RALEIGH - A state auditor's warning appears to be paying off.

Nearly 900 nonprofit organizations have filed required financial reports with the state since being warned last month about missing their deadlines.

State Auditor Les Merritt says about 200 of the roughly 1800 nonprofits in the state still have not furnished the reports.

Some organizations had incorrectly filed the reports with the state agency that issued the grant they received.

The state budget office can deny money to nonprofits that do not provide financial reports in a timely fashion.

Trisha Lester with the North Carolina Center for Nonprofits says the groups didn't realize they also had to provide it to the state auditor, as called for in a law passed last year.

She says Merritt's latest findings show that the majority of nonprofits want to be in compliance.