CATEGORY

Threats to Exemption

is it time for a legal audit?
Contracts, Waivers, and Releases

Is It Time for a Legal Audit?

A legal audit is an overview of an organization’s non-financial compliance, governance and risk management issues. Organizations typically consider a legal audit when new management takes over and wants to ensure they are starting with a clean slate or the in the wake of a costly mistake.

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Nonprofit Booster Club
Starting a nonprofit

Forming a 501(c)(3) Booster Club

Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code allows for tax exemption for organizations organized and operated to foster national or international amateur sports competition so long as no part of the net earnings inure to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual. A parent run booster club must be organized so that it benefits the entire class of athletes or participants and does not benefit certain individuals over others.

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Taxable Subsidiary
Nonprofit Tax

Is it Time to Form a For-profit Subsidiary?

Tax-exempt Organizations engaging in social enterprise or other active business pursuits often worry that a growing stream of unrelated business income could threaten their tax-exempt status. This concern is related to the prohibition against tax-exempt organizations engaging in more than an insubstantial amount of activity unrelated to their tax-exempt purpose. Unfortunately the term insubstantial is undefined. Based on court cases, it appears that gross unrelated business income receipts of 5 percent or less is always safe while over 20% is probably too much.

When unrelated business endeavors take off, the success of the business can threaten a 501(c)(3) organization’s tax-exempt status. To protect their tax-exempt status, many tax-exempt organizations with successful unrelated business ventures move their unrelated business activities into a taxable for-profit subsidiary.

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Nonprofit Law Jargon Buster – 501(c)(3) Organizations and the Commerciality Doctrine

The well-meaning have been advising exempt organizations to operate like a business for years. If the organization is a Section 501(c)(3) organization, operating too much like a business can cost it its tax-exempt status due to the Commerciality Doctrine. Practically, the issue of commerciality usually arises when a tax-exempt organization engages in any endeavor for which a clear for-profit counterpart exists in the marketplace. Typical examples include publishing, consulting and sales of arts and crafts. Today, the Commerciality Doctrine is a threat to the increasingly popular movement toward social enterprises. Those that choose to organize as Section 501(c)(3) organizations should only do so after a thorough review of the Commerciality Doctrine.

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