FAKE CHARITIES ARE ON THE LIST.
Groups masquerading as charitable organizations to solicit donations from generous-minded individuals are among the twelve cons named in the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) ‘Dirty Dozen,’ a list of common charity scams targeting taxpayers.
Americans tend to be a generous bunch. During 2015, they gave more than $373 billion to charities, setting a record for the second year in a row, according to GivingUSA.org. People gave to all sorts of organizations including:
- Religion ($119.30 billion)
- Education ($57.48 billion)
- Human Services ($45.21 billion)
- Foundations ($42.26 billion)
- Health ($29.81 billion)
- Public-Society Benefit ($26.95 billion)
- Arts/Culture/Humanities ($17.07 billion)
- International Affairs ($15.75 billion)
- Environment/Animals ($10.68 billion)
Millions more may have gone to groups pretending to be charities. The IRS offered some recommendations for avoiding scams. Before you give, get the exact name of the charity. Many fake charities use names that sound similar to those of legitimate charities.
Also, request the charity’s employer identification number and use the IRS’s Exempt Organizations Select Check search tool to review the organization’s tax status and filings. (While you’re at it, you may want to review how much the charity spends on fundraising versus programs to confirm it is spending donations judiciously.)
Once you’ve done your homework, don’t give cash. Making your donation by check or credit card provides a record for tax purposes and is more secure.
Finally, no matter how kind a charity’s representative seems on the phone or in person, do not give him or her personal financial information or other important identification data, like your Social Security number.
Weekly Focus – Think About It
“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.”
— C. S. Lewis, British novelist
Sources:
https://www.irs.gov/uac/Newsroom/Fake-Charities-Are-a-Problem-and-on-the-IRS-Dirty-Dozen-List-of-Tax-Scams-for-2016-1
http://givingusa.org/giving-usa-2016/
http://www.consumerreports.org/charitable-donations/best-and-worst-charities-for-your-donations/ http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/c/cslewis119176.html?src=t_motivational
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