Administrative Assistance

In this article, we will examine three different ways a church can begin. Starting a church in the United States is relatively simple. Please keep in mind the church is always the people, and what I will be briefly speaking of is the Administrative/Legal/IRS aspect of the organization.

Following are three different ways a church can begin.

1.      A church can be started as an "Outreach," or a "Daughter" church of an existing church. There should be clear documentation found in the Minutes regarding all the details of the relationship between the Mother/Daughter churches, regarding [but not limited to] limiting all actions to the approval of the existing church Board of Directors whether it be financial or otherwise; all receipts for tax purposes would be issued by the 'Mother' church Treasurer.
 We have written a sample resolution in our SAMPLES Manual to help you identify the issues of starting a church this way.  Receipts for contributions to the church, can be written to donors from the very outset.

2.      A church can begin as an "Unincorporated Association" and be tax exempt on its own - so long as it has organizational documents [By-Laws], which include the four statements required by the IRS, and essentially fulfill the intent of the 14 points found under the 501(c)(3).  Minutes of the meetings [and other records] of the Board of Directors would also be essential.
We do not recommend this approach, but if you are interested in having more information, please contact us for further details and samples of excellent Foundational Documents.  Again, receipts for contributions to the church, can be written to donors from the moment you have your "Organizational Meeting."

3.      Form your own Non-Profit Corporation as soon as possible. This can be done in as little as a day or two, if you were to "walk the documents through" the state capitol, or their extension offices. Otherwise, it will likely take a few months if mailed to the state capitol.  Some states [eg. California], also require filing for exemption, and approval, to be exempt from the state Franchise Tax.  The overall time frame, to get organized, is pretty much up to you and how quickly you follow through. The most time consuming task is in writing good Biblical By-Laws, that will give you something of substance to defend yourself with if the church were ever sued.

We have written the manual  More Great Samples which enables church leaders to form their own  Non-Profit Corporation quite easily.  It has step by step instructions, showing you what to do with; sample letters to the state for name reservation; sample Articles of Incorporation; and sample Biblical By-Laws.  To  understand the steps [the process] of starting a church please read our on-line article, Simple_Steps_To_Start_A_Church

Receipts for contributions to the church, can be written to donors from the date of the "Organizational Meeting." This is the first meeting held by the Incorporator(s), when the organization is legally formed, and By-Laws are adopted.  We have sample Organizational Meeting Minutes in our More Great Samples manual, and in our SAMPLES Manual as well

 The process is too often made more complicated and expensive, by unhelpful professionals more interested in financial gain, than in teaching the simple facts of IRS requirements. The often quoted term 501(c)(3) is nothing more than an address in the Tax Code, which defines how the church is to be structured and operated.

It is required to organize the business activities of the church, in order to qualify for tax exemption. It is not required to Incorporate. Tax exemption has absolutely nothing to do with incorporation. No law [state or federal;] requires the church to incorporate. We do recommend the church incorporate, as this provides an "Umbrella" of limited liability protection. There are other reasons we incorporate, and we have addressed them "The Church Administration 'How To' Manual."

We have discovered, in about 80% of the 1,500 churches we have ministered in – that there is a tremendous problem in regards to a lack  of [often no] adequately written Minutes. Minutes are crucial in a lawsuit. Minutes are the memory of the corporation, and if there are no minutes – there is no memory or defense. Therefore we have written SAMPLES containing more than 100 examples of Minutes, Resolutions, Ratifications and Policies. We are discovering that 80% of the churches never had an organizational meeting. This is really bad news, as that is the first thing the Judge would look for in a lawsuit.

If you would like more information about similar issues, please consider "The Church Administration 'How To' Manual" This Manual, endorsed by three CPA's, an EA and two attorneys, was updated in June 2007, for the 8th time, since its original publication in 1991.

The above information is provided as a service to the Body of Christ by ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANCE – Rev. Don L. & Barbara E. Buckel, Directors. 8419 Vista del Cajon Pl. Lakeside, CA. 92040  Don@admin-assist.com. Please feel free to call us at 619/443-5221. Please allow for West coast time zones, and call after 8:00AM PST   

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