United States lies in its community organizations

Editor: Premier Li Keqiang recently mentioned in a speech that it is imperative to completely separate industry associations and chambers of commerce from government departments. Minister of Civil Affairs Li Liguo stated that industry associations and chambers of commerce must be fully detached from government administrative organs by 2015. The work of truly separating social organizations from administrative organs has been studied by the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Civil Affairs, and relevant departments together.

By analyzing social groups in developed countries such as the United States, Europe (represented by Germany), and Japan, we have found the following commonalities: the government encourages but does not interfere; funding for social organizations mainly comes from membership fees, maintaining financial independence; the core work is to serve enterprises; and they have a lean, professional, and dedicated team. From this, we have also identified some principles and paths that Chinese social group reforms should follow, one of which is the path of mergers and reorganizations. Zhongqisi will also take this opportunity to merge several industry associations or chambers of commerce to achieve leapfrog development.

American culture advocates "small government, big society." The United States has been addressing social problems caused by government and market failures through the development of social organizations. Therefore, the roles of government functions and social organizations are crucial.

I. Basic Characteristics of American Industry Associations:

Service-oriented

According to the definition of industry associations in the American "Encyclopedia of Economic Associations": American industry associations are social groups of peers or merchants voluntarily organized to achieve common goals. As interest groups of business owners, industry associations represent various interests of the business community.

American industry association organizations cover all industries and scientific and technological fields, most of which have close ties with commercial enterprises.

The distribution of American industry associations is similar to that in China, with both industry and regional systems running in parallel, thus forming a crisscrossing organizational network nationwide that has both division of labor and mutual coordination.

In addition, American industry associations have the following three characteristics:

1. Non-governmental nature: Industry associations are non-governmental social groups. They have legal person status, are completely independent in status, autonomous in behavior, self-financed, and voluntary organizations. Enterprises in various industries organize themselves voluntarily from the bottom up according to their needs. The vast majority are non-governmental non-profit social groups, with only a very few associations operating in the form of companies.

2. Autonomy and self-discipline: There is no special legislation for industry associations in the United States; membership is voluntary, and they are autonomous and self-disciplined organizations. The daily activities of the association are managed by a board of directors elected from among the members. Their authority does not come from legal or government authorization but from the association's influence within the industry.

3. Service-oriented: Industry associations are non-profit organizations centered on service. They differ from the government in that they are not power institutions, not representatives of government management of enterprises, nor are they enterprises themselves; they do not operate directly. The service work of industry associations reflects the overall interests of the industry rather than the interests of individual enterprises.

II. Functions of American Industry Associations:

Organizers of socio-economic development

The functions of American industry associations basically cover all aspects of social life controlled by the government but operated by enterprises, building a bridge of communication between the government and enterprises, becoming organizers and planners promoting socio-economic development. The specific functions mainly include:

1. Helping enterprises improve business results through education, technical assistance, technical training, and other programs.

2. Formulating industry norms and standards to regulate members within the industry.

3. Promoting and participating in domestic and international economic exchanges and cooperation, presenting a unified industry image externally.

4. Collecting detailed information to assist government and legislative departments in decision-making. When American industry associations advise legislative and government agencies, they often do not speak in the name of individuals or the entire organization but provide the government with detailed analytical data, collecting a large amount of information including enterprises' own ideas and opinions, assisting the government in formulating comprehensive, effective, and executable laws and measures.

III. How the United States achieves

Separation of social groups from government

Social organizations occupy an important position in the American economy and life, but American social groups have no direct subordinate relationship with the government; on the contrary, they are the result of government initiative in cultivation.

The U.S. government has adopted a series of support measures to cultivate social organizations, among which the most critical are tax incentives, government procurement systems, and government-driven projects.

1. Tax incentives: The U.S. tax incentive policies include two aspects: first, tax exemption for activities related to the purposes of social organizations themselves; second, tax reductions for individuals or organizations donating to specific social organizations. The annual amount of tax reductions reaches as high as 44.5 billion U.S. dollars.

Through these tax reduction policies, social organizations indirectly receive substantial financial support, thereby laying a solid foundation for their independent operation.

2. Government purchase of public services: Through privatization methods, continuously strengthening cooperation between the government and social organizations in the field of public services.

The benefits are: on one hand, the government opens up a large space for social organizations to participate in public services; on the other hand, the government transfers part of the public service functions to social organizations through procurement, bringing considerable financial support for the development of social organizations.

3. Government-driven projects: The government builds platforms to promote better participation of the public and other government departments in the development of social organizations.

These promotion projects can be roughly divided into two categories: one is to encourage public voluntary participation in social organizations, thereby providing human capital for social organizations; the other is to strengthen the capacity building of social organizations and promote their development.

IV. How American social organizations

Achieve self-management

1. Operate in a corporate manner.

American social organizations are defined as non-profit organizations in nature but are essentially enterprise-like. This fundamentally determines that social organizations operate in a corporate manner.

Social organizations have no subordinate relationship with the government; board members are elected by members, no government filing is required, and they provide paid services to the government.

From the operation mode after the establishment of social organizations, enterprise membership is voluntary, withdrawal is free, and social organizations must provide high-quality and efficient services to member units from the perspective of their own survival and development, demonstrating their strength and influence.

2. Democratic leadership election, with lean and efficient full-time staff.

The internal structure of American social organizations usually consists of a general assembly of members, a board of directors, an executive chairperson (or president, etc.), functional departments, and a supervisory board.

The members' representative assembly is attended by all members or their representatives, who elect the president and board members. Board members generally serve a three-year term and may be re-elected, but can only serve two consecutive terms. The supervisory board is an important internal organizational body responsible for overseeing financial conditions, and supervisors are elected by the members' assembly.

American industry associations all have efficient functional departments with a lean team of full-time and part-time staff.

3. Funding is mainly from membership fees, and the use of membership fees is relatively standardized and strict.

The funding income of American associations mainly comes from membership fees, but the proportion of membership fees in the total funding varies among associations. Besides membership fees, funding sources mainly include publishing, advertising, conferences, consulting, and training.

The standards for membership fee income vary among associations. Most associations base fees on members' annual income; for example, the American Soybean Association charges 5% of the member's annual income as the membership fee, without tiered levels. Some charge a fixed fee, often targeting individual members; for instance, the National Association of Business Economists, composed of individual members, charges $150 per person annually. There are also tiered fees based on the number of employees in a company.

The use of association funds follows the principle of "living within one's means." Relevant departments of the association (or the executive chairman/president) propose an annual budget for board review, ensuring the budget balances income and expenses. The annual financial statement is audited by an accounting firm hired by the association, and the results are published.