Article
2026 Not-for-profit essentials: Insights to guide your year ahead
Jan. 16, 2026 · Authored by Mary Antonetti, Emina Cresswell, Ashlee Lent, Qi Wen Liang, Morgan Mincy and Ryan Woods
A look at the key learnings and takeaways from our recent year‑end webinars to guide your year.
Looking ahead
As the calendar flips from December to January, not-for-profit organizations have a natural opportunity to take stock of key developments and consider what the year ahead may bring. Needless to say, keeping up with the changes across accounting, auditing and tax is essential as not-for-profits strive to stay prepared and address potential issues before they escalate.
With this in mind, Baker Tilly recently hosted a pair of webinars featuring updates on these three critical areas.
Year-end 2025 accounting and audit updates for not-for-profit organizations
Key topic 1: Cybersecurity, incident response and AI risk
What not-for-profit leaders need to know: Not-for-profit leaders should view AI risk as enterprise-wide issues that demand proactive governance, not just IT controls. Leaders should also understand how AI tools are being used across the organization, what data can be put into AI tools and how those uses align with risk tolerance and regulatory requirements.
As cyber insurance coverage tightens, claims scrutiny increases, and cyber threats grow more sophisticated – often fueled by AI-enabled phishing, impersonation and ransomware, organizations must have clearly documented and tested incident response plans that define decision-making authority, communication protocols and recovery steps. Board and executives should ensure their cybersecurity posture, controls and training efforts are defensible against modern-day attacks, recognizing that preparation, governance and supporting tools are critical to minimizing disruption and reputational harm when incidents occur.
Key topic 2: Financial reporting hot topics
What not-for-profit leaders need to know: Specific accounting topics have become increasingly prevalent during times of uncertainty and have unique accounting implications that not-for-profit leaders should be aware of. First, related party transactions require more detailed disclosures and enhanced controls surrounding these transactions may be necessary, as many may be uniquely structured. Second, management’s assessment of an organization’s ability to continue as a going concern is required annually. It is important that management documents the assessment thoroughly to support conclusions, which may be affected by debt covenants, covenant violations, liquidity and availability of financial assets, or other pending risks and uncertainties. Lastly, zero-interest or below-market-rate loans are subject to unique requirements for calculating imputed interest and recognition of contribution revenue.
