Charitable Contributions Using Required Minimum Distributions

There are many ways to donate to your favorite charity, including UUAM. So, over the next few months in the Newsletter we will feature different ways to donate. Of course, you can always use the DONATE button in the Newsletter or on the website to donate specific amount. This month we will talk about the method I have used to donate to UUAM, tax-free, for the past two years:

Required Minimum Distribution (RMD): If you are 73 or older you must take a required amount each year from your traditional IRAs, and you normally must pay income taxes on that amount. However, if you make a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) to one or more charities, it will count toward satisfying your RMD, and you do not pay income taxes on it. The charity must be a 501(c)(3) charity. (UUAM qualifies. Our official listing is: Unitarian Universalists for Ethical Treatment of Animals, DBA Unitarian Universalist Animal Ministry, 625 Wesley Commons Drive #39, Golden Valley MN 55427.) In my case, I donated my entire RMD to UUAM in both 2023 and 2024. It was a straightforward and easy process, and it feels terrific!

QCDs were set up by Congress fairly recently to provide incentives for charitable giving. If you have an IRA, it’s an option you might find worth exploring. Your IRA institution could explain the details more fully, and can also help with the paperwork, which is modest and can be done online. And here's a link to an IRS fact sheet.

An RMD QCD from your IRA?? Might sound confusing, but it’s relatively simple: It could save you on taxes. And it could be enormously helpful to the charity. 

Your donations help to support our collective work for animals in Unitarian Universalism.  

Thank you for considering us!

Ilene Steele, UUAM Board Member