fbpx

Thought Leadership

When it comes to thought leadership and staying informed, we’ve got you covered. See below for recent articles, webinars, and downloadable resources available.

Want updates like these sent directly to your inbox?

Subscribe to our Newsletters

Exempt Organization Public Disclosure and Availability Requirements

Exempt Organization Public Disclosure and Availability Requirements

It’s pretty well known that exempt organizations’ current Form 990s or equivalent filings (990-EZ, 990-PF, etc.) are required to be available for public inspection. However, did you know these public disclosure requirements extend to the organization’s three most recent Form 990s or equivalent filings, the organization’s application for tax exempt status (Form 1023/1024) filed with […]

Learn More
Alternative Investments and Foreign Reporting for Nonprofits

Alternative Investments and Foreign Reporting for Nonprofits

Nonprofit organizations are often looking for ways to diversify their investment portfolios. One way to achieve diversification is to invest in alternative investments, which can include domestic and foreign limited partnerships and hedge funds. Before investing in these types of investments, it is important to understand the impact such investments might have on unrelated business […]

Learn More
New Lease Accounting Standard Deferral

New Lease Accounting Standard Deferral

Update published on June 5, 2020: FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2020-05, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (ASC 606) and Leases (ASC 842) Effective Dates for Certain Entities, as part of its efforts to support and assist stakeholders as they cope with the many challenges and hardships related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Update Published December 12, […]

Learn More
Legislative Update for Exempt Organizations: July 2019

Legislative Update for Exempt Organizations: July 2019

On July 1, 2019, the Taxpayer First Act of 2019 (the “Act”) was signed into law.  The law is generally intended to improve customer relations with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  However, there are a few provisions that directly affect exempt organizations. First, the Act mandates electronic filing for all exempt organizations required to file […]

Learn More
Federal Perkins Loan Program Announcements

Federal Perkins Loan Program Announcements

Electronic announcements May 3, 2019 and May 24, 2019 Colleges and universities who participate in the Federal Perkins Program are no longer able to award or disburse new Perkins Loans. The Department of Education (“Department”) continues to release new announcements and thus, changes and updates to the program that participating colleges and universities should consider […]

Learn More
Should My Organization Consider Establishing an Operating Reserve?

Should My Organization Consider Establishing an Operating Reserve?

The recent Accounting Standards Update (No. 2016-14) issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board on the Presentation of Financial Statements of Not-For-Profit Entities has increased awareness of liquidity in not-for-profit financial statements. New disclosures required by this standard assist financial statement readers in determining how liquid your organization is, or simply how much cash the […]

Learn More
QuickBooks Online Advanced and How It Can Impact Your Nonprofit

QuickBooks Online Advanced & How It Can Impact Your Nonprofit

If you are a current user of QuickBooks Online (QBO), you may have received an offer of a trial version of QBO Advanced or you may have received a notice that you are over the usage limits of your current version of QBO. What does this mean? Users of the Essentials and Plus version of […]

Learn More
A Conversation on Revenue Recognition (ASC 606)

A Conversation on Revenue Recognition (ASC 606)

Update published on June 5, 2020: FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2020-05, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (ASC 606) and Leases (ASC 842) Effective Dates for Certain Entities, as part of its efforts to support and assist stakeholders as they cope with the many challenges and hardships related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Welcome to our first […]

Learn More
IRS Group Ruling Changes for 2019

IRS Group Ruling Changes for 2019

As of January 1, 2019, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has stopped mailing lists of parent and subsidiary accounts to organizations with a group ruling. In the past, the IRS sent these notifications to central organizations requesting updates. As a background, Revenue Procedure 80-27 requires central organizations to annually provide the IRS with a list […]

Learn More
Looking Ahead: A Reminder on the Upcoming New Lease Standard

Looking Ahead: A Reminder on the Upcoming New Lease Standard

Update published on June 5, 2020: FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2020-05, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (ASC 606) and Leases (ASC 842) Effective Dates for Certain Entities, as part of its efforts to support and assist stakeholders as they cope with the many challenges and hardships related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Update published on December […]

Learn More
Managing Your Not-for-Profit for the Long Term

Managing Your Not-for-Profit for the Long Term

The length of the current economic expansion, coupled with recent volatility in the economy and the financial markets serve as a reminder that organizations need to keep a long-term view as they strive to continue fulfilling their missions. Charitable Giving Trends and Your Donor Base The impact of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act […]

Learn More
Board Member Financial Literacy and Stewardship

Board Member Financial Literacy and Stewardship

Not-for-profit board members are responsible for providing guidance and direction to ensure that a given organization is proactively working towards achieving its mission and strategic vision. Part of this responsibility includes securing and managing financial resources to allow the organization every opportunity and capital resource needed in order to move in the right direction of […]

Learn More
Tracking and Grants and Programs with QuickBooks

Tracking of Grants and Programs with QuickBooks

Are you tracking your grant or program expenses in spreadsheets, or is your current method not working well for you? If your organization is using QuickBooks, there are built-in features that help with grant, program, and donor-restricted funds. Each organization is different, but for many organizations, setting up a feature called classes in QuickBooks will […]

Learn More
Difficulties and Benefits of Accepting Cryptocurrency as a Not-For-Profit

Difficulties and Benefits of Accepting Cryptocurrency as a Not-For-Profit

Cryptocurrency is a virtual currency, which is a decentralized system based on blockchain technology. There are thousands of cryptocurrencies, which offer a digital medium of exchange for instantaneous purchasing and sales transactions, the most famous being Bitcoin. Bitcoin was the first established cryptocurrency, which had its 10-year anniversary in 2018. The cryptocurrency industry has come […]

Learn More
Is Your NFP Organization at Risk_ Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities

Cyber Security Vulnerabilities for NFPs

Please see Updated Article for the latest in Cyber Security A hot topic of many conversations recently has been cyber security. Are not-for-profit organizations at risk? If so, what should be done to address the risks? Not-for-profit organizations handle sensitive data every day, which make them a prime target for an attacker. Reputation is everything […]

Learn More

Webinars

indiana sales tax

New Indiana Sales Tax Rule for Not-For-Profits – Sales Tax Collection & Filing Threshold Increased

By Cory Schunemann, CPA, Manager at Blue & Co. Indiana’s 2023 Senate Enrolled Act (SEA) 417 made another change to the sales tax collection requirements for not-for-profits after 2022’s SEA 382. Not-for-profits with taxable retail sales in excess of $100,000 in the current or prior year are now required to collect and remit sales tax. […]

Learn More
community benefit tracking

Diving into Not-For-Profit Healthcare Community Benefit Tracking

By Emilie Knieriem, CPA, Senior Manager at Blue & Co. Tax-exempt hospitals provide community benefits for many reasons. In order to understand those reasons, we should first define what community benefits are and how they benefit community need. Community benefits are programs and services designed to improve health in communities and increase access to health care. […]

Learn More
woman modeling operational performance

Decision Making Time – Modeling Operational Performance Through Organizational Data and Financial Projections

By Andrew Brock, CPA, Manager at Blue & Co. How often do you find yourself facing more questions than answers when it comes to making operational decisions for your organization and what the future bottom-line impact of those decisions might entail? Right now, some of the most relevant trends and decisions for organizations include: Impact […]

Learn More

Functional Expenses – What They Are and Why They Matter

By Luke Pierce, CPA, Manager at Blue & Co. What Are Functional Expenses? Under financial reporting standards, all not-for-profit entities are required to present a statement of functional expenses, either within the actual financial statements or as a disclosure within the notes to the financial statements. While natural expenses show the type of expense incurred, […]

Learn More
heart and a jar of money

Unveiling the Dynamics of Donor-Restricted Contributions

By Greg Jackson, CPA, Principal at Blue & Co. Many not-for-profit organizations rely on public support (grants and contributions) to finance their mission. When that public support includes donor-restricted grants and contributions, those restricted amounts must be reported and accounted for in accordance with the related restrictions attached to the funds. When recording a donor-restricted […]

Learn More
man typing on a laptop for cybersecurity

Strengthening Cybersecurity in Not-for-Profits: Assigning Oversight Responsibilities to Mitigate Risk

By Allen Norvell, CPA, MBA, Director at Blue & Co. While certainly not a new risk for not-for-profit (NFP) organizations, cybersecurity risk is increasing in profile as an area of interest among members of governance. NFPs manage a significant volume of customer and donor data. We have previously provided thought leadership to help NFPs identify […]

Learn More