Q: A tax-exempt organization is one that the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) has recognized as a charitable organization and has exempted it from the obligation to pay income tax. You can check whether an organization’s tax-exempt status and determine whether your donation would be tax deductible in the following ways:  Search the IRS tax-exempt database. The IRS offers a searchable database so that consumers may check on an organization’s tax-exempt status. You may access the database on the IRS website at: http://apps.irs.gov/app/eos/. Check the IRS’ list of revocations. The IRS offers a searchable list of organizations whose tax-exempt status has recently been revoked. After verifying that an organization has been granted tax-exempt status, check the list to ensure it has not been revoked. You may search the list by visiting: https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/charitable-organizations/revocations-of-501c3-determinations. Many online indexes offer free background and financial information on many nonprofit organizations. These organizations investigate nonprofits to determine how the company spends its money and whether it is a worthwhile investment for consumers. The NCCS is a clearinghouse of data for nonprofit organizations. The center works with government agencies, including the IRS, private organizations, and the scholarly community to develop its databases and provide the public with standard information regarding the activities of various charities. Charitable Choices provides nonprofits a way to promote their charities and organizations through their online index and through their four yearly charity guides. In order to be listed in a Charitable Choices guide, an organization must meet certain standards, including revealing the percentage of funds spent on fundraising and administrative costs and providing certain financial information on a regular basis. You can search Charitable Choices online index at http://www.charitychoices.com. The Charities Review Council provides a searchable index of nonprofits, all of whom have voluntarily met the Council’s accountability standards. You may search the index at http://www.smartgivers.org. Many consumer advocate organizations investigate nonprofits and charities, publish financial information and ratings, and expose scams and fraudulent organizations on their websites. Some reputable organizations that investigate nonprofits and publish their findings, free of charge, include:  GuideStar, which is a well-known and reputable nonprofit organization that gathers and publishes important information about other nonprofits on its website. You may search GuideStar’s nonprofit database at http://www2.guidestar.org/home.aspx. Consumer Reports WebWatch investigates websites claiming to be nonprofits, or that claim to be collecting for and donating to a nonprofit. Consumer Reports publishes its findings on its site in a searchable database, which is located at: http://www.consumerwebwatch.org/non-profit.cfm. The Wise Giving Alliance, which is run by the Better Business Bureau (“BBB”), investigates nonprofits and publishes reviews based upon 23 standards that include  topics such as use of funds, public accountability, and ethical fundraising. The website is located at: http://give.org. Charity Watch is a well-known organization that acts as a charity watchdog, evaluating and rating charities and  publishing the results of its evaluations and in-depth background information in an A to Z listing on its website. You may search the Charity Watch website at: http://www.charitywatch.org/. Charity Navigator is a reputable nonprofit organization that evaluates and rates charities. It publishes its ratings for hundreds of charities and nonprofit organizations on its website at http://www.charitynavigator.org/. A nonprofit's development director is responsible for the fundraising activities of the organization. While these employees will often be biased because it is their job to solicit donations and talk up their organization, you can often get a lot of information from them. Call the nonprofit you are investigating and ask to speak with their fundraiser or development director. Try to set up a time to talk with them face-to-face. If that doesn't work, talk with them over the phone. Ask them about their role within the organization and the success they have been having. Ask them how many grants they apply for each year and how many of those applications are successful. You can also ask for dollar amounts regarding how much money they have asked for and how much they have earned. Asking these types of questions will give you a good idea of an organization's fundraising success.
A: Check the organization’s tax-exempt status. Search nonprofit and charity indexes. Search the National Center for Charitable Statistics (“NCCS”). Search the Charitable Choices’ website. Search Charities Review Council’s website. Consult consumer advocate organizations. Talk with an organization's development director.

Q: After you've delivered your request calmly and kindly, your parents might still say, “No, you absolutely cannot see this movie.” Although at times it might not make any sense why they wouldn’t let you see a movie, trying to understand their reasons might give you a new perspective.  Ask them why they don’t want you to see it, and listen to them carefully. Try to really understand what their points and concerns are. You might be surprised to see how some of them might make sense.  Ask them if they would let you see it when you are older, or not at all, and have them explain why or why not. Oftentimes parents are concerned about sex and nudity, profanity, drugs and violence included in the content of the movie. Ask them if they can see it first, and screen it for you, or if there is a family-friendly version they can have you see. One of the reasons why your parents won’t let you see the movie might be that they think you are not mature enough. Acting more responsibly will show them otherwise, and even if they don’t let you see a movie now, they might change their mind later.  Help with household chores such as washing the car or doing laundry, clean your room, and make your bed regularly. Be nice and respectful to your siblings and parents, and don’t start fights. Be understanding and stay calm even if you don't get your way with certain things. This will show that you are mature enough to handle failure or rejection, and that you are determined. Once you’ve intentionally started behaving better and proved to your parents that you are more mature than they might think, try asking them again after a while.  You can also suggest doing something in return, for instance, helping with the dishes daily or vacuuming the living room for a month, if they let you see this movie. No matter what your parents reply with, you should always learn to respect their decision and act your best. If they do not say “Yes” immediately, it’s very important that you stay calm instead of getting angry or throwing a tantrum. Otherwise, you might ruin your chances of a “Yes” forever.
A:
Empathize with your parents. Ask them to pre-screen it for you. Start acting more mature. Ask them again later. Stay calm and respect their decision.