Four hundred forty five local nonprofit agencies have had their nonprofit tax exempt status revoked as they did not file the forms required for the past three years to maintain their status.  The lack of a tax exempt status will affect the taxes 2010 for donors that are no longer able to claim the deduction of gifts to the organization on their federal income tax.

Nationwide over 275,000 organizations face similar dilemmas for this tax season.  According to the IRS, many of these organizations have not filed the paperwork because they are not operating any longer.
However, many that are included on the list are still active and some believed that they had already completed the paperwork that was necessary.  For these organizations, the surprise has been unpleasant.
Three local organizations that made the list include:  The Platterkill Public Library, the Little League in New Windsor and the local Meals on Wheels program. These organizations are discussing their status with the IRS attempting to regain the tax favored position.

Even some major nationwide institutions, including universities such as George Washington and Michigan were affected.  Even the Washington D.C. Islamic Center was on the list.

New laws enacted in 2006 require small nonprofits to file a postcard form, and larger organizations must complete a form 990 to keep the status.  The law was enacted to help persons wanting to make donations.  It affects all 502(c)(3) corporations.  If any organization did not file in 2007, 2008 and 2009, it was dropped from the list to keep the database of such organizations up to date.  The IRS plans on updating the list regularly.

In order to ensure the status of one’s favorite charity, all donors need to check the list.  Organizations that have been dropped will need to file new paperwork to re-establish the charity status. If your favorite charity is not on the current list, donations cannot be claimed on your 2011 tax return.