More Than 1 Million Tax-Exempt Groups Are Registered With the IRS
More than a million charities and private foundations were registered with the Internal Revenue Service as of September 30, 2004, according to figures released by the tax agency. The number of groups classified under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code rose in 2004 by 45,947, or 4.8…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor
Here is an example of a story William C. Graustein tells frequently as part of his work on behalf of the William ALSO SEE:Story Time Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund, which was named for his uncle. It is adapted from a version that appeared in one of the fund’s annual reports and starts with an…
Massachusetts Lawmakers Review Church Disclosure
The Massachusetts legislature is considering a bill that would require churches to file annual financial reports with state authorities in the same manner as other charities. Churches would also have to file lists of real-estate holdings. Charity leaders say the proposal -- SB 1074, also known as…
By GRANT WILLIAMS
Contributor
Tax Agency Issues Drafts of Forms for Charities
The Internal Revenue Service has released draft versions of revised forms important to charities and has asked nonprofit organizations to comment on its ideas. The draft of a revised Form 990-EZ, which is used by small charities, adds questions about their overseas activities, in an effort by the…
By GRANT WILLIAMS
Contributor
Bits: Democracy Collaborative Launches Community-Wealth.org
Community-Wealth.org, a new Web site created by the Democracy Collaborative at the University of Maryland, provides news, articles, and other information about economic-development organizations, financial institutions that specialize in neighborhood development, local land trusts, cooperatives,…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Web Site for Donors Receives Big Grants
A Washington organization that uses the Internet to match American donors with grass-roots social and economic-development projects in the developing world has received two large grants to expand its operations. GlobalGiving has received $1.5-million from the Omidyar Network, the philanthropy in…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
New York Charity Seeks to Spur Community Debate
The Community Service Society, a New York advocacy group, is starting a new Web site, Turnstile, which it hopes will bring together community activists, policy advocates, and members of the public to debate important social and economic issues facing the city. Each week Turnstile -- which is…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
U.S. Agency Pulls Grant From Abstinence Group
The Silver Ring Thing, a nonprofit organization in Sewickley, Pa., that stages youth-oriented events nationwide to promote sexual abstinence, has had its federal funds suspended in response to charges that it used government money for religious activities. In a letter to the charity, Harry Wilson,…
By BRENNEN JENSEN
Contributor
AIDS Organization Sues Over U.S. Prostitution Policy
An international aid charity is suing the U.S. government over an anti-prostitution policy that has prompted both protest and support from nonprofit groups. DKT International, in Washington, has sued the U.S. Agency for International Development and Andrew Natsios, its chief administrator, for…
By Ian Wilhelm
Contributor
Nonprofit Group Issues Tips on Accountability
In an effort to help the charitable world do a better job of regulating itself, Independent Sector, a Washington coalition of charities and foundations, has created a nine-item “Checklist for Accountability.” The checklist calls on nonprofit groups to: Develop a culture of accountability and…
By BRENNEN JENSEN
Contributor