Charitable Nonprofits Problem

In my initial essay, I described nonprofits (specifically charitable nonprofits) as having the ultimate purpose of solving problems, although most are unsuccessful in this task. This was a misguided attempt on my part to pin down an entire sector that I had never thought about in the abstract before. I do believe that there are many nonprofits that are actively working toward solving society’s problems, but there are also nonprofits that are only trying to mitigate problems such as a soup kitchen, try to educate such as a nonprofit school, and try to improve the quality of life such as a symphony. The sector is incredibly vast, making it difficult to describe it as a whole.
Considering how vast and varied the nonprofit sector is, it is necessary

to define what organizations fall under this title. The IRS states that “nonprofit status is a state law concept” , but trying to reconcile all 50 states’ different definitions of nonprofits into one would be impossible. Nonprofits could include any organization that operates under the non-distribution constraint, keeping any profits within the organization rather than distributing them to shareholders. However, it is my understanding that despite the IRS’s opinion, most people use the term “nonprofit” to refer to organizations that fall under the IRS 501(c)3 determination and for that reason and for the sake of accuracy, I will use the word nonprofit to refer only to 501(c)3 organizations. In addition to the non-distribution constraint and other restrictions, 501(c)3 organizations must have at least one “exempt purpose,” outlined by the IRS. Although these exempt purposes are varied, they can all easily fall under the IRS’s definition of a charitable purpose: to benefit the public interest. This is the ultimate purpose of all nonprofit organizations, while the non-distribution constraint simply exists to protect this purpose by deterring the influence of private interests.
Of course, the role that the nonprofit sector plays in society is much larger than the purpose they intend to have. The nonprofit sector responds to the failures of the other two sectors, it improves the quality of life, it innovates, and it does so much more. Like De Tocqueville, I believe the sector arose out of individuals who realized their acts of charity would have more impact if they were combined with others, organized, and led by those with relevant expertise. This loose framework has led to sharply different methods used by nonprofits today to achieve their goals: education, spirituality, relief, advocacy, and more. Just about any theory of the role that nonprofits play is probably true due to the fact that the sector is so immense and diverse. The sector has morphed over time to meet the needs and wants of people and will continue to adapt in the future. In a sense it fills the gaps left by the other two sectors, but more importantly it is the sector’s perpetual response to the public interest that defines the nonprofit sector and its role in society.