Joe Alessi Jr., the currently selected President of the www.floridabiblecollege.com Florida Bible College Alumni Association writes:

"
Your alumni association officers have some very exciting news to share with you! It is now official. The Florida Bible College Alumni Association IS an active, non-profit corporation registered in the state of Florida. We have been working on this for several months now but have kept it quiet because we did not want to have anyone object to us using the name. With the planning and reservation challenges of the reunion, it was necessary to open a bank account in the name of the alumni association, but we could not open one without incorporating the association. We are working on the next step, which is to file the determination letter with the IRS for final tax exemption approval. "

Joe Alessi Jr. has made the will of the Florida Bible College Alumni Association's leadership to become tax exempt with the IRS public.

Yet the IRS requires ALL Alumni Associations to financially support either the college or university to which they are associated with:

"Alumni association. An alumni association should establish that it is organized to promote the welfare of the university with which it is affiliated, is subject to the control of the university as to its policies and destination of funds, and is operated as an integral part of the university or is otherwise organized to promote the welfare of the college or university. If your association does not have these characteristics, it may still be exempt as a social club if it meets the requirements described in chapter 4, under 501(c)(7) — Social and Recreation Clubs. "- IRS

Joe Alessi Jr. and the Florida Bible College Alumni Association that he was selected to lead now has no other legal option but to either legally change the name of

The Florida Bible College Alumni Association to The Florida Bible College Social Club,

OR

they have to financially and in every other way support the official re-start of Florida Bible College itself, (note , this is not the Talahassee college).



"
 

One other thought

The advanced letter standing requirement of the IRS for 501(c)3 not for profit organizations, including alumni associations has receintly changed and I will comment on this change at a future time.
 

IRS 501(c)3 advanced standing process changes effective September 9,2008.


"Elimination of the Advance Ruling Process

On September 9, 2008, the IRS issued temporary Income Tax Regulations, which eliminate the advance ruling process for a section 501(c)(3) organization. Under the new regulations, a new 501(c)(3) organization will be classified as a publicly supported charity, and not a private foundation, if it can show that it reasonably can be expected to be publicly supported when it applies for tax-exempt status.

Under the old regulations, an organization that wanted to be recognized by the IRS as a publicly supported charity instead of a private foundation had to go through an extended two-step process. First, the organization had to declare that it expected to be publicly supported on an on-going basis. Then, after five years, it had to file Form 8734, Support Schedule for Advance Ruling Period, showing the IRS that it actually met the public support test. If it didn't meet the test, it was designated a tax-exempt private foundation and would be subject to stricter rules.

The new rules no longer require the organization to file Form 8734 after completing its first five tax years. Moreover, the organization retains its public charity status for its first five years regardless of the public support actually received during that time. Instead, beginning with the organization's sixth taxable year, it must establish that it meets the public support test by showing that it is publicly supported on its Schedule A to Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax. Transition rules apply to organizations that have previously received advance rulings." - IRS