IRS Disclosure Rule Should Be Amended

To the Editor:

I strongly encourage all 501(c) or (d) organizations exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code to read the full text of the new disclosure rules discussed in The Chronicle’s April 22 issue (“I.R.S. Issues Final Rules for Charities on Making Tax Forms Available to Public”).

With respect to Form 990, the new rules require that requesters generally must be provided an exact copy filed with the I.R.S., including the infamous Schedule A, or, if specifically identified by the requester, any part or schedule thereof.

The article points out that even though an organization makes its Forms 990 available on the World-Wide Web, it must still comply with the public-inspection requirements. I suspect that tax-exempt organizations with a large number of regional or district offices would be more inclined to utilize the Web if the regulations are amended to eliminate the public-inspection requirement at such offices when the required information is posted on the Web.

Robert Linder
Former Director of Finance
Muscular Dystrophy Association
Tucson, Ariz.