I'm not just gonna throw you a paddle, but the canoe as well...
Please go back to the main discussion menu. Click on PTO VS PTA and see the recent posts under "501(c)3 Status". I just finished posting there and it is all necessary reading for this posed question.
Isn't it nice to know that you are not alone in this rather large vessel we call a boat?
We too, have never filed for our non-profit status. We have been using the schools status and so far everything has worked out great. But, we are looking into the what ifs. We have never filed taxes, hopefully that will not come back to bite us. Anybody out there got a paddle?
Watching this one, too. We are in the boat with you waiting for the experienced ones out there to bring us paddles. I realize that "contributions" can be tax-deductible (as long as no one receives goods and/or services for those contributions, of course) but weighing wether the $500 will eventually come back to us somehow???? Same questions - do we need to file tax returns and is that $500 one-time or every year?
We are trying to decide if to do the non-profit thing. From what one of our members has been able to find out is that it will cost us $500 to file - is that a one time fee? If we don't go down the non-profit track what are the repercussions? What is the tax issue with PTOs. I know that some folks say that we should file each year. Is this so? What do the rest of you folks do??