The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, signed into law on December 22, 2017 significantly raised the Standard Deduction. Raising the standard deduction was intended to help simplify the tax code by encouraging taxpayers not to itemize deductions. That was great for taxpayers, but it doesn’t bode well for non-profits.

Then came along the CARES Act in 2020. That legislation didn't change the standard deduction, but it did allow most taxpayers to take "above the line" deductions for up to $300 in charitable contributions made during 2020.

The CARES Act expires at midnight today. So 2021 is going to be another challenging year for fundraising.

A representative from the Arizona Communities Foundation, speaking at a recent meeting, shared three strategies to help your non-profit mitigate the consequences of the new tax law.

The first – encourage your donors to donate stock instead of cash.

The second – encourage donors age 70-1/2 and over to donate their required annual IRA distributions.

The third? Encourage current donors to subscribe to a monthly automatic donation program.

Questions? Let us know. We're here to help.