501(c)3 status
nickWesley
Public
Seen by 311
Becoming an official non-profit has many perks, from tax free pizza, tax deductible donations, and free slack premium accounts. The process is very straightforward and easy. In 2014 there was an introduction of the 1023EZ, a form which streamlines non-profit status for small organizations. The basic requirements is you make less than 50K and file a tax return each year.
nickWesley Wed 1 Jun 2016 6:30PM
The largest that I see is an annual reporting of taxes and a $400 application fee.
Hunter Owens Wed 1 Jun 2016 4:19PM
+1 to becoming a non-profit
Emily Zvolanek Wed 1 Jun 2016 5:10PM
Do grants and sponsorships count towards that $50K maximum?
nickWesley Wed 1 Jun 2016 6:29PM
So its a soft maximum, when you go over there is no penalty, eventually the IRS may request you send more info. I will verify and send this section of the rules. But yes I believe it would
Emily Zvolanek Wed 1 Jun 2016 8:27PM
Thanks Nick! Right now I need more information before I can form an opinion. I will probably have more questions later. . .
Steve Ediger (ChiCommons) Wed 1 Jun 2016 6:32PM
I would move slowly on this. It's bound to change the character of the group and I am in complete agreement with the founders that we'll grow it organically. I'm not sure that we are to the place in our development that we need another structure (barring the fact that Derek is running the books through DataMade at some administrative and potentially tax burden; however, he has indicated that this is not a problem). That said, eventually, I would go for some sort of registration, whether it be a cooperative or non-profit. I would prefer the former of those options.
nickWesley Wed 1 Jun 2016 6:46PM
What are the benefits of a co-op structure? I am not too familiar
Joel Inwood Thu 2 Jun 2016 10:39AM
We would need a board, I think.
Eric Sherman · Wed 1 Jun 2016 3:44PM
What are the cons, for us?