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.
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August 20, 2019
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 […]
July 31, 2019
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 […]
July 26, 2019
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, […]
July 10, 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 […]
June 25, 2019
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 […]
June 18, 2019
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 […]
May 28, 2019
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 […]
May 21, 2019
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 […]
May 20, 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 […]
May 07, 2019
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 […]
April 15, 2019
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 […]
March 21, 2019
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 […]
March 04, 2019
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 […]
February 11, 2019
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 […]
January 22, 2019
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 […]
Webinars
September 21, 2023
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. […]
August 09, 2023
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. […]
July 19, 2023
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 […]
June 27, 2023
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, […]
June 09, 2023
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 […]
April 19, 2023
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 […]
