Tax Guru – Ker$tetter Letter

Q:

Subject: Botanical Garden Sec. 179

May I ask you 2 questions?

Would a person, or cooperation I’m soliciting  for donations in order to transform a parkway into a Botanical Garden be eligible for Sec. 179? If not is there another tax deduction for donations that I can remind them of  in my sales letter to them?

Thanks,

  
A:

Section 179 is not in any way applicable here.  That is only for companies that actually purchase business equipment that they own and use in their business activities.

In your case, if the group doing the rehab work is a qualified charity, the donors would be ale to claim payments as charitable contributions.

If the donors are going to be listed or publicized somewhere, a better way for them to claim their payments for this project would be as advertising and premonition expense.  That normally works out to provide a better tax savings than charitable donations do.

Good luck.  I hope this helps.

Kerry Kerstetter