by Mike Bourland
American Football Coaches Foundation
Courtesy: AFCA
Release: 06/01/2005
In previous additions of the Extra Point, we discussed various methods of Planned Giving which can assist The American Football Coaches Foundation® ("The Foundation®") meet its financial requirements. Planned Giving is the structured and pre-planned aspect of donating to charity. It is charitable giving through Wills, Living Trusts, life insurance and other advance planned methods. In the January/February 2005 issue of The Extra Point we discussed the Will and Living Trust, as a Planning Giving Technique. In this issue, we will discuss gifts of appreciated property, another Planned Giving technique. But before doing that let's again review key aspects of The Foundation, its goals and how it accomplishes its goals.
The goals of The Foundation are to provide funding for the education of American football coaches to better serve the public through role modeling and character development for young men and young women and the promotion and enhancement of the coaches' technical skills and coaching capabilities. The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) is a tax exempt trade organization. Contributions to the AFCA do not qualify for an income tax charitable deduction to the donor. The Foundation is a publicly supported, tax-exempt charity. Contributions to The Foundation qualify for an income tax and estate tax charitable deduction to the donor. Revenue generation activities of The Foundation should be structured to maintain its advantageous publicly supported tax exempt charity status.
To meet the requirements of a publicly supported tax exempt charity, The Foundation must receive at least one-third (1/3) of its support from a broad range of donors, which includes AFCA member coaches. That is why your annual contributions are anticipated and crucial to the success of The Foundation. For every dollar given by an AFCA member coach, The Foundation can receive two additional dollars from a larger donor or donor foundation without endangering The Foundation's favorable publicly supported tax exempt status. As you are now familiar with this rule, you can see how every AFCA member coach's personal involvement is important to The Foundation's strategic game plan to solicit and receive contributions from wealthy individuals and their family foundations. With these types of gifts, The Foundation has funds that it can put to work immediately in support of The Foundation's goals.
One way for all individuals to donate to The Foundation is through a gift to The Foundation of cash or appreciated property.
A gift of cash is the simplest - a donor just writes a check and gives it to The Foundation. The donor will receive an income tax charitable deduction limited by 50 percent of the donor's income, thereby reducing the cost to the donor of the gift by the income taxes saved through the charitable deduction.
Another easy way for a donor to make a contribution is by giving The Foundation property that has grown in value since it was acquired. For example, if a donor gives $1,000 of XYZ stock that was purchased many years ago for $100, the $900 capital gain in the stock will pass to The Foundation without income tax to the donor. Interestingly, the donor will receive an income tax charitable deduction for the full $1000 value (limited by 30 percent of the donor's income), even though neither the donor nor The Foundation pays income tax on the stock's appreciation. The Foundation does not pay income tax on the $900 capital gain when it sells the stock because The Foundation is a tax exempt charity. Therefore, the appreciation is never taxed and the cost to the donor of the gift is reduced by the taxes saved from the income tax charitable deduction the donor achieves and the capital gain the donor avoids.
While contributions from wealthy donors are needed, an individual donor's contribution in excess of two percent of total contributions received by The Foundation will not qualify in satisfying The Foundation's one-third public support test. That means that small contributions by a large number of donors are necessary to get the maximum benefit from the larger contributions of a small number of wealthy donors. Every dollar that a member coach contributes, and every dollar that is contributed because of your active support in involving a large segment of your community and school opens the door for maximum benefit from larger donations. The effect is circular: You raise money and awareness, and these contributions allow larger donations from a smaller group of large donors, including wealthy individuals and foundations. The result is the generation of significant revenue to The Foundation to aid the AFCA in achieving its goals.
There is still time to acquire a Bench, Plaque, Capstone, Tile or Brick in the Plaza of InfluenceTM. The Plaza of Influence presents a tremendous method for AFCA member coaches, as well as the general public, to prominently honor a special football coach and to make a contribution to The Foundation. The Plaza of Influence is a stone-lined plaza located at the AFCA facility. For a contribution to The Foundation ranging from $2,000, for a Bench, to $200, for a Brick, you or anyone within your sphere of influence can have an inscription for, as well as a brief salute regarding, a special football coach imprinted on that whichever you acquire. The inscription will honor this special football coach and will be a permanent part of the Plaza of Influence, which is a significant aspect of the AFCA facility. Payment for each item will be treated as a contribution to The Foundation and will be income tax-deductible to the donor.
Will you consider making a gift to The Foundation of cash or appreciated property? Will you also encourage others to do this? Have you acquired (and encouraged others to acquire) a permanent salute in the Plaza of Influence for the special football coach in your (or others) life? Have you planned fall fundraising events? Remember that The Foundation needs participation from every member coach in order to meet its goals.
