Early each semester I graph five years-worth of the number of Arizona nonprofits that gained status as income-tax-exempt under §501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The graph and the data I used to create it is material for one of my graduate seminars at ASU called The Nonprofit Sector, and students always seem interested in thinking about why exemptions might bounce around from year to year. The (great) data is readily downloadable from the exempt organization section of the IRS Business Master File.

This fall I got a pretty good surprise from the spike in number of exemptions that the IRS okayed earlier this summer.  In a normal month, 40 to 50 Arizona nonprofits will gain ‘public charity’ status from the IRS.  You can see this reflected in the chart, with a low-point coming in the average for November and December 2012: 31 new Arizona charities.  That’s actually 41 in November and only 20 that December (2012).  The earlier high point had come in September 2011, with 84 exemptions approved.

Then came the summer of 2014.  In May it was a whopping 97 approvals.  June broke all records with 182 approvals.  July maintained the spike with 144…

The origin of the word “intern” goes back to the Latin and French meaning: to restrict or confine within prescribed limits, as prisoners of war, enemy aliens, or combat troops who take refuge in a neutral country. Currently an intern is thought to be an individual gaining practical supervised training in a hospital or an assistant or trainee working to gain practical experience in an occupation, generally an internship is a temporary and supervised position where on-the-job training is learned. The current narrative includes a person of little status, conducting menial tasks in hopes of gaining experience, letters of recommendations and potentially a permanent position with the organization.

Much like the term “community service” once thought to be voluntary, altruistic service to others in the community has changed and is now used as a term for forced service hours for breaking a law in lieu of or in combination with fines. Over time, the term “community service” has evolved to mean the individual did something wrong. The term “intern” has changed over time as well with horror stories of long meaningless hours doing grunt work, being taken advantage of and then turned away with no job in sight.

Legally the abused intern is gaining status by winning law suits and human resource departments are taking note. Although the laws may give rules and guidelines to follow, government…

Question: I am starting a nonprofit organization and need to apply for 501c3 status.  Can I fill out the new 1023-EZ form?  

The Internal Revenue Service recently released Form 1023-EZ, the streamlined application for recognition of exemption of 501c3 status. This form is significantly shorter and easier to complete than the regular application, which is a welcome change for aspiring small nonprofit organizations. In order to utilize the streamlined applications, organizations must meet eligibility requirements and complete the Form 1023-EZ Eligibility Worksheet. There are 21 questions on the worksheet and an affirmative answer to any of the questions makes your organization ineligible to utilize the streamlined application.

Organizations with Budgets and Previous Expenses Less than $50,000 per year
The streamlined application is intended for small organizations, so only those with projected budgets of less than $50,000 per year are eligible. If the organization has been operating already, gross receipts from each of the last three years also must be less than $50,000 per year and total assets cannot exceed $250,000.

Only Certain Types of Organizations Qualify
Organizations that have been formed asa…

I quickly realized that Public Allies was no cop out when we were sworn in as AmeriCorps members. Back in September when I stood beside more than 40 committed Allies who had a variety of values, backgrounds, beliefs, and goals, but all taking the same oath I realized this was the real deal. We were committing to something that was bigger than ourselves for the sake of the greater good.

The oath reads:
I will get things done for America - to make our people safer, smarter, and healthier.
I will bring Americans together to strengthen our communities. 
Faced with apathy, I will take action. 
Faced with conflict, I will seek common ground.
Faced with adversity, I will persevere.
I will carry this commitment with me this year and beyond. I am an AmeriCorps member, and I will get things done.

We each have followed this oath to a tee in our unique ways at placement and as a collective cohort.

• Bring Americans together to strengthen communities.

The second year allies led us in two service projects this year. One of which we partnered with Be a Leader Foundation and Duncan Family Farms on Cesar Chavez Day. We held an event for the farm employees to bring their kids to learn about who Cesar Chavez was. This event also provided a workshop for parents about Be a Leader’s resources to help their children go on to college. As…