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Responsibilities under Group Ruling Diocesan officials who compile OCD information to send to the OCD publisher are responsible for the accuracy of such information. They must ensure that only qualified organizations are listed, that organizations are listed under their correct legal names, that organizations that cease to qualify are deleted promptly, and that newly- qualified organizations are listed as soon as possible. EXPLANATION 1. Exemption from Federal Income Tax. The latest ruling reaffirms the exemption from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of "the agencies and instrumentalities and educational, charitable, and religious institutions operated, supervised or controlled by or in connection with the Roman Catholic Church in the United States, its territories or possessions appearing in the Official Catholic Directory for 2008" (with the exception of organizations designated in the OCD with an asterisk and foreign organizations). Verification of Exemption under Group Ruling, Organizations exempt under the Group Ruling generally are not included in IRS Publication 78, IRS Exempt Organization Business Master File (°EOBMF or online databases that are derived from these sources. This does not mean that organizations included in the Group Ruling are not tax-exempt, that contributions to them are not deductible, or that they are not eligible for grant funding from private foundations. Organizations included in the Group Ruling that encounter difficulties verifying their tax-exempt status under the Group Ruling should refer donors, including private foundations, to IRS Publication 4573, Group Exemptions, available on the IRS website at www.irs.eov. Publication 4573 explains that IRS does not determine which organizations are included in a group exemption, explains that exemption under a group ruling is verified by reference to the official subordinate listing (e.g., the Official Catholic Directory), and clarifies that it is not necessary for an organization included in a group exemption to be listed in Publication 78 or the EOBMF. IRS no longer provides letters verifying inclusion in the group rulings. 2. Public Charity Status. The latest Group Ruling affirms that organizations included in the OCD are not private foundations under section 509(x) of the Code. Newly-created or newly-affiliated organizations must establish that they are not private foundations as a condition of inclusion in the Group Ruling and OCD. Verification of Public Charity Status. The Group Ruling states that organizations covered under its provisions are public charities under section 2