Organizations should be gearing up to file the Massachusetts “Return of Property Held for Charitable Purposes” (State Tax Form 3ABC). If you are a Massachusetts-domiciled charity that owned real or personal property as of January 1, you must file Form 3ABC by March 1 of that year to receive a local tax exemption for the fiscal year that begins the next July 1.
Topics: Massachusetts, non-for-profit, Non-profits, Form 3ABC, nonprofit, form PC, 3ABC
Summer started early for university campuses across the country. Many closed their campuses well in advance of the end of the semester in efforts to protect students and faculty from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Topics: non-for-profit, Non-profits, nonprofit, Mark McCarthy, CCR, Construction, Construction Cost Review, Coronavirus, COVID-19
Not-for-profit organizations must be vigilant and careful shepherds of their monetary resources. Sometimes sound financial management takes some outside-of-the-box thinking. Not-for-profits do not have the same avenues to offset rising operational costs that for-profits might. They cannot, for example, raise additional revenue through price increases, product or packaging enhancements, or even service line extensions.
Topics: non-for-profit, Non-profits, nonprofit, Mark McCarthy, CCR, Construction, Construction Cost Review
Data can say a lot about which processes work and which don’t, but with the volume of information a not-for-profit organization is collecting on a daily basis, that message can easily get lost in the shuffle. Robust data analytics programs help to separate the story from all the numbers.
Analytics programs help to do the heavy lifting when it comes to information processing, distilling volumes of data into real time, and actionable insights. When a data analytics program is properly constructed, it can support risk management efforts, budget decisions, and strategic planning. Data analysis helps identify areas of key risk and fraudulent activity. It can be used to evaluate a program’s ability to meet its targets and highlight any inefficiencies. Data analytics can also play a role in donor management, picking up trends in contributions and charitable giving that may not be immediately obvious to a not-for-profit’s board or management team.
Topics: non-for-profit, Non-profits, nonprofit, data analytics, Scott Moody, analytics
The risk of significant financial fraud may be lower for not-for-profit organizations than it is for for-profit entities, but its impact can be just as paralyzing.
Not-for-profit organizations represented only 9 percent of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners’ study of 2,690 fraud cases in its 2018 Report to the Nations. Regardless of the incidence, there’s an obvious financial impact from fraud. Total fraud cases in the 2018 Report to the Nations resulted in estimated losses of $7.1 billion, which the ACFE acknowledged is only a fraction of the true cost of global fraud. The study concluded that the median cost of fraud to not-for-profit organizations was $75,000, but these costs do not include the cost of attorneys, forensic accountants, and other specialists who will be called upon to assist with the investigation.
Topics: fraud, non-for-profit, Non-profits, John Mulvaney, nonprofit, nonprofit fraud
Massachusetts-based eligible charitable organizations are permitted exemptions for certain personal and real property. Organizations should be preparing now to file the Massachusetts "Return of Property Held for Charitable Purposes" (State Tax Form 3ABC).
The mandatory form provides a full or partial tax property tax exemption for an organization’s real or personal property so long as the organization files it no later than March 1, 2018. It is due at the Assessor's Office in each city or town in which your organization owns personal and/or real property on January 1 in order to receive a local tax exemption on that property for the fiscal year that begins the next July 1.
Topics: Massachusetts, non-for-profit, Form 3ABC, nonprofit
Natural disasters and other unexpected, disruptive events can bring out the best in people. Community members want to help in any way they can, and one of the easiest ways to lend a hand is through donations.
Topics: Dyan Reinhold, non-for-profit, Non-profits, fundraising, Donations, natural disaster, fundraising tips
Fraud comes with a significant monetary impact. The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) Report to the Nations on Occupational Fraud and Abuse 2016 Global Fraud Study estimates that fraudulent activity costs $6.3 billion in losses, with the average loss per case coming in at $2.7 million. Nearly one in three of the cases in the study occurred in the not-for-profit and governmental arena.
Topics: fraud, non-for-profit, Non-profits, John Mulvaney, nonprofit, nonprofit fraud
On May 4, President Trump kept a campaign promise when he signed an executive order directing the IRS “to exercise maximum enforcement discretion to alleviate the burden of the Johnson amendment, which prohibits religious leaders from speaking about politics and candidates from the pulpit."
Topics: non-for-profit, Non-profits, nonprofit, Donald Trump, Johnson Amendment
The protection of sensitive information is vital in today’s operating environment. There were more than 100,000 information security incidents and 3,141 confirmed data breaches in 2016, according to a recent Verizon Data Breach Investigation Report.
Topics: non-for-profit, Non-profits, cybersecurity, nonprofit, Brenda Piazza