From the President's Office
Dear Friend:
Readers from all over the country responded to my column last month about GuideStar's comments on the draft revision of IRS Form 990.
GuideStar has two major concerns with the proposed draft. Most important, we think it would place an undue burden on the thousands of nonprofit organizations trying to do a good job and perform admirable public services. That's why we advocate a smaller, more focused Form 990—one that collects more timely and meaningful data. Even though GuideStar is increasingly relying directly on nonprofits for much of our data, we still find the 990 to be our major source, but often a frustrating and insufficient one.
GuideStar's concerns about the additional burden the current draft return would impose on filing organizations struck a chord with many people. The executive director of an Altadena, California, nonprofit wrote, "Audits are already a huge overhead expense for us. Adding a similar charge for building in systems to accommodate this new 990 would be onerous." The president of a Boston charity agreed: "If my audit costs go up 50 to 100% there is no way I can continue. We are a small, under $500,000 organization and it is hard enough raising that much let alone another 5 or 6,000."
The executive director of a Glen Cove, New York, animal shelter predicted that they would no longer be able to depend on volunteer help to prepare their returns. "We rely on pro-bono tax preparation from a CPA/professor at our local university. If the IRS does make preparation time that much more difficult, it is likely we will lose this help." She continued, "We are totally onboard with fiscal transparency, but the extra money it would cost us to complete a 990 that is far more time-consuming, yet not on-target would pay for an awful lot of dog and cat food!" ... Read more
Highlights of the
2007 GuideStar Nonprofit Compensation Report
Gender, organization size, and location all affected compensation in fiscal year 2005, the seventh edition of GuideStar's annual nonprofit compensation report shows.
The 2007 GuideStar Nonprofit Compensation Report is based on 102,414 observations from 56,228 Forms 990 filed by 501(c) organizations with the IRS for fiscal year 2005. Among the highlights: Median compensation of females continued to lag behind that of males when considering comparable positions at similar organizations. ... Read more
Multi-Channel Fundraising: Tips of the Trade
The ins and outs of multi-channel fundraising.
Multi-channel fundraising has received a lot of attention lately, but is it really worth all the hype? Yes! With today's ever-expanding communication choices and ever-changing technology, multi-channel fundraising deserves consideration from the nonprofit community. ... Read more
Transferable Skills Open New Talent Pools to Nonprofits
Should you expand your definition of the skills and experience that can contribute to your organization's success?
Many career counselors advise nonprofit job seekers—especially sector switchers and recent graduates—to identify and market their transferable skills. Do organizations really consider these candidates without feeling as if they are taking too great a risk? How open-minded are nonprofits when it comes to looking at candidates that offer skills and experiences gained in other sectors or environments? ... Read more
The 20 Biggest Fundraising Mistakes, Part I
Meet major fundraising mistakes 1-10.
Call them what you will—gaffes, blunders, oversights, or errors—mistakes creep into everyone's professional life. But in fundraising—unlike other fields—where thousands if not millions of dollars are often at stake, mistakes can be especially hazardous. Who hasn't forfeited a significant gift, or received but a token one, due to some serious miscalculation? While there may be hundreds of them, 20 potentially costly fundraising mistakes stand out. ... Read more
Legislative and IRS Updates, October 2007
A new law forgives student loan balances for some public charity employees, the IRS posts FAQs on Form 990-N, and the Exempt Organizations staff offers workshops for small and medium-sized 501(c)(3)s.
Signed into law September 27, the College Cost Reduction and Access Act includes a provision allowing the secretary of Education to forgive the balance of federal student loans held by public service employees who (a) have not defaulted on their loans, (b) have made monthly payments on their loans for 120 consecutive months after October 1, 2007 ...
Read more
2007 GuideStar Nonprofit Economic Survey Kickoff
Let us know if you want to be invited to participate in the survey—and if you don't want us to invite you.
On October 8, we will send an e-mail inviting Newsletter subscribers associated with
501(c)(3) organizations to participate in our sixth annual nonprofit economic survey. The survey is designed for U.S. public charities and private foundations. It will run October 8-22, 2007. ... Read more
GuideStar on the Road
GuideStar staff members will be at the following events this month. Click here to learn more.
- October 4-5: AHP (Association for Healthcare Philanthropy) Annual International Educational Conference, Philadelphia, Pa.
- Oct. 15-16: 2007 NAAG (National Association of Attorneys General)-NASCO (National Association of State Charity Officials) Seminar, Denver, Colo.
- Oct. 18: Virginia Community Healthcare Association, Norfolk, Va.
- Oct. 21-23: Independent Sector 2007 Annual Conference, Los Angeles, Calif.
In This Issue
Highlights of the 2007 GuideStar Nonprofit Compensation Report
Multi-Channel Fundraising: Tips of the Trade
Transferable Skills Open New Talent Pools to Nonprofits
The 20 Biggest Fundraising Mistakes, Part I
Legislative and IRS Updates, October 2007
2007 GuideStar Nonprofit Economic Survey Kickoff
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