Private Foundations

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On December 20, 2019, President Trump signed into law changes to the private foundation excise tax on net investment income under Section 4940 of the Internal Revenue Code.[1]

For purposes of Section 4940, net investment income is the excess of gross income from interest, dividends, rents and royalties (“gross investment income”), plus capital gain net income, over expenses paid or incurred in the production or collection of gross investment income or for the management of property held for the production of gross investment income.[2]  Prior to the new legislation, Section 4940 imposed an excise tax of 2% on the net investment income of most domestic tax-exempt private foundations.[3]  This tax rate could be reduced to 1% if a foundation made certain charitable distributions during the tax year equal to or greater than the sum of (a) the assets of the foundation for the tax year multiplied by its average percentage payout for the five tax years preceding that year, plus (b) 1% of the foundation’s net investment income for the tax year.  In order to qualify for the 1% rate, the foundation also could not be liable for any taxes under Section 4942 (taxes on failure to distribute income) for any of the previous five tax years.

On August 21, 2018, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) released Notice 2018-67 (the “Notice”), addressing issues relevant to tax-exempt organizations arising under new Section 512(a)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”), promulgated pursuant to the 2017 U.S. tax legislation that is commonly referred to as the “Tax Cuts and…

House Republican Tax Bill Imposes Excise Tax on Wealthy Private Universities and Excess Compensation of Highly Paid Employees; Subjects State Pension Plans to UBTI Rules

On Thursday, November 2, House Republicans led by Speaker Paul Brady (R-WI) and Chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee Kevin Brady (R-TX), released the first public draft of the much-anticipated Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “bill”). (Our full coverage of the bill can be found here.)

In addition to providing substantial rate cuts for corporations and many pass-through businesses and repealing the estate tax, the 429-page document contains several provisions of interest to public charities and private foundations (as well as their advisors).

As we previously reported, the IRS has updated its guidance with helpful examples concerning program-related investments for private foundations.  In its recently issued Notice 2015-62, the IRS provides further assurance that private foundations may take the accomplishment of charitable purposes into account in investing decisions, in addition to financial return.

Among other restrictions, private foundations are subject to Section 4944 of the Internal Revenue Code.  Section 4944 imposes excise taxes on a private foundation that makes a “jeopardizing investment,” as well as on the foundation’s directors, officers, and management who knowingly participate in the making of the investment.  Jeopardizing investments do not include “program-related investments.”  These are investments made without any significant purpose of financial return.  Notice 2015-62 does not address program-related investments; rather, it addresses investments having a charitable as well as financial purpose.

The IRS and Treasury Department have released their annual Priority Guidance Plan (the “Plan”) for the 2012-2013 fiscal year.  The 35-page Plan is available here and includes thirteen projects directly related to Exempt Organizations.  At least five other projects, such as final regulations under Section 170 regarding charitable contributions and guidance on Section 403(b) plans, are also likely to be of interest to Exempt Organizations.

The IRS recently issued proposed regulations amending the rules applicable to a private foundation’s good faith determination that that a foreign grantee is the foreign equivalent of a public charity or private operating foundation, grants to which will be “qualifying distributions” and not “taxable expenditures.” Most significantly, the proposed regulations expand the class of practitioners whose opinion may be relied upon by a private foundation for purposes of making a good faith determination that a foreign grantee is the foreign equivalent of a public charity or private operating foundation. A private foundation may rely on the proposed regulations for grants made on or after September 24, 2012.