Category Archives: Nonprofit Accounting

Nonprofit News Roundup

It has once again been too long since this site had an update so let’s start off with some interesting things that have come across my desk of late. But I first want to take a moment to say goodbye to a colleague and mentor who passed away last month, Flo Green. I started working for her at the California Association of Nonprofits at the end of 1999. In 2005 she worked with me to develop CAN’s first day long nonprofit accounting training workshop. Since then I’ve presented variation of that workshop to hundreds of nonprofit professionals and it is to her that I owe a great deal of thanks for setting me on the path I am on today. She will be deeply missed.

 Communicating Your Finances

This can be a tricky topic. How can nonprofit mangers communicate what is in their organization’s financials to the Board? How can a Board get the best information from staff? Is anybody sure they are asking the right questions? I consider it an integral part of my work to help explain the financial picture that the reports I put together tell, and to teach clients and others how to read their financials.

There are other resources out there like this article from Guidestar about 3 questions Board members should be asking themselves. This article from the great Nonprofit Assistance Fund talks about red flags board members may miss and how to prevent that.

Not directly related to finances but still good for board to think about, questions related to ongoing mission and relevancy for your nonprofit.

Sharing Resources

I’ve written about IdeaEncore before and I wanted to share two recent collections of resources; Financial Reporting and Documentation and some 990 preparation and understanding resources. Both have some nice resources that could save a lot of work over recreating the same thing at your organization.

Want to know where your taxes go and, perhaps more importantly, how much your tax bill this year will be? Check out the AICPA’s Total Tax Insights website. It includes a helpful calculator:

The Total Tax Insights calculator is the first comprehensive tax calculator that estimates your tax obligation based on place of residence and breadth of taxes paid. It’s customized for each state and for the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and includes more than 20 taxes, such as federal, state, local, Social Security and Medicare, sales, property and gasoline.

Elections

What can nonprofits do during election time? The Alliance for Justice is my go to resource for those questions. Check out their Advocacy Digest for election time resources. There is still a lot of misinformation out there about how nonprofits can or cannot lobby, AFJ has all the information you’ll need to do any type of advocacy activities.

Other News

Another Washington State Management Support Organization is shutting its doors. The Nonprofit Center in Tacoma closed last Fall and now the Alliance FOR Nonprofits is winding down. Washington Nonprofits and 501Commons will continue to provide support for the areas both organizations served.

Thanks so much.

Nonprofit News

The Alliance of Nonprofit’s Annual Conference is coming up on May 11th up in Bellevue. I’ll be there, and here is a link to more information if you’d like to see what they are offering. It is the biggest conference of the year for nonprofits in Washington and they usually pull in so good keynote speakers.

Time to File

First Quarter Filings – Are due by April 30 for assorted state agency and the federal government. Be sure you know what to file and when to file it so you don’t incur late fees or penalties.

990 Due – May 15 2012 is the first deadline for folks whose fiscal year ended December 31 2012. You’ll have to have your form filled out, signed and postmarked by that day or get a 3 month extension filed if you need more time. Don’t know when your form is due? Click here for some help.

How is Your Organization Doing?

Executive Compensation – Does your board review how it compensates the Executive Director? They should be, and it is a question on the full form 990. Here are some guidelines that can help you create a policy about compensation practices.

Check up – The Executive Service Corps of Los Angeles posted a nice Nonprofit Check-Up article, Preventive Medicine for Nonprofits. It is a good run down of things to sit back and look at critically about our organizations.

Check on – The IRS is making it easier for the public to look up nonprofits. This page has the details about their new search service.

Spruced UpStayExemp.org, the IRS’s exempt organization training site, has been updated. It looks better and has a more straight foreword interface. There are good tools and resources there for both staff and volunteers, I always encourage people to check out the site.

Year End IRS Charity News and Updates

As we get ready to roll into another year I thought I’d post a few items from the IRS and others about year end issues. I wrote about recording donation received in a prior year before, but it is worth a reminder as I always get a few of those questions.

Before the IRS updates, including the 2012 Mileage rates, I thought I would share the The Johns Hopkins Center for Civil Society Studies’ 11 Intriguing Discoveries of 2011. I really like the work that the Center does bringing together news and trends about the nonprofit sector. Check out the list and sign up to see what they bring us for 2012.

IRS Announces 2012 Standard Mileage Rates

Beginning on Jan. 1, 2012, the standard mileage rates used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:

  • 55.5 cents per mile for business miles driven
  • 23 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes
  • 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations

The rate for business miles driven is unchanged from the mid-year adjustment that became effective on July 1, 2011. The medical and moving rate has been reduced by 0.5 cents per mile. The standard mileage rates are based on an annual study of the fixed and variable costs of operating an automobile. Taxpayers always have the option of calculating the actual costs of using their vehicle rather than using the standard mileage rates.

Updated IRS Publication

An updated edition of Publication 557, Tax-Exempt Status for Your Organization is now available on IRS.gov. It provides an overview of the rules and procedures that apply to organizations that seek tax exempt status. Both for existing charities and start ups, I think it is a must read on how to stay compliant with the IRS.

Don’t Overlook the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit

If you are a nonprofit who pays at least half of your employee health insurance premiums, you may qualify for a tax credit of up to 25 percent of the premiums paid. An employer with fewer than 25 full-time employees who pays an average wage of less than $50,000 a year may qualify. For more information see the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit.

Reinstatement of Exemption After Automatic Revocation

Is your nonprofit on the list of organizations revoked for failure to file a required 990 for three consecutive years?  If so, does the organization want its tax-exempt status reinstated?  Learn all about automatic revocation of exemption and how to apply for reinstatement on IRS.gov.

Organizations seeking reinstatement must file an application for exemption and pay a user fee regardless of whether it was required to file an application previously.  Certain small organizations who were eligible to file the Form 990-N for 2007, 2008 and 2009 and who file for reinstatement before December 31, 2012 may qualify for a reduced user fee of $100 under a transitional relief program. Consult Notice 2011-43 to see if your organization may qualify for a reduced user fee. You can also, see this IRS video to learn about reinstatement.

Nonprofits Not Required to File an Application for Exemption Still Have Annual Filing Requirement

Certain organizations do not have to apply for tax exemption but still have a filing requirement. These include section 501(c)(3) organizations whose gross receipts in each taxable year are normally not more than $5,000 as well as organizations exempt under other Code Sections, such as 501(c)(4).

Most small tax-exempt organizations, other than churches and certain church-related organizations, whose gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less for tax years ending on or after December 31, 2010 ($25,000 before December 31, 2010) have an annual reporting requirement.  For tax years beginning after December 31, 2007, organizations are required to file an annual electronic notice, Form 990-N, Electronic Notice (e-Postcard) for Tax-Exempt Organizations not Required To File Form 990 or 990-EZ.

If you have never filed, please contact Customer Account Services at 1-877-829-5500 (a toll-free number) and ask that an account be established for the organization to allow filing of the e-Postcard.

Voluntary Worker Classification Settlement Program; Past Payroll Tax Relief Provided to Employers Who Reclassify Their Workers

The IRS launched a new program that will enable many employers to resolve past worker classification issues and achieve certainty under the tax law at a low cost by voluntarily reclassifying their workers. This new program will allow employers the opportunity to get into compliance by making a minimal payment covering past payroll tax obligations rather than waiting for an IRS audit.

The new Voluntary Classification Settlement Program (VCSP) is designed to increase tax compliance and reduce burden for employers by providing greater certainty for employers, workers and the government. Under the program, eligible employers can obtain substantial relief from federal payroll taxes they may have owed for the past, if they prospectively treat workers as employees. The VCSP is available to many businesses, tax-exempt organizations and government entities that currently erroneously treat their workers or a class or group of workers as nonemployees or independent contractors, and now want to correctly treat these workers as employees. Click here for more details.

Stayed tuned for more and have a great 2012!