BarbriSFCourseDetails
  • videocam Live Webinar with Live Q&A
  • calendar_month May 21, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
  • signal_cellular_alt Intermediate
  • card_travel Accounting
  • schedule 110 minutes

Form 990 Schedule A: Protecting Public Charity Status, IRC 509 Public Support Test Calculations and Reporting

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About the Course

Introduction

This course will provide nonprofit advisers with a comprehensive guide to reporting the public support tests of IRC Section 509(a) on Schedule A of Form 990 Exempt Organization Information Return.

Description

Advisers to nonprofits must ensure charitable exempt organizations maintain their status as public charities under Internal Revenue Code rules. Charitable exempt organizations can realize greater tax benefits by qualifying as a public charity rather than meeting the more complex and burdensome regulations for private foundations. Advisers need to thoroughly understand the rules, calculations, and reporting requirements to verify public charity status.

The regulations provide several tests for maintaining public charity status. Nonprofits may be set up as a religious organization, school, or hospital, or as a supporting organization of another public charity. Alternatively, they must meet one of the public support tests by verifying that a substantial portion of the entity's total receipts comes from public support. Exempt organizations must conduct this test annually, reporting the support the entity received in the current tax year and the four prior years.

Public support test calculations are reported on Schedule A of Form 990, one of the most complex schedules on the Exempt Organization Tax Return. Because an exempt organization may not know whether it qualifies as a public charity until it calculates public support at the tax year's end, advisers must keep public support calculations current to protect the client's public charity status.

Listen as our experienced panel offers a comprehensive and practical guide to mastering the public support calculation, reporting, and planning implications for exempt organizations.

Presented By

Tracy Cai
Director
PKF O'Connor Davies, LLP

Ms. Cai brings more than a decade of specialized experience in public accounting and tax, working exclusively with not-for-profit organizations. She has deep expertise in preparing and reviewing complex federal and state tax filings for a wide range of tax-exempt entities, including large public charities. In addition to tax compliance work, Ms. Cai conducts tax research to support technical positions and proactively address emerging regulatory challenges. Her comprehensive understanding of exempt organization tax law allows her to guide clients through both routine filings and sophisticated tax matters.

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Melissa Modelson, CPA
Partner
PKF O'Connor Davies, LLP

Ms. Modelson has almost 15 years of experience providing tax and advisory services in the not-for-profit sector. As a member of the organization’s Exempt Organization Tax and Advisory Service practice, her client base includes large public charities, donor-advised funds, cemeteries, educational institutions, healthcare organizations, private foundations and other not-for-profit entities. Ms. Modelson has considerable expertise in unrelated business income tax planning, operational and transactional structuring, reclassifications of public charity status, alternative investments and potential unrelated business income (UBI) tax, foreign reporting and state fundraising compliance.

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Credit Information

  • BARBRI is a NASBA CPE sponsor and this 110-minute webinar is accredited for 2.0 CPE credits.

  • BARBRI is an IRS-approved continuing education provider offering certified courses for Enrolled Agents (EA) and Tax Return Preparers (RTRP).

Date + Time

  • event

    Thursday, May 21, 2026

  • schedule

    1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT

I. Introduction of public charities (specific type, publicly supported, and supporting organization) and private foundations

II. Publicly supported organizations: two tests

A. Which test to use?

III. 509(a)(1) and 170(b)(1)(A)(vi)—Part II of Schedule

IV. 509(a)(2) Part III of Schedule A

V. Planning to avoid (or not) private foundation status

VI. Advantages and disadvantages of private foundation status

VII. Transition to private foundation status

A. Obtaining a waiver of private foundation excise taxes

B. Other issues/considerations

The panel will discuss these and other important issues:

  • The "10 percent facts and circumstances test" for organizations that do not qualify for public charity status under the 1/3 support rule
  • Types of revenues and receipts that present special problems in determining the level of public support
  • Obtaining a waiver of private foundation excise taxes where the organization unexpectedly fails the public support test
  • Grants that meet the criteria for unusual grants

Learning Objectives

After completing this course, you will be able to:

  • Determine when an exempt organization meets public support under the tests provided by IRC Sections 509(a)(1) and 170(b)(a)(A)(vi) or 509(a)(2)
  • Identify information required to complete Schedule A of Form 990 Exempt Organization Information Return
  • Recognize planning steps to avoid failing the public support test
  • Document a facts and circumstances request for waiver of private foundation excise taxes and/or penalties in case of an exempt organization's unexpected failure to meet the public support test
  • Field of Study: Accounting
  • Level of Knowledge: Intermediate
  • Advance Preparation: None
  • Teaching Method: Seminar/Lecture
  • Delivery Method: Group-Internet (via computer)
  • Attendance Monitoring Method: Attendance is monitored electronically via a participant's PIN and through a series of attendance verification prompts displayed throughout the program
  • Prerequisite:

    Three years+ non-profit business or public firm experience at mid-level within the organization, preparing financial statements and/or complex tax forms and schedules, supervising other preparers/accountants. Specific knowledge and understanding of Form 990 and tax-exempt entity related organization rules; familiarity with the concept of "public support" in the context of tax-exempt entity tax reporting.

BARBRI, Inc. is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of Accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE Credits. Complaints regarding registered sponsons may be submitted to NASBA through its website: www.nasbaregistry.org.

IRS Approved Provider

BARBRI is an IRS-approved continuing education provider offering certified courses for Enrolled Agents (EA) and Tax Return Preparers (RTRP).

BARBRI CE webinars-powered by Barbri-are backed by our 100% unconditional money-back guarantee: If you are not satisfied with any of our products, simply let us know and get a full refund. Contact us at 1-800-926-7926 .