The Internal Revenue Service has determined that The JOLT News Organization (JNO) has qualified as 501(c)(3) charitable organization, according to a letter we received yesterday.
This letter further specifies that any contribution made to our nonprofit organization since September 28, 2021 is now tax deductible.
“This is excellent news; it means that our little experiment in democracy will be recognized by more local people and institutions,” according to Danny Stusser, publisher of The JOLT, in a message to the organization’s board of directors. “It qualifies us for discounts on some technology services (e.g., email) that we desperately need. And it gives us license to approach foundations that previously told us to wait,” he added.
According to the Institute for Nonprofit News, there are some 400 nonprofit news organizations in the United States, of which the JNO is a member. Of these, about 150 focus on local news, like The JOLT. The others serve national or international audiences and focus on the environment, education, healthcare, or religious interests.
For the past 19 months, the Center for Business & Innovation (CB&I) has served as the fiscal sponsor for the JNO. The CB&I is a separate 501(c)(3) organization related to the Thurston Economic Development Council.
Contributions made through The JOLT’s “DONATE” button or otherwise processed through Donorbox have flowed to us through the CB&I, which specified that it would “facilitate sponsorships and donations to continue JOLT’s mission to improve the lives of people who live in Thurston County by providing information and forums for discussion.” As of today, contributions go directly to the JNO.
The JOLT News Organization is based in Thurston County and maintains an address in Tumwater. Our staff of five reporters, seven columnists and two editors have published some 3,000 original news, features and event listings focused on Thurston County, Washington, since we began publishing in May 2020.
6 comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here
SPSNHB
Congratulations! Thanks for the good work you do.
D. M. Sherman
Wednesday, April 5, 2023 Report this
SheriB
Congratulations, this is incredibly exciting news!
I absolutely love the JOLT, and appreciate all of the hard work that goes into it.
Wednesday, April 5, 2023 Report this
KatAshe
Congratulations on receiving your official non profit status. It’s well deserved.
Thursday, April 6, 2023 Report this
MartyKenney
Congratulations! I love reading the JOLT, it gives me hope in our city and democracy.
Thursday, April 6, 2023 Report this
DeaneTR
Congrats! Great Job... Please consider entering Daily Jolt information at FreeWill.com
It's a service that makes it so it take less than 1/2 hour to write your will and if they have your information people can simply click a box that will gift a portion or all of their estate to your organization at the time of their passing.
FreeWill.com has already ensured $7.5 billion has been donated to charity and we all know how easy it is to procrastinate on will writing, so the service they offer is vital to ensuring what we leave behind doesn't just get taken by the state but continues to work for us after we're gone.
Friday, April 7, 2023 Report this
Callie
Congratulations. It's important
Monday, April 10, 2023 Report this