Private foundations will soon be required to provide copies of their annual IRS Form 990PF information returns to anyone who asks, under new proposed Treasury regulations. The Form 990PF reveals the foundation's grants, the names and addresses of its contributors, and a great deal of financial information, as well as any compensation paid to officers, directors and trustees. Penalties of up to $10,000 will apply for any refusal to comply with the new rules.
For many years, every private foundation has been required to publish an annual newspaper notice stating that its return is available for public inspection at the foundation's principal office for a period of 180 days after the notice. Congress changed this requirement last year by extending much broader disclosure rules to private foundations. The new rules will become effective for private foundations 60 days after final regulations are published in the Federal Register. (The recently-released regulations are currently in
