What Boards and Executives Need to Know About Tipping and the Public Support Test

This guidance addresses the issue of "tipping" for grantmakers, emphasizing the calculation of the public support test and the importance of avoiding "tipping" grantees. In the nonprofit sector, "tipping" occurs when a corporation, private foundation or major donor makes a substantial gift or grant that jeopardizes a nonprofit's public charity status. This situation is most common for very small or young nonprofits, or when there are outsized grants – whether one-time or spread over multiple years – in relation to the nonprofit's overall size.