<DORFMONT[at]aol.com> wrote:

- quote -

please remind me never to take on this type of client <g
ok-sarcasm aside

my experience is that the IRS generally seems to be more
interested in compliance than penalties with non profits its
important to make contact with the IRS folk & work with them
if you can give them what needs to be filed & can explain
your client's 17th century recordkeeping system (and that
they've been doing it this way since the year of the flood),
you may be able to get some sympathy toward abating the
penalties

___________________________________
<<< Benjamin Yazersky, CPA [NJ & NY] > > -----> real address on hobokeni or hobokenx <-----

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DORFMONT[at]aol.com (Linda Dorfmont) wrote:

- quote -

Nan, I'm glad I don't share you pain.

One of my clients was offered job as quartermaster of his
local VFW post, and after I told him what was involved
(941's for the employees among other things) he declined
their generous offer. Which suited me fine.

ChEAr$,
Harlan Lunsford, EA n LA

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DORFMONT[at]aol.com (Linda Dorfmont)" <DORFMONT[at]aol.com> wrote:

- quote -

The IRS is pretty good about waiving penalties for
non-profits. Just write a letter saying you're really,
really sorry and are taking steps to improve the situation,
mention that a CPA is now handling the bookkeeping for the
organization and it'll probably be waived.

Of course, that only works the first time.

-Crystal

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A couple of years ago we acquired a non-profit organization
middle management group return. Their bookkeeping system (if
that) is as old the leather bound gold embossed big green
book that they post their expenses and income in. It took
dozens of hours of meetings with the Quartermaster to figure
out what the expenses were for and how to organize the
income and expenses for proper NP treatment on the return.
The following year they came back again with the same green
book. This time I didn't have the stomach to put the
transactions in order and we passed the job on to a
bookkeeper. Unfortunately she didn't understand what I
needed and attempted to prepare the return with her work.
After several months I got the detail that I could sort and
shuffle and mark off to prepare the return. By this time it
was late and the NP is being fined about $2000 for late
filing. They have never filed before the previous year.

This year their bookkeeping is just as bad if not worse. The
categories and activities have changed. Once again the
bookkeeper has entered the data and I have to sort it out.
There is no way the big green book is going to be useful in
preparing a 990. You might as well throw all the
transactions into the air and sort them out that way.

Is there any way we can get the NP out of the penalty? Their
hierarchy requires them to use the bookkeeping system from
the 1920's although without green eyeshades, quill pens and
winged collars. The only hope for future years is that their
new Quartermaster is a CPA and is willing to use a computer.
I am meeting with him this week before he assumes office to
set up proper bookkeeping for our purposes.

Linda Dorfmont E.A., CFP, CSA

<< ================================================== ===== > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2006) - All rights reserved. > << ================================================== ===== >