Welcome to your daily briefing on nonprofit developments in Massachusetts. Today we're covering 4 key stories including updates on massachusetts nonprofit headlines, background & context. Let's dive in.
1 story
Mass Humanities offers grant programs designed to enrich lives and strengthen society through the humanities for nonprofits, organizations, communities, and individuals across Massachusetts.
MA nonprofit professionals can access dedicated funding to support humanities-driven projects that engage communities and advance their organizational missions.
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3 stories
Negligent-screening claims arise not from failing to have a screening policy, but from failing to follow the policy that exists. A documented policy with inconsistent enforcement is harder to defend than no policy at all, because the deviation is evidence of negligence.
Insurance carriers tighten coverage on organizations with screening-process gaps. The cost of consistent enforcement is small; the cost of a single uninvestigated incident can close the organization.
The streamlined Form 1023-EZ is available only to organizations meeting specific limits on projected revenue, assets, and activity types. Filing 1023-EZ when ineligible produces a determination that is technically valid but vulnerable to retroactive revocation if discovered. The full 1023 is harder to file but harder to challenge.
Loss of exemption is retroactive to the original determination, exposing the organization to back-tax liability. The eligibility checklist is the only protection.
The IRS-recommended COI policy requires (1) annual disclosure by all directors and key employees, (2) a process for review of any disclosed conflict, (3) recusal procedures, and (4) documentation in board minutes. Policies that have only the disclosure form without the review and recusal process do not satisfy the recommendation.
A weak COI policy is a Schedule L disclosure waiting to happen, and Schedule L disclosures correlate with future IRS examination selection.
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