NORTHEAST FLORIDA JEWISH LIFE
BEQUESTIONS WITH KELLIE SMITH The pandemic’s devastating financial impact on low-income communities has created an increased strain on nonprofit resources as charities stretch their dollars to serve more people. Some long-established charitable organizations have directly responded to the pandemBy Kellie Smith, Jewish ic by starting their own Federation & Foundation of emergency Covid-19 proNortheast Florida grams, such as food pantries expanding their services to meet the greater need. Given “Why is year-end charithis year’s unprecedented table giving so important circumstances, you may want this year?” to give extra consideration when deciding where your Year-end giving may redonations will have the quire some additional plangreatest impact. Doing things ning in 2020, and now is at the last minute is stressthe time to decide who will ful – and we’ve already had be receiving your charitable plenty of stress this year. No contributions. The global matter how much you give, Covid-19 pandemic has know that every gift counts greatly affected charitable or- and all gifts are needed more ganizations in various ways, than ever. so it is especially important that you don’t wait until the While laws have shifted last minute. There is a bigger around Required Minitax deduction for charitable mum Distributions (RMD) donations in 2020. and Qualified CharitaLUNCH AND LEARNS, cont. from pg. 11
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ble Distributions (QCD) requirements, 2020 also has ushered in many other changes to tax law in relation to charitable giving. The COVID-19 pandemic and resulting CARES Act, the $2.2 trillion economic stimulus bill passed in March, made some modifications that are intended to incentivize Americans to give. The CARES Act allows individuals and corporations to deduct a higher percentage of income for charitable donations, so you can give more and save more on taxes. This new tax rule applies only to the year 2020, and there are certain guidelines, so you should consult your tax advisor for details. The CARES Act allows you to deduct up to 100 percent of your gross adjusted income for people who itemize deductions. Normally, this deduction is limited to 60 percent of adjusted gross income. Meanwhile, corporations can deduct up to
25 percent — up from 10 percent — of their taxable income if used for charitable giving. In addition, thanks to the CARES Act, for those who don’t itemize their deductions, there’s a new “universal deduction” that allows for a charitable deduction of up to $300 per person. These new benefits pertain only to cash donations. Property and other physical assets don’t qualify. In short, end of year giving is more important than ever. Decide which causes are most meaningful to you, give what you can, take advantage of the incentives and focus your contributions to make the maximum impact. This column is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal, tax or financial advice. When considering gift planning strategies, you should always consult with your own legal and tax advisors.
Reed finds the programs to be “very informative, in a good lives. We are also truly appreciative all of our sponsors and communal setting,” and sponsor Jim Richman considers hosts, who are too many to mention here, that have helped them to be “an invaluable resource to our community.” to make these programs possible. The recent challenges of COVID-19 have not deterred Mazel tov to Rabbi Feigenbaum and on his persistence our Lunch and Learns, which are currently broadcast on and devotion in translating his vision into a wonderful ZOOM, and simultaneously held in person at the JCA for reality for seven years in Jacksonville! We are extremely socially distanced lunches. For more information, please grateful to his tireless efforts each month to provide a contact Rabbi Feigenbaum at rabbifeigenbaum@etzchaim.org. delightful oasis of meaning and inspiration in our daily
