INTRODUCTION
Wedgwood Baptist Church is a qualified charitable organization exempt from federal income taxes under IRS Sec 501(c)(3). Contributions to the church are deductible for federal income tax purposes under the rules and regulations established under the current provisions of the Internal Revenue Code.
Wedgwood Baptist Church, as an Elder-led church, the administration and disbursement of all funds are subject to the control and direction of the Elder Council. With that understanding, all donations to Wedgwood Baptist Church will be administrated according to this Contribution Policy.
TYPES OF CONTRIBUTIONS
There are three types of contributions:
1. Undesignated contributions support the yearly budget of the church without restriction regarding its ultimate use.
• Undesignated Gift— a tax deductible contribution of cash or property given without designation to Wedgwood Baptist Church by a donor who receives no tangible benefits from the gift and gives up full control of the gift for the church to use for its purpose and mission.
2. Designated contributions support other approved funds, accounts, ministries, or projects of the church. They may or may not be part of the yearly budget.
• Designated Gift— a tax deductible contribution of cash or property given with designation for a specific fund or ministry project to Wedgwood Baptist Church by a donor who receives no tangible benefits from the gift. A gift will not be accepted if it is designated by the donor to a fund or project that has not been approved by the Elder Board or the Budget and Finance Committee.
3. Restricted Gift—A gift that is restricted by the donor such that it can only be used for a specific purpose, fund, or project. A restricted gift is not a tax-deductible contribution because, by definition, the donor does not give up full control of a restricted gift to the donee. Wedgwood Baptist Church does not accept restricted gifts except for ‘Gifts to Individuals’.
• Gifts to Individuals - a gift designated to a specific individual do not qualify as charitable contributions under IRS regulations. Gifts designated as either a love offering or benevolence to a designated individual will be held until a decision is
made as to whether the church can administer the funds. These gifts will not be reflected on the donor’s record of giving.
GIVING POLICIES
1. The General Account contains the funds for the yearly operating budget of the church and is supported by undesignated giving.
2. Any gift designated for a budget line-item expense (under any account) will be posted to that line item and will not increase the annual budget, but it will increase the available funds for that line item.
3. The church will not accept any restricted gifts whose use is restricted by donors. The church has no discretion in the management and disbursement of such funds. Whereas for designated gifts, the church will make every reasonable effort to honor the designation of the gifts. However, according to IRS regulations, in order for a gift to be considered a tax-deductible gift, the church must maintain full control over how the gift is used.
4. The church will not accept gifts for ministries outside of the church asking to forward the donation to that ministry unless the church has taken up an offering for a specific purpose for a specific time frame or the church partners with that outside ministry on a recurring basis. The church encourages people to give directly to outside ministries that they would like to support.
5. The church is able to accept gifts of stock. Contact the church office for details on how to contribute stock. The value reflected on your contribution statement will be equal to the value of the stock when we receive it. However, the deductible amount allowed by the IRS depends on information that you should obtain from your broker, so please confer with your broker as to the exact value that you can
deduct.
6. The church is able to accept gifts of vehicles. Contact the church office for details on how to donate a vehicle. Generally, the fair market value of the vehicle at the time of donation is used to determine the deductible amount. However, the deductible amount allowed by the IRS may not exceed the ultimate sales price of the vehicle if it is sold by the church without any significant use or material improvement by the
church.
7. The value of personal services donated is not deductible as a charitable contribution. The church relies heavily on volunteers to fulfill its ministry. However, donations of this type cannot be reflected on the individual’s record of giving.
8. Some donors make recommendations about how their contributions will be used. The church administrator may consider recommendations from anyone, but in no event is the church administrator bound in any way to honor the recommendations. Donors will not be permitted to recover a contribution on the grounds that the church administrator failed to honor the donor’s recommendation. Should at any time in the future the Elders or the Budget and Finance Committee choose to close a designated account, all money in the account at that time will, to the extent reasonably practicable, be applied to an account or accounts that would most reflect the donors’ apparent intentions or wishes. If such application of funds is not reasonably practicable, the money in that account will go in the General Account of the church.
9. A charitable contribution (undesignated) will not be returned to the donor. To refund the gift would be contrary to the basic definition of a charitable contribution and could have possible tax implications to the donor and potentially incur liability to the church.
10. Notwithstanding the general policy that all donations are not refundable, a donation may be refunded in the event that any donation (designated or undesignated) is made unintentionally due to a technological or other error. Exceptions to the refund policy may be made for good cause on a case-by-case basis by the church administrator, and if necessary the Budget and Finance Committee and/or the Elder Board.
11. The IRS provides clear guidelines with regard to the date of posting contributions, which we follow carefully. All contributions received or postmarked by December 31 will be included in that year’s contribution statement. If the contribution is received or postmarked after December 31, it will be included in the contribution statement of the year in which it is received/postmarked—regardless of the date on the check.
See https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-05-44.pdf.
Wedgwood Baptist Church is a qualified charitable organization exempt from federal income taxes under IRS Sec 501(c)(3). Contributions to the church are deductible for federal income tax purposes under the rules and regulations established under the current provisions of the Internal Revenue Code.
Wedgwood Baptist Church, as an Elder-led church, the administration and disbursement of all funds are subject to the control and direction of the Elder Council. With that understanding, all donations to Wedgwood Baptist Church will be administrated according to this Contribution Policy.
TYPES OF CONTRIBUTIONS
There are three types of contributions:
1. Undesignated contributions support the yearly budget of the church without restriction regarding its ultimate use.
• Undesignated Gift— a tax deductible contribution of cash or property given without designation to Wedgwood Baptist Church by a donor who receives no tangible benefits from the gift and gives up full control of the gift for the church to use for its purpose and mission.
2. Designated contributions support other approved funds, accounts, ministries, or projects of the church. They may or may not be part of the yearly budget.
• Designated Gift— a tax deductible contribution of cash or property given with designation for a specific fund or ministry project to Wedgwood Baptist Church by a donor who receives no tangible benefits from the gift. A gift will not be accepted if it is designated by the donor to a fund or project that has not been approved by the Elder Board or the Budget and Finance Committee.
3. Restricted Gift—A gift that is restricted by the donor such that it can only be used for a specific purpose, fund, or project. A restricted gift is not a tax-deductible contribution because, by definition, the donor does not give up full control of a restricted gift to the donee. Wedgwood Baptist Church does not accept restricted gifts except for ‘Gifts to Individuals’.
• Gifts to Individuals - a gift designated to a specific individual do not qualify as charitable contributions under IRS regulations. Gifts designated as either a love offering or benevolence to a designated individual will be held until a decision is
made as to whether the church can administer the funds. These gifts will not be reflected on the donor’s record of giving.
GIVING POLICIES
1. The General Account contains the funds for the yearly operating budget of the church and is supported by undesignated giving.
2. Any gift designated for a budget line-item expense (under any account) will be posted to that line item and will not increase the annual budget, but it will increase the available funds for that line item.
3. The church will not accept any restricted gifts whose use is restricted by donors. The church has no discretion in the management and disbursement of such funds. Whereas for designated gifts, the church will make every reasonable effort to honor the designation of the gifts. However, according to IRS regulations, in order for a gift to be considered a tax-deductible gift, the church must maintain full control over how the gift is used.
4. The church will not accept gifts for ministries outside of the church asking to forward the donation to that ministry unless the church has taken up an offering for a specific purpose for a specific time frame or the church partners with that outside ministry on a recurring basis. The church encourages people to give directly to outside ministries that they would like to support.
5. The church is able to accept gifts of stock. Contact the church office for details on how to contribute stock. The value reflected on your contribution statement will be equal to the value of the stock when we receive it. However, the deductible amount allowed by the IRS depends on information that you should obtain from your broker, so please confer with your broker as to the exact value that you can
deduct.
6. The church is able to accept gifts of vehicles. Contact the church office for details on how to donate a vehicle. Generally, the fair market value of the vehicle at the time of donation is used to determine the deductible amount. However, the deductible amount allowed by the IRS may not exceed the ultimate sales price of the vehicle if it is sold by the church without any significant use or material improvement by the
church.
7. The value of personal services donated is not deductible as a charitable contribution. The church relies heavily on volunteers to fulfill its ministry. However, donations of this type cannot be reflected on the individual’s record of giving.
8. Some donors make recommendations about how their contributions will be used. The church administrator may consider recommendations from anyone, but in no event is the church administrator bound in any way to honor the recommendations. Donors will not be permitted to recover a contribution on the grounds that the church administrator failed to honor the donor’s recommendation. Should at any time in the future the Elders or the Budget and Finance Committee choose to close a designated account, all money in the account at that time will, to the extent reasonably practicable, be applied to an account or accounts that would most reflect the donors’ apparent intentions or wishes. If such application of funds is not reasonably practicable, the money in that account will go in the General Account of the church.
9. A charitable contribution (undesignated) will not be returned to the donor. To refund the gift would be contrary to the basic definition of a charitable contribution and could have possible tax implications to the donor and potentially incur liability to the church.
10. Notwithstanding the general policy that all donations are not refundable, a donation may be refunded in the event that any donation (designated or undesignated) is made unintentionally due to a technological or other error. Exceptions to the refund policy may be made for good cause on a case-by-case basis by the church administrator, and if necessary the Budget and Finance Committee and/or the Elder Board.
11. The IRS provides clear guidelines with regard to the date of posting contributions, which we follow carefully. All contributions received or postmarked by December 31 will be included in that year’s contribution statement. If the contribution is received or postmarked after December 31, it will be included in the contribution statement of the year in which it is received/postmarked—regardless of the date on the check.
See https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-05-44.pdf.
