Getting non-profit status

Obtaining a 501(c)(3) designation from the IRS to operate as a charitable organization is no easy task. Just ask George Haigh, secretary of the Platte Valley Healthcare Project (PVHP), which is raising funds to build the North Platte Valley Medical Center in Saratoga.

“In our case, all of the pieces of the puzzle had to be in place before we could move forward,” Haigh said. “Our entire project was in a holding pattern because our USDA Rural Communities Development Loan requires our company to operate as a 501(c)(3) public charity.”

According to Haigh, the first thing the community organizers had to do was form a corporation. With the help of Cheyenne attorney Greg Dyekman, the group developed articles of incorporation, created by-laws and formed an operating board, and PVHP was incorporated in June 2019.

With that accomplished, Haigh said, the hard work could begin.

“I don’t know how many pages IRS form 1023 is,” he said, “but it’s long.”

Haigh said he and PVHP Chairman Will Faust worked many hours writing pages of supporting information to prove to the IRS the importance of the North Platte Valley Medical Center to the region.

“Basically, the IRS wants to know everything possible about the project and why it needs to operate as a public non-profit organization.”

The process is difficult, he said, but the goal is worth achieving: contributors to a 501(c)(3) are eligible to deduct contributions from their federal income taxes.

The waiting was the hard part. When the promised “Letter of Determination” was not forthcoming, Haigh said he contacted the IRS and learned that it had been delayed. Although he knew that would be disappointing to the board, he also learned that there was a process to request expedited processing of the application.

“In that process, I explained to the IRS that not only does the safety of our communities depend on this hospital but that architects, engineers and construction contractors’ work agreements, as well as project scheduling and ordering of building materials, cannot move forward until our USDA loan application is approved,” he said. “Ultimately, USDA approval required confirmation of the IRS 501(c)(3) designation.”

Five days later, PVHP learned it had been approved for expedited processing, and on January 27, it received a letter confirming the 501(c)(3.

With PVHP’s IRS status secured, the Wyoming division of the USDA is moving forward on the loan application.

“Lorraine Werner and her team have visited our site in Saratoga and are nearing completion of the USDA Loan application and we are hoping to receive construction loan approval soon,” Haigh said.

PVHP expects to break ground for the North Platte Valley Medical Center this spring, with completion expected in the fall of 2021.