A “charitable sales promotion” is a popular form of cause marketing that allows businesses to support charitable organizations while promoting their own products or services. “Friday Donut Sales to Support Local Shelter” or “Restaurant Proceeds go to Food Bank” entice consumers to make purchases with the promise of supporting a charitable initiative. Whatever the arrangement …

Nonprofits of all types are susceptible to fraud, especially those with limited resources or lacking internal controls. It could come as an imposter creating a copycat webpage and taking donations intended for your 501(c)(3), or an email phishing scam to an unsuspecting employee. Is your nonprofit taking the appropriate steps to protect itself from …

Cryptocurrency is quickly becoming a popular form of currency, particularly among younger generations. Cryptocurrency owners may even look to donate their cryptocurrency to your organization. Are you ready? A nonprofit’s ability to receive cryptocurrency donations helps ensure that it is able to accept donations from all interested donors. Learn more about accepting cryptocurrency …

Online auctions make it easy for nonprofits to connect with a wide audience in a convenient format.  They have also skyrocketed in popularity during the pandemic as a safe option for nonprofits to continue their fundraising efforts. In this episode of the PBPA Podcast, Mary Benton of Alston & Bird discusses legal considerations around …

Are you considering working with a third-party fundraiser, such as a grant writer or fundraising consultant? If working with an outside fundraiser is on your horizon, take a listen to this episode of the PBPA Podcast.  When do you need to file a fundraiser’s contract with the Secretary of State?  Can you pay …

Often times individuals or groups of individuals want to help out 501(c)(3) nonprofits by raising money for them. They may hold a dinner with friends, a charity golf tournament, a benefit concert, or even a raffle with the proceeds going to an organization. Sometimes organizations are not even aware of these fundraising activities …

Our Fundraising series is exploring the legal aspects of conducting various fundraising activities in the state of Georgia. In this session, our speakers will explain the things nonprofits need to consider when hosting festivals, carnivals, block parties, fairs and “Taste of” events in Georgia. They will cover topics including risk issues, income and …

You may be familiar with the fact that even tax-exempt organizations have to pay tax on income from an activity that is regularly carried on if it is not substantially related to the organization’s exempt purpose.  This is known as “unrelated business income tax” or UBIT. Under the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs …

As a Georgia nonprofit, are you supposed to: (a) pay sales tax on items you buy? (b) charge sales tax on items you sell? (c) charge sales tax on fundraising activities including admissions to our galas, golf tournaments, and fun runs or (d) all of the above? Much of the time, the answer …

This year, perhaps more than ever, you want to acknowledge donors for their contributions. In this episode of the PBPA podcast, we will be talking about thanking donors and written acknowledgements. When should a “thank you” to donors be sent? What are the specific legal requirements of the acknowledgement? During this podcast, our …

Updated August 3, 2022 Complying with charitable solicitation registration, annual renewals and filings, and disclosure statement requirements for multiple states takes a lot of time and requires detailed and dedicated focus. There are many companies that provide this service at a reasonable cost. This is a chart comparing various charitable solicitation compliance companies. …

Updated January 3, 2023 Remember that tote bag you got when you made a donation to public radio? Did you know that the IRS cares about the value of that bag? According to the IRS, if something of value is given to a donor in exchange for the donation (a “quid pro quo”), …

Our Fundraising series is exploring the legal aspects of conducting various fundraising activities in the state of Georgia. In this session, our speaker will explain the things nonprofits need to consider when hosting sporting activities such as road races and golf tournaments in Georgia. She will cover topics including risk issues, income and …

Does your nonprofit host auctions or galas as part of its fundraising efforts? Venue, caterer, silent auction items . . CHECK! What about: – Registering with your local sheriff to host that raffle? – If you are serving alcohol, applying for a liquor license? – Paying and collecting sales taxes on catering, ticket …

If your nonprofit doesn’t have the proper license from the local sheriff, that raffle you’re holding may be considered illegal gambling in the State of Georgia. Learn how to comply with the law and stay out of trouble. Legal Raffles

Has anyone ever offered your organization a gift of stock, bonds, mutual funds, CDs, or other investments? Many organizations do not think about a policy for accepting such investments and a procedure for managing them until the offer is made and then urgency takes priority instead of a thoughtful plan. Some nonprofits also …

Nonprofits rely on special events for a wide variety of reasons: as a fundraising source, to recognize volunteers and as an opportunity to celebrate your mission. These special events usually include serving alcohol, which means, you may even need to apply for a special events alcohol license! In this webcast, we will have …

Crowdfunding has become an increasingly popular tool in a nonprofit’s fundraising arsenal, and with good reason. Crowdfunding is essentially a means of asking for online donations to support specific projects and fundraising events. Organizations can pay crowdfunding platforms such as Crowdrise, PayPal Giving Fund, and Kiva, which are fundraising websites specifically geared towards …

What nonprofit would not want a grant from a federal or state agency to help them accomplish their mission and to relieve some of the constant fundraising pressure that all nonprofits face? Grants are free money! But they do have strings attached. A children’s hospital misreported information on a federal grant application and …

There were many proposals in the House and Senate tax reform bills that could have affected small §501(c)(3) nonprofit clients, and now that the dust has cleared and the bill has become law, here are the main changes that could affect Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta clients. Tax Cuts and Jobs Acts 2017