The Internal Revenue Service has asked the University of Georgia to provide financial records on income, according to the Athens Banner-Herald.
The requested records, according to information the newspaper obtained under Georgia’s Open Records Act, includes income from activities unrelated to the state university’s primary mission, including the operation of golf courses, food services, catering, parking and the Georgia Center for Continuing Education. The university could be required to pay taxes on all income generated by those activities.
In 2008, the IRS initiated the first phase of a program in which more than 300 colleges and universities were asked for details about costs and income. The tax agency later called for more information on the finances of 30 public and private schools from the original survey group plus some that did not respond to the first survey or failed to answer all the questions.
"The University of Georgia has been selected for large-case examination," according to a Sept. 12 letter from the IRS.
"In this overview, please describe any activities attributable to the organization's controlled taxable subsidiaries and related exempt organizations and their relationship to the University,” the letter said.
According to the Athens newspaper, the follow-up questions concerned executive compensation and unrelated business income. The IRS asked if UGA had made money operating hotels, golf courses, bookstores, parking lots and TV or radio stations.
In the first phase of the program, UGA reported five university-related public charities. The UGA Research Foundation funds research at the university. The UGA Athletic Association oversees the school’s intercollegiate sports program. The University of Georgia Foundation and the Arch Foundation raise money for scholarships. The UGA Real Estate Foundation is a nonprofit corporation that secures construction financing for projects like student housing, labs and parking decks.
The second phase includes years before 2008.
For example, UGA reported no unrelated business income in 2006 from parking, food services and the UGA bookstore, according to the Banner-Herald. UGA reported it took in $456,147 at its golf course that year but had $818,246 in expenses.
About the Author
The Latest
Featured
