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November 03, 2007

Senator Proposes New Approach on IRA GIfts

Yet another bill has been introduced in Congress to extend a law that allows people to donate money from their individual retirement accounts to charity tax free—in this case, for two years.

Sen. Pat Roberts, Republican of Kansas, proposed the extension,
S. 2264, this week, saying “this provision has proved to be an important incentive to encourage small donors to give.”

The existing law — which allows people at age 70-1/2 to donate up to $100,000 a year from their IRA accounts without incurring income tax — expires at the end of this year.

Senator Roberts’ bill joins three others: the major tax-overhaul bill introduced in October, H.R. 3970, which would extend the IRA incentive for one year; the Charitable Tax Relief Act of 2007, H.R. 3596, which would extend it permanently; and the Public Good IRA Rollover Act, H.R. 1419 and S. 819, which would make the incentive permanent, remove the $100,000 cap, and expand the types of organizations that qualify for the IRA donations.

In introducing his bill, Senator Roberts said many charitable organizations in Kansas had told him that “donors are making good use of this tax relief provision.”

“At the University of Kansas, for example, this provision helped generate 94 gifts totaling more than $2.8-million,” he added.

— Suzanne Perry

Saturday November 3, 2007 | Permalink

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