By Josh Cross, CPA, Senior Audit Manager
A growing trend in the nonprofit world, especially those nonprofits associated with the tech industry, is the acceptance of cryptocurrencies as charitable donations. Many individuals have benefited from the increased value of cryptocurrencies over the past few years as they become more widely accepted as a method of acquiring goods (by major companies like Overstock.com and Microsoft), and are now donating them directly to accepting nonprofits. (more…)
Fundraising tools can greatly streamline your nonprofit operations and help you increase revenue. Most tools support a part of the fundraising funnel—organizing donor information, managing events, improving email engagement, and collecting donations. Some larger tools bundle and integrate these and other features. (more…)
Foreign interference in U.S. politics has been in the news lately, and the controversy affects nonprofits in one important way.
Congressional efforts are underway to step up application of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA)—a law enacted in 1938 amid war and rumors of war to counter pro-German propaganda. Its broader purpose was to inform the American public about foreign attempts to influence public opinion and policy. (more…)
Online attacks have nearly tripled in three years, according to the FBI, and hackers are increasingly targeting nonprofits alongside private-sector companies. In this threatening environment, every organization must understand its online risks and basic security requirements. (more…)
By Steve Carter, CPA, Principal
Hopefully by now, most of us who work with and for nonprofits in the financial accounting arena are at least somewhat familiar with the new nonprofit financial reporting requirements put forth by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB). These changes are addressed in ASU 2016-14, and organizations will have only the rest of this year to learn and implement these new standards. (more…)
Nonprofits should be aware of a new accounting standard: ASU No. 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606).
It concerns revenue obtained from exchange transactions while contributions can still be reported under existing rules. Revenue that combines an exchange and a contribution in one transaction will require bifurcation, or separation. (more…)
By Helena Bouron, CPA, Senior Audit Manager
ASL Nonprofit Group
In August 2017, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued a proposed Accounting Standard Update (Update) to clarify existing guidance on revenue recognition of grants and contracts by nonprofit organizations.1
The changes in this proposed Update provide a more robust framework to determine when a transaction should be accounted for as a contribution under Subtopic 958-605 or as an exchange transaction accounted for under other guidance (for example, Topic 606). The proposed Update also provides important guidelines on whether a contribution is conditional or unconditional, which would help reduce diversity in practice and simplify the application of judgment, since current guidance is open to differences in interpretation. (more…)
Of all the responsibilities your nonprofit board takes on, managing a successful leadership transition will likely be the most demanding—and the most important.
Selecting and integrating a new executive director involves much more than interviewing a few good candidates. In fact, the process should go to the heart of your organization’s mission, both now and in the future. You can be sure the outcome will directly affect every aspect of your work, from staff retention and successful events to the number and generosity of your donors. (more…)
On Dec. 22, 2017, President Trump signed the most far-reaching tax legislation since the Reagan era. The measure reduces taxes, and thus government revenues, by an estimated $1.5 trillion. It may also significantly impact the number and size of individual financial contributions to nonprofits.
U.S. government support for charitable giving has historically taken the form of tax deductions, and the new tax bill leaves those deductions nominally in place. For practical purposes, however, they will no longer be available to millions of Americans. (more…)
