What a chamber has to do every year

The annual IRS return

Tax-exempt organizations file annually in the Form 990 series. Which return applies depends on the organization's gross receipts and assets. Organizations whose annual gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less are generally eligible to file Form 990-N, the electronic postcard. The IRS applies a three-year averaging test for organizations at least three years old.

The return is due by the 15th day of the 5th month after the organization's tax year ends — May 15 for a December 31 year-end.

Automatic revocation

Failure to file the required return for three consecutive years results in automatic loss of tax-exempt status. Revocation takes effect on the filing due date of the third consecutively missed year. It is automatic: no notice is required for it to take effect, and it happens to organizations that are otherwise operating perfectly well.

For a small chamber eligible to file Form 990-N, this means a filing that takes minutes is the difference between keeping and losing a status that took months to obtain.

State-level obligations

Separately from the IRS, most states require nonprofit corporations to file an annual or biennial report to remain in good standing, and some require registration before soliciting funds. Requirements, deadlines, and fees vary by state — check your own state office, since losing good standing at state level can invalidate contracts and banking arrangements.

Records worth keeping continuously

Board minutes, membership and retention history, dues records, financial statements, and program results are all needed eventually — for an audit, for accreditation, or for a board that wants to know whether the organization is growing. Recording them as they happen costs almost nothing; reconstructing five years of them costs a season.