April 17, 2017
GuideStar
- Media contact: Jackie Enterline Fekeci (pronounced “Fa-ketch-ee”), enterline@guidestar.org
- Website: guidestar.org
- Database of 2.5 million tax-exempt nonprofits—1.6 million current, remainder defunct or revoked (contact Jackie to access historic information)
- Nonprofit Profiles—aggregated data from the nonprofits, IRS Forms 990, IRS Business Master File, and other official sources. Contain mission, program, leadership (including compensation), diversity data.
- Forms 990, 990-EZ, and 990-PF received directly from the IRS; go back to mid-1990s
- Free registration required to view 990s and more than 5 Nonprofit Profiles—register at https://www.guidestar.org/Account/Register
- View the 3 most recent 990s for any organization with our free search
- Contact Jackie for access to older 990s
- Tools to find and interpret nonprofit data (contact Jackie to access)
- Select and compare nonprofits
- People search
- Data sets
- Experts on nonprofit sector trends, nonprofit transparency, nonprofit executive compensation, giving wisely, 990s, and more. Contact Jackie to set up interviews.
Types of Nonprofit Organizations
- Around 30 different types: see https://learn.guidestar.org/help/irs-subsection-codes
- 501(c)(3) public charities—most common. American Red Cross, Feeding America, ASPCA, Audubon Society, Greenpeace Fund, Mayo Clinic, Wounded Warriors, Boys and Girls Clubs, House Rabbit Society, homeless shelters, domestic violence prevention and shelters
- 501(c)(3) private foundations—Gates Foundation, Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, small family foundations
- 501(c)(4) civic leagues and social welfare organizations—Greenpeace (political, advocacy arm)
- 501(c)(6) business leagues, chambers of commerce, real estate boards
- 501(c)(23) veterans organizations—Veterans of Foreign Wars
IRS Forms 990
- Cheat sheet—“Highlights of IRS Form 990,” https://learn.guidestar.org/help/highlights-of-irs-form-990
- IRS info: https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/annual-reporting-and-filing
- Who must file: most tax-exempt nonprofits
- Exception: faith-based organizations, including houses of worship (IRS refers to all houses of worship as “churches”). They’re automatically tax exempt and not required to file for exemption
- Exception: government organizations, such as public schools
- Other exceptions: see https://www.irs.gov/Charities-&-Non-Profits/Annual-Exempt-Organization-Return:-Who-Must-File
- Types of 990s
- 990-N
- Filed by organizations with annual gross receipts of $50,000 or less
- Entirely e-filed—no paper form, cannot request copy from IRS
- Find 990-N data at https://apps.irs.gov/app/eos/ (click “Have filed 990-N” option)
- More info on 990-N at https://www.irs.gov/Charities-&-Non-Profits/Annual-Electronic-Filing-Requirement-for-Small-Exempt-Organizations-Form-990-N-e-Postcard
- 990-EZ
- Filed by organizations with gross receipts under $200,000 and total assets under $500,000
- Available on GuideStar
- 990
- Filed by organizations with gross receipts over $200,000 or total assets over $500,000
- Available on GuideStar
- 990-PF
- Filed by 501(c)(3) private foundations of all sizes
- Learn more about the differences between public charities and private foundations: https://trust.guidestar.org/just-what-are-public-charities-and-private-foundations-anyway
- Filing deadlines
- 15th day of the 5th month after the fiscal year ends
BUT - 990, 990-EZ, and 990-PF filers can get an automatic 3-month extension
AND - 990, 990-EZ, and 990-PF filers can get a second 3-month extension by filling out a form
- Technically, there is no extension for filing a 990-N, but there’s no penalty for filing a 990-N late, unless the organization has failed to file for three consecutive years
- See https://www.irs.gov/Charities-&-Non-Profits/Annual-Exempt-Organization-Return:-Due-Date
- Consequences of failure to file
- Financial penalties for 990, 990-EZ, and 990-PF filers for first two years; see https://www.irs.gov/Charities-&-Non-Profits/Annual-Exempt-Organization-Return:-Penalties-for-Failure-to-File
- Automatic revocation of tax-exempt status for 990-N, 990-EZ, 990, and 990-PF filers after failure to file for 3 consecutive years; see https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/automatic-revocation-of-exemption
Disclosure Requirements for Tax-Exempt Organizations
- Federal regulations require tax-exempt organizations to release the following documents upon request:
- Application for tax exemption (IRS Form 1023 or 1024)
- IRS letter of determination (the letter stating the IRS has approved the organization’s application for exemption)
- Three most recent Forms 990, 990-N, 990-EZ, and 990-T (unrelated business income tax; see https://www.irs.gov/Charities-&-Non-Profits/Unrelated-Business-Income-Tax). But not 990-N, because it’s filed electronically and there’s no paper copy to release
Note: It is appropriate for a nonprofit to direct someone requesting these documents to GuideStar or a similar site. Some organizations have uploaded their applications for exemption and letters of determination to their respective Nonprofit Profiles
Note: Individual states may have additional disclosure requirements. See http://www.nasconet.org/resources/ for contact information for state charity offices.
- Documents federal regulations do not require tax-exempt organizations to release
- Annual reports
- Audited financial statements
- Donor information—it’s illegal for the IRS to release donor information reported by most exempt organizations on the 990 (on Schedule B). A nonprofit may release this information, but most redact anything that will identify the donor.
- Donor information is public information for 501(c)(3) public charities and section 527 political organizaitons
- Time frame in which a tax-exempt organization must comply with disclosure requests
- In-person request (at the appropriate office during regular business hours): immediately. Note: immediately means the organization must let someone view the document(s) on the premises; it doesn’t necessarily mean the organization must copy it(them) right away
- Written requests (letter, fax, or email): within 30 days
- See https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/public-disclosure-and-availability-of-exempt-organizations-returns-and-applications-disclosures-required
Note: A nonprofit my charge reasonable fees for copying these documents. The fee is currently $0.20 per page. See https://www.irs.gov/Charities-&-Non-Profits/Public-Disclosure-and-Availability-of-Exempt-Organizations-Returns-and-Applications:-Costs-for-Providing-Copies-of-Documents
News University Self-Directed Course on Reporting on Nonprofits
- Free—kind of a reporting on nonprofits 101
- http://www.newsu.org/courses/reporting-nonprofits
- Although this course was created at the end of 2008, the information is still accurate
Hospitals
- Association of Health Care Journalists, http://healthjournalism.org/, can be a resource for untangling hospital 990s
