In these long “dog days” of summer it is difficult to contemplate year-end – much less year-end tax planning – but given we are five months from December 31, let’s do it anyway. Starting your tax planning early allows you to take advantage of various tax-saving opportunities that can positively impact your financial situation. Here […]

People say it every December and it continues to be true: This past year went by so fast! It’s hard to believe we are approaching another 12/31 and thinking once again about how to reduce taxes while supporting your favorite charities (like Duke!) before the tax year ends. Here are some ideas: Donating publicly traded […]

Beginning in 2023, the Secure Act 2.0 allows taxpayers 70 ½ or older to establish a charitable gift annuity with a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) from their individual retirement account (IRA). With a charitable gift annuity, a donor makes a gift to a public charity—like Duke—in exchange for  fixed, lifetime payments. While taxpayers have established […]

President Biden recently signed into law the Secure Act 2.0. Among other things, this new law allows taxpayers to establish a charitable gift annuity with a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) from their individual retirement account (IRA), starting in 2023. With a charitable gift annuity, a donor makes a gift to a public charity (like Duke!) […]

Last month, the Internal Revenue Service announced its annual inflation adjustments for tax year 2023. In general, values have risen by about 7%. Notable changes include increases in: Standard deductions Marginal tax rates Unified gift and estate tax exemptions Annual gift tax exclusions Learn more about these and other tax changes by visiting www.irs.gov, and […]

As you’ve likely read in the headlines recently, interest rates are trending upward in response to rising inflation. If your financial plans include a philanthropic component (or you would like them to), you may have wondered how higher interest rates affect charitable planning. Each month, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) publishes a charitable discount rate […]

The rules that govern donor advised funds (DAFs) have always been a topic of conversation among lawmakers, and there have been many proposed changes over the years. The most recent effort is the Accelerating Charitable Efforts (ACE) Act introduced in June 2021 by Senators Grassley (R-IA) and King (I-ME). The stated purpose of the ACE Act […]

Duke University receives various types of charitable gifts from alumni and friends each year and the tax deduction rules for these vary widely. Duke is a public charity so gifts receive the highest deduction limits allowed by law. This post will address the two gift categories: current or deferred. The most common type of current […]

In our first post, we considered the potential impact of several of President-elect Joe Biden’s proposed tax measures on charitable giving, focusing on proposals related to revenue earned by a taxpayer:  income and capital gain taxes. Today’s post focuses on Biden’s proposals that signal changes to the taxes imposed when an individual transfers wealth to […]

Prior to the election in November 2020, former Vice President Joe Biden released a series of tax reform measures he would pursue if elected. At the time this post is being written, President Donald Trump continues to challenge the results of the election in several states, and control of the U.S. Senate will come down […]