Few would argue against the notion that boards of directors are supposed to represent the interests of “owners.”  Yet, despite the intuitive importance of specifying ownership, over 70 percent of nonprofit board members interviewed regarding their perspective on ownership and accountability believed that they were accountable only to their board – or to no one [...]

Congressman Charles W. Boustany Jr., MD (R-LA), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight of the Committee on Ways and Means, announced that the Subcommittee will hold a hearing examining operations and oversight of tax-exempt organizations. This will be the first in a series of hearings by the Subcommittee on the tax-exempt sector and IRS oversight [...]

With the rise of social media, pastors and church employees have an increasingly public arena in which they can have their voices heard, whether it is through streaming sermon videos, podcasts or in written form through twitter, Facebook or blogging. Most often, pastors and churches utilize these forms of written social media as a means [...]

According to a recent speech by Lois Lerner, director of IRS Exempt Organizations, there is a direct correlation between an organization’s good governance and overall tax compliance. Specifically, the IRS asserts that a well-governed organization is more likely to be compliant with the tax law and as a result, is taking an active examination of [...]

Identity Finder, a software that protects sensitive information, found that 132,362 organizations published more than 472,866 Social Security Numbers between 2001 and 2006. Although all Forms 990 are open to public inspection and are generally published on the internet for public viewing (through sites like Guidestar), charitable organizations should carefully review the Form 990 and [...]

As we blogged a few months ago, the IRS has automatically revoked the tax-exempt status of organizations who did not file an information return for the prior three years.  To date, more than 433,000 exempt organizations had their tax-exempt status revoked as a result.  The IRS believed that such automatic revocation would “clean the books” [...]

Some City and County governments are taking an odd approach to “taxing” all churches and schools by doubling their water bill.  How is this happening?  City ordinances, like the one in Canyonville, Oregon, provide that “churches, schools, and nonprofits” will be charged double for the normal water rates.  Through this ordinance and other similar ordinances, [...]

In response to Senate Finance Committee member Charles Grassley’s investigation into the finances of large churches across the country, the Commission on Accountability and Policy for Religious Organizations has been formed.  The Commission is to address the issues below that effect nonprofits and, specifically, religious organizations.  The issues the Commission are considering include: Should the [...]

Worker misclassification is still a hot issue, not only with the IRS, but with other governmental agencies as well. The recently proposed budget for 2013 indicates that worker misclassification of employees as independent contractors remains a priority for the White House administration. The budget allocates $14 million in 2013 to address this issue. Senator John [...]