Nonprofit Showcase: Carolina Refugee Resettlement Agency

"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,” are words we all recognize, scrawled across the Statue of Liberty at Ellis Island.

This search for freedom is something we consider inherently American, and one of the main reasons refugees seek the security of our nation.

As a reaction, resettlement agencies work to help those in need find their way to the land of the free.

One of these being the Carolina Refugee Resettlement Agency (CRRA), a 501(c)(3) organization that works as a part of the United States’ Refugee Resettlement Program.

The Mission

The CRRA believes that all refugees and asylum seekers deserve a chance to create successful, new lives in the USA.

Their mission is to welcome new arrivals and make them contributing and successful members of American society by:

• “Providing resettlement services to refugees and asylees who are escaping violence, persecution, and repression, without regard to their race, religion, nationality, ethnicity, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.
• Connecting refugees and asylees to other service agencies in the Charlotte area.”

History

Started in 1996, the CRRA is an affiliate of the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS). Together, they’ve settled more than 3,000 refugees from 40 countries into the Charlotte metro area.

Recently, CRRA has resettled over 300 people from Bhutan, Burma, Iraq, and Somalia.

The goal of CRRA is to embrace Charlotte bound refugees, easing their transition from their troubled past to life in America.

No matter what nationality or religion, CRRA is here to help!

How They Help

Before a refugee sets foot in Charlotte, CRRA will furnish an apartment and stock it with food so that they have a safe place to call home.

After new arrivals reach Charlotte, CRRA picks them up from the airport and brings them to their new living space.

New arrivals receive help with tasks like obtaining social security cards, registering their children for school, and attending classes for English as a Second Language. The employment counselors will also match people with jobs they qualify for, so that they can provide for their family.

With additional grants and donations, CRRA is able to provide even more for clients as they settle into their new lives.

No matter what your nonprofit organization does, ExpressTaxExempt will always be here for your Form 990 filing needs. If you’re on a calendar year, your deadline is May 16th, 2016!

We’re thankful for the work Carolina Refugee Resettlement Agency does to help new Americans seeking safety!

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Bring Out the Pink Ribbons!

Aaahh October. Fall is officially here, Halloween is just around the corner, and everything is decorated in autumnal colors of orange, red, yellow, brown, and….pink? That’s right -- pink!

Since 1985, October 1st has marked the beginning of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, an annual international health campaign organized to increase awareness of the disease and to raise funds for research into its cause, prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure. In 2009, male breast cancer advocacy groups joined together to globally establish the third week of October as Male Breast Cancer Awareness Week.

The goal of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month from the start has been to promote mammography as the most effective weapon in the fight against breast cancer. This still rings true thirty years later, when it’s estimated that 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer. Most doctors still acknowledge that early detection tests for breast cancer save thousands of lives each year, and that many more lives could be saved if even more women and their health care providers took advantage of these tests.

So, what’s with the pink?

The pink ribbon represents fear of breast cancer, hope for the future, and the charitable goodness of people and businesses who publicly support the breast cancer movement. Derived from the popular red ribbon for AIDS awareness, the first known use of the pink ribbon in connection with breast cancer awareness was in the fall of 1991 when the Susan G. Komen Foundation handed out pink ribbons to participants in it’s New York City race for breast cancer survivors. It was adopted as the official symbol of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month the following year. In 1993, Evelyn Lauder, Senior Corporate Vice President of the Estée Lauder Companies and breast cancer survivor, founded The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. When choosing the foundation’s symbol, she decided to use the pink ribbon, giving it national recognition. In 1996, a pink and blue ribbon was designed by Nancy Nick, president and founder of the John W. Nick Foundation, to symbolize awareness for breast cancer in men.

Today, it’s hard to think of Breast Cancer Awareness Month without imagining the pink ribbon. So this October, think of the pink ribbon as reminder: every time you see it, remember that many people can survive breast cancer if it’s found and treated early. Talk to your doctor about your risk for breast cancer, especially if a close family member of yours has or had breast cancer. If you’re 40-49 years old, your doctor can tell you when and how often you should receive breast cancer screenings; if you’re 50-74 years old, you should be getting screened every 2 years, or more often if necessary.

But wait...what’s that got to do with Express990? Well, to be honest, not much. Unless, that is, you’re a tax-exempt breast cancer awareness organization looking to e-file your Form 990-N, Form 990-EZ, or Form 990 Long Form with us (in which case, you probably already knew all of this). But that’s one of the beauties of the internet: a variety of information, sometimes where you least expect it, to help battle the “ignorance is bliss” mentality. Especially in the case of breast cancer, ignorance is most certainly NOT bliss. At Express990, we want you to take care of yourself so that you can continue to help others through the charitable organization that brought you to our site.

We’re not doctors, but we’re here to help any way we can with your tax-exempt filing needs. Give us a call Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 704-839-2321, or live chat us at www.expresstaxexempt.com; and you can always email us, day or night, at support@expresstaxexempt.com.

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Public Charity Test

When you’re filling out a Form 990 or a Form 990-EZ, you’re going to come across Schedule A, which asks if your tax-exempt organization is considered a Public Charity or Private Foundation. According to experts, there’s a default rule that all 501(c)(3) organizations are labelled private foundations until they can prove public charity. 

Private Foundations are exposed to more regulations than Public Charities, and they have to pay a tax on investment income. But that’s information for another blog. To prove that your tax-exempt organization is a Public Charity, you have to pass one of two tests administered by the IRS.

Test 1
The first test states that your organization receives a substantial support in contributions from publicly supported organization, governmental units, or from the general public.

Example: Your organization’s revenue is made through widespread public fundraising campaigns, federated fundraising drives, or government grants.

Experts may explain this as the Donate Charity Test in which your organization normally receives at least one-third its total income from government grants, grants from other public charities, and from members of the public. However, there is a limit.

Only two percent of your funding can come from any one donor, foundation, or corporate fund that’s counted as the numerator, while the entire amount of the gift is counted as the denominator.

Test 2
The second test states that your organization receives no more than one-third of its support from gross investment income, and more than one-third from contributions, membership fees, and gross receipts from exempt-related activities.

Example: You have a membership-free organization like a parent-teacher group, or an art group with box office revenue.

This is also explained as the Gross Receipts Charity Test, which includes receiving at least one-third of your support from government grants, grants from other public charities, and from members of the public. But also by receiving your support from revenues generated by activities within the organization’s exempt purpose.

The second test has a different limit on the amount that can be counted as the numerator. Receipts only up to the greater of one percent of the charity’s total support during the year, or $5,000, is counted as the numerator. The total amount of the gift is the denominator.

These are only glimpses of the complexity of these two test. Of course, there are exceptions, like the Unusual Grant Exception, exclusions, and even exceptions from exceptions. For a careful analysis of your organization’s Schedule A classification, you would want to consult with an accountant or tax professional.
E-file your Schedule A, along with the rest of your Form 990 or 990-EZ, with Express990. We offer a safe, secure, and accurate e-filing process that will save you time and money. We are also backed by expert help with technical and support teams that are the most experienced in the industry, knowing the in’s and out’s of the filing process better than anyone else.

For any assistance with e-filing our available 990 forms, you can contact our live professionals by phone (704-839-2321, Monday through Friday from 9am to 6pm, Eastern Standard Time), by email (support@expresstaxexempt.com), or by live chat (www.expresstaxexempt.com).

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Public Charities vs. Private Foundations

Do you like to compare particular subjects to see how they differ? I know I do. Quick story: It was an ordinary Tuesday at Express990, nothing exciting was happening in the wonderful world of nonprofit tax filings. To continue on the path of Nonprofit Tax Knowledge, I was reviewing some very informative Form 990 series literature. Then suddenly, a question popped in my head; how do public charities differ greatly from private foundations? What types of 990 forms would they file? I quickly jumped on the research train to answer these pressing questions...

What is the relationship between public charities & private foundations?
Public charities and private foundations are often separated by who they benefit. Public charities benefit the public at large or a specific group of people. They also typically receive donations from many donors of varying amounts. Private foundations are founded for the benefit of one person or few people, such as a scholarship fund. Likewise, private foundations are often funded by a few donors with consistent amounts.

What 990 form would need to be filed for a public charity vs. a private foundation?
Public charities, like section 501(c)(3) and other 501(c) organizations, file one of three forms: 990-N, 990-EZ, or 990. These three forms are dependent on the amount of gross receipts or total assets. Organizations with $50,000 or less in gross receipts may file the 990-N (e-Postcard) while organizations with less than $200,000 in gross receipts, and less than $500,000 in total assets, may file the 990-EZ. Any organization that goes over these amounts must file the entire Form 990.
Private foundations, unlike the previously mentioned public charities, have their own 990 Series form: Form 990-PF. This form does, however share the same "15th day of the 5th month after the end of the tax period" rule with the rest of the Forms 990.

Extra tidbits about Public Support
The IRS determines the exempt categorization of exempt organizations based on what it calls "Public Support Tests." There are two public support tests: the first one is for organizations described in Sections 509(a)(1) and 170(b)(1)(A)(vi) of the Internal Revenue Code. The second is for organizations described in Section 509(a)(2). Both of these tests measure public support over a 5 year period and hinge on 1/3 of support from contributions rule, meaning that the organization must receive at least a third of its support from public contributions. Section 509(2)(a) organizations can receive no more than 1/3 of their support from gross investment income and unrelated business taxable income.

There is a notable difference between public charities and private foundations. If you are looking at them definition wise, remember public charities receive donations from many donors of varying amounts and private foundations  are funded by a few donors with more consistent amounts. Another difference is the type of 990 forms they file. The only thing they have in common is the "15th day of the 5th month after the end of the tax period" rule for filing.

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