Disclosure of 990's
Tax-exempt organizations are required to make a copy of their application for exemption and Form(s) 990(and 990-T, if applicable) available for public inspection and to provide copies of such forms toindividuals or organizations that request copies. Alternatively, the Internet may be used to make these documents available. (See the “Using the Internet” section which follows.) These rules apply to anorganization’s Form(s) 990 (and 990-T, if applicable) for the last three years and to its application for exemption.1 If the application was filed prior to July 15, 1987, disclosure is not required unless the organization had a copy of the application on July 15, 1987. An organization may omit names and addresses of contributors from its return(s). Failure to comply with disclosure requirements can resultin an enforcement action by the IRS.
While disclosure rules create an additional burden, they also provide an opportunity for your organizationto showcase the community benefits that it provides. The rules also heighten the need to carefully review all responses, including narrative explanations, contained on your Form(s) 990/990-T before filing.
Generally, an organization must make its documents available for public inspection at any location where it has three or more employees. If the only services provided at the site are in furtherance of exempt purposes and the site does not serve as an office for management staff, the documents are not required tobe made available there.
Requests for copies can be made in person or in writing. When requests are made in person, the copies must generally be provided on the same business day. There are provisions for delays due to unusual circumstances. However, in no event may the period of delay exceed five business days. Unusual circumstances include times when those staff that are capable of fulfilling a request are absent.
Requested copies generally must be mailed within 30 days from the date of the receipt of the written request. However, if the organization requires advance payment of a reasonable fee for copying and postage, it may provide the copies within 30 days from the date it receives payment rather than the date of the original request.
You are currently allowed to charge a maximum fee of $.20 cents per page in addition to actual postage costs. If any organization receives a written request for copies with no payment enclosed and the organization requires payment in advance, the organization must request payment within seven days from the date it received the request. An organization is required to accept a personal check for written requests if it does
not accept payment by credit card. If an organization does not require prepayment and the requester does not enclose a prepayment with the request, the organization must receive consent from a requester before providing copies for which the fee charge for copying and postage would be in excess of $20.
A local or subordinate organization that is covered by a group exemption letter is given additional time for responding to some requests. If this type of organization receives a request made in person for inspection of its application for tax exemption, the local organization is required to acquire and make available the application for a group exemption letter filed by the central or parent organization within not
more than two weeks. The same general rule would apply with respect to a local or subordinate organization that does not file its own Form(s) 990/990-T but is covered under a group return. Again, the local or subordinate organization must make the group return available for inspection within a reasonable period which is defined as not more than two weeks. If the group return includes separate schedules with respect to each local or subordinate organization, the local or subordinate organization may exclude or
omit any schedules relating only to other organizations which are included in the group return.
If a request is made for a personal inspection to a local or subordinate organization, it has the option of mailing the return to the requester rather than allowing an inspection. However, if this is done, the local or subordinate organization may not charge for the copying of the document unless the requester consents to the charge. If a local or subordinate organization receives a request for copies, then it must comply with the rules stated previously.
As an alternative to providing copies, an organization may provide access to its exemption application and Form(s) 990 (and 990-T, if applicable) through the Internet. The website must provide instructions for downloading the document(s). The information on the Internet must be in such a format that it may be accessed, downloaded, viewed or printed in the same format as the actual documents. An organization would need to make the web address available to the general public.
There is nothing that prevents others from posting your Forms 990, 990-T and exemption application on the Internet. Based on this fact and the potential strain on your organization’s resources from providing copies, organizations should consider posting these documents on the Internet.
If an organization believes it is subject to a harassment campaign, it can file an application for a harassment determination with the Internal Revenue Service. This would allow the organization to suspend compliance with these requests. In addition, an organization may disregard requests for copies in excess of two per month or four per year made by a single individual or sent from a single address, without submitting an application for a harassment determination.
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