Bryan Cave LLP has once again been recognized as a U.S. News – Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms” National Tier 1 ranked firm for its work in Trusts & Estates.  Awards are determined using several criteria, including: client evaluations, peer attorney feedback, and, notably, managing partners and practice area chairs’ reviews. Congrats to the Bryan Cave Private Client Group!

File current versions of exemption applications

The IRS reminds people seeking tax-exempt status to use the current version of forms to avoid processing delays. The current version of Form 1023, Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, is dated December 2017, and Form 1024, Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501(a), is dated January 2018.

If you use a prior version of one of these forms, the IRS will return your application and ask you to resubmit using the current version of the form.

User fees 

Revenue Procedure 2018-5 announces the following user fees:

Application Type User Fee Form 1023 $600 Form 1024 Form 1024-A Form 1023-EZ $275 Group exemption letter $2,000

Please submit Form 8718, User Fee for Exempt Organization Determination Letter Request, with group exemption letter requests and exemption applications, other than those filed on Forms

Friday, March 23, 2018 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in #202 J.C. Penney Conference Center (on the UMSL north campus)

Nonprofits and government entities rely on volunteer power to advance their mission. Professionals who oversee and coordinate boards, committees, or work closely with elected officials will benefit from the wisdom of our workshop presenters.  This half-day workshop will provide you with best practices for recruiting for boards or committees, setting expectations and standards for operation, and re-energizing existing members. Additionally, we’ll get a peek into what it is like to work with elected officials as you pursue success in volunteer engagement.

Instructor Carol Weisman is the president of Board Builders. She is an internationally known speaker, author, trainer and consultant who specializes in volunteerism, and fundraising. She works primarily in the US, UK, Canada, Bermuda and Australia. She has served on 39 boards and has been president of 8. Carol

While the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (the “Act’) focused on spending and the budget, it did include two provisions impacting charities.

First, the Act amends the recently adopted Section 4968(b)(1), which now imposes a 1.4% excise tax on certain colleges and universities, to clarify that the student portion of the test refers to “tuition-paying” students.

Second, the Act adds new subsection (g) to the excess business holdings rules of Section 4943, often referred to as the Newman’s Own exception (the organization which we understand was behind the proposal). New Section 4943(g) provides an exception for certain holdings of a private foundation which, among other requirements, where the foundation holds 100% of the voting stock at all times during the tax year, the foundation acquires its interest in the business other than by purchasing it (e.g., by gift), the business distributes all of its net operating income for any given

Under Revenue Procedure 2018-15, the IRS generally will not require a new exemption application from a domestic section 501(c) organization that changes its form or place of organization.  Rev. Rul. 67-390 and Rev. Rul. 77-469 are obsoleted.

Revenue Procedure 2018-15 will be in IRB 2018-09, dated February 26, 2018.

Thursday, Feb. 22, 2018 from 1-4 p.m. in #402 J.C. Penney Conference Center on the UMSL north campus. (Note, members of the Community Builders Network (CBN) will have an additional discussion/meeting from 4-5 p.m.)

The NPML Program is proud to partner with the Community Builders Network (CBN) for this presentation. Learn more about CBN at: http://www.communitybuildersstl.org/

Is your organization currently participating in partnerships with other organizations and/or groups? Are you planning to do so? Do you want the existing partnerships to be even more successful, or want to optimize the chances that future partnerships and collaborations will be so? This workshop is for current and aspiring nonprofit executives, managers, and board members who want to learn the most promising principles and practices to form and sustain successful partnerships and collaborations. It will also provide an opportunity to learn and share obstacles to, and strategies for success. The workshop will mix plenary presentation and discussion,

The IRS revised Form 1023-EZ, Streamlined Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and its instructions to help small charities apply for 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. These revisions don’t change the Form 1023-EZ user fee. Here’s a summary of the revisions we made to the Form 1023-EZ.

• A text box was added to Part III requesting a brief description of the organization’s mission or most significant activities. This change was recommended by the IRS National Taxpayer Advocate and is designed to provide a better understanding of the most significant activities that an organization engages in to further its exempt purposes.
• Questions about annual gross receipts, total assets and public charity classification were added to the Form 1023-EZ. These questions are also on the Form 1023-EZ Eligibility Worksheet in the Instructions for Form 1023-EZ  that organizations must certify they have completed.
• Question
  

Topic: The Office of Professional Responsibility: What you need to Know about Practicing before the IRS (rebroadcast) Date: Wednesday January 17, 2018 Times: 2:00 p.m. Eastern; 1:00 p.m. Central; Noon Mountain; 11:00 a.m. Pacific Duration: Two hours

Webinar featuring OPR Director Stephen Whitlock with live Q&A at the end of the presentation

Topics include:

• Regulations governing tax practice before the IRS (Circular 230, Rev. 6/2014)
• Due diligence obligations of tax professionals
• Overview of other key Circular 230 provisions
• Practitioner responsibilities to their clients and to the tax administration system
• Best practices for all tax professionals
• Office of Professional Responsibility policies and procedures

Register for the webinar

Earn two CE credits in ethics

To receive a certificate of completion and CE credit, you must:

• View the live presentation on 1/17/18 for at least 100 minutes from the start of the program.
• To confirm your attendance and receive
  

As we posted, the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate passed and sent to the President for signature legislation that makes significant changes to the U.S. tax code.  The changes are the broadest re-write of the U.S. tax code since the 1986 act and could have a widespread impact on tax-exempt organizations and charitable giving.   The following is a very brief summary of the rules impacting exempt organizations and charitable giving:

Rules Impacting Charitable Donations 

• Increase in AGI Limit. The income-based percentage limit for charitable cash contributions by individuals to public charities increases from 50 percent to 60 percent of Adjusted Gross Income (“AGI”).
• Itemized Deductions. The standard deduction is increased from $6,350 to $12,000 for singles and from $12,700 to $24,000 for married couples filing jointly.  Thus, fewer individuals will be itemizing deductions, which includes charitable deductions.  Many commentators have speculated this increase in the
  

Early Due Dates for W-2, W-3 and Form 1099-MISC 

Employers face a January 31, 2018, due date for filing 2017 Forms W-2 and W-3 with the Social Security Administration. This date applies to both electronic and paper filers.

Form 1099-MISC is due to the IRS and individuals by January 31 when reporting non-employee compensation payments in box 7.

Penalties for failure to file correct information returns or furnish correct payee statements have increased and are now subject to inflationary adjustments. These increased penalties are effective for information returns required to be filed after December 31, 2015.

Form 1098-T Reporting Changes and Limited Penalty Relief for 2017 Returns 

Eligible educational institutions are required to report the total amount of payments received for qualified tuition and related expenses from all sources during the calendar year on Form 1098-T, Tuition Statement.

Announcement 2016-42 provides relief from penalties under Section 6721 and 6722 to 2017 Forms 1098-T.