Antiquarian bookseller Ron Lieberman has urged the IRS to permit a bookseller's job training and experience to be considered for purposes of meeting the "qualified appraiser" requirements in guidance on substantiating deductions for some charitable contributions of property.  MORE »

Bruce Barnett of Book Block LLC has urged the IRS to accept the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America as the recognized appraisal group for the book trade for purposes of meeting the "qualified appraiser" requirements in guidance on substantiating deductions for some charitable contributions of property.  MORE »

Writing on behalf of the New York City Bar Association, Ronni Davidowitz has proposed technical corrections and suggested regulatory action related to new rules affecting the tax treatment of charitable deductions for gifts of fractional interests in tangible personal property imposed by the Pension Protection Act of 2006.  MORE »

The Tax Court has ruled that the sole income beneficiary of a trust is not entitled to a charitable contribution deduction for conservation easements donated by the trust because he failed to show the contribution came from the income portion.  MORE »

The Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006, signed into law on December 20, 2006, includes a provision that will be welcome news to most trustees of charitable remainder trusts. Beginning in 2007, charitable remainder trusts that have unrelated business taxable income will no longer lose their tax-exempt status for the year; rather, an excise tax will be imposed in the amount of unrelated business taxable income itself. While this will be welcome news to most trustees, the new law also creates a trap that is potentially more confiscatory.  MORE »

The Service has ruled privately that an organization that operates a commercial website that sells donated items of personal property with the proceeds given to charities selected by the donors does not qualify for exemption because its primary purpose is providing personal services to donors.  MORE »

The Sixth Circuit of Appeals has affirmed the Tax Court's decision that a couple's contributions of conservation easements to a nonprofit were qualified conservation contributions and, contrary to the Commissioner's opinion, made "exclusively for conservation purposes."  MORE »

For purposes of determining the present value of an annuity, an interest for life or a term of years, or a remainder or a reversionary interest, Revenue Ruling 2007-02 indicates the charitable federal midterm rate under section 7520 for January 2007 is 5.6%; down 0.2% from the December 2006 rate of 5.8% and unchanged from the November 2006 rate of 5.6%. In addition, the deemed rate under section 642(c)(5) for transfers to new pooled income funds during 2007 is 4.8%; up 1.0% from the 2006 deemed rate of 3.8%.  MORE »

In a December 14, 2006 information releasion, the IRS states that individuals and businesses making contributions to charity should keep in mind several important tax law changes made last summer by the Pension Protection Act.  MORE »

The Service has ruled that a proposed judicial modification of charitable remainder unitrust to remove its net income with makeup provision to satisfy the changed circumstances of the trustees rather than to correct a scrivener's error will not qualify as a charitable remainder trust.  MORE »

The Service has ruled privately that a private foundation's indemnification or maintenance of insurance for its director/co-trustees does not constitute an act of self-dealing between the foundation and the managers or the foundation and its related charitable trusts.  MORE »

The Service has ruled privately that an individual beneficiary's disclaimer of her interest in a testamentary trust to a private foundation will be a qualified disclaimer under section 2518 thereby entitling the estate to an estate tax charitable deduction under section 2055.  MORE »

The Service has ruled that, under an individual's proposed charitable lead annuity trust, an annuity paid from the trust to a charitable organization will qualify as a guaranteed annuity and entitle the taxpayer to a gift tax deduction and that no part of the trust's assets will be includable in the individual's gross estate.  MORE »

The IRS has issued interim guidance regarding the application of certain requirements enacted as part of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 that affect supporting organizations, donor advised funds, and private foundations that make grants to supporting organizations.   MORE »

Following passage of the PPA 2006 and the first "Charitable IRA Rollover," the two most significant questions on advisors' minds have been how taxpayers will exclude qualified charitable distributions on their income tax returns and whether or not IRA custodians will be responsible for determining if a distribution is indeed qualified. In this article, UMKC law professor Christopher R. Hoyt shares the answers.  MORE »

The IRS has issued guidance on how charitable contributions made by payroll deduction may meet the requirements of section 170(f)(17) pursuant to the Pension Protection Act of 2006.  MORE »