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“НАШЕ ЖИТТЯ”, ЛИПЕНЬ-СЕРПЕНЬ 2017 WWW.UNWLA.ORG 15 whom the money should be spent on. This is not a charitable donation, no matter how needy or worthy the potential recipient. As a 501(c)(3) organization, we may give funds to specific individuals, of course, but we must maintain adequate records and case histories to show the name and address of each recipient, the amount distributed to each, the purpose for which the aid was given, the manner in which the recipient was selected, and the relationship, if any, between the recipient and members, officers, or trustees of our own organization. 7 Along similar lines, another issue that has gained momentum lately is crowd-funding and other means of fundraising through social media. Websites, such as GoFundMe, have become incredibly popu- lar for raising funds quickly to help pay a person’s medical bills or to help a family recover after a disas- ter. It is important to remember, however, that gifts made to specific individuals through these types of fundraising efforts are not tax-deductible. We are a domestic 501(c)(3) organization with a significant foreign involvement, that is, a large portion of our total humanitarian expenditure involves providing grants to individuals and other organi- zations located in Ukraine and several other countries. The IRS will disallow charitable deductions where a domestic exempt organization does not exercise adequate discretion and control over grants made to foreign recipients. One of the criteria the IRS uses to determine the propriety of foreign grants is whether the charity’s board has reviewed and approved the project in the foreign country for which funds have been spent. To summarize, although we are not explicitly prohibited from distributing our funds to other similar 501(c)(3) organizations, from our policy perspective, we want the funds we raise to go directly to recipients whom we directly choose, and not to middlemen. From a federal tax standpoint, funds distrib- uted without approval of our national board of directors may jeopardize the deductibility of donations by donors. This is why it is crucial, and I repeat crucial, that the regional councils and branches follow es- tablished procedures in communicating and obtaining approval from the UNWLA’s umbrella organiza- tion for their fundraising and other projects. ________________________ 1 UNWLA Bylaws. 2 No person(s) responsible for the transfer of the donated funds may personally (including their fami- lies, friends, associates, etc.) benefit in any way. 3 Some donors would not approve of their money, in principle, going to another charity they did not choose, no matter how worthy. 4 “Earmarking” is the practice of designating a gift for a particular individual and passing the gift through a 501(c)(3) organization. Earmarking may result from any oral or written understanding that the charity will use the contributed funds for a specific donor-designated individual. That is, a donation is not considered a contribution to charity if the facts show that the charity is merely a conduit for a gift to a specific individual. 5 Rev. Rul. 57-449. 6 To condone such transfers is a very bad practice, if not illegal. In essence, it amounts to allowing a donor to launder money by running a personal gift through a nonprofit organization. If the nonprofit then gives this donor a receipt for a tax-deductible donation, then it is potential fraud. 7 Rev. Rul. 56-304. Parts 2, 3, 4, and 5 of Parliamentarian Oksana Xenos’s convention presentation will be published sequentially in future issues of Our Life ___________________________________________________________________________ Captions for photos: Pg. 3: from top, l-r: Convention Chair Lydia Jachnycky; Convention committee members introduced at opening ceremonies; Convention giftshop; Convention Chair Lida Bilous; Convention opening; Honor- ary President Anna Krawczuk lights candle; Hymn sung by Maksymovych sisters at convention opening; Convention Opening Prayer. Pg. 6: from top: Convention presidium; New Jersey Regional Council delegates; New York Regional Council delegates; Philadelphia Regional Council delegates; Plenary session. Presentation of revised UNWLA by- laws; Plenary session. Guests from Brazil, Ukraine, and Canada.
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