IRS Releases New Form 990 

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By Michael R. Lucey, MD

As Treasurer of AASLD, I am pleased to report that AASLD complies with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requirements in filing the Form 990 annually.  Complying with these requirements has become an extensive project.

Not-for-Profit organizations exempt from Federal Taxes are required to annually file the IRS Form 990, which are the public “information returns.”  The first Form 990, a two-page form, was filed for the year ended 1941.  The IRS has revised and enhanced the Form several times since 1941.

The recently released Form 990 for the 2008 filing year has approximately a ten-page core that all exempt organizations are required to complete along with approximately fifteen schedules (20 pages), depending on the type of the activities conducted by the organizations.

The foremost important change in the new Form is the inclusion of information about the organization’s mission, programs and activities, the governing body, governance policies and principals of good governance, management and a significant increase in financial reporting.

This new Form 990 is intended to enhance transparency for both the IRS and public, allow the IRS to efficiently assess risk of non-compliance and minimize burden on filing organizations (we will not be the judge for the latter).