Panhel loses tax-exempt status

The Panhellenic Council is no longer considered a nonprofit organization by the Internal Revenue Service.

According to the IRS, Panhel lost its tax exempt status as a 501( c )(4) nonprofit organization. According to GuideStar, an online database of records and tax information for nonprofit organizations, “This organization’s exempt status was automatically revoked by the IRS for failure to file a Form 990, 990-EZ, 990-N, or 990-PF for 3 consecutive years.”

On behalf of the Panhellenic Council, College junior and Vice President of Finance and Correspondence Alyssa Bonnell issued the following statement: “There are a number of reasons why an incorporation’s tax status may change. For the Panhellenic Association, it is a matter of re-filing a form with the IRS to reaffirm our tax-exempt status. We anticipate being fully reinstated within the next few months.”

Panhel declined further comment — including on what this loss of tax-exempt status means for the organization.

Director of the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life Scott Reikofski said in an email, “Panhellenic Council’s nonprofit status was impacted because officers were delayed in filing necessary yearly paperwork with the IRS. The forms are being completed to have the status reinstated.”

Panhel was originally classified as a 501( c )(4) organization, which the IRS website describes as applying to “civic leagues, social welfare organizations, and local associations of employees.”

The tax exemption was automatically revoked on June 15, 2010 and was posted on the IRS website on July 13, 2011. According to The New York Times, 275,000 nonprofits nationwide lost this status with the IRS in the summer of 2011.

This is because many were unaware of the changes that came with the passing of the Pension Protection Act in 2006 — all nonprofits are now required to file with the IRS, no longer only those with an annual revenue of $25,000 or more.

Penn’s other two Greek governing councils have slightly different statuses in the eyes of the IRS. According to College junior and Interfraternity Council Treasurer James Falzone, IFC is classified as a 501( c )(3) nonprofit, which according to the IRS applies to groups such as charitable, religious and educational organizations.

College sophomore and Multicultural Greek Council President Jonathan Paz said that MGC is an extension of OFSL, so it does not have its own nonprofit status. “In other words, we are a standing council but not an entity independent of Penn, hence why we are not 501( c )(3)-recognized, as an umbrella organization. Our independent organizations are recognized with their own non-profit status,” Paz said in an email.

Data from the IRS also shows that Penn’s Panhellenic Council is not the only one to lose this tax exempt status. The Panhellenic organizations of six other colleges are listed on the IRS as having lost their tax exempt status, although they are all classified differently as 501( c )(7) organizations, which the IRS describes as encompassing “social and recreational clubs.”

However, Executive Director of the National Panhellenic Conference Nicki Meneley said in an email, “Very few of our College Panhellenics are incorporated so I can tell you that this is not a trend.”

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