Compliance is a bit of a buzzword, but it really covers the answer to any question that starts with the phrase “Is it legal for a nonprofit to do that?” or “Can my nonprofit do or say this?”. Today, I want to cover the three of the common compliance questions weRead More…

What is a donation acknowledgement? A donation acknowledgement (often called a donation thank you letter) is a written communication from a nonprofit to a donor that includes the information a donor needs to take any tax-deductions applicable. The IRS requires nonprofits to send donation acknowledgments, so most nonprofits have madeRead More…

Heather Harrell started with a vision to create a school in her community that would not only educate students from 1st grade through 8th grade, but make a lasting positive impact on their community for years to come. Heather gathered an amazing team to create The Village School of LouisvilleRead More…

By Zac Kester, Executive Director and Mark Pizur, Program Officer Few industries have been immune from economic troubles brought on by COVID-19, and nonprofit organizations were no exception. But unlike business corporations, nonprofits cannot be forced into bankruptcy by creditors. So what are your options if your nonprofit organization isRead More…

Soma Church was built around the idea that the gospel changes everything. Change became a big part of the church, as the church grew from one location to three. “As time went on and those churches became more established, they were ready to branch out on their own,” said GrantRead More…

Like many nonprofits, ESEA Network had to change their plans for their annual conference when COVID-19 hit. ESEA Network works to provide equitable educational opportunities to economically disadvantaged children through a variety of methods, including an in-person conference for leaders in education. COO of ESEA Network, Jason Vallina, was inRead More…

The Villages of Indiana has impacted the lives of thousands of children and families since the organization was formed over 40 years ago. “The Villages champions families for children through foster care, adoption, and family services,” said CEO Sharon Pierce. But Sharon wanted to do more to ensure that theRead More…

Throughout the year, we’ll be sharing success stories from our clients about the wonderful things they’ve been able to accomplish with the support of Charitable Allies because we believe that when nonprofits thrive, our communities thrive. Rock Steady Boxing was founded to empower people with Parkinson’s Disease in a unique way: byRead More…

By Zachary S. Kester, Executive Director and Andrew Emhardt, Program Officer When a nonprofit organization is insolvent, the Board of Directors have a duty to organization’s creditors (individuals/entities to whom they owe money).  The board must take steps to ensure that they “preserve the assets” or otherwise maximize the amountsRead More…

Throughout the year, we’ll be sharing success stories from our clients about the wonderful things they’ve been able to accomplish with the support of Charitable Allies because we believe that when nonprofits thrive, our communities thrive. When Megan McGuire became the Chief Executive Officer of Ascent 121, a nonprofit organizationRead More…

Three Ways to Reorganize or Restructure Your Nonprofit If your nonprofit is trying to find ways to accomplish new goals or is struggling, it might be time to restructure. Restructuring and reorganization can take on different forms, but they usually involve an intentional desire to change direction. Choosing which methodRead More…

The Five Methods to Dissolve a Nonprofit Once you’ve made the difficult decision to close your nonprofit organization, a thousand questions arise. How do we close the organization? What’s the best way to close with dignity and leave a lasting positive legacy? To close your nonprofit properly there are severalRead More…

Has COVID 19 dramatically impacted your ability to achieve your mission? Has your revenue dried up during the pandemic? Unfortunately, many nonprofits are feeling the impact of these unprecedented times, and are unsure of what to do next. Closing a nonprofit is a difficult decision, but in some cases, it’sRead More…

Are you getting burned out on all the COVID-19 related content these days? In the early stages of the pandemic you needed access to as much information as possible related to the novel coronavirus. For many states, businesses and organizations there is more knowledge of what the near term holds.Read More…

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused many nonprofits (and businesses) to see a reduction in donations/revenue or to temporarily shut down entirely. If that’s you, make your insurance claim. Make (and Preserve) the Insurance Claim I can’t stress this enough. Really. You absolutely should make (and preserve) your insurance claims, evenRead More…

You’ve worked hard to gain federal recognition of your organization’s tax-exempt status, and now your organization is exempt from all federal income taxes.  This newly awarded status, however, does not automatically grant exemption from state taxes, such as sales and use taxes, property taxes and income and franchise taxes. Similarly,Read More…

As charitable organizations seek to increase streams of revenue — to provide more services, support more staff or help ensure long-term sustainability — many dabble in sources of business revenue to supplement the financial bottom line. For example, an organization with a pool may wish to rent the pool andRead More…

By Zachary S. Kester, Executive Director and Robert Miller, Program Officer, Charitable Allies Misconceptions abound in the public charity sector. Even those familiar with public charities often fail to understand or are unaware of certain aspects of the law related to public charities. One of the most common misconceptions amongRead More…

Legal jargon can be difficult to read and understand for attorneys and even more so for everyone else. This problem is no less an issue in the nonprofit sector, especially given that many people wanting to start nonprofits are just looking to do good in society and might not haveRead More…

We have dealt with a number of issues for our clients that were the result of “do-it yourself,” “robo-forms,” or “lawyer-in-a-box” type of documents. Here is some information on why these forms are inadequate, specifically in the nonprofit sector.Read More…

The following is an article by TheIndianaLaywer.com about Charitable Allies Executive Director Zachary S. Kester The Indiana Lawyer presented its 2018 Leadership in Law Distinguished Barrister & Up and Coming Lawyer Award Honorees to 30 men and women who represent the strength and future of Indiana’s Legal profession. Among theRead More…

By Zachary S. Kester, Executive Director and Robert Miller, Program Officer, Charitable Allies Many people know that charities can be tax-exempt from many forms of taxation and that their donors commonly receive tax benefits for their donations to the organization. Charities also receive the benefit of a formal structure thatRead More…

By Zachary S. Kester, Executive Director and Robert Miller, Program Officer, Charitable Allies Savvy businesspeople know that the best way to protect personal interests from liability is through incorporating their for-profit business. Incorporating offers many of the same protections for nonprofit organizations. However, errors and omissions of the Board ofRead More…

By Zachary Kester, JD, LLM CFRM, Charitable Allies Spending too much on overhead is bad. But how much is too much? While scholars agree that the 15 percent line implicitly reflected in Part IX of Form 990 is too low, what’s the sweet spot? And, maybe more importantly, what do fundersRead More…

By Zachary Kester, JD, LLM CFRM, at Charitable Allies Last night the National Art Museum of Sport and The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis announced a new permanent home for the NAMOS collection–the new Riley Children’s Health Sports Legends Experience. NAMOS Board President and NCAA VP and CFO Kathleen McNeely graciouslyRead More…

By Zachary S. Kester, JD, LLM, CFRM  With all the coverage of the 2016 Presidential election and then proposed repeal of the Affordable Care Act (popularly known as “Obamacare”), many nonprofits and small employers may be unaware that last-minute legislation gave them the option to offer health reimbursement arrangements toRead More…

By: Zachary S. Kester, J.D., LL.M, CFRM and Laura Fucio, Charitable Allies IRS recognition of a nonprofit’s tax-exempt status is crucial for any nonprofit hoping to receive grants. Most grantors or donors need advanced assurance of the IRS determination of tax-exemption or deductibility to satisfy tax obligations upon them. InRead More…

By: Zachary S. Kester, J.D., LL.M, CFRM Charitable Allies After a hot, muggy summer, fall has come to Indiana.  In addition to bringing cooler temperatures, changing leaves and pumpkin spice flavored absolutely everything, the fall season is a popular one for charitable fundraising.  You have probably encountered an advertisement offeringRead More…

June 14, 2016 By Zachary S. Kester, JD, LLM, CFRM and Kylie Schreiber, at Charitable Allies To their detriment, many nonprofits believe the new overtime rules going into effect on December 1, do not apply to them since they are not business “enterprises.” But this overlooks the reality that “individual”Read More…

By Zachary S. Kester, JD, LLM, CFRM, at Charitable Allies Many nonprofit organizations are pretty good at tracking activity data, such as how many children they served, how many meals they served, or how many people completed a class or training offered. Increasingly, these numbers alone are becoming insufficient toRead More…

By Zachary Kester, JD, LLM, CFRM Many leading nonprofit organizations and experts laud “best practices” to set the bar high in terms of transparent, prudent and ethical operations across many areas. These go beyond the minimum legal and accounting requirements and purport to set a strong foundation of compliance withRead More…

The Todd Academy, Inc. (founded and operated by Sharon Todd, also the owner of Todd Academy Fundamentals, Inc.) was a private school dedicated to serving the unique educational needs of the gifted and talented. Unfortunately, its laudable mission was lost in a haze of mismanagement and deceit. Examples include: Not payingRead More…

Flanner House of Indianapolis, Inc. today took a difficult step and brought an action against Flanner House Elementary School, Inc. and its board of directors alleging nearly $1M in damages for the Flanner School Board’s reckless conduct in improperly overseeing the school. Flanner House and Flanner School are two differentRead More…

By Zachary Kester, JD, LLM, CFRM Recently a charity purchased property to use as a part of its charitable programming. Unfortunately, it was not permitted to apply for a property tax exemption that year because the property sale closed after the May 15th deadline to apply for the tax exemption.Read More…

Nonprofit boards are often made up of a group of people trying to help out their community as best as they can.  Unfortunately, however, they are not immune from mistakes. These mistakes can have serious consequences that range from creating financial liabilities for the organization to leading to its ultimateRead More…

By Zac Kester, JD, LLM, CFRM, at Charitable Allies Nonprofits do such great things. They provide end of life care, fight homelessness, provide free legal services to indigent individuals, honor fallen soldiers, conserve land and water, combat disease, rescue animals, and much, much more. It takes a team to getRead More…

By Zachary S. Kester, JD, LLM, CFRM, at Charitable Allies Sally Sponsor wants to restrict her donation to sponsor a specific child in your child sponsorship program.  Andy Abode wants to be sure Don Displaced directly benefits from his donation to the homeless shelter; Displaced is a homeless man withRead More…

By Zac Kester, JD, LLM, CFRM Good nonprofit organizations seek out community leaders from diverse backgrounds to serve on their boards of directors. As they recruit directors, they know that having the right people with the right skills helps the organization achieve its strategic goals. Nonprofits are tapping lawyers notRead More…

By Zachary S. Kester, JD, LLM, CFRM, at Charitable Allies By now you’ve likely heard of the new IRS Form 1023-EZ, a streamlined Application for Recognition of Tax Exemption that greatly reduces entry barriers for new, small charities. There are some wonderful potential benefits. There are some rather grave potentialRead More…

By Zachary S. Kester, JD, LLM, CFRM The modern nonprofit sector is vibrant and adaptable, especially after coming off the heels of the largest and longest recession in modern history. Many charities are pursuing opportunities to ensure stability by providing services for a fee and by selling goods. Consultants evenRead More…

By Zachary S. Kester, JD, LLM, CFRM, at Charitable Allies Every year in January many nonprofit organizations wisely take time to regroup and assess what worked and what didn’t in the previous year. Now is also an excellent time to review compliance requirements that some nonprofits inadvertently overlook. This checklistRead More…