News
THESE UPDATES ARE OFFERED FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND DO NOT CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR RECOMMENDATION
Beginning October 29, 2025, employers with 25+ employees in Massachusetts will be required to establish and disclose pay ranges in job postings and to disclose pay ranges to employees who request this information. See here for more details.
We had a flurry of new law as 2024 drew to a close - bringing good news for Massachusetts nonprofits. [ Click here ] for updates including a new opportunity to offer board members $500 annual stipends and the new MA Attorney General Audit and Review Report dollar thresholds.
A federal court judge in Texas has ruled that the Department of Labor (DOL) overreached in making changes to the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) when it increased the exempt employee salary threshold in July 2024. The DOL may appeal this decision. See here for more details.
Liz Reinhardt has been selected as one of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly Top Women of Law for 2024. The 2024Top Women of Law award celebrates the achievements of exceptional women lawyers who are pioneers, educators, trailblazers, and role models. Liz will be honored together with her fellow recipients at an awards event on November 12th! Please join us in congratulating Liz on this much deserved distinction!
It’s October and it’s time once again for the Massachusetts Nonprofit Network (MNN) Annual Conference. This year’s conference, Building the Future, will celebrate creative ways nonprofits are making a difference. The event will be held on Thursday, October 24th at the DCU Center in Worcester and will feature empowering speakers, thought-provoking workshops, and plenty of opportunities for networking. If you are planning to attend this inspiring event, please stop by our table. We’d love to see you! Click here to become a member.
We are happy to announce that Section 6A of Mass. General Laws Chapter 180 has been permanently amended to allow on-line member meetings and voting at any annual, regular or special meeting when authorized by a nonprofit corporation's Board of Directors. This amendment now permits meetings of corporate members in-person, hybrid and in all remote settings assuming certain safeguards to ensure adequate notice and voting security are followed. Our Firm was pleased to have an opportunity to comment on the proposed legislation through the highly dedicated team at the Boston Bar Association who advocated for this legislation over many months before it was approved by the legislature and signed into law by Governor Maura Healey on March 29th as part of the omnibus budget bill. Please contact us if you have any questions about this long-awaited law.
Smaller charities whose annual gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less may choose to file Form 990-N, Electronic Notice for Tax-Exempt Organizations (e-Postcard). The IRS now offers sign-in options with Login.gov and ID.me. Both offer access to IRS online services through a secure account that protects your privacy. Currently, users with an active IRS username have the option to access the Form 990-N submission page using their active IRS credentials, however, this option will eventually be phased out. If you have an existing IRS username, the IRS recommends creating an account with Login.gov or ID.me as soon as possible. Please click here to view a copy of the IRS Form 990-N Electronic Filing System (e-Postcard) User Guide.
Approval time for online registration and Form PC filing has been dramatically reduced to about a week vs. two to three months when these filings are submitted in hardcopy. The Massachusetts Office of Attorney General Non-Profit Organizations/ Public Charities Division encourages Initial Charity Registration and Annual Form PC to be filed online. See details here: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/online-charity-filing-portal. Please contact Machiko Sano Hewitt if you have any questions about these new online filing systems.
The MA Office of Attorney General Non-Profit Organizations / Public Charities Division (Division) recently published an updated Guide for Board Members of Charitable Organizations (Guide). The Guide has been a valuable resource for charities and their boards statewide for many years. The updated Guide demonstrates the Division’s renewed focus on certain aspects of fiduciary oversight and operation of Massachusetts charities. Focus areas include duty of allegiance to mission, conflict of interest policy and procedures that are closely aligned with the IRS requirements and emphasis on diversity and term limits as key to keeping vital. We strongly recommend you share this Guide with your board and management Please contact us with any questions or concerns arising from this revised Guide.
Every non-profit corporation organized under the laws of the commonwealth must file a non-profit annual report with the Corporations Division on or before November 1st of each year. M.G.L.A. c180 § 26A; 950 CMR § 106.13. Please click here for a link to the MA Corporations Division website regarding nonprofit filings:
Our office will be closed for vacation AUGUST 8 – 19. If you need immediate legal assistance, please leave a message via phone or email and one of our attorneys will respond.
Contact Information During Office Vacation Weeks :
Employee Retention Credits (“ERC” or “credits”) were created as part of the CARES Act. Through significant expansions, ERC has become a significant form of COVID relief, similar to the PPP loan many non-profits have relied on. However, the infrastructure bill that the Senate passed (H.R. 3684) would end the ERC after the third quarter of 2021.
Liz Reinhardt and Chris Leigh-Manuell, Paralegal at Hurwit & Associates will be presenting Multi-State Registration & Compliance for Nonprofits: When, Where and How, a free online event on Tuesday, June 8, 2021 at 11:00 am.
Regulatory requirements for multistate fundraising are complex, hard to navigate, and compliance can be costly. Nonprofits soliciting funds outside their home states are well served when they adopt a strategic approach and have a good grasp of the legal requirements in a changing landscape before wading into these waters.
Register here to find out what your nonprofit needs to know!
