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When Nonprofit Organizations Should Return Donations
A donor makes a cash contribution to a nonprofit community health organization. The donor itemizes income tax deductions and meets the IRS’s substantiation requirements. So he’s entitled to take a deduction for the donation. The nonprofit is happy to accept his gift and uses the money to further its charitable mission. Everyone wins — that…
Estimating Business Interruption Losses
From hurricanes and floods to windstorms and wildfires, 2020 is shaping up to be one of the worst years on record for natural disasters in the United States. Experts estimate businesses, including farms, manufacturers, retailers and construction contractors, will lose billions of dollars from natural disasters this year. Many business owners have business interruption insurance…
NLP Can Help Detect Fraud Evidence in Business Data
Successfully preventing occupational fraud and fending off external threats generally requires businesses to analyze large volumes of data to uncover possible red flags. This already challenging task is made harder by the fact that approximately 80% to 90% of business data is estimated to be “unstructured” — in the form of emails, voicemails and social…
Award Year-End Bonuses the Right Way
This has been a rough year for many businesses in a broad range of industries — perhaps including your company. As the New Year beckons, you might want to reward employees who rose to 2020’s considerable challenges and outperformed. One approach is to reward loyal workers with year-end bonuses. Bonuses remind employees that you value…
Overtime Pay Rules for Fluctuating Workweeks
If you pay employees who are nonexempt and who have fluctuating workweeks, there’s a formula you can use to calculate their overtime pay. The formula is laid out in newly revised U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) regulations, and it adheres to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) overtime pay framework. However, you don’t need to…
Dealing with the Patchwork of State Requirements for Nonprofits
Not-for-profits are held to strict reporting standards. For instance, your organization is required to annually file Form 990 with the IRS to preserve your tax–exempt status, among other requirements. But reporting isn’t limited to the federal level. Most states have their own laws regulating charitable solicitations. Registration requirements are designed to increase transparency and improve…
Will Your Work-From-Home Policy Continue, Post-Covid-19?
Earlier this year, employers were polled by Mercer, a global benefits consulting service, to give their preliminary thinking about flexible work arrangements in a post-pandemic environment. Their answers suggest that, in some cases, companies and nonprofit organizations with employees working remotely have become more receptive to these arrangements. Here are some quick survey highlights: 68%…
Year-End Estate Planning Tips for 2020
Most people aren’t currently exposed to the federal estate tax, thanks to the generous unified federal estate and gift tax exemptions. However, there are still good reasons to review your estate plan and possibly update it to reflect the current federal estate and gift tax regime as well as life events. Plus, there’s always uncertainty about the future direction of…
Nonprofits: Now is the Time to Muster Volunteer Resources
When the COVID-19 outbreak became a full-fledged pandemic earlier this year, many already stressed not-for-profit organizations panicked. After all, how could nonprofits meet their charitable goals if supporters were losing their jobs — or, worse, fighting for their own and their family members’ lives? Putting reduced donations aside, it seemed unlikely that even dedicated volunteers…
Beware: Several CARES Act Tax Provisions Will Soon Expire
The CARES Act granted several valuable federal tax breaks for individuals and businesses. But most will expire at the end of 2020 or at the end of tax years that begin in 2020. Here’s a roundup of tax breaks scheduled to go off the books soon, unless Congress extends them. For Individual Taxpayers Charitable donations. The Tax…
Creating a Tax-Advantaged ABLE Account for a Loved One with a Disability
The Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act of 2014 allows states to set up ABLE account programs, which are similar to state-run Section 529 college savings programs. That is, you can establish a tax-favored ABLE account to cover qualified disability expenses of a family member or loved one who’s named as the designated account beneficiary….