Most volunteer fire companies and first aid squads in New Jersey run on traditions that go back generations. The bylaws sitting in the corporate book often go back nearly as far. When something finally forces a hard look at the governance documents, whether a tax filing question, a contested officer election, or an IRS letter, the gaps that surface are predictable. The nonprofit and emergency services team at Braslow Legal regularly conducts compliance audits for fire companies, fire districts, and first aid squads across New Jersey, and the same handful of issues come up repeatedly. The good news is that most are fixable before they become a problem.
Start with the Bylaws Themselves
Bylaws written in 1962 and never amended will not match how the organization operates in 2026. They also won’t match the current New Jersey Nonprofit Corporation Act (Title 15A), which has been amended multiple times in the decades since.
A working bylaws review looks at:
- Whether the bylaws reference statutes that have been renumbered or repealed
- Whether quorum requirements are realistic given current active membership
- Whether membership categories (active, life, social, junior) are clearly defined and consistently applied
- Whether amendment procedures actually allow the bylaws to be updated without a herculean effort
- Whether the bylaws conflict with the certificate of incorporation, a separate constitution, or any standing operating procedures
A separate constitution layered on top of bylaws is a common feature of older volunteer organizations. Where the two documents disagree, which is often, the company has effectively no clear rules. Consolidating into a single, current document is usually the cleanest fix.
Officer Elections That Will Hold Up Under Challenge
Contested elections are where bylaws get tested. A poorly run vote can be invalidated, leading to months of internal disruption and, in some cases, litigation.
The recurring problems include unclear nominating procedures, ambiguous distinctions between line officers and administrative officers, missing language about how to fill mid-term vacancies, and quorum thresholds that haven’t been recalculated as membership has shifted. Mail-in and electronic voting provisions are often absent in older bylaws, even though they’re now standard in most organizations.
Meeting minutes are the other half of this. An election held by the book but documented in two sentences of a hand-written log will be hard to defend if a member files a grievance. The records should reflect the nomination, the vote count, and the seating of the new officers.
A Conflict of Interest Policy Is Not Optional
IRS Form 990 asks every filing nonprofit whether the organization has a written conflict of interest policy, whether officers and directors are required to disclose annually, and whether the organization regularly monitors and enforces compliance. Saying no on those questions raises a flag.
A workable policy identifies what counts as a conflict, requires annual written disclosures, sets out recusal procedures when conflicts arise, and creates a record of how the conflict was handled. Vendor relationships involving board members or their family businesses are the most common trouble spots in volunteer organizations. So are insurance contracts placed through a member-owned agency without competitive review.
Adopting a policy is straightforward. Following it consistently is where most organizations slip.
501(c) Status: The Silent Risk
Most New Jersey volunteer fire companies and first aid squads operate under federal tax exemption, typically as 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4) organizations. The most common ways that status gets jeopardized are mechanical, not malicious.
A few items worth verifying:
- That the EIN appears on the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search as currently exempt
- That Form 990, 990-EZ, or 990-N (the e-postcard) has been filed every year, since three consecutive missed filings trigger automatic revocation
- That fundraising activities have been reviewed for Unrelated Business Income Tax exposure
- That no payments to members or their businesses could be characterized as private inurement
- That the organization’s stated charitable purpose still matches its actual activities
Reinstating revoked status is possible but expensive, and the gap in coverage can create complications for donors who claimed deductions during the lapse.
Other Items Worth Auditing
A complete check goes beyond governance documents:
- Charitable registration with the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, required for most organizations soliciting donations above a small threshold
- Annual report filings with the New Jersey Division of Revenue, which keep the corporate entity in good standing
- LOSAP records, including service credit accruals, point totals, and required disclosures
- Document retention policies for meeting minutes, financial records, and personnel files
- Insurance certificates that match current operations, including any pay-per-call or hybrid staffing arrangements
- Whistleblower and document destruction policies, which Form 990 also asks about
These are administrative items that quietly age until something forces the question.
Where a Compliance Audit from Braslow Legal Fits In
A formal audit pulls these threads together in one review. The nonprofit and emergency services attorneys at Braslow Legal regularly work with fire companies, fire districts, first aid squads, and other 501(c) organizations across New Jersey to update bylaws, draft conflict of interest and whistleblower policies, document officer elections, and verify tax-exempt status. The firm offers a complimentary 30-minute consultation to assess the current state of an organization’s governance documents and outline the work needed to close the gaps. Reach out through the firm’s website to schedule one.
