Form 990 is a publically disclosed document and competition for charitable contribution dollars has never been more fierce. Looking good in front of potential donors is more important than ever!

Chapters contain detailed guidance and numerous practice aids such as:

• Sample policies
• Checklist for identifying related parties (and why this is important)
• Worksheets for the public supports tests
• Acknowledgements for contributions (donors need this to claim a charitable contribution deduction)
• Checklists for fundraising event compliance as well as a specific checklist for charity auctions
• Checklist to determine whose compensation must be reported and where
• Table for the various tax reporting required of an organization
• Checklist and worksheet to ensure an organization does not have substantial political expenditures that could cause it to lose its tax exempt status

The Guide will also help you:

• Gather the required information. The revised Form 990 requires much more information than can be gleaned from the financial statements. Organizations need to generally understand the Form 990 requirements so that they can pull together the information needed to complete the return and save you time when preparing the return. This guide helps them understand some of the sticky areas on the Form 990 including governance, related parties, public support, fundraising, and compensation.
• Implement governance policies & procedures. With the IRS’s emphasis on transparency, governance policies and procedures have become a hot topic. This guide helps the reader understand why the IRS cares if you have implemented them, whether you are enforcing them, and what elements the policies and procedures should contain. It also provides some sample documents and checklists. Help ensure that the nonprofits you are serving are well-governed.
• Maintain the organization’s tax-exempt status. Organizations of all sizes need a basic understanding of private inurement and the risks of involvement in political activities. Severe penalties and possible loss of exempt status can result if these rules are violated. This Guide helps the organization identify insider transactions and political activities that are especially troublesome that should be either avoided or disclosed.
• Addressing reasonable compensation issues. Reasonable compensation is determined using appropriate comparable data. This Guide discusses how to determine and document reasonable compensation, who should approve it, and proper expense reimbursement. It also helps you determine what items of compensation are reportable on Form 990 for officers, directors, trustees, key employees, and highly compensated employees.

The latest edition includes:

• Sample policies including conflict of interest, joint venture, political activities, and social media (new in 2012)
• Board of director tools including checklists for screening new board members, determining if a member is independent, and an annual governance checklist (all new in 2012)
• Checklist for determining the organization’s potential disqualified persons (new in 2012)
• Form to monitor compliance with a conservation agreement (new in 2012)
• Summary table highlighting the difference in tax (Form 990) and financial statement reporting for fundraising and gaming activities (new in 2012)