Tax exempt organizations often overlook their ownership and use of intellectual property, particularly their trademarks and copyrightable materials. Intellectual property (IP) use should concern a tax exempt organization because the organization must both (a) protect its IP; and (b) ensure that it is not infringing on someone else’s IP rights. Protecting the tax exempt organization’s IP requires identifying the IP and preferably registering it to secure rights in it. ... Keep Reading »

Corporate Governance Tax exempt organizations are generally more aware of their corporate governance policies and procedures now than they have been in the past in large part thanks to the revamping of the IRS Form 990. Many organizations have had a knee-jerk reaction to the questions on the Form 990 regarding which policies a tax exempt organization has in place by simply adopting them all, quickly, without giving much thought as to whether they are necessary or ... Keep Reading »

Many states require any nonprofit organization that plans to solicit donations for a charitable purpose within the state to register with the state (and pay a filing fee) for consumer protection purposes prior to soliciting donations. A “charitable” purpose is generally defined much more broadly for these purposes than it is for federal income tax purposes. Although this can become onerous and expensive for organizations that solicit donations in multiple jurisdictions, ... Keep Reading »

Fundraising is a core component of most tax exempt organizations’ revenue generation efforts. Raffles and similar games of chance are often employed by tax exempt organizations as fundraising tools. However, if a tax exempt organization is going to conduct games of chance – including raffles – in any state, it needs to consult that state’s laws to ensure it is not violating the state’s gaming laws. Many tax exempt organizations are unaware ... Keep Reading »

The economic climate of the last few years has caused tax exempt organizations to deliver their services and manage their expenses with greater creativity and efficiency. One way to keep costs down is to share employees, office space, or administrative resources with another organization, whether nonprofit or for-profit. Obviously, if the other organization is for-profit, the issue of private benefit arises (and possibly the issue of private inurement if the for-profit ... Keep Reading »