• Cash Flow Planning Webinar and Conference Call
• Call for Break-Out Proposal Sessions: Dance/USA 2010 Annual Conference
• Artists From Abroad - The Tax Webinar
• Government Affairs Update

Cash Planning Webinar and Conference Call

Don't forget to take advantage of the Cash Flow Planning webinar and conference call, the second in a series of free opportunities from the Nonprofit Finance Fund.

The webinar and conference call will provide participants with tips and tools to understand how to appropriately plan and monitor cash needs by analyzing your incoming and outgoing cash, including learning to use a monthly cash flow projection.

Webinar -- Available On Demand
Follow this link: http://www.nonprofitfinancefund.org/webinars/metlife.php
Password: metlife (one word, lowercase)

Conference Call
Wednesday, November 4
2:00 P.M. -3:00 P.M. Eastern

To participate you must register in advance. Use your computer to log into Go To Webinar using the following information: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/534722929
PC-based attendees: Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista Macintosh®-based attendees: Required: Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer

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Call for Break-Out Proposal Sessions: Dance/USA 2010 Annual Conference

We want your ideas!

In June 2010, Dance/USA will hold its Annual Conference in Washington, DC. The theme of the conference is "Dance Beyond Borders."

At the conference, attendees meet in:

• Large Plenary Sessions, designed to expand thinking and contextualize current moments
• Council Sessions (peer gatherings of members and member organizations)
• Break-Out Sessions designed to address the immediate concerns of the field and conference theme
• Open Time for attendees to reconnect and form new relationships that will sustain them between annual conferences.

Dance/USA is now accepting proposals for Break-Out Session topics!

Proposal Submission
Submission Deadline: Midnight ET, November 13, 2009

Submit your proposal here
(Before submitting your proposal, please review the PDF of the submission process for Break-Out Session proposals.)

For additional information on the review process and notification, visit the Dance/USA website.

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Artists from Abroad - The Tax Webinar
(an opportunity from the League of American Orchestras)

Thursday, October 29
12:00 noon Eastern

The U.S. tax requirements for foreign guest artists are vastly different than the laws for U.S. residents. Do you have all the information you need to be in compliance with IRS requirements? Learn the essentials about Internal Revenue Service (IRS) withholding rules from attorney Robyn Guilliams, contributor to the Artists from Abroad website, including insight into tax treaties, the latest news regarding U.S. tax identification numbers, and tips for planning ahead to avoid last-minute tax mishaps.

Your questions are welcome in advance and will help shape the content and focus of the presentation! Participation fee is $125. To register, click here.

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Government Affairs Update
Dance/USA Supports IRA Charitable Rollover
Dance/USA has signed onto a letter by Independent Sector urging Congress to take action and extend the IRA Charitable Rollover provision before it expires at the end of this year. The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 reinstated the IRA Charitable Rollover Provision through December 2009, allowing individuals age 70½ and older to make charitable gifts from their IRAs tax-free, up to a total of $100,000 per year. On March 2, Congressmen Earl Pomeroy (D-SD) and Wally Herger (R-CA) reintroduced the IRA Charitable Rollover Provision (H.R. 1250), which would make the provision permanent, lower the qualifying age to 50½ and older, and remove the $100,000 cap. In the Senate, a companion bill was reintroduced on April 22 (S. 864) by Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND).

To view the letter, click here: http://independentsector.org/programs/gr/IRArollover_SignOnLetter2009.html

Tax Exempt Organizations and Health Care Reform
On Thursday October 22, Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN) sent a letter, signed by 43 other House members, to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) urging the inclusion of tax credits or subsidies for nonprofits in the House health care reform bill. The letter expresses interest in working with House leaders “to ensure that the House health reform bill provides comparable treatment for all small employers,” and to “support nonprofit employers and their employees upon whom our constituents, communities, and government depend.”

To view letter by Rep. McCollum, click here: http://bit.ly/2qTy8k

IRS Launches Form 990 Video Series
The IRS has launched a new case study and video program to help tax-exempt organizations better understand the new Form 990 return that must be filed beginning with the 2008 tax year. The case study developed by the IRS Exempt Organizations Division focuses on a hypothetical organization and includes a set of facts describing organizational and financial aspects of the hypothetical group, and a completed Form 990 based on those facts. A video series walks practitioners through key reporting issues common to most organizations required to file Form 990. Visit: http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=214274,00.html

Resource on Tax Withholdings for Foreign Guest Artists
Any dance organization that engages and compensates foreign guest artists must withhold taxes from the artist’s income. This often can be a complicated and confusing process. For assistance, the IRS has a publication that includes brief summaries of the U.S. tax treaties with foreign countries. Visit: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p901.pdf

Social Innovation Fund
The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act established three new grant programs including the Social Innovation Fund. The Corporation for National and Community Service has released initial guidelines on the Social Innovation Fund. All nonprofit organizations are eligible to apply to this new program. For more information, visit: http://www.nationalservice.gov/about/serveamerica/innovation.asp

Investing in Innovation, Grant Program at DOE
As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the Department of Education has established two new grant programs, Race to the Top and Investing in Innovation. Dance/USA, as a member of the Performing Arts Alliance, has submitted comments to the DOE in response to the Race to the Top program and is currently reviewing the Investing in Innovation program. Nonprofit organizations will be eligible to apply for Development Grants within the Investing in Innovation program. For more information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2009/10/10062009a.html

Big Read Grant Deadlines
The Big Read is accepting applications from nonprofit organizations to conduct month-long, community-wide reads between September 2010 and June 2011. The Big Read is a national program designed to revitalize the role of literature in American culture. Organizations selected to participate in The Big Read will receive a grant ranging from $2,500 to $20,000, access to online training resources, educational and promotional materials, inclusion of your organization and activities on The Big Read website, and the prestige of participating in a highly visible national program. Approximately 75 organizations from across the country will be selected by a panel of experts.

Questions about the Government Affairs Update?
Email Amy Fitterer at afitterer@danceusa.org and visit the advocacy section of our website at http://danceusa.org/newsactionalerts.

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