2014 Small Tax-Exempt Organization Burden Survey

Tax Exempt Organzation Burden Survey
Internal Revenue Service

OMB No: 1545-2212. This report is authorized under the Paperwork Reduction Act. Data collected will be shared with
IRS staff, but your responses will be used for research and aggregate reporting purposes only and will not be used
for other non-statistical or non-research purposes such as direct enforcement activities. The information that you
provide will be protected to the fullest extent allowable under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Public reporting
burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 15 minutes per response, including the time for
reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing
and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this
collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to IRS Tax Products Coordinating Committee,
1111 Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20224.

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Methods for Preparing Your Organization's 2010 Form 990
1. Which of the following did your organization use to prepare its 2010 Form 990?
Did your organization use…

Check all that apply.
An accounting firm
A law firm

A tax preparation service other than an accounting or law firm
Employee(s) of your organization
Volunteer(s) or unpaid board member(s) of your organization
Accounting and/or financial software
Tax preparation software (e.g., H&R Block Business, UltraTax CS, Tax Works,
custom software)
A non-profit website (e.g., The National Center for Charitable Statistics, GuideStar)
Paper or PDF version of the IRS tax forms
Anything else?
Please describe:

Form

14297 (7-2011)

Catalog Number 58111Q

www.irs.gov

1

Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service

16129

Recordkeeping for Your Organization's 2010 Form 990
The following questions ask about your organization's tax-related recordkeeping
activities, including everything your organization did to create, maintain, and store
records needed to complete its Form 990.
2. For the 2010 tax year, who was involved in your organization's tax-related
recordkeeping activities?

Check all that apply.
Employee(s) of your organization
Volunteer(s) or unpaid board member(s) of your organization
External service provider(s)

3. Which of the following statements describe the accounting or recordkeeping system
your organization used during the 2010 tax year?
Did your organization…

Yes

a.

Use an off-the-shelf accounting and financial software system
(e.g. Sage MIP, NetSuite, QuickBooks, Peachtree, Quicken,
Microsoft Money)?

b.

Use a customized, organization-wide, software-based
accounting system (e.g., PeopleSoft, Great Plains, Lawson,
Solomon, Oracle, Deltek Costpoint)?

c.

Use general recordkeeping software products such as
Microsoft Excel, Lotus, Open Office, or other similar products?

d.

Maintain a hard-copy ledger to record organization transactions?

e.

Use any other accounting or recordkeeping system during the
2010 tax year?

No

Don't Know

Please describe:

Form

14297 (7-2011)

Catalog Number 58111Q

www.irs.gov

2

Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service

16129

Resources Used to Gather Materials and
Prepare Your Organization's 2010 Form 990
Your organization may have used a variety of resources when completing its 2010 Form 990.
These next questions ask first about IRS resources and then about non-IRS resources your
organization may have used.
4. For each of the tasks listed below, which IRS resources, if any, did you use when
completing your organization's 2010 Form 990?

Check all that apply.

IRS RESOURCES

IRS Toll Free
Tax Assistance
Line

TASKS
a.

Obtain general tax information

b.

Obtain IRS forms, instructions,
or publications

c.

Obtain answers to specific
questions about my return

IRS walk-in site

IRS website

Other IRS
communications,
such as
newsletters,
listservs,
seminars, mail or
email

I did not use
any IRS
resources for
this task

5. For each of the tasks listed below, which non-IRS resources, if any, did you use when
completing your organization's 2010 Form 990?

Check all that apply.

NON-IRS RESOURCES

External
service
provider

TASKS

Form

a.

Obtain general tax information

b.

Obtain IRS forms, instructions,
or publications

c.

Obtain answers to specific
questions about my return

14297 (7-2011)

Catalog Number 58111Q

Tax preparation
software

www.irs.gov

3

Non-IRS
websites

Non-IRS
seminars,
newsletters,
booklets or
guides

Other

I did not use
any non-IRS
resources for
this task

Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service

16129

As mentioned earlier, the purpose of this survey is to measure what it costs tax exempt
taxpayers to comply with federal tax rules and regulations. For most organizations these
costs are a combination of time spent and out-of-pocket expenses (e.g., fees paid to
external service providers, software costs). In the remaining sections we will ask for
estimates of these costs.

Time Spent on Tax-related Activities
The next questions focus on time spent on activities related to complying with your
organization's tax reporting obligations.
6. Please think about all the time your organization spent on tax-related recordkeeping,
tax planning, gathering tax-related materials, learning about tax law, using IRS or
non-IRS resources, completing, reviewing, and submitting your 2010 Form 990, and
calculating and depositing estimated tax payments.
How many TOTAL hours did your organization spend performing these tax reporting
compliance-related activities for its 2010 Form 990?
DO NOT include time spent by your external service provider(s).
DO include time spent corresponding with your external service provider.
DO include pro bono tax compliance work done on behalf of your organization.
DO consult your records or others in your organization, if necessary. If these resources
are unavailable, please provide your best, most accurate estimate.

Number of hours
Don't Know

Form

14297 (7-2011)

Catalog Number 58111Q

www.irs.gov

4

Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service

16129

7. Of the TOTAL number of hours from Question 6, how would you distribute those
hours across the different job categories listed below?
a.

Executives, officers, or directors?

b.

Managers or in-house professionals?

c.

Clerical or administrative staff?

d.

Trustees or board members?

e.

Other job categories?
Please describe:

8. Of the TOTAL number of hours from Question 6, how many of those hours were spent
on each of the following tax-related activities?

Form

a.

Tax recordkeeping, including reconciling financial and
tax records?

b.

Tax planning?

c.

Gathering materials, learning about tax law, and using
IRS or non-IRS resources?

d.

Completing and submitting your Form 990, including a
review of the return by board members?

e.

Calculating and depositing estimated tax payments?

f.

All other tax-related activities?
Please describe:

14297 (7-2011)

Catalog Number 58111Q

www.irs.gov

5

Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service

16129

Fees Associated With Tax Reporting Compliance
Please think about how much money, in addition to the time reported on Question 6, your
organization spent on tax-related recordkeeping, tax planning, gathering tax-related
materials, learning about tax law, using IRS or non-IRS resources, completing, reviewing,
and submitting your 2010 Form 990, and calculating and depositing estimated tax
payments. Costs associated with tax reporting compliance are a very important part of
assessing burden, so please provide the most accurate estimates you can.
9.

How much money, if any, did your organization pay external service providers for all
2010 Form 990 tax and return preparation related services?

$

.
Don't Know

10. How much money, if any, did your organization spend on tax-specific software used
to prepare its 2010 Form 990?
DO include any costs your organization may have incurred for annual maintenance and
updates for tax-specific software.

$

.
Don't Know

11. Other than the costs reported in questions 9 and 10, how much money, if any, did
your organization spend on other 2010 Form 990 tax and return preparation
activities?
DO NOT include money your organization spent on its external service provider(s), tax
software, or employee compensation.
DO include money spent on electronic submission, photocopies, tax literature,
transportation, or postage.

$

.
Don't Know

Form

14297 (7-2011)

Catalog Number 58111Q

www.irs.gov

6

Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service

16129

For this survey, we asked that you provide estimates of the time and money associated
with completing your organization's 2010 Form 990. However, we understand that it is
sometimes difficult to separate those estimates from the time and money spent on related
activities such as preparation of the Form 990 for other organizations, state tax filing
obligations, and your organization's annual financial audit. In the next questions, please
indicate whether your estimates included time or money spent on any of these activities.
12. Did your estimate in question 6 of the total hours spent performing tax reporting
compliance-related activities at your organization include:

Check all that apply.
Time spent filing the Form 990 for any organizations other than the one to which this
survey is mailed
Time spent meeting state tax filing obligations
Time spent on your organization’s financial audit
I did not include time spent on any of these activities in my estimate for Question 6

13. Did one or more of your estimates in questions 9 through 11 of the money your
organization spent to comply with its 2010 Form 990 tax reporting obligations
include:

Check all that apply.
Money spent filing the Form 990 for any organizations other than the one to which this
survey is mailed
Money spent meeting state tax filing obligations
Money spent on your organization’s financial audit
I did not include money spent on any of these activities in my estimates for Questions 9
through 11

Finally, please describe below any suggestions you may have for how the IRS could
improve taxpayer service or reduce the compliance burden associated with the Forms
990, 990-EZ, 990-PF, 990-BL, or their related forms, schedules, worksheets, or
instructions.

THANK YOU FOR COMPLETING OUR SURVEY
Form

14297 (7-2011)

Catalog Number 58111Q

www.irs.gov

7

Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service

Frequently Asked Questions
What is the purpose of this survey?

The purpose of this survey is to measure what it costs tax exempt taxpayers to follow federal
tax rules and regulations. Tax administrators and policy makers will use this information to
reduce and manage tax exempt taxpayer costs.

Who should complete this survey?

The individual most responsible for maintaining the financial records for your organization
or making the financial and tax-related decisions for your organization should complete this
questionnaire. You may need to consult with others in your organization to complete the survey
and we encourage you to do so.

What would the IRS like to know?

We would like to know more about the burden associated with preparing your organization’s
2010 Form 990 and corresponding tax returns filed for the same period. Please be assured that
you will not be asked about specific income or other financial information.

What activities are included in “preparing your organization’s 2010 Form 990”?

Preparing the 2010 Form 990 includes all of the time and money spent by your organization
from the beginning of the tax period up to the filing of your organization’s Federal Exempt
Income Return. Time refers to hours spent by employees or volunteers of your organization
on tax-related recordkeeping, tax planning, gathering materials, learning about tax law,
completing, reviewing, and submitting your 2010 Form 990, and calculating and depositing
estimated tax payments. It does not include the time spent by external service providers used
by your organization. However, because we are interested in your total costs, we will also be
asking about fees your organization may have paid to external service providers.

What if I file Form 990 for more than one organization?

When answering the survey questions, please think only about the organization to which this
survey invitation is mailed.

What does “your organization’s 2010 Form 990” mean?

Your organization’s 2010 Form 990 refers to Form 990, 990-EZ, 990-F, or 990-BL, as well as any
related forms (e.g. 990-T, 8868, 926, 3520, 5471, 8865), schedules, and worksheets.
Please DO NOT include any time or money you spent on:
• Any 2010 Form 990 completed for an organization other than the organization to which
this survey invitation is mailed,
• Estates (Form 706), Gifts (Form 709), and Trusts (Form 1041),
• Partnerships (Form 1065),
• For-profit corporations (Form 1120 or 1120-S),
• Individuals (Form 1040, 1040A, 1040EZ),
• Your organization’s annual audit,
• State or Local Income Tax Returns,
• Foreign Tax Returns,
• Payroll or Employment Tax Returns (Form 940, 941, 944, W-2),
• Excise Tax,
• Other Information Returns (Form 1099).

What kinds of questions are in this survey?

This survey asks about methods for preparing your organization’s 2010 Form 990, your
organization’s recordkeeping in the 2010 tax year, resources used to gather materials and
prepare your organization’s 2010 Form 990, time spent on tax-related activities, and fees
associated with tax reporting compliance activities.

How will my answers be used?

The focus of the survey is on how much time and money tax exempt organizations devote
to compliance; it is not an examination of financial activities. Please be assured that your
responses will be used for research and aggregate reporting purposes only and will not be used
for other non-statistical or non-research purposes such as direct enforcement activities. Once
all survey data have been analyzed, the IRS will make aggregate results available to the public.

Why should I participate?

While participation is voluntary, information about your organization’s tax preparation
experience will help the IRS reduce taxpayer burden. We encourage you to take a few moments
of your time to participate. By doing so, you will make sure that organizations like yours are
represented.

How long will this survey take?

It will take about 15 minutes to complete this survey. Your time may vary based on your
individual experiences.

Can I complete this survey on the web?

Instructions for completing this survey on the web are on the back cover of this booklet.

Who can I contact with questions?

If you have questions about the content of this survey, please contact Dawn Nelson at
1-888-248-8576 or send an email to IRS-Form990Survey@westat.com. If you would like to
speak to someone at IRS, please call the Communications & Liaison office at 202-622-6440
or send an email to *public_liaison@irs.gov.

We hope you will take the time
to complete this important survey.
Thank you.

Tax Exempt Organzation Burden Survey

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