Midterms Are Weeks Away: What Your 501(c)(4) Can and Can't Do in an Election
A 501(c)(4) may electioneer only while politics stays under half its effort, per IRS rules — and political spending triggers 21% tax via Form 1120-POL.
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Nonprofit accounting, fund tracking, and compliance
The 14-Cent Charitable Mileage Deduction: What Volunteer Drivers Can Deduct, What Records the IRS Requires, and Why the Rate Never Changes
The IRS charitable mileage rate is 14 cents a mile, frozen by statute since 1998. What volunteer drivers can deduct, and the log that proves it.
When Your Church's Kindness Creates a Tax Bill: Benevolence Funds and Love Offerings Done Right
Benevolence paid to a church employee is always taxable IRS wages on Form W-2 — gifts to needy non-employees are tax-free. The policy that keeps both straight.
Gala Tickets, Charity Auctions, Raffles: Which Fundraiser Payments Are Tax-Deductible?
IRS rules: deduct only what a gala ticket or auction bid exceeds fair market value; raffle and 50/50 tickets are never deductible, even for charity.
Grant Writer Bookkeeping: Pricing, Ethics, and 1099 Rules for Freelancers Who Serve Nonprofits
Grant writers can't take contingency fees under GPA ethics or 2 CFR 200.442. Bill hourly, flat or retainer, book deposits as liabilities, and track IRS 1099s.
Sponsoring the Local Little League? How to Deduct It as Advertising Instead of Losing It as a Nondeductible Gift
IRS rules let your business deduct a Little League banner as advertising — but only with visible promotion and a paper trail.
Charitable Gift Annuities, Explained: Lifetime Income, a Tax Deduction, and Capital-Gains Relief in One Gift
A charitable gift annuity trades a lump sum for lifetime income plus an IRS deduction — fundable with cash, stock, or a $55,000 IRA QCD.
Bingo, Raffles, and Pull-Tabs: When Nonprofit Gaming Owes UBIT
Nonprofit raffle and pull-tab income is taxable UBI unless the IRS bingo or 85% volunteer-labor exception applies — plus W-2G and Schedule G rules.
Elective Pay: How Your Nonprofit Gets an IRS Cash Refund for Clean Energy
Section 6417 elective pay lets nonprofits and governments get clean energy credits as an IRS cash refund — register first, then file Form 990-T on time.
Pledges Receivable Bookkeeping: How to Record Multi-Year Donor Pledges Without Failing Your Audit
Record unconditional pledges as revenue when promised, discount multi-year amounts to present value, and reserve for pledges that never arrive.
Year-End Giving Season: How Your Nonprofit Can Handle the December Donation Surge
About a third of US giving lands in December. The IRS requires a written acknowledgment for gifts of $250 or more, and the postmark sets the gift's tax year.
Grant Management Software for Small Nonprofits: What Fluxx, Instrumentl, and SmartSimple Actually Solve
GrantHub is gone, and Fluxx and SmartSimple are grantmaker tools — here's which grant software small nonprofit seekers actually need, by lifecycle stage.