Certified Corporations

A new class of corporation

Certified Corporations are a new type of corporation which uses the power of business to solve social and environmental problems. Corps are unlike traditional businesses because they:

· Meet comprehensive and transparent social and environmental performance standards

· Meet higher legal accountability standards

· Build business constituency for good business

How are companies Certified and Audited as Corporations?

1) To become a Corp, each company must complete a Survey Review with a B Lab staff member to make sure that all answers accurately reflect the intention of the B Ratings System.

2) Adopt the Corporation Legal Framework to bake the mission of the company into its legal DNA.

3) Sign a Term Sheet that makes your certification official.

4) When a company becomes certified, they must submit documentation for approximately 20% of their answers to the B Survey.

5) 10% of B Corporations are audited every year - So in their two-year term, all B Corporations have a one in five chance of being audited. In an audit, B Corporations are asked to validate and prove each of their answers on the B Ratings System and their compliance with the B Corp Legal Framework. Typically, the audit results in a score adjustment. If the score falls below the passing grade of 80, B Lab auditors provide a 90 day cure period to cure with as well as improvement recommendations. If the audit reveals that a company has filled out the B Survey has intentionally misrepresented aspects of their business, the company's B Corporation Certification is publicly revoked.

6) Lastly, all B Corporations are required to submit a copy of their company's governing documents amended with the B Corp Legal Framework.

Are there any tax incentives?

There is currently only one tax incentive available. The City of Philadelphia allows certified B Corporations to qualify for a $4,000 tax break as a way to reward companies engaging in sustainable business practices. Under current rules only 25 companies will be able to receive the tax credit, although the city may expand the program in the future. Look for the trend of tax incentives to increase as B Corporations become more popular.

The following states have already passed B Corporation Legislation: Hawaii, Virginia, Maryland, Vermont & New Jersey. And, the following have B Corporation Legislation in the works: Colorado, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, California & Michigan

Colorado Annual Periodic Reports

Change in Notification for Colorado Annual Periodic Reports Starting January 1, 2012 e-mail notification will be the only method of receiving notices of Periodic Report due dates for an entity, renewal due dates for a trade name or trademark registration, or other changes to a record. You are strongly encouraged to sign up for e-mail notification if you would like to receive these notices. Conduct a business search for your company name. After you find your company click on the link near the bottom that states “Subscribe to E-mail Notification Regarding this Record” and follow the instructions. If you do not have a computer or e-mail address, then we recommend maintaining a calendar in order to remember the report requirement. If you have signed up for the Colorado Business Division’s e-mail notification service, an e-mail notice that a Periodic Report is due will be sent at the beginning of the three-month period for filing the Periodic Report on time. The notice will indicate the last day for filing the Periodic Report on time and will provide instructions for filing the report through the Colorado Secretary of State’s website. The Colorado Secretary of State will continue to mail postcard notices to indicate a Periodic Report is due until January 1, 2012.