As part of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, signed into law on October 3, 2008, Congress has restored and extended the IRA charitable rollover giving incentive through 2009. This popular provision was originally established under the Pension Protection Act of 2006, but had expired at the end of 2007. Here’s how it could benefit you, if you qualify to make such a gift:

• Taxpayers over 70½ years of age must make annual distributions from their IRAs;
• These distributions are included in taxpayers’ adjusted gross income (AGI) and are taxed accordingly;
• The Charitable IRA Rollover provision allows taxpayers to make donations directly from their IRA accounts to qualified charities like American Institute for Economic Research, without including them as part of their AGI.
• This eliminates taxes associated with the mandatory distributions.

• Taxpayers who do not itemize their deductions;
• Itemizing taxpayers who have reached charitable giving limits;
• Taxpayers whose tax deductions decrease as income increases;
• Taxpayers who live in states that do not permit tax deductions for charitable donations.

• The donor must be 70½ years of age or older;
• Rollover gifts may not exceed $100,000;
• Donations may only be made from traditional or Roth IRAs, not from 401(k), 403(b) or other pension plans;
• The rollover must be made directly from the custodian to the benefiting charity, not to the donor;
• The donation may not be deposited into planned giving accounts such as Charitable Remainder Unitrusts or Charitable Gift Annuities.

Click here for a sample letter that you can send to your trustee, agent or broker to make an IRA Charitable Rollover.

If you have any questions about this useful philanthropic tool, please contact:

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , Chief Financial Officer
P.O. Box 1000
250 Division St
Great Barrington, MA 01230