Exempts certain volunteer emergency service organizations from charitable contribution filing fees.

A148

ASSEMBLY, No. 148

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman DAWN FANTASIA

District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)

Assemblyman MICHAEL INGANAMORT

District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblyman Guardian

SYNOPSIS

���� Exempts certain volunteer emergency service
organizations from charitable contribution filing fees.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act

concerning exemptions from certain charitable
organization registration filing fees and amending P.L.1994, c.16.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� Section 7 of P.L.1994,
c.16 (C.45:17A-24) is amended to read as follows:

���� 7.��� a.� Every charitable
organization operating or soliciting within this State, except for those
provided for in section 8 of this act or exempt pursuant to section 9 of this
act, shall file a long form registration statement with the Attorney General.

���� b.��� The long form shall
contain the following:

���� (1)�� The name of the
organization and any other name or names under which it intends to solicit
contributions and the purposes for which it was organized;

���� (2)�� The name, street address
and telephone number of each officer, director and trustee and each principal
salaried executive staff employee and whether the person has been adjudged
liable in an administrative or civil action, or convicted in a criminal action,
involving theft, fraud or deceptive business practices.� For the purposes of
this paragraph:

���� (a)�� a plea of guilty, non
vult, nolo contendere or any similar disposition of alleged criminal activity
shall be deemed a conviction;

���� (b)�� "each principal
salaried executive staff employee" shall be limited to no more than the
five most highly compensated employees in the organization; and

���� (c)�� a judgment of liability
in an administrative or civil action shall include, but not be limited to, any
finding or admission that the officer, director, trustee or principal salaried
executive staff employee engaged in an unlawful practice or practices related
to the solicitation of contributions or the administration of charitable
assets, regardless of whether that finding was made in the context of an
injunction, a proceeding resulting in the denial, suspension or revocation of
an organization's registration, consented to in an assurance of voluntary
compliance or any similar order or legal agreement with any state or federal
agency.

���� (3)�� A copy of the most
recent Internal Revenue Service Form 990 and Schedule A (990) for every
registrant if the organization filed these forms;

���� (4)�� A clear description of
the specific programs and charitable purpose for which contributions will be
used and a statement whether such programs are planned or are in existence;

���� (5)�� A statement disclosing
pertinent information concerning whether any of the organization's officers,
directors, trustees or principal salaried executive staff employees as defined
in subparagraph (b) of paragraph (2) of subsection b. of this section:

���� (a)�� Are related by blood,
marriage or adoption to each other or to any officers, agents or employees of
any fund raising counsel or independent paid fund raiser under contract to the
organization, or are related by blood, marriage or adoption to any chief executive
employee, any other employee of the organization with a direct financial
interest in the transaction, or any partner, proprietor, director, officer,
trustee, or to any shareholder of the organization with more than a two percent
interest of any supplier or vendor providing goods or services to the
organization and, if so, the name and business and home address and telephone
number of each related party; or

���� (b)�� Have a financial
interest in any activity engaged in by a fund raising counsel or independent
paid fund raiser under contract to the organization or any supplier or vendor
providing goods or services to the organization and, if so, the name and
business address and telephone number of each interested party.

���� (6)�� The amount of any grant
or financial assistance from any agency of government in its preceding fiscal
year;

���� (7)�� A statement setting
forth the place where and the date when the organization was legally
established and the form of the organization;

���� (8)�� The principal street
address and telephone number of the organization and the address and telephone
number of each office in this State.� If the organization does not maintain an
office in this State, the name and address of the individual having custody of
its financial records pertaining to operations or solicitations in this State
shall be disclosed;

���� (9)�� The name, street address
and telephone number of each affiliate which shares in the contributions or
other revenue raised in this State;

���� (10)� The date when the
organization's fiscal year ends;

���� (11)� A statement whether:

���� (a)�� The organization is
authorized by any other state to solicit contributions and, if so, a listing of
the states in which authorization has been obtained;

���� (b)�� The organization is or
has ever been enjoined in any jurisdiction from soliciting contributions or has
been found to have engaged in unlawful practices in the solicitation of
contributions or the administration of charitable assets;

���� (c)�� The organization's
registration has been denied, suspended or revoked by any jurisdiction,
together with the reasons for that denial, suspension or revocation;� and

���� (d)�� The organization has
voluntarily entered into an assurance of voluntary compliance agreement or any
similar order or legal agreement with any jurisdiction or federal agency or
officer;

���� (12)� Whether the organization
intends to solicit contributions from the general public; and

���� (13)� Any other information as
may be prescribed by rules adopted by the Attorney General.� In prescribing the
requirements of the long form, the Attorney General shall permit a charitable
organization to incorporate by reference any information reported by the
organization on its Service Form 990 and Schedule A (990).

���� c.���� With initial
registration only, every charitable organization required to file a long form
registration shall also file a copy of the organization's charter, articles of
organization, agreement of association, instrument of trust, constitution or
other organizational instrument and bylaws, and a statement setting forth the
organization's tax exempt status with copies of federal or state tax exemption
determination or exemption ruling letters; provided that any changes in the
accuracy of this information shall be reported to the Attorney General pursuant
to subsection e. of section 14 of this act.

���� d.��� (1)� Every charitable
organization required to file a long form registration shall file an annual
financial report with the Attorney General.� The annual financial report shall
include:� a balance sheet; a statement of support revenue, expenses and changes
in fund balance;� a statement of functional expenses at least divided into
program, management, general, and fund raising; and such other information as
the Attorney General shall by rule require.

���� (2)�� The annual financial
report of every charitable organization which received gross revenue in excess
of $250,000, or any greater amount that the Attorney General may prescribe by
regulation during its most recently completed fiscal year shall be accompanied
by: (a) a financial statement prepared in accordance with generally accepted
accounting principles or other comprehensive basis of accounting approved for
use by the Attorney General by regulation which has� been audited in accordance
with generally accepted auditing standards by an independent certified public
accountant; and (b) any management letters prepared by the auditor in
connection with the audit commenting on the internal accounting controls or
management practices of the organization.

���� The annual financial reports
of all organizations receiving more than $25,000 but less than $250,000, or any
greater amount that the Attorney General may prescribe by regulation shall be
certified by the organization's president or other authorized officer of the
organization's governing board and at the request of the Attorney General, the
organization shall submit: (a) a financial statement prepared in accordance
with generally accepted accounting principles or other comprehensive basis of
accounting approved for use by the Attorney General by regulation which has
been audited in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards by an
independent certified public accountant; and (b) any management letters
prepared by the auditor in connection with the audit commenting on the internal
accounting controls or management practices of the organization.

���� (3)�� The Attorney General may
accept a copy of a current financial report previously prepared by a charitable
organization for another state agency or officer in compliance with the laws of
that state, provided that the report filed with the other state agency or
officer shall be substantially similar in content to the report required by
this subsection.

���� (4)�� An independent member
agency of a federated fund raising organization shall independently comply with
the provisions of this subsection.

���� e.���� In order to register
its qualified local units pursuant to subsection d. of section 9 of this act, a
parent organization registered pursuant to this section shall include with its
initial registration and annual renewal statement a separate statement that
provides the following:

���� (1)�� The name, principal
street address, and phone number of all local units within this State that it
is registering;

���� (2)�� The amount of gross
contributions received by each such unit and the purpose or purposes for which
these funds were raised in the preceding fiscal year; and

���� (3)�� A statement asserting
that each such local unit has provided the parent organization with a written
statement reporting the information included on its behalf and asserting that
the local unit meets all of the requirements of subsection d. of section 9 of
this act.

���� f.���� Any management letters
prepared by the auditor in connection with the audit commenting on the internal
accounting controls or management practices of the organization submitted
pursuant to paragraph (2) of subsection d. of this section shall not be considered
a public record under P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.) or P.L.2001, c.404
(C.47:1A-5 et al.), shall not be made available for public inspection nor used
for a purpose inconsistent with P.L.1994, c.16 (C.45:17A-18 et seq.), and shall
be removed from the record in the custody of the Attorney General at such time
that such information is no longer necessary for the enforcement of that act.�
The records required pursuant to this section shall be maintained for a period
of at least three years after the end of the period of time to which they
relate.

����
g.��� A non-profit
corporation, association, or organization located in this State which is
regularly engaged in providing emergency medical care, rescue services, the
transport of patients, or fire protection services, including part-paid fire
departments and fire districts and part-paid emergency service providers, shall
not be charged a fee by the Attorney General for filing a long form
registration statement as required by this section.

(cf: P.L.2005, c.283, s.3)

���� 2.��� Section 8 of P.L.1994,
c.16 (C.45:17A-25) is amended to read as follows:

���� 8.��� a.� The following
charitable organizations shall be required to file a short form registration on
forms prescribed by the Attorney General:

���� (1)�� Charitable organizations
or organizations engaging in a charitable fund raising campaign which do not
receive gross contributions in excess of $25,000 during a fiscal year, if all
of their functions including fund raising activities are carried on by volunteers,
members, officers or persons who are not compensated for soliciting
contributions;� except that, if the gross contributions, whether or not all is
received by any charitable organization during any fiscal year, are in excess
of $25,000 it shall, within 30 days after the date on which it shall have
received the contributions, register with and report to the Attorney General as
required by section 7 of this act;

���� (2)�� Fraternal, patriotic,
social or alumni organizations, historical societies, and similar organizations
organized under the provisions of Title 15 of the Revised Statutes or Title 15A
of the New Jersey Statutes, when solicitation of contributions is confined to
their membership and solicitation is performed by members of that organization;

���� (3)�� Persons requesting any
contributions for the relief of any individual, specified by name at the time
of the solicitation, if all of the contributions collected, without any
deductions whatsoever, are turned over to the named beneficiary;

���� (4)�� Any local post, camp,
chapter or similarly designated element, or a county unit of that element, of a
bona fide veterans' organization which issues charters to the local elements
throughout this State, or to any veterans' organization chartered under federal
law or to any service foundation of such an organization recognized in its
bylaws.

���� b.��� The short form shall
contain the following:

���� (1)�� Name and street address
of the organization;

���� (2)�� The name of any
independent paid fund raiser, fund raising counsel or commercial co-venturer
the charitable organization has engaged;

���� (3)�� The purpose for which
the charitable organization is organized;

���� (4)�� The purposes for which
the funds are raised;

���� (5)�� The tax status of the
charitable organization;

���� (6)�� The reason the
organization is eligible to file a short form registration;

���� (7)�� A copy of the
organization's most recent Internal Revenue Service Form 990 and Schedule (A)
990 if the organization filed these forms;

���� (8)�� The name, street address
and telephone number of each officer, director and trustee and each principal
salaried executive staff employee and whether the person has been adjudged
liable in an administrative or civil action, or convicted in a criminal action,
involving theft, fraud or deceptive business practices.� For the purposes of
this paragraph:

���� (a)�� a plea of guilty, non
vult, nolo contendere or any similar disposition of alleged criminal activity
shall be deemed a conviction;

���� (b)�� "each principal
salaried executive staff employee" shall be limited to no more than the
five most highly compensated employees in the organization; and

���� (c)�� a judgment of liability
in an administrative or civil action shall include, but not be limited to, any
finding or admission that the officer, director, trustee or principal salaried
executive staff employee engaged in an unlawful practice or practices related
to the solicitation of contributions or the administration of charitable
assets, regardless of whether that finding was made in the context of an
injunction, a proceeding resulting in the denial, suspension or revocation of
an organization's registration, consented to in an assurance of voluntary
compliance or any similar order or legal agreement with any state or federal
agency.

���� (9)�� A statement whether:

���� (a)�� The organization is
authorized by any other state to solicit contributions and, if so, a listing of
the states in which authorization has been obtained;

���� (b)�� The organization is or
has ever been enjoined in any jurisdiction from soliciting contributions or has
been found to have engaged in unlawful practices in the solicitation of
contributions or the administration of charitable assets;

���� (c)�� The organization's
registration has been denied, suspended or revoked by any jurisdiction,
together with the reasons for that denial, suspension or revocation;� and

���� (d)�� The organization has
voluntarily entered into an assurance of voluntary compliance agreement or any
similar order or legal agreement with any jurisdiction or federal agency or
officer; and

���� (10)� Any other information as
may be prescribed by rules adopted by the Attorney General.

���� c.���� In order to register
its qualified local units pursuant to subsection d. of section 9 of this act, a
parent organization registered pursuant to this section shall include with its
initial registration, a copy of the parent organization's charter, articles of
organization, agreement of association, instrument of trust, constitution or
other organizational instrument and bylaws, and shall include with its initial
registration and annual renewal statement a separate statement that provides
the following:

���� (1)�� The name, principal
street address, and phone number of all local units within this State that it
is registering;

���� (2)�� The amount of gross
contributions received by each such unit and the purpose or purposes for which
these funds were raised in the preceding fiscal year;

���� (3)�� A statement asserting
that each such local unit has provided the parent organization with a written
statement reporting the information included on its behalf and asserting that
the local unit meets all of the requirements of subsection d. of section 9 of
this act.

���� d.��� Nothing in subsection c.
of this section shall be construed to require a parent organization to register
any or all of its local units.

����
e.���� A non-profit
corporation, association, or organization located in this State which is
regularly engaged in providing emergency medical care, rescue services, the
transport of patients, or fire protection services, including part-paid fire
departments and fire districts and part-paid emergency service providers, shall
not be charged a fee by the Attorney General for filing a short form
registration statement as required by this section.

(cf: P.L.2005, c.283, s.4)

���� 3.��� This act shall take
effect on the first day of the fourth month after enactment.

STATEMENT

���� The bill would exempt certain
volunteer emergency service organizations from paying registration filing fees
under the under the State�s �Charitable Registration and Investigation Act.�

���� Under current law, charitable
organizations, other than religious organizations and schools, which raise over
$10,000 in a fiscal year are required to register with the Division of Consumer
Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety as charitable organizations.
Pursuant to regulations promulgated under the act, these organizations are
charged a fee for this registration.

���� Charitable organizations which
raise $25,000 or less in a fiscal year, whether they are required to register
or voluntarily register under the act, are required to file a short form
registration.� The fee charged by the division for filing a short form registration
is $30. Charitable organizations that raise more than $25,000 are required to
file a long form registration. The fee charged by the division for filing a
long form registration is $60 if the organization raised $100,000 or less.� The
long form registration fee for organizations which raise more than $100,000,
but less than $500,000 is $150.� If the organization raises over $500,000 the
fee is $250.

���� Under this bill, non-profit
corporations, associations, or organizations located in this State which are
regularly engaged in providing emergency medical care, rescue services, the
transport of patients, or fire protection services, including part-paid fire
departments and fire districts and emergency service providers, would be exempt
from paying these filing fees.