New federal rules that took effect January 1 are expected to expand the pool of overtime-eligible employees by more than 1 million. With no exceptions for nonprofits, some are looking for ways to avoid overtime liability. Particularly eager are organizations with tight budgets that didn’t anticipate such costs. Here are some strategies to cut overtime […]
Category: Nonprofit
Effective Altruism: Making Their Money Count
“How do I do the most good with my donation?” is a question many donors ask these days, as the social movement of effective altruism carries its momentum into the 2020s. Effective altruism is commonly described as a philosophy that uses evidence and reasoning to determine the most effective ways to benefit others. And the […]
How to Use Visual Aids in Financial Reporting
Thanks to the Internet and social media, we’re bombarded daily with all kinds of information. As a result, most people prefer clear, concise snippets of data over lengthy text. Have your financial statements kept up with today’s data-consumption trends? Show and tell Humans are visual learners. In business, the use of so-called “infographics” started with […]
Still Struggling With How To Account For Contributions?
After the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s (FASB’s) 2014 release of Accounting Standards Update (ASU) No. 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers, many nonprofits were confused about whether grants and similar contracts were covered by these new revenue recognition rules. The FASB’s subsequent issuance of ASU No. 2018-08, Not-for-Profit Entities (Topic 958): Clarifying the Scope and […]
How Are You Going To Find Your Nonprofit’s Next Executive?
Every nonprofit needs an executive search plan. Even if you aren’t facing an imminent vacancy, your organization is smart to prepare for what can be a long process. In fact, executive searches generally take several months — even if you end up hiring someone already known to your nonprofit. So make plans now. Focusing energy […]
Writing Donation Acknowledgment Letters
Sending thank-yous to your donors doesn’t just make sense in terms of building and maintaining relationships. The IRS mandates that taxpayers substantiate single contributions of $250 or more with contemporaneous written acknowledgments. Here’s what you should include in those acknowledgments. The Essentials A written contribution acknowledgment should contain: The name of your organization, The amount […]
Matching Gifts Double the impact of Donors’ Contributions
A majority of large U.S. companies offer matching gift programs to boost the impact of their employees’ charitable gifts. Double the Donation estimates that $2 to $3 billion is donated through matching gift programs every year. At the same time, between $4 and $7 billion in matching gift funds goes unclaimed annually. Is your not-for-profit doing everything it can to claim […]
South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc.
What This Sales Tax Case Means For Nonprofits A landmark ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2018 dramatically expanded the ability of states to impose sales tax collection obligations on out-of-state organizations that sell goods and services within their boundaries. Since then, state legislatures and municipalities have scrambled to pass laws targeting organizations that […]
Collective Impact Initiatives Rely On Harmony
Collective impact, an approach that’s growing among nonprofits, is more than just collaboration. Its originators describe the phrase as the commitment of a group of important players from different sectors to a common agenda for solving a specific social problem. That includes the nonprofits themselves, government, businesses and constituent communities. In the Stanford Social Innovation […]
Protect your exempt status in Election 2020
Nonprofits that are tax-exempt as N 501(c)(3) organizations, including charities and churches, are barred from participating or intervening in any political campaign for or against a candidate for public office. Organizations that violate the prohibition risk losing their tax-exempt status. They also could find themselves on the hook for an excise tax. Here’s what you […]