North Carolina Nonprofits Could Soon Pay Sales Tax

The North Carolina state Senate passed a measure Thursday that would cap sales tax refunds, a measure that critics say could cost hospitals, universities, and other charities millions of dollars.

According to a report in The Charlotte Observer, the Senate bill would cap sales tax refunds at $7.5 million initially, with that number going down to $100,000 beginning in July 2017. The state House did not include such a cap in their version of the bill, so its fate will be decided when the two chambers enter negotiations. The measure has strong support from Sen. Phil Berger (R-Rockingham), the president pro tem of the Senate who argued that nonprofit hospitals and other large organizations are nothing more than businesses organized as nonprofits. Berger framed the bill as a way to invigorate the state's economy.

“Our compromise plan incorporates feedback from folks across the state, provides much-needed tax relief to North Carolina families of all incomes and propels our state from the bottom of national rankings to the 6th best business tax climate in America,” Berger said in a statement.

On the other hand, the N.C. Hospital Associate has come out strongly against the cap estimating that it would eventually force the state's numerous nonprofit hospitals to pay $220 million a year in sales taxes. The N.C. Center for Nonprofits also estimates that the bill would affect about 250 of its 1,600 members. Don Dalton, a spokesman for the Center, said in a statement that hospitals would also be forced to cut back on services.

“Our hospitals are already facing $780 million per year in decreased payments every year for the next 10 years for serving Medicare patients,” Dalton said. “The State has not yet chosen to expand Medicaid or provide alternative coverage options for the state’s poor. Hospitals will continue to serve these uninsured patients without adequate compensation.”

Reach Thousands Of Potential Customers With NPT's Resource Marketplace

Your company can be listed, for FREE, in The NonProfit Times' online Resource Marketplace. The Directory is a special feature on our newly updated website which draws 100,000 unique visitors every month and generates 420,000 page views.

To be listed, simply click this link, fill out the form the page links to, and email it to me at mary@nptimes.com or fax it to (973) 401-0404. It’s that easy.

If you’re looking to stand out from the crowd, you can choose from two enhanced listing packages -- the Silver and Gold packages, priced at $599/year and $1,195/year, respectively -- which include such additional features as linked email and website, complete company description, logo, and pop-to-the-top listing in the category you choose.

Don’t hesitate to call Mary Ford with any questions about this great opportunity to add your free listing to our online directory or about advertising in our print Resource Marketplace which runs in all 16 editions per year of The NonProfit Times. All print advertisers automatically get an enhanced listing online.

Once again, here is Mary Ford's contact information:

E-mail: mary@nptimes.com

Phone: 973-401-0202 x206

Webinar: Catching the Attention of the Smartphone Generation

UPDATE: Missed this webinar? You can view the event in its entirety by clicking here.

Should your organization really care about (and value) a Like, a Tweet, or a share? It may not seem like much right now, but these activities could be worth a fortune in the future.

In partnership with Avectra, The NonProfit Times is pleased to present a free webinar -- "Catching the Attention of the Smartphone Generation" -- on the value of social giving on June 6 at 2:00 p.m. EST. John F. Clese of Avectra, along with Dennis Chyba, president and founder of Adcieo, and Brittany Flower, communications and marketing manager at Susan G. Komen's Maryland affiliate, will discuss how your organization can reach the Millenial generation. Although they aren't in their prime donation years, it doesn't mean they aren't supporting your organization.

Here is some of the things you will learn from this webinar:

• Why your organization's future depends on engaging the next generation of donors known as the Millenials -- a group larger than the influential baby boomers. 
• Strategies to engage Millenials and attract them to your cause. 
• How micro-project fundraising and crowd-contributing are ready-made for the way this generation likes to engage and participate. 
• A case study on how to run a successful peer-to-peer fundraising campaign and leverage peer networks in the new digital giving landscape.

Register today so you can get your organization on the right track for the future.

3 Ways To Analyze Data

Prospecting for donors has some similarities to what the Gold Rush prospectors did in the the 19th century. Back then, it was enough to shake a pan of gravel in the water and look for what nuggets stayed behind.

Fundraisers are doing the same thing now when combing through data, but it's no longer good enough to use that old-fashioned approach.

Prospecting is a much more sophisticated process these days and, according to Helen E. Brown, Jennifer Filla and Debbie Sokolov, it can pay much bigger dividends than before. Speaking during the AFP 50^th International Conference on Fundraising, they said that fundraising can be improved through prospect research, and that consists of three main components: data analytics, relationship management and donor research.

Looking more closely, they are:

• Data analytics. This includes electronic screenings, data mining, donor modeling and graphing. It helps identify new prospects, segments donors and prospects quickly and efficiently, and, illustrates division/department/individual progress toward goals.
• Relationship management. This means prospect tracking. It makes sure no potential major donor gets lost between the cracks, measures activities to show the board and donors how close the organization is to its goals, and, provides continuity with donors even though staff changes.
• Donor research. This gives the organization the confidence to ask for a stretch gift, finds the links between donors, prospects and the organization, allows the organization to set up a personalized strategy around each major gift prospect, and, keeps the organization current on public events in a prospect’s world.

Do All Nonprofit CEOs Make $100K?

Executive compensation is a tricky subject for nonprofits. Since this information is available in an organization's Form 990, it's important that a CEO does not make more (or less, for that matter) than those at similar agencies lest it face public backlash.

Luckily, there's an easy way to fix this potential problem.

Get behind the numbers by participating in The NonProfit Times' 2013 Salary & Benefits Survey. In addition to the tantalizing data about average salaries ($107,561 for  CEO/President/Executive Directors) and salary increases, the survey goes several steps beyond, drilling down to details about benefits, bonuses and turnover rates to present a rich tapestry of key data and information.

The completion deadline for the survey is July 31, and those who finish on-time will be entered to win an iPad Mini. You can start the process, which takes no more than an hour, by visiting the survey application page.