The Nonprofit FAQ

Are there rules about naming a nonprofit?

Bill Brescia wrote to ARNOVA-L (see http://www.arnova.org/listserv.php) from Arkansas in January 2006: My daughter is thinking of starting a not-for-profit organization and asked me a question that I don't know the answer to. Are their limitations to a nonprofits name? I am assuming that a name cannot be something that is already in use. Also, it couldn't be something that is designed to deceive, like Arkansas University. But other than already in use or misleading are there limitations? Putnam Barber, editor of the Nonprofit FAQ (http://www.idealist.org/npofaq) observed: The answer will depend on state law. In Washington, for example, nonprofit corporations cannot have names that end in ", Inc." No-one seems to know why that rule was enacted. The website of the National Association of State Charities Officials (http://www.nasconet.org) has links to the charities regulators of every state. The "Start Up" section of the Nonprofit FAQ (http://www.idealist.org/en/faqcat/21-74) has more. Robert E. Thibault, Staff Writer/Community Coordinator, Management Information Exchange ( www.milanomix.org) Milano, The New School for Management and Urban Policy in New York City, provided some more general links for advice about starting a nonprofit: If you are starting a nonprofit our guide to starting a commuity-based organization (CBO) should have some useful information: http://www.milanomix.org/cbostartup.htm Nolo also has a page on starting a nonprofit: http://www.nolo.com/article.cfm/ObjectID/EA3D3043-9A88-43F5-8DC869639F0F6E77/catID/CE94A6B3-EFB6-4036-8498D5414328FD73/111/262/ART/ Posted 3/3/06 -- PB