TaxNewsFlash-Exempt Organizations

May 13, 2008
No. 2008-43

IRS Official Discusses College and University Compliance Check Questionnaires

An IRS official recently reported that the IRS plans to send compliance check questionnaires to between 400 and 500 public and private colleges and universities by the end of the IRS's fiscal year (September 30).

Lois Lerner, IRS Exempt Organizations Division Director, speaking at the ABA Section of Taxation meeting, May 9, said that the questionnaires will ask for information in four areas:

Information about the institution, such as size, geographic area served, affiliations, and related organizations

Information about unrelated business activities, such as types of activities, revenues, expenses, and allocation of expenses, including expenses charged between related organizations

Information about endowments, such as whether they are restricted or unrestricted, how they are managed, how they are invested, and the kinds of investments

Information about executive compensation, such as salaries, benefits, deferred compensation, loans, and the processes used to set compensation

Schools will be given 90 days to respond to the questionnaire, and Lerner commented that it is likely that a college and university schedule will be added to the revised Form 990.

For more information, contact Rick Speizman, National Partner-In-Charge, KPMG’s Exempt Organizations Tax Practice (ExoTax), at (202) 533-3084 or rspeizma@kpmg.com

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