Public Policy Articles & Analysis

The N.C. General Assembly is considering a bill (H.B. 482) that would create new penalties for nonprofits and businesses that improperly classify their workers as independent contractors rather than employees. Nonprofits that misclassify their employees and fail to provide benefits such as workers’ compensation or unemployment insurance benefits could face fines ($1,000 per misclassified worker) and could be barred from state contracts for five years.

The General Assembly is in the final stages of its efforts to restructure North Carolina's tax system.  The House and Senate are considering different version of legislation (H.B. 998) to lower tax rates and simplify the state tax system. It is essential that tax reform not harm nonprofits. Specifically:

A bill (S.362) filed in the NC Senate would create a new annual filing requirement for nonprofits that are incorporated in North Carolina. Main requirements of the bill include:

The Status (and Future) of the Overtime Rule

What Nonprofits Need to Know

In November 2016, a judge from a federal court in Texas issued a temporary injunction that delayed the December 1 effective date for the new overtime rule from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). On December 1, 2016 DOL and the U.S.

Congress Makes Charitable Giving Incentives Permanent

Leaders in Congress have reached agreement on an historic bipartisan agreement on a tax bill that will have real impact on the work of charitable nonprofits.  The Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 or PATH Act, which was part of the omnibus budget (HR 2029), permanently extends three charitable giving incentives:

The Center has submitted comments asking the Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department to develop rules that will preserve the rights of 501(c)(3) nonprofits to engage in nonpartisan civic engagement.  The Center’s comments are in response to proposed regulations on political activity by 501(c)(4) social welfare organizations.  The confusing language of the proposal would likely discourage foundations from su

On September 25, 2017, the Center submitted comments to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) on suggestions for the ways that future regulations of overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) could affect North Carolina nonprofits.

Identical bills filed in the Senate (S.422) and in the House (

On May 19, the House of Representatives gave final approval to its version of the state budget (H.B. 1030) for FY 2016-17. Overall, the House budget, which passed with a 103-12 vote, would maintain or increase most state funding for nonprofits. Some highlights for nonprofits include:

Based on input we have received from member nonprofits over the past few years, the Center has compiled a list of several state tax law changes that could help nonprofits. These include: