How to Give: Planned and Major Giving

Your Choice of Ways to Give

As you know, you can participate in the Annual Benefit, in several ways. In fact, for the coming benefit, you can register right now.

However, you may want to do even more. If so, know that this information is only a convenient guide to some choices that are available to you, to help the ministry of American Catholic Press (ACP). This online guide does not discuss all relevant tax and/or legal considerations that may apply to your situation. ACP encourges you to consult your tax advisor or attorney to make sure that your gift plans match your own needs.

Cash

You can donate cash in a lump sum. Alternatively, you can make cash donations as pledged, quarterly or monthly. If you wish, we can set up an automatic donation, made directly from your credit card, on a regular basis. In accord with your plans, we can also set up an automatic charge directly to your bank account, on a similar, recurring basis.

Your contribution to ACP is tax deductible in the year in which it is paid. (As you may know, your deduction for the current year is limited to 50% of your adjusted gross income. Any cash donation in excess of 50% of your adjusted gross income can be treated as a carry-forward deduction, to be used up in the following five years.)

To encourage charitable giving, many employers offer matching gifts. You may wish to check with your Human Resources Department at work, to see, for example, if you can double your donation and do twice as much good.

Appreciated Property

The most common form of appreciated property given to charities is marketable securities: stocks, bonds, or shares in a mutual fund. If you give appreciated securities to ACP, you can claim a deduction for the full fair market value of the securities on the day your gift is made, up to 30% of your adjusted gross income. Again, by this means, you can increase the value of your donation. Although an alternative minimum tax may be applicable, you pay no capital gains tax on the appreciation of your securities. In this way, you also save on taxes.

Bequests

This is a common method of support. ACP is especially grateful to those who have remembered our work in this way. As you wish, you may specify a given sum or a percentage of your beneficiary estate, as you think best. You can also name ACP as a contingent beneficiary if your heirs predecease you. For estate tax purposes, the value of your bequest to ACP is fully deductible.

We have three brochures to help you make a bequest: Giving beyond Living, How to Make a Will that Works and How to Put American Catholic Press in Your Will. You can request these brochures from us at acp@acpress.org or (708) 331-5485.

Gift of Residence with Retained Life Interest

In this case, you donate to ACP your personal residence, farm, cottage, condominium, or a partial interest in such property. At the same time, you retain a life interest for yourself or for your spouse and yourself. You continue to live at your home and maintain the property, as you would anyway.

Such a gift can have several advantages for you, for both income tax and estate tax. For one thing, you receive a charitable deduction in the year you donate the property to ACP. For another advantage, for estate tax purposes, the property is removed from your taxable estate. When both you and your spouse are deceased, the property passes to ACP directly.

Life Insurance

When you make a gift of a whole life policy that is fully paid, your charitable deduction is measured by the policy's replacement cost or your cost basis, whichever is less. If the policy is not fully paid, your deduction is approximately its cash surrender value; the deduction, however, cannot exceed your cost basis.

Normally, you can deduct future payments on a policy named to ACP as the owner and beneficiary.

If you want to guarantee a major gift and want to make it over a period of years, you can purchase a new insurance policy with ACP as the owner and beneficiary; you would then pay the premiums each year. This plan makes it possible for you to make a major, deferred gift to ACP, with a predictable annual payment.

Various Trusts

Your attorney can advise you, with regard to charitable remainder trusts, charitable lead trusts, and testamentary trusts.

Retirement Plans

If you have an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) or a Roth Account, you can name ACP as a primary or contingent beneficiary. Also, a percentage of death benefits can be designated as payable to ACP. The same is true of pension plans and profit sharing plans, subject to the rights of your spouse.

General Information

The legal name of ACP is "American Catholic Press," a not-for-profit corporation of the State of Illinois. (The three words, not the "ACP" acronym, are the legal name.) American Catholic Press is organized and incorporated as a 501 (c)(3) charitable organization. Our federal tax identification number is 36-2755136.

On the one hand, the federal tax code encourages such donations. Any gift you make may result in substantial tax benefits to you, as a donor. On the other hand, the nature and extent of any such benefits depend on the manner in which your gift is made. Your greatest reward for your kindness will be in the kingdom of heaven.

How to Put American Catholic Press in Your Will

After providing for their families and loved ones, you may want to help the ministry of American Catholic Press, for years to come. You can help us continue to serve people who are elderly or handicapped, individuals who are homebound. Your kindness can truly make a difference, for many people, in their life of faith.

Your bequest is free of estate tax. Also, through such a donation, you can substantially reduce the amount of any assets claimed by the government. In a lasting way, your charity will live on after you.

You can give needed support to American Catholic Press by simply including the following words in your will: "I give, devise, and bequeath to American Catholic Press, a not-for-profit corporation of the State of Illinois, 16565 State St., South Holland, IL 60473, the following [...........Here insert the amount you are giving.........], to be used for its general uses and purposes."

As you wish, your bequest can be a specific dollar amount, a specific piece of property, a percentage of an estate, or all or part of the residue of an estate. You can also name American Catholic Press as a contingency beneficiary in the event that someone named in your will is no longer living.

It is recommended that a lawyer help you, in drafting or amending your will.