Donate

Dear Applicant:

Based on information supplied, and assuming your operations will be as stated in your application for recognition of exemption, we have determined you are exempt from Federal income tax under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code as an organization described in section 501(c)(3).

We have further determined that, as indicated in your application, you are a private foundation within the meaning of section 509(a) of the Code.  In this letter we are not determining whether you are an operating foundation as defined in section 4942 (j) (3).

If your sources of support, or your purposes, character, or method of operation change, please let us know so we can consider the effect of the change on your exempt status and foundation status.  In the case of an amend­ment to your organizational document or bylaws, please send us a copy of the amended document or bylaws.  Also, you should inform us of all changes in your name or address.

As of January 1, 1984, you are liable for taxes under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (social security taxes) on remuneration of $100 or more you pay to each of your employees during a calendar year.  You are not liable for the tax imposed under the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA). However, since you are a private foundation, you are subject to excise taxes under chapter 42 of the Code.  You also may be subject to other Federal excise taxes.  If you have any questions about excise, employment, or other Federal taxes, please let us know.

Donors may deduct contributions to you as provided in section 170 of the Code.  Bequests, legacies, devises, transfers, or gifts to you or for your use are deductible for Federal estate and gift tax purposes if they meet the applicable provisions of sections 2055, 2106, and 2522 of the Code.

Contribution deductions are allowable to donors only to the extent that their contributions are gifts, with no consideration received.  Ticket pur­chases and similar payments in conjunction with fundraising events may not necessarily qualify as deductible contributions, depending on the circumstances.  See Revenue Ruling 67-246, published in Cumulative Bulletin 1967-2, on page 104, which sets forth guidelines regarding the deductibility, as chari­table contributions, of payments made by taxpayers for admission to or other participation in fundraising activities for charity.

You are required to file Form 990-PF, Return of Private Foundation or Section 4947(a)(1) Trust Treated as a Private Foundation.  Form 990-PF must be filed by the 15th day of the fifth month after the end of your annual account­ing period.  A penalty of $20 a day is charged when a return is filed late, unless there is reasonable cause for the delay.  However, the maximum penalty charged cannot exceed $10,000 or 5 percent of your gross receipts for the year, whichever is less.  For organizations with gross receipts exceeding $1,000,000 in any year, the penalty is $100 per day per return, unless there is reasonable cause for the delay.  The maximum penalty for an organization with gross receipts exceeding $1,000,000 shall not exceed $50,000.  This penalty may also be charged if a return is not complete, so please be sure your return is complete before you file it.

You are not required to file Federal income tax returns unless you are subject to the tax on unrelated business income under section 511 of the Code. If you are subject to this tax, you must file an income tax return on Form 990-T, Exempt Organization Business Income Tax Return.  In this letter we are not determining whether any of your present or proposed activities are unrelated trade or business as defined in section 513 of the Code.

You are required to make certain returns available for public inspection for three years after the later of the due date of the return or the date the return is filed.  The returns required to be made available for public inspection are Form 990-PF, Return of Private Foundation or Section 4947(a)(1) Nonexempt Charitable Trust Treated as a Private Foundation, and Form 4720, Return of Certain Excise Taxes on Charities and Other Persons Under Chapters 41 and 42 of the Internal Revenue Code.  You are also required to make available for public inspection your exemption application, any supporting documents, and your exemption letter.  Copies of these documents must be provided to any individual upon written or in person request without charge other than reasonable fees for copying and postage.  You may fulfill this requirement by placing these documents on the Internet.  Penalties may be imposed for failure to comply with these requirements.  Additional information is available in Publication 557, Tax-Exempt Status for Your Organization, or you may call our toll free number shown above.

You need an employer identification number even if you have no employees. If an employer identification number was not entered on your application, a number will be assigned to you and you will be advised of it.  Please use that number on all returns you file and in all correspondence with the Internal Revenue Service.

This determination is based on evidence that your funds are dedicated to the purposes listed in section 501(c)(3) of the Code.  To assure your continued exemption, you should maintain records to show that funds are expended only for those purposes.  If you distribute funds to other organizations, your records should show whether they are exempt under section 501(c)(3).  In cases where the recipient organization is not exempt under section 501(c)(3), there should be evidence that the funds will remain dedicated to the required purposes and that they will be used for those purposes by the recipient.

We considered your grant-making procedures under section 4945(g) of the Code.  Based on the information submitted and assuming your scholarship program will be conducted as proposed with objectivity and nondiscrimination in award­ing grants, we determined that your procedures in awarding scholarship grants comply with the requirements of section 4945(g)(1), and that scholarships granted according to these procedures will not he "taxable expenditures" within the meaning of section 4945(d)(3).

This determination is conditioned on the understanding that there will be no material change in the facts upon which it is based.  It is further condi­tioned on the premise that no grants will be awarded to the trust's creators, trustees, or members of the selection committee, or for a purpose that is inconsistent with the purposes described in section 170 (c) (2) (B) of the Code.

The approval of your grant-making procedures is a one-time approval of your system of standards and procedures that will result in grants that meet the requirements of section 4945(g)(1} of the Code.  Thus, approval will apply to succeeding grant programs only as long as the standards and procedures under which they are conducted do not differ materially from those described in your request.

We have not considered whether grants made under your procedures are ex­cludable from the gross income of recipients under section 117 (a) of the Code.

Any funds you distribute to individuals must be made on a true charitable basis in furtherance of the purposes for which you are organized.  Therefore, you should maintain adequate records and case histories so that any or all grant distributions can be substantiated upon request by the Internal Revenue Service.

If we have indicated in the heading of this letter that an addendum applies, the addendum enclosed is an integral part of this letter.

Because this letter could help resolve any questions about your exempt status and foundation status, you should keep it in your permanent records.

We have sent a copy of this letter to your representative as indicated in your power of attorney.

EUNICE A TURNER FOUNDATION INC
If you have any questions, please contact the person whose name and telephone number are shown in the heading of this letter.

Sincerely yours,
Lois G. Lerner Director, Exempt Organizations Rulings and Agreements