Who gets to take the Tax Deduction on the Apollo Commemoratives "donations?"
northcoin
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@ Tax Accountants:
A portion of the funds being paid for the new Apollo Commemoratives is being "donated" to worthy causes. Same for the PCGS grading fees. Any reason this would not be treated the same as when you purchase a ticket to a charity dinner and there is a demarcation as to value received and amount of the donation? Does it make any difference that both the Mint and PCGS are implying in their promotional materials that they are making the donation?
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OK, since the Tax Accountants have not chimed in, anyone able to speak with authority?
Just an ignorant thought -- Your analogy should be correct. The original purchaser of the charity dinner takes the donation as a deduction from their personal taxes (ignoring corporations for now). Same with any commemorative coin where part of the price is donated to a certified tax-exempt organization. This would apply only to the original purchaser of the coin, just as it would to the original purchaser of the charity meal.
Just a thought....
I seem to recall a similar discussion on this subject quite a few years back. I believe the answer is that the buyer is not entitled to take any tax deduction but can't recall why. We do need a tax accountant with experience in this issue ... that may be a hard person to find.
I may pick up a couple based on the conclusion of this discussion.....
It's not a donation, it's a surcharge that passes through the Mint's accounts. Monies are paid only after all Mint costs are covered. Several commems recently (Girl Scouts and Boys Town) have not covered costs and there was nothing paid.
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Yes, now I seem to remember that was the reason for no tax deduction that was discussed several years ago.
I think that another problem is that the US Mint is not itself a qualified organization. IRS Publication 526 states "You can deduct your contributions only if you make them to a qualified organization." I suspect it is the Mint that gets to take the deduction once it sends any surcharge funds to the Smithsonian and other foundations.
You could always arbitrarily claim something, and dare them to disagree
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one part of government gets to take a tax deduction for screwing a charity out of a donation. Sounds about right
You can not take a deduction if you get something in return. If the value of what you get is less than the amount donated, you can take the deduction for the difference. Example would be a donation to PBS of $50, but you get a "premium" of a set of DVDs of their programs worth $35. You got $35 of value back and can only take a deduction of $15. Not a CPA, but an attorney.
If no one else will claim the right to take the deduction on all the coins then I will. Where's my calculator....
As someone has said, the buyers can't take the deduction for whatever reason. It was discussed definitively somewhere at some point.
Also, the surcharge paymemt to the organization only kicks in once the mint's costs have been covered.
All kidding aside, will it really matter when the majority of the coins may likely be a tax loss to the collectors that purchased them after they sell them? No different than much of the other Mint product. Even if one, hypothetically, could take the charitable deduction, it would likely then reduce the cost basis and then simply reduce that loss after sale. Resulting in not much of a “net” difference anyway to many people? No accounting advice here- just thinking out loud.
As always, just my 2 cents.
Wondercoin.