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 humanities grant programs designed to enrich lives and strengthen society for nonprofits, organizations, communities, and individuals across Massachusetts.
MA nonprofit professionals can access dedicated funding to support humanities-based programming that deepens community engagement and organizational impact.
Reach professionals in this market
3 stories
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.
Private inurement is benefit flowing to insiders (officers, directors, key employees); it is an absolute prohibition. Private benefit is benefit to outsiders that is more than incidental to the exempt purpose; it is a question of degree. Both can revoke exemption, but the legal analysis differs.
Insider transactions trigger automatic intermediate sanctions even when the exemption survives. Outsider benefit triggers a facts-and-circumstances analysis. Distinguishing them shapes the defense.
Form 990 is required to be made public by the filing organization on request and is indexed by ProPublica and others within weeks of filing. Sections most boards underestimate: Schedule J (top-staff compensation), Schedule L (transactions with interested persons), and Schedule O (narrative explanations that "soften" other answers). Donors and reporters read these.
Items that read fine in management's narrative often read very differently in print. Pre-filing review by a non-finance board member catches optics issues that a CFO will not.
Get Massachusetts nonprofit intelligence delivered to your inbox every morning.
Subscribe FreeView all past issues
Feature your brand across the U.S., Canada, and select international markets and 10 industry verticals.
Become a National Partner