High Court Agrees Pension Plans Sponsored by Church-Affiliated Hospitals Are...
In a much-anticipated decision, on June 5 the U.S. Supreme Court held that a pension plan sponsored by a religious affiliated nonprofit hospital qualifies as an ERISA-exempt church plan even though the...
View ArticlePACs, Campaigns and Dark Money: What is the Law?
In 2016, Missouri voters enshrined new campaign finance laws in the state constitution. The Missouri Ethics Commission issued several interpreting opinions and a federal court has enjoined parts of the...
View ArticleTo Report or Not to Report – Is it Really A Question?
In a May 15, 2017 Bankruptcy Court decision (Gardens Decision) from California’s Central District (In re Gardens Regional Hospital and Medical Center, Inc. (Bankr. C.D.Cal., May 15, 2017, No. 1617463),...
View ArticleERISA Religious Exemption Expanded: SCOTUS Says Church Affiliation is Enough
In a sigh of relief for faith-based healthcare providers, on Monday, June 5th, the U.S. Supreme Court held, in a decision authored by Justice Elena Kagan, that the Employee Retirement Income Security...
View ArticleSupreme Court Rules That Church-Affiliated Hospitals Fall Within ERISA’s...
On June 5, a unanimous US Supreme Court reversed decisions of the US Courts of Appeal for the Third, Seventh, and Ninth Circuits, holding that a church-affiliated organization that establishes an...
View ArticleTax Reform and the Potential Impact on Tax-Exempt Organizations
Both the Trump Administration and key leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate are continuing their focus on tax reform. Although details are being withheld until the Republican...
View ArticleDiving into Family Philanthropy (Segment IV): Family Philanthropy – Where to...
In our previous posts on family philanthropy, we addressed the benefits of family philanthropy, choosing the right giving vehicle, and investing for impact. In this final post in our four-part series,...
View ArticleDonating Fund Interests: A “Why Now?” and “How To” Primer
Due to increased valuation of public and private equities, coupled with the upcoming end of the sunset provision that allows hedge fund managers to defer taxation on fees earned offshore, there is an...
View ArticleRepeal of the Affordable Care Act Will Not Include Changes to Tax Exempt...
While the Senate Budget Committee works to draft legislation to reconcile the American Health Care Act, the repeal and replace bill passed by the House, there is no expectation of a repeal of the...
View ArticleTax-Exempt Does Not Mean Exempt From Filing Tax Returns
May 15 was the filing deadline for nonprofits operating on a calendar year that are required to file Form 990-series information returns. Many nonprofits mistakenly believe that they are not required...
View ArticleLatest Court Decision Addresses New York’s Limits on Executive Compensation...
On June 22, 2017, the New York State Appellate Division, Third Department issued a decision in LeadingAge New York v. Shah on the validity of regulations promulgated by the Department of Health...
View ArticleIris House Provides Valuable Reminder to Landlords About Non-Profit Renters
Recently, the Supreme Court, Appellate Term, First Department, handed down a decision affirming the lower court in 2363 ACP Pineapple, LLC v. Iris House, Inc, 2017 NY Slip op 27047. As the attorney on...
View ArticleLegislature Poised to Open Up Medical Marijuana Licensing to For-Profits
Last week, the Massachusetts House voted 126-28 to make major revisions to Chapter 334 of the Acts of 2016. That’s the law allowing recreational use of marijuana, which was enacted via an initiative...
View ArticleTax-Exempt Financing of Churches, Parochial Schools and Other Sectarian...
The U.S. Supreme Court’s June 26 opinion in Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia, Inc. v. Comer, precluding states from discriminating against churches in at least some state financing programs, raises...
View ArticleChanges to Financial Reporting Requirements for Associations
On June 23, 2017, Governor Scott approved House Bill 6027, which provides substantively identical changes to the annual financial reporting requirements for condominium, cooperative, and homeowners’...
View ArticleCharitable Giving Strategies
If you have been looking for ways to give back this summer, you might want to try something different. The majority of people donate to charitable organizations through gifts of cash, but this may not...
View ArticleCondominium Issue with Long-Term Tax-Exempt Bond Financing
We recently helped a client complete long-term tax-exempt bond financing of a portion of a mixed-use condominium. These projects raise interesting issues. Long story short, if you find yourself in a...
View ArticleStill More Changes Affecting Not-For-Profit Corporations
In 2016, New York amended its Not-For-Profit Corporation Law once more, building upon the New York Non-Profit Revitalization Act of 2013 (“the Act”), and the changes (“the Amendment”) took full effect...
View ArticleCorporate Law & Governance Update - July 2017
The following developments from the past month offer guidance on corporate law and governance law as they may be applied to nonprofit health care organizations: EMERGING NONPROFIT CONTROVERSY - Health...
View ArticleNew Revenue Recognition Standard – Part IV: Determining the Transaction Price
This week I am exploring the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606), for public business entities,...
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