AboutHarvey Mechanic Expertise US Federal tax issues of nonprofit 501(c)(3) public charities only. Establishing and maintaining legal requirements for such non-profit organizations in the United States, including Internal Revenue service filings and requirements. I will not be working on this free forum to answer questions about Nonprofit's unrelated or for-profit businesses or how to fill out forms. This forum is only for general questions about federal tax law, not as the law applies to your specific situation.
To search my previous answers you can do a Google search: site:allexperts.com/q/nonprofit [with your other search terms appended].
Experience I have been practicing law and especially the law of nonprofit organizations since 1990 when I was admitted to the New York Bar.
Education/Credentials B.S. Columbia University in New York City, 1970
J.D. (Law Degree) Brooklyn Law School, 1990 -- Cum Laude
Question We collected funds to send a Girl Scout Troop to Washington. Now there are questions as to how we will spend the funds...such as souvenirs. What are the guidelines and how do we know what we can and can not do? I do not want to impact other groups that will come after us in a negative way.
Answer The spending of 501(c)(3) organizations is supposed to be directly for the exempt activities not at all for the purchase of souvenirs.
See also:
www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p535.pdf "Business Expenses"
on page 3, under "What Can I Deduct"
--start of excerpt ---
To be deductible, a business expense must be
both ordinary and necessary. An ordinary ex-
pense is one that is common and accepted in
your industry. A necessary expense is one that
is helpful and appropriate for your trade or busi-
ness. An expense does not have to be indispen-
sable to be considered necessary.
--end of excerpt ---
That section is written for employees but also applies to
volunteers. See the section under "Volunteer Officers/Workers" at
www.irs.gov/charities/article/0,,id=131083,00.html
which is written specifically for Exempt Organizations and refers
to that Publication 535.
Harvey Mechanic
Attorney at Law
Harvey108@hotmail.com
