For the most recent and comprehensive treatment available on compliance issues surrounding auctions, including tools you can put to use, see this toolkit from the Guilford Nonprofit Consortium and Planned Giving Design Center.
Charitable Auction Compliance Toolkit
Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations — Form 990-N (e-Postcard) - Most small tax-exempt organizations whose annual gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less ($25,000 for tax years ending after Dec. 31, 2007 and before Dec. 31, 2010) are required to electronically submit Form 990-N, also known as the e-Postcard, unless they choose to file a complete Form 990 or Form 990-EZ instead.
Employer Health Care Arrangements - The IRS released Notice 2015-17 containing long hoped for penalty relief and guidance regarding employer medical reimbursement arrangements.
Understanding a nonprofit’s costs is necessary in order for charitable nonprofits to be financially sustainable. Rather than reporting artificially low costs, or ignoring what it really costs to deliver programs and services, the National Council of Nonprofits is encouraging all nonprofits and board members to model transparency of full costs. (National Council of Nonprofits)
#OwnYourOwnCosts
Annual Filing and Forms - Exempt organizations are required to file annual returns, although there are exceptions. If an organization does not file a required return or files late, the IRS may assess penalties. In addition, if an organization does not file as required for three consecutive years, it automatically loses its tax-exempt status.
Financial Transparency - Earning trust through financial transparency and accountability goes beyond what the law requires, but let’s start there: Nonprofits are required to disclose certain financial information to the public upon request; board members have access to financial information in order to fulfill their fiduciary duty to the nonprofit. (National Council of Nonprofits)
About Form 990 - Tax-exempt organizations, nonexempt charitable trusts, and section 527 political organizations file this form to provide the IRS with the information required by section 6033. View the series of IRS documents for Forms 990, 990-EZ, and 990-PF, their schedules and instructions: Current Form 990 Series - Forms and Instructions. (IRS)
Four Things Every Nonprofit Contracting with Government Should Do - "The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) rules known as the Uniform Guidance went into effect at the end of 2014, streamlining the rules governing administrative requirements, cost principles, and audit requirements on federal awards, removing inconsistencies in the old circulars.
Whether your nonprofit is more like an intimate family or an enormous well-oiled machine, fraud can occur, and when it happens, it can damage your reputation, relationships with funders, and staff morale. In other words, you can't afford it. (Nonprofit Quarterly)
Maximizing Nonprofit Internal Controls: An Essential Guide for Even the Most Pure
With any luck, the dust is beginning to settle after a flurry of development activity during the calendar year end. Now is the time to inventory your organization’s fundraising practices and procedures to ensure that they are not only compelling but also legally compliant.