It is tax season again. It is that time of year when we are all gathering our requisite paperwork, carting it off to “our people” (if we’re fortunate enough to have them) or getting by with our desktop calculators at our kitchen tables. I don’t know about you, but I always get a little nervous this time of year. I make more lists. I ask more questions. And even as I loosen the grip on my return that final time and turn it over to the custody of the U.S. mail (yes, I am still a paper filer), I am asking myself that nagging question, “did I forget something?”
And this is just my personal filing! To those of you responsible for fulfilling your organization’s filing requirements – you have my deepest admiration and sympathy. As we all know, the legal paperwork burden for the average nonprofit does not end after its organizing documents and 1023 are filed. Unfortunately, being tax exempt does not seem to exempt us from any IRS paperwork. And now even the smallest among us, nonprofits with gross receipts less than $25,000, are required to annually file an e-postcard (990-N) with the IRS. The good news is, it is very short, nothing at all like the newly revised IRS 990 form that most of us will be filing this year. And then there is UBIT, employment taxes, and non cash contributions, and quid pro quo to account for. My palms are getting sweaty.
The State of Michigan also requires documents from us. There is the Annual Corporation Update due each October. Did you also know that all charities in Michigan that intend on soliciting or receiving donations from the public are required to submit an Initial Charitable Trust/Charitable Solicitation Questionnaire to the State Attorney General? If they determine that you are a Charitable Trust (usually organizations that get $8,000 or more per year from public contributions), you are also required to submit a Charitable Trust Application and an Annual Financial Report.
To make sure we’re not forgetting any of these important filing requirements, NorthSky is hosting a workshop, Break for Lunch: Legal Filing Requirements for Nonprofit Organizations. Thursday, February 5, 2009, 12:00 noon – 1:30 pm, NMC University Center, Room 5. For more information or to register, go to NorthSky’s website at, http://www.northskynonprofitnetwork.org/workshops020509.shtm.
Join this discussion by posting your experiences on our blog.
Enjoy the week,
Freya Bradford
NorthSky Research and Project Manager
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