Corporations vs Department Giving

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Debra Watford
Debra Watford
Ancient Membership 10 Comments Photogenic Name Dropper
in Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT®: General Discussion

We have received a check from a corporation which is actually a payment to an area in our organization who did a service for them... (outside of work as a fundraiser).  The company paid them for the service.. and now the department wants to donate the check.  Our usual policy is to receipt the name on the check.. however... the department wants credit for it.  Suggestions?  My first thought is to send the company a "zero" tax receipt then soft credit the department with 100%.  Thoughts??

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  • JoAnn Strommen
    JoAnn Strommen Community All-Star
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    Debra Watford:

    We have received a check from a corporation which is actually a payment to an area in our organization who did a service for them... (outside of work as a fundraiser).  The company paid them for the service.. and now the department wants to donate the check.  Our usual policy is to receipt the name on the check.. however... the department wants credit for it.  Suggestions?  My first thought is to send the company a "zero" tax receipt then soft credit the department with 100%.  Thoughts??

    As this is broader than RE, you may want to post question on fundsvcs.org webpage.   

    First, just checking to see if I'm following.  Dept ABC did service - say painted garage - for Corp XYZ.  Corp XYZ sent check to your org/Dept ABC to pay for this service.  Dept ABC wants to donate this money to another dept/part of the organization and receive credit for a donation.

    My initial thought is why would Corp XYZ be issues any type of tax receipt.  They are making payment for a service.  Were they billed/invoiced for the service?  If so, our procedures don't require receipting/acknowledging payment of a bill.  Or was the payment unsolicited?

    If the check is to the dept, is it made out to them?  I'm thinking they have the authority to sign over the money to another department, unless that's against a policy you have. 

    Maybe I'm missing something. :)

  • Debra Watford
    Debra Watford
    Ancient Membership 10 Comments Photogenic Name Dropper
    JoAnn Strommen:

    As this is broader than RE, you may want to post question on fundsvcs.org webpage.   

    First, just checking to see if I'm following.  Dept ABC did service - say painted garage - for Corp XYZ.  Corp XYZ sent check to your org/Dept ABC to pay for this service.  Dept ABC wants to donate this money to another dept/part of the organization and receive credit for a donation.

    My initial thought is why would Corp XYZ be issues any type of tax receipt.  They are making payment for a service.  Were they billed/invoiced for the service?  If so, our procedures don't require receipting/acknowledging payment of a bill.  Or was the payment unsolicited?

    If the check is to the dept, is it made out to them?  I'm thinking they have the authority to sign over the money to another department, unless that's against a policy you have. 

    Maybe I'm missing something. :)

    Well.. in my mind, you are correct Cop XYZ paid for services and doesn't need a receipt.  They made the check payable to our overall corporation (us) not to the individual dept...  I think I'm going to post it as a gift under the Department's name with a reference to it being a fundraiser and put someting in notes in the event there is ever any questions.  The department doesn't really want "tax" credit for it anyway.  Thanks for your input.. helped me clear the cobb webs out of my head! ha ha! :)

  • Melissa Graves 3
    Melissa Graves 3
    Ancient Membership 10 Comments Photogenic 5 Likes
    Debra Watford:

    We have received a check from a corporation which is actually a payment to an area in our organization who did a service for them... (outside of work as a fundraiser).  The company paid them for the service.. and now the department wants to donate the check.  Our usual policy is to receipt the name on the check.. however... the department wants credit for it.  Suggestions?  My first thought is to send the company a "zero" tax receipt then soft credit the department with 100%.  Thoughts??

    You can't donate money to yourself. Your own department can't give money to your organization and get any "credit" (other than solicitor credit - or naming the appeal after their fundraiser)

    As volunteers they can't get any tax deduction for volunteering their time (see IRS publication 526) but if you substantiate their involvement they can deduct any expenses involved (gas, materials, etc.) 

    Now you need to learn the specifics of this "fundraiser" and learn what the payment expectations were etc. and what the company got in return for their gift. If truly paying for a service, they should get a payment receipt (from finance dept) - not a donation receipt (from your dept.).

    Unfortunately, I do not think you have a gift at all that you can count. Something this dept should have known before initiating this fundraiser. I, too, recommend posting on Fundsvcs.org for another opinion. 

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