Nonprofit
This page is to serve as a collector for all 501(c)3-related stuff. Resources, filings, correspondence, guidelines for members, etc.
Writeup of 501(c)3 requirements: https://www.i3detroit.org/hacker-business-series-non-profit-basics/
History
When putting together our application, Ed looked at other hackerspaces' successful applications, and a few books. Please add links to those things!
- Media:I3_Detroit_Form_1023_Application.pdf
- Media:I3_Detroit_Form_1023_Checklist.pdf
- Media:I3_Detroit_Form_1023_Attachment.pdf
Confirmation
Our entry on IRS's Exempt Organizations Select Check page shows us listed as I3 Detroit in Ferndale MI, with an EIN/tax id of 27-0553505. Our Deductibility Status is "PC", or Public Charity, with a Deductibility Limitation of 50%.
Guidelines
Dues are not a donation. You receive something of value in return for them.
The Treasurer can issue tax receipts for nontrivial donations. (i.e. if you drop a buck in the donation jar, we're not gonna do paperwork on it.) The info needed is:
- Donor's name
- Donor's address
- Amount of donation
- Date of donation
- Type of currency (cash, check, Amazon, goods, etc).
(The treasurer or board or membership should define what constitutes a non-trivial amount. Suggestion: either set it as a dollar amount per transaction, or else as "whatever someone felt strongly enough to ask for a receipt for". If the latter, the onus of writing up the receipt should be on the donor, and all the Treasurer has to do is confirm the transaction and sign and keep a copy of the receipt.)
Question: Say someone sends us $100 through Amazon and there is a $3 processing fee charged by Amazon. Do we issue a receipt for the $100 they gave, or for the after-fees amount that we actually receive?
Answer: The amount the donor paid out is what they get to deduct, so the receipt should have the full amount. In this example, the donor gets a receipt for $100, even though i3 actually only received $97.
Question: If other members of the board/officers can write receipts, where do we find the forms and by what mechanism do we report those to the treasurer?
Answer: This is up to the Treasurer. Email Treasurer@ for current policy.
