On Friday, December 20, 2019, President Trump signed into law government funding legislation for the 2020 fiscal year that includes a provision repealing Section 512(a)(7), commonly referred to as the “parking tax,” with retroactive effect to the date of its enactment.[1] Section 512(a)(7) was enacted pursuant to the
Repeal of Unrelated Business Income Tax on Qualified Transportation Fringe Benefits
Late on Friday, December 20, 2019, President Trump signed into law government funding legislation for the 2020 fiscal year that includes a provision repealing Section 512(a)(7), commonly referred to as the “parking tax.”[1]
Section 512(a)(7) was enacted pursuant to the 2017 U.S. tax legislation known as the “Tax Cuts
Inclusion of Qualified Transportation Fringe Benefits in UBTI: Guidance, Relief, and Rumors of Possible Repeal
December 10, 2018 saw significant activity with respect to Section 512(a)(7) of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”), which requires tax-exempt employers to increase their unrelated business taxable income (“UBTI”) by amounts paid or incurred for qualified transportation fringe benefits provided to employees, including the provision of parking and public
Updates for Tax-Exempt Organizations from the Senate Bill
Early on December 2, 2017, the Senate passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Senate Bill”). This blog entry describes certain provisions of the Senate Bill that would have the most significant impact on the nonprofit community, including important differences between the Senate Bill and the prior version of the Senate bill and the bill passed by the House of Representatives (the “House Bill”) (both of which we described several weeks ago in “Updates for Tax-Exempt Organizations from the Senate Markup to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act”).
Updates for Tax-Exempt Organizations from the Senate Markup to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
Over the last several days, there have been significant developments relating to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the pending tax reform legislation in Congress.[1] On Thursday, a detailed summary of the Senate Finance Committee’s proposal was released (the “Senate Markup”),[2] and the House Ways and Means Committee voted (in a 24-16, party-line vote) to advance their bill for consideration by the full House of Representatives (the “House Bill”).[3] This alert describes certain provisions of the Senate Markup and House Bill that would have the most significant impact on the nonprofit community, including important differences between the two proposals. We described significant elements of the initial version of the House Bill last week in “New Rules for Tax-Exempt Organizations in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.”
IRS Proposes Rules for Donee Charitable Donation Reporting
On September 16, 2015, the IRS issued proposed regulations concerning the time and manner for donee organizations to file information returns that report required information about charitable contributions. The proposed regulations would implement an exception to the requirement that a taxpayer who claims a charitable contribution deduction for any contribution of $250 or more to obtain substantiation in the form of a “contemporaneous written acknowledgement” from the donee organization.
Previously, some taxpayers have argued that donations can be substantiated by filing an amended Form 990, even years after the claimed donation is made; however, the IRS has rejected this position. Instead, pursuant to the proposed regulations, the IRS will develop an optional “specific-use information return for donee reporting” intended to provide for timely reporting, while also minimizing reporting burdens on donees and protecting donor privacy.
IRS Introduces New Procedures for Reinstatement of Tax-Exempt Status
Tax-exempt organizations that have had their tax-exempt status automatically revoked because of failure to file required annual returns for three consecutive years can follow new procedures for seeking reinstatement of their tax exemptions. The IRS released these procedures in Revenue Procedure 2014-11 on January 2, 2014. The Revenue Procedure, which is the first IRS guidance on this topic since 2011, outlines three procedures that organizations may use to apply for reinstatement.
First, under a “Streamlined Retroactive Reinstatement Process,” small organizations eligible to file a short form (Form 990-EZ) or postcard return (Form 990-N) may have their tax-exempt status retroactively reinstated to the date of revocation, provided that they have not previously had their exemptions automatically revoked. Under this procedure, organizations must complete and submit Form 1023 (Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501(c)(3)) or Form 1024 (Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501(a)) not more than 15 months after revocation.