SpokaneFāVS
Government leaders are considering proposals that would limit charitable tax donation deductions.
One proposal would set an annual dollar cap (between $17,000 and $50,000), leaving less room for donors to deduct their charitable contributions.
Another proposal would limit itemized deductions, including gifts to charity, to 28 percent for taxpayers in the top tax bracket. Nonprofit advocates say the proposal could reduce donations by $9-billion annually.
Government officials estimate that the limit could bring in $321-billion in additional revenue through 2021, according to the Tax Policy Center.
But not everyone agrees this is the right move. The Hill's Congress blog reports, “Virtually every state has concluded that the support that charitable nonprofits provide to their communities, made possible by charitable donations, is too important to risk limiting the tax incentives.”
Where do you stand on this issue?
Tracy Simmons is an award-winning journalist specializing in religion reporting and digital entrepreneurship. In her approximate 20 years on the religion beat, Simmons has tucked a notepad in her pocket and found some of her favorite stories aboard cargo ships in New Jersey, on a police chase in Albuquerque, in dusty Texas church bell towers, on the streets of New York and in tent cities in Haiti. Simmons has worked as a multimedia journalist for newspapers across New Mexico, Texas, Connecticut and Washington. She is the executive director of SpokaneFāVS.com, a digital journalism start-up covering religion news and commentary in Spokane, Washington. She also writes for The Spokesman-Review and national publications. She is a Scholarly Assistant Professor of Journalism at Washington State University.
