DEPARTMENT
OF THE TREASURY
Internal
Revenue Service
Washington,
D.C. 20224
January
24, 2000
Prostate90
Education and Research Foundation
C/o
Larry Clapp
733
Bishop Street, Suite 170-760
Honolulu,
HI 96813
Employer
Identification Number: 99-0343327
Issuing
Specialist: James L. Joseph 50-03778
Toll
Free Customer Service Number: (877) 829-5500
Accounting
Period Ending: December 31
Foundation
Status Classification: 509(a)(1) & 170(b)(1)(A)(vi)
Advance
Ruling Period Begins: May 28, 1999
Advance
Ruling Period Ends: December 31, 2003
Form
990 Required: Yes
.
Dear
Applicant:
Based on the information
supplied, and assuming your operations will be as stated in your application
for recognition of exemption, we have determined you are exempt from federal
income tax under section 501 (a) of the Internal Revenue Code as an
organization described in section 501 (c) (3).
This ruling is
conditioned upon your maintaining complete and accurate records on all research
grants you issue, including, without limitation, the identity of the grantees,
the amounts of the grants, the reasons for making the grants, the process for
selecting the grantees, and the criteria used for the selection of the
grantees.
Because you are a newly
created organization, we are not now making a final determination of your foundation
status under section 509(a) of the Code. However, we have determined that you
can reasonably be expected to be a publicly supported organization described in
the section(s) indicated above. Accordingly, you will be treated as a publicly
supported organization, and not as a private foundation, during an advance
ruling period. This advance ruling period begins and ends on the dates
indicated above.
Please notify the Ohio
Tax Exempt and Government Entities (TE/GE) Customer Service office if there is
any change in your name, address, sources of support, purposes or method of
operation. If you amend your organizational document or bylaws, please send a
copy of the amendment to that office. The mailing address is: Internal Revenue
Service, TE/GE Customer Service, P.O. Box 2508, Cincinnati, OH 45201.
Prior to the end of your
advance ruling period, the Ohio TE/GE office will send you a letter requesting
the information needed to determine whether you have met the requirements of
the applicable support test during the advance ruling period. If you establish
that you have been a publicly supported organization, you will be classified as
a section 509(a)(1) or 509(a)(2) organization as long as you continue to meet
the requirements of the applicable support test. If you do not meet the public
support requirements during the advance ruling period, you will be classified
as a private foundation for future periods. Also, if you are classified as a
private foundation, you will be treated as a private foundation from the date
of your inception for purposes of sections 507(d) and 4940.
Donors may deduct
contributions to you as provided in section 170 of the Code. Bequests,
legacies, devises, transfers, or gifts to you or for your use are deductible
for federal estate and gift tax purposes if they meet the applicable provisions
of Code sections 2055, 2106, and 2522.
Donors (including
private foundations) may rely on the advance ruling that you are not a private
foundation until 90 days after your advance ruling period ends. If you submit
the information that will be requested by the Ohio TE/GE office within the 90
days, donors may continue to rely on the advance ruling until a final
determination of your foundation status is made. However, if notice that you will no longer be treated as the type
of organization indicated above is published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin,
donors may not rely on this advance ruling after the date of such publication.
Also, donors (other than private foundations) may not rely on the classification
indicated above if they were in part responsible for, or were aware of, the act
that resulted in your loss of that classification, or if they acquired
knowledge that the Internal Revenue Service had given notice that you would be
removed from that classification. Private foundations may rely on the
classification as long as you were not directly or indirectly controlled by
them or by disqualified persons with respect to them. However, private
foundations may not rely on the classification indicated above if they acquired
knowledge that the Internal Revenue Service had given notice that you would be
removed from that classification.
You are liable for taxes
under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (social security taxes) on
remuneration of $100 or more you pay to each of your employees during a
calendar year. You are not liable for the tax imposed under the Federal
Unemployment Tax Act.
If it is determined that
you are a private foundation, you will be subject to excise taxes under Chapter
42 of the Code. You also may be subject to other federal excise taxes. If you
are involved in an excess benefit transaction, that transaction might be
subject to the excise taxes of section 4958. In this letter we are not
determining whether any of your present or proposed arrangements would be
considered an excess benefit transaction resulting in tax under section 4958.
Contribution deductions
are allowable to donors only to the extent that their contributions are gifts,
with no consideration received. Ticket purchases and similar payments in
conjunction with fund-raising events may not necessarily qualify as fully
deductible contributions, depending on the circumstances. If your organization
conducts fund-raising events such as benefit dinners, shows, membership drives,
etc., where something of value is received in return for payments, you are
required to provide a written disclosure statement informing the donor of the
fair market value of the specific items or services being provided. To do this
you should, in advance of the event, determine the fair market value of the
benefit received and state it in your fund-raising materials such as
solicitations, tickets, and receipts in such a way that the donor can determine
how much is deductible and how much is not. Your disclosure statement should be
made, at the latest, at the time payment is received. Subject to certain
exceptions, your disclosure responsibility applies to any fund-raising
circumstance where each complete payment, including the contribution portion,
exceeds $75. In addition, donors must have written substantiation from the
charity for any charitable contribution of $250 or more. For further details
regarding these substantiation and disclosure requirements, see the enclosed
copy of Publication 1771. For additional guidance in this area, see Publication
1391, Deductibility of Payments Made to Organizations Conducting Fund-Raising
Events, which is available at many IRS offices or by calling 1-800-TAX-FORM
(1-800-829-3676).
In the heading of this
letter we have indicated whether you must file Form 990, Return of Organization
Exempt from Income Tax. If "Yes" is indicated, you are required to
file Form 990 only if your gross receipts each year are normally more than
$25,000. If your gross receipts each year are not normally more than $25,000,
we ask that you establish that you are not required to file Form 990 by
completing Part I of that Form for your first year. Thereafter, you will not be
required to file a return until your gross receipts exceed the $25,000 minimum.
For guidance in determining if your gross receipts are "normally" not
more than the $25,000 limit, see the instructions for the Form 990. If a return
is required, it must be filed by the 1 5th day of the fifth month after the end
of your annual accounting period. A penalty of $20 a day is charged when a
return is filed late, unless there is reasonable cause for the delay. The
maximum penalty charged cannot exceed $10,000 or 5 percent of your gross
receipts for the year, whichever is less. For organizations with gross receipts
exceeding $1,000,000 in any year, the penalty is $100 per day per return,
unless there is reasonable cause for the delay. The maximum penalty for an
organization with gross receipts exceeding $1,000,000 shall not exceed $50,000.
This penalty may also be charged if a return is not complete, so please be sure
your return is complete before you file it. Form 990 should be filed with the
Ogden Service Center, Ogden, UT 84201-0027.
The law requires you to
make your annual return available for public inspection without charge and to
provide copies upon request for three years after the due date of the return.
You are also required to make available for public inspection and to provide
copies of your exemption application, any supporting documents, and this
exemption letter to any individual who requests such documents in person or in
writing. You can charge only a reasonable fee for reproduction and actual
postage costs for the copied materials. The law does not require you to provide
copies of public inspection documents that are made widely available, such as
by posting them on the Internet (World Wide Web). You may be liable for a
penalty of $20 for each day you do not make these documents available for
public inspection or provide requested copies (up to a maximum of $10,000 in
the case of an annual return).
You are not required to
file federal income tax returns unless you are subject to the tax on unrelated
business income under section 511 of the Code. If you are subject to this tax,
you must file an income tax return on Form 990-T, Exempt Organization Business
Income Tax Return. In this letter we are not determining whether any of your
present or proposed activities are unrelated trade or business as defined in
section 513 of the Code.
Please use the employer
identification number indicated in the heading of this letter on all returns
you file and in all correspondence with the Internal Revenue Service. Because
this letter could help resolve any questions about your exempt status, you
should keep it in your permanent records. If you have any questions about this
letter, or about filing requirements, excise, employment, or other federal
taxes, please contact the Ohio TE/GE Customer Service office at 877-829-5500 (a
toll free number) or correspond with that office using the address indicated
above.
Sincerely,
s/
Garland A. Carter
Garland A.
Carter
Manager, Exempt
Organizations
Technical Group 2
Enclosures:
Form 872-C
Pub.1771