About this event
This course is specifically designed for the tax practitioner who currently does a few 990’s or is considering doing so in the future.
Tax-exempt organizations required to file federal Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax, which was expanded and revised beginning in 2008 tax years, now have some experience with the new requirements. They may have experienced much anxiety as they and their tax preparers learned that the new Form 990 is not simply a numbers game. It is a direct effort by the IRS to make tax-exempt organizations follow some of the policy requirements that the Sarbanes-Oxley Act imposed on public companies, and to otherwise require them to adopt best practices. Crafting and implementing these best-practice policies requires careful attention before preparation of Form 990 is started.
Furthermore, unlike most other tax returns, Form 990 is clearly in the public eye, due to its disclosure requirements. These features make preparing Form 990 a special opportunity for CPAs to serve nonprofit clients.
Much of the new Form 990’s emphasis on compliance with rules governing exempt
organizations and establishing and following sound policies and best practices is demonstrated in the many new questions it asks. Particularly, it asks more closely than before about the degree of involvement of the board of directors in establishing and assessing policies supporting proper governance, including a review within the organization and by its directors of the completed Form 990 itself. And understandable format so the 1040 preparer can proceed with confidence.