Question: is 501c3 benefit for our school?

Hi On benefit of our home school association, we were wondering if filing for a 501c3 would be beneficiation to our school? We know there is a lot of paperwork involved, but wondering if its worth it in the end...anyone out there with pros and cons? Thank you so much for any information

Asked by mae1019

Answers:

Advice from PTO Today

Craig writes:
There are two basic questions: Is what you are doing now working for you, and does it meet IRS rules? If the answer to both of these is yes, than I wouldn't recommend changing.

There are two ways to operate that pass IRS rules. One is to be a committee of the school. The money goes into a school account, and your group isn't a separate business entity (you don't have a separate tax ID number, for example). The second is to operate as an independent entity with 501c3 tax-exemption from the IRS.

Here's an article that explains the advantages of filing for 501c3 status in more detail: 501c3 for PTOs.