Transcript Slide 1

IMPORTANT NOTE
This PowerPoint was developed as an
integral part of a face-to-face,
interactive educational session.
When using it as a standalone
reference item, some portions of the
material may be unclear and/or may
require interpretation or explanation.
Please contact Randy Welch with any
questions.
THE “E-POSTCARD”
BROUGHT TO YOU BY
YOUR FRIENDS AT THE
IRS
OVERVIEW
 Tax-Exempt
status
 Taxpayer ID number
 Prior filing requirements
 The “E-Postcard”
 Filing deadlines
 What information is needed in order
to file?
OVERVIEW (Cont’d)
 Various
filing issues
 What if we don’t file?
 IEA role/Current status of efforts
 Final recap
 How do I verify my local’s status?
 Info on IEA website
 Questions
TAX-EXEMPT STATUS
Labor unions are “exempt” under IRC
501(c)(5)
 NOT the same exemption as school
districts, churches, etc.

– They are exempt from sales tax
– Contributions to them are tax-deductible
“Exempt” means you don’t pay income
taxes
 Price: restrictions on how you can spend
your money

EXEMPTION PROCESS
 All
IEA locals are automatically
exempt under the IEA’s “Group
Exemption”
 Saves the paperwork of having to file
the exemption paperwork for each
new local
 Taxpayer ID number must be set up
correctly!
TAXPAYER ID NUMBER (TIN)
 All
new locals must apply for a TIN
(also referred to as Federal ID
Number/FEIN or Employer ID
Number/EIN)
 Must apply on Form SS-4
 SS-4 requires designation of a fiscal
year-end- Default is June
TAXPAYER ID NUMBER (Cont’d)
 Need
a TIN to open a bank account
 For new locals or others that need a
new TIN, the IEA will apply for you.
See your UD or contact the Director
of Business Services.
PLEASE DON’T….
 When
opening bank accounts, some
locals have……
– Used their school district’s TIN
– Used someone’s Social Security number
 Neither
approach is legal
 If your local has done this, you
should contact your UD or the IEA
Director of Business Services to
assist with filing for your own TIN
IRS REPORTING
REQUIREMENTS
 Based
on “Normal Gross Receipts”
 “Normal”= Average of preceding 3
years
 “Gross Receipts”= All cash taken in
EXCEPT IEA-NEA dues
PRIOR FILING REQUIREMENT
 Gross
990
receipts > $100,000: Form
– Less than 5% of locals
 Gross
receipts $25,000- $100,000:
Form 990-EZ
– Less than 5% of locals
PRIOR FILING REQUIREMENT
(cont’d)
 Gross
receipts < $25,000: NO
REQUIREMENT
– 90+% of IEA locals never had to file
PROBLEM: INVISIBLE ENTITIES
 IRS
had no way to keep track of you
 Can’t accumulate data
 Can’t ensure compliance
 Don’t know if you’re still out there
 Don’t have current contact info
SOLUTION: THE “E-POSTCARD”
 Gross
receipts < $25,000: Form 990N (the “E-Postcard”)
 Passed as part of the Pension
Protection Act of 2006
 Must be filed electronically- No paper
version available
SOLUTION (Cont’d)
 Info
required is simple and basic (For
Now!)
 Must be filed every year
EFFECTIVE DATE
 Effective
for “Years beginning after
December 31, 2006”
 So, the first locals affected were
those whose fiscal year (per the
records of the IRS) ended December
31, 2007
FILING DEADLINE
E-Postcard must be filed by the 15th day of
the 5th month after the end of the fiscal
year
 December year-end= May 15 deadline
 June year-end= November 15 deadline
 Return must be filed annually
 Return can’t be filed until after fiscal year
is complete

WHAT INFO IS NEEDED IN
ORDER TO FILE
 TIN
 Fiscal
year-end
 Both must match IRS database or
you can’t file!
INFO NEEDED (cont’d)
 Local’s
legal name
 Mailing address and website address
 Name/Address of a “Principal Officer”
 Confirmation that your normal gross
receipts are < $25,000
TIN ISSUES

Over 100 IEA locals are not in IRS
database because…
–
–
–
–
IRS classified as “dormant”
Local uses TIN of employer or leader
No bank account/No TIN
Local filled out SS-4 incorrectly
IEA is in the process of straightening these
out with the IRS
 Can’t file E-Postcard with a TIN not in IRS
database!

FISCAL YEAR ISSUES
 Fiscal
year determines filing
timeframe
 IEA has access to IRS database,
including fiscal year info
 Most locals don’t know their fiscal
year, or what they are using is not in
agreement with the IRS
FISCAL YEAR ISSUES( cont’d)
 It
is OK to use one fiscal year for
internal purposes and another for
your IRS filing
 If you want to change your fiscal
year in the IRS database, contact the
IEA Director of Business Services
FILING ISSUES
 The
filing process is fairly simple,
but….
– Still fairly time-consuming
– A few quirks, e.g.,
 The
name of all locals must be “Illinois
Education Association” in order to provide
tax-exempt status. Local name is registered
as a “DBA”
 Mailing address issue
FILING ISSUES (cont’d)

We prefer to file the return for you
–Simple e-mail authorization process
–Saves you the time involved in the
“learning curve”
–Ensures that return is filed in a way
that does not jeopardize your taxexempt status
FILING ISSUES (cont’d)
If you prefer to file yourself, we will
provide instructions
 Some locals got the impression that
by providing some information that
was requested through the IEA
website, that they had filed the EPostcard. THIS IS NOT THE CASE.

“SUBSIDIARY ORGANIZATION”
ISSUE
If “subsidiary organizations” file their
annual financial information as a
consolidated return with the “parent
organization,” they do not have to file the
990-series forms
 This is not practical for the IEA’s 1,000
locals- more bookkeeping for both locals
and IEA
 IRS is giving incomplete information on
this

CONSEQUENCES FOR NOT
FILING
After three years, you lose your taxexempt status
 It is reasonable to assume that the IRS
will use the first three years to flush out
all of the thousands of organizations that
no longer exist, then will make the
consequences more onerous
 It’s important to start filing as required
and make it a routine

IEA ROLE IN TRANSITION
 Numerous
communications sent to
regions and locals to explain the IRS
letters and minimize confusion
 Info presented at “Financial
Procedures” training sessions
 Sessions at WAC and SLA devoted to
E-Postcard
 “Webinars”
IEA ROLE (Cont’d)
 Info
posted on IEA website
 Sending e-mail reminders to local
presidents, based on due dates
 Reconciling info provided by locals
with TIN and fiscal year info in the
IRS database
IEA ROLE (Cont’d)
 Making
sure that all locals that are
required to file actually do so
 Filing E-Postcards on behalf of locals
 Resolving TIN/Fiscal year
discrepancies with the IRS
SUMMARY OF DUE DATES
December (due 5/15)
April (due 9/15)
June (due 11/15)
July (due 12/15)
August (due 1/15/09)
September (due 2/15/09)
132
2
627
6
70
5
Total in Database
842
Not in Database
116
Total Locals
959
CURRENT ACTIVITIES
 Working
with a few “December”
locals to get their returns filed
 Sending e-mails to Presidents of the
“June” locals, offering to file on their
behalf
 Working with the IRS and locals to
clear up the 100+ discrepancies
COMMUNICATION ISSUES
 Hard
to find the right person
 E-mail addresses out of date
 Communication with IRS is spotty
 No response from locals that think
that by responding to the IEA
request for information, they had
already filed the E-Postcard
FINAL RECAP
Are your average annual cash
receipts, EXCLUDING IEANEA dues, greater than
$25,000?
“YES”
YES
Are you filing Form 990 or Form
990-EZ every year?
No further action needed;
please notify the IEA Director
of Business Services.
NO
You need to start filing one of
these forms immediately.
Contact a local tax
professional or the IEA
Director of Business Services
for assistance.
“NO”
You must begin filing Form 990-N,
the E-Postcard, sometime in 2008
or 2009. Your filing deadline
depends on the fiscal year-end per
the IRS's records. So you are in
one of these groups:
December year-end (132
locals). Must file between
1/1/08 and 5/15/08
April year-end (2 locals). Must file
between 5/1/08 and 9/15/08.
June year-end (627 locals).
Must file between 7/1/08 and
11/15/08.
July year-end (6 locals). Must
file between 8/1/08 and
12/15/08.
August year-end (69 locals). Must
file between 9/1/08 and 1/15/09.
September year-end (5
locals). Must file between
10/1/08 and 2/15/09.
Not in IRS database of tax-exempt
organizations (113 locals). Cannot
file until this is resolved.
HOW DO I VERIFY MY LOCAL’S
STATUS?
 See
me after the session
 Contact me at
[email protected]
 Fill out online request form
INFO ON IEA WEBSITE:
Choose “RESOURCES”…
RESOURCES (Cont’d)
Then “FINANCIAL PROCEDURES”
RESOURCES (Cont’d)
QUESTIONS??