March 18, 2022
In this issue...
Register for next Thursday’s Nonprofit Policy Briefing
U.S. Senators express support for tax policy solutions to help charitable nonprofits
Learn about election-year activities for nonprofits in 2022
Center sends questionnaire to candidates for Congress and NC General Assembly
Legislative committee hears about success of Medicaid expansion in other states
Families need to file with IRS to receive half of 2021 child tax credit
Complete the 2022 NC Nonprofit Compensation Survey
Register for Next Thursday’s Nonprofit Policy Briefing
The Center is offering a series of virtual Nonprofit Policy Briefings this spring. The first policy briefing, next Thursday, March 24 at 10:30 a.m., will be a virtual version of the nonprofit town halls that the Center offered prior to the pandemic. Like those events, next week’s policy briefing will feature:
  • Updates on the latest trends in the nonprofit sector;
  • Predictions of what to expect in Congress and the NC General Assembly in 2022; 
  • Information on policy solutions and challenges that will affect your nonprofit this year and in the near future;
  • Opportunities for you to ask questions about state and federal public policy issues; and
  • Several questionable attempts at humor…but thankfully no audible groans since most participants will be muted!

Registration is open for next Thursday’s policy briefing. 

For nonprofits in western NC, the Triad, and the Charlotte area, we’re also offering virtual regional gatherings that include similar information to next Thursday’s statewide policy briefing, and will also feature discussions of issues of interest to nonprofits locally. Registration is also open for these three regional policy briefings. Later this spring, the Center will also offer topical policy briefings on the state budget, access to healthcare, and potential solutions to the nonprofit workforce shortage. 
U.S. Senators Express Support for Tax Policy Solutions to Help Charitable Nonprofits
Yesterday, the U.S. Senate Finance Committee held a hearing on trends in the nonprofit sector and charitable giving. Senators from both parties spoke to the many ways that nonprofits benefit communities and expressed their support for tax policy solutions that would provide pandemic and workforce shortage relief to nonprofits, including an extended and expanded non-itemizer tax deduction for charitable contributions and a reinstatement of the Employee Retention Tax Credit. 

In preparation for the hearing, the Center sent a letter to Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) (a member of the Finance Committee) providing an overview of trends in the nonprofit sector, the impact of the pandemic on North Carolina nonprofits, and tax policy solutions that could help nonprofits and communities recover from the pandemic. Although Senator Burr was unable to attend yesterday’s hearing, his staff used the Center’s letter to brief him on current trends in the nonprofit sector and on legislation that the U.S. Senate could consider to help nonprofits and the communities they serve. The Center will continue to work with Senator Burr and North Carolina’s other members of Congress to advocate for these policy solutions.
Learn About Election-Year Activities for Nonprofits in 2022
On April 1 (and we promise it’s not an April Fools’ joke), the Center is offering a webinar for nonprofits on the 2022 election, including:
  • A quick overview of what’s at stake in the 2022 election and why it matters to nonprofits.
  • Answers to common nonprofit questions about election-related activities that nonprofits – and their staff and board members – can and can’t do.
  • How to find and share basic information about the 2022 election.
  • How to learn more about candidates’ positions on issues that are important to your nonprofit’s work.
  • Five nonpartisan ways your nonprofit can help your staff, board, volunteers, and clients be well-informed voters this year.

The webinar is part of the Center’s spring series of nonprofit policy briefings. Register today!
Center Sends Questionnaire to Candidates for Congress and NC General Assembly
Today, the Center is sending a candidate questionnaire on nonprofit issues to all 536 North Carolina candidates for Congress and the state legislature. The questionnaire is intended to help nonprofit leaders learn more about the candidates on their ballots in the May 17 primary election and the November 8 general election, and also to help candidates have a better awareness of the work of nonprofits. The Center will begin posting candidates’ responses in mid-April. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, the Center cannot endorse candidates for office or rate candidates based on their responses.

Your local candidates for office are more likely to respond to the questionnaire if they hear from you rather than from the Center. In the coming weeks, the Center will share resources to make it easy for you to reach out to the candidates on the ballot in your county to encourage them to complete the questionnaire. In the meantime, if you are running for office, we hope you will take the time to complete the questionnaire.
Legislative Committee Hears About Success of Medicaid Expansion in Other States
The NC General Assembly’s Joint Legislative Committee on Medicaid Expansion and Access to Healthcare held its third meeting on March 15. During this meeting, lawmakers heard from leaders from four other states – Montana, Ohio, Michigan, and Indiana – about the financial, economic, and moral benefits of Medicaid expansion. North Carolina is one of 12 states that has declined Medicaid expansion, which would provide health coverage for the more than 500,000 North Carolinians with incomes too high to qualify for Medicaid but too low to purchase their own private health insurance or to receive federal support to help pay for health coverage. With ever-rising health care costs, these North Carolinians in the coverage gap are turning more and more to nonprofits to meet many of their basic needs, such as health care, food, housing, and childcare. The Center and many other nonprofits support Medicaid expansion because it would help close this coverage gap and reduce burdens on nonprofits.

Legislative leaders hope that the committee can make recommendations on legislation to adopt a form of Medicaid expansion and other healthcare policy changes that will improve access to healthcare for individuals, businesses, and nonprofits throughout the state. Legislators could vote on the committee’s recommendations in a special session this fall.
Families Need to File with IRS to Receive Half of 2021 Child Tax Credit
Last year’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) expanded and improved the child tax credit in three important ways:
  1. It increased the amount of the tax credit from $2,000 per child to $3,600 for children under the age of six and $3,000 for children ages 6-17.
  2. It made the credit fully refundable, providing financial assistance to many low-income families who don’t normally pay income taxes. 
  3. It provided advance payments of the credit for the final six months of 2021, providing immediate cash assistance to millions of families in the form of monthly checks.

The expanded and prepaid child tax credit helped lift many North Carolina families with children out of poverty, helping them pay for child care, food, home and car repairs, and medical expenses last summer and fall. Most families with children received half of their child tax credit as monthly payments during the second half of 2021, thanks largely to nonprofits helping these families provide the necessary information to the Internal Revenue Service.

With a bit more help from nonprofits, many families can learn how to claim the second half of their child tax credit payments. Families are due to receive the remainder of their child tax credits as refunds when they file their 2021 federal income taxes. Your nonprofit can do three things to help families in your community access the full child tax credit:
  1. Encourage families to file their federal taxes by April 18. This is particularly important for families that normally don’t file tax returns because their income isn’t high enough to owe federal taxes.
  2. Provide clear information about how to file for the child tax credit. The www.childtaxcredit.gov website has clear and accurate information you can share, including flyers, sample social media posts, and toolkits with resources for nonprofits.
  3. Connect people with free tax filing assistance. To get their child tax credit, families will need to fill out their IRS Form 1040 and Schedule 8812 (the child tax credit form) correctly. NC 211 has helpful information on tax preparation assistance. Free tax assistance for people with incomes below $58,000 is available through Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and United Way MyFreeTaxes.
Complete the 2022 Nonprofit Compensation Survey
Nonprofits often rely on salary surveys to determine whether they are compensating their staff fairly. To help nonprofits get the most current salary data, the Center has partnered with Association TRENDS on the 2022 NC Nonprofit Compensation Survey. It is important for every North Carolina nonprofit to respond to the survey to get the most comprehensive and accurate picture of compensation across the state. The Center has already taken the survey, and we have shared tips from our experience to make it easier and save time for other nonprofits.

Please take the 30 minutes (or less) to complete the survey by April 1. Participating organizations receive a discount on the 2022 report; participating Center members save even more.
The Center provides Nonprofit Policy Update each week as a benefit to its nonprofit members. However, to help all North Carolina nonprofits respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, we're temporarily providing this newsletter to non-member nonprofits. Don’t miss out – become a member to ensure you continue receiving these updates along with many other valuable benefits.
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Nonprofit Policy Update is a weekly newsletter for current members of the North Carolina Center for Nonprofits. We track state and federal policy issues that affect all 501(c)(3) nonprofits. Learn about the Center's public policy priorities. For more information, contact David Heinen, Vice President for Public Policy and Advocacy.