The Infrastructure Bill … Nothing to See Here for Charities

Late last Friday, with bipartisan support, the House of Representatives passed the “Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act” (HR 3684). What is the impact on charitable gift planning and year end giving? Not much. While there is much good for the country expected from it, the bill includes almost no tax changes, only one of which is even tangentially related to charitable giving: a provision requiring additional reporting for cryptocurrency transactions beginning in 2024.

Tax Implications of the Infrastructure Bills: Keep Calm and Carry On

At best, the current status of tax legislation is confused. There are two major pieces of legislation making their way through the process. Although they are distinctly separate bills, they are inextricably linked to one another. Each proposes different changes to tax law, and, even worse, the word “infrastructure” has been used, loosely, to describe both of them. Making matters even more confusing, the path forward in the U.S. Senate involves two procedural rules that are anything but intuitive. Confusion is never good for donors, so let’s break it down… but if you’d rather duck the policy wonk stuff, skip to the end for some thoughts about communicating with donors this year-end.

It’s Tax Season, and Timing Is Everything This Year

Everyone knows by now that the IRS has extended the filing deadlines for 2020 federal income tax returns for individual taxpayers; the normal deadline of April 15 has been extended to May 17, giving all of us an extra month. But less widely known is that the federal tax filing deadline for trust tax returns has not been extended.

$1.9 Trillion American Rescue Plan Will Affect Giving Only Indirectly

Last week, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan (ARP), a $1.9 trillion package of initiatives aimed at facilitating the U.S.’s recovery from the health and economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The ARP provides economic assistance to individuals in a variety of ways, primarily to Americans making less than $75,000/year (or couples making less than $150,000/year). It also extends the Paycheck Protection Program for businesses, creates block grants to help schools reopen and expand childcare, provides aid to state and local government, and much more.