By NEO Law Group
Fiscal sponsorship describes a number of varying contractual relationships that have through custom and practice developed between “sponsors” and “projects,” allowing charitable projects to receive deductible contributions. Having a charitable project fiscally sponsored by a sound and reputable fiscal sponsor may be an attractive alternative to starting a nonprofit, especially when an idea is being tested or incubated. There are several ways to properly structure such relationships, and it is important to get it right from the start. There are also a number of traps that can leave a project’s leaders vulnerable to losing typical rights associated with fiscal sponsorship, including the right to transfer the project to another 501(c)(3) entity, and/or losing funds raised for the project’s mission.
Filmmakers who seek philanthropic or public funding to support their works may be considering fiscal sponsorship as a vehicle for obtaining such funding. In our first post on this subject, we covered the basics of fiscal sponsorship and on the qualifications of a sound fiscal sponsor. Here, we’ll discuss...
Filmmakers who seek philanthropic or public funding to support their works may be considering fiscal sponsorship as a vehicle for obtaining such funding. And fiscal sponsorship can be of great value to a filmmaker. But it’s also a misunderstood and widely misapplied area of law that can create risks...
The Office of the Attorney General (“AG”), Department of Justice (“DOJ”) of the State of California is proposing to amend certain regulations and Forms that will affect charities subject to registration in California. The Notice of Amendments to Regulations and related documents can be found here. We wrote about proposed...
A fiscal sponsorship relationship may, at some point, come to an end. Whether the project leaders have found a new sponsor, created a new nonprofit entity with its own exempt status under 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or decided to move on in order to focus on other...
The National Network of Fiscal Sponsors held its Annual Gathering in New Orleans on October 26 and 27. Approximately 120 leaders of fiscal sponsors and other professionals from across the country came to share experiences and to learn about common issues, best practices, and new developments. One common question throughout...
I’ll be on Nonprofit Radio this Friday, September 1, at 10:00 am PT / 1:00 pm ET talking with host Tony Martignetti and consultant Andrew Schulman about fiscal sponsorship. Catch us live on Talking Alternative or a few days later on iTunes. Fiscal sponsorship. You’ve probably seen it and don’t know what it’s called. We’ll fix that...
Although many people think otherwise, 501(c)(3) public charities are in fact permitted to engage to lobbying activities, provided such activities are an insubstantial amount of their overall activities. They are also generally permitted to fund any work of other entities, including non-public charities, that they could engage in themselves,...
The National Network of Fiscal Sponsors held its Annual Gathering in Brooklyn on November 7. Approximately 100 leaders of fiscal sponsors from across the country came to learn about common issues, best practices, and new developments, and to share experiences. Fiscal sponsorship refers to a contractual relationship that allows a...
Erin Bradrick‘s article on fiscal sponsorship published by the American Bar Association’s Business Law Today was made available online last week. Read it here. For lawyers who work with nonprofits and exempt organizations or individuals with philanthropic aspirations, “I want to start a nonprofit” may be the single phrase...
Fiscal sponsorship can be an incredibly valuable tool for incubating charitable nonprofit projects and creating efficiencies through the provision of administrative support to several discrete projects. The key to its value lies in how well the fiscal sponsor meets its responsibilities and obligations and understands how to appropriately manage...