A Marriage (…Um..Merger…) is Announced
One day, you’ll read about some chapters of National Organization X breaking away. The next day, there will a press release about a happy merger
Critics’ Concerns About Form 1023-EZ: Spot On
The Internal Revenue Service’s own Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) has confirmed that the worst fears about the new Form 1023-EZ launched in mid-2014 were well-founded.
Trying to Wriggle Out of Feeder Organization Status?: Not Easy
Three old hippies walk into a bar …. Well, they were former hippies, but they weren’t at a regular bar. They were sipping cappuccinos at
Private Letter Rulings for Nonprofits Curtailed
It’s been a tough few years for the IRS Division that has primary responsibility to implement the laws for tax-exempt organizations. The Tax Exempt and
All Profits to Charity?: Not a 501(c)(3)
From time to time, folks come into our office with the idea of doing something like Newman’s Own; that is, starting a business and donating
GuideStar Launches Redesigned Charity Profiles
For over two decades, GuideStar has led the way in the philanthropic community to gather and disseminate charity profiles – information about “every single IRS-registered
What is an Executive Committee?
In “Lessons for Charity Governance From Sweet Briar and San Diego Opera,” we highlighted two instances in which, under the prior leadership just ousted, it
Get Ready for Machine-Readable Form 990s
There is a significant technological advance coming down the pike in connection with the IRS Form 990, the all-important information return required for many tax-exempt
Lessons in Charity Governance, Courtesy of Sweet Briar and San Diego Opera
In the spring of 2015, we followed with keen interest two developing stories about major community institutions that were suddenly threatened with immediate closure: Virginia’s
Private Museums Targeted by Senate Finance Committee
The tax-exempt status of certain high-profile private museums have become the target of an inquiry by the Senate Finance Committee. The issue is whether they
Alzheimer's Association Tries to Consolidate, But Splits Apart
Recently, the Chicago-based Alzheimer’s Association embarked on a strategic change of course to fully integrate its independent chapters nationwide into a single charitable organization. There
Charitable Gifts in Perpetuity: Not a Great Idea
Two news stories from 2015 highlight the problem of the “dead hand” reaching out from eternal slumber, squeezing the life out of needed flexibility for