In Saturday’s (12/7) Progress-Index (Petersburg, Va.), Leah Small reports, “The Petersburg Symphony Orchestra’s budget has decreased by $20,000 in the last two years. It is a drop that symphony president Mark Phillips mostly blames on Internal Revenue Service’s failure to quickly reinstate the group’s nonprofit status…. Phillips said that the group worked with a budget of about $75,000 two years ago.…” Last spring the orchestra was notified that its 501(c)3 status was revoked, and that “if it started the process of reinstating its status with the IRS immediately, it would only take three months. The application was started immediately, but the orchestra is still waiting after a recent request to expedite their application was denied.” The orchestra “can still legally accept donations because it is recognized by the state as a nonprofit [but] isn’t receiving critical funding—such as grants—for a program meant to provide future musicians to fill the chairs.” Phillips is hoping that upcoming concerts, including a cabaret-style benefit concert in February at Virginia State University, “can help make up some of the funds.… Despite the hardships, Phillips said that he feels hopeful for the orchestra’s future. ‘I know that we can weather the storm,’ he said.”
Posted December 9, 2013
