jo wrote: "It's not going to get me a gigantic deduction, but every
little bit helps."

Yes, every *litter* bit does help. We love kittens and cats. Keep up
the good work.

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

jo wrote:
- quote -

You could start your own nonprofit, the purpose of which is to pick up
stray animals for other nonprofits, and donate it there. But it's
probably not worth the time and money.

Otherwise, it would be like buying a car so you can give people a ride
to the YMCA. It's your car, you keep it and use it for your
"charitable" purpose when you feel like it. But you don't get a
deduction for it because it's still yours and does not belong to a
nonprofit.

Stu

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

On Dec 27, 2:41*pm, Harlan Lunsford <hnslunsf...[at]bellsouth.net> wrote:
- quote -

I don't understand this. I had the expense, used it for legitimate
purposes, may have a need for it in the future for a similar
circumstance. I'm actively involved with the SPCA and other groups
now, and they all use foster parents. It's just a question of whether
I can keep my emotions out of the process. I'm hanging on to the cage
just in case. Around here, with so many rescue groups, you never know
when you will asked to help out in an emergency.
jo

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

jo wrote:
- quote -

to do this any longer, go and donate the cage to the animal shelter, but
soon! End of year is coming.

ChEAr$,
Harlan Lunsford, EA n LA

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

jo wrote:

- quote -

Always quote the text to which you are replying. A post with no quoted
text, unless the first post in a topic, can be, as you note, confusing
and should be avoided.

Quote only sufficient text so that it gives context to your comments.

You also need to include attributions - that is the "so and so wrote"
at the beginning of your post. That is generally included when you hit
"reply." Make sure you only include the attributions that apply to
what you quote.

Stu

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

"jo" <phillysleuth[at]verizon.net> wrote in message
news:189a0678-6d32-444c-9115-afa1e6b19bdd[at]21g2000hsj.googlegroups.com...
- quote -

Read the signature added to every post by the moderation software - and go
to the web site. What you ask for is there.

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

<snipJO wrote:
- quote -

Harlan,

The cage was completely for the period in which the kittens were being
fostered. They must be isolated from any other cats in the household,
and needed to be protected from dangerous things in the room since i
hadn't cat proofed it from dangerous little felines. they also tend to
feel more comfortable with a small safe place that they know is theirs
when in a new environment. I let them out periodically, in the
confinement of one room, so they could get activity and socialization,
but they slept in it for weeks. It's been in the basement now,
disassembled, in case I ever decide i can foster again. Turns out I
do't have the temperament for it... I want to keep them all :}

Maybe you were thinking about a carrier to use for transporting. I
have one of those anyway and wasn't thinking of deducting it since it
wasn't purchased specifically for the foster process.

jo

PS are there guidelines/examples on this forum on the correct way to
reply to a post and quote text? I think I'm making a mess out of it
and not adhering to standards. I tend to delete too much quoted
material because I've gotten posts bumped back to me for excess, but
if there is no quoted material, the conversation gets out of context.
And it isn't clear to me if the "so and so wrote" is automatically
added to the message or not, so I may have created a post here with my
own structure, not the group's. Sorry if I have violated protocol.
Need some education.

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

jo wrote:
- quote -

One more. You say you bought a cage? And still have the cage used for
the pets you did adopt? Don't even think about deducting it's cost.

ChEAr$,
Harlan Lunsford, EA n LA

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

On Dec 26, 6:37*am, "Phil Marti" <prm20...[at]verizon.net> wrote:
- quote -

I don't know the official legal status of this shelter, but since it
is the one that is funded (poorly) by the city (Philadelphia), and
must take any animal that someone brings in (but of course not keep it
alive), I have to assume it has some legal standing with the local
government. It will be an interesting project to try to find anyone
at the shelter or at City Hall who actually can tell me. I'll let you
all know. It's not going to get me a gigantic deduction, but every
little bit helps.

Thanks for the comments.

jo

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

Well the research didn't take long<g> . While I'm not quite clear on
the relationship between PACCA and PAWS since they operate from the
same building (I think Paws handles adoptions and fostering, and Pacca
is focused on animal control for the city in all its uglyness), it
clearly states on their web site that they are 501c3 orgs (see below
for extracted portion of their page. PACCA is also linked to by the
main Phila.gov website. So I guess I now get to go tally up these
expenses and mileage costs.

jo

************************************************** ******************
PACCA and PAWS are 501(c)3 organizations.
Philadelphia Animal Care and Control Association (PACCA) &
Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society (PAWS)

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

On Dec 25, 9:25*pm, "Phil Marti" <prm20...[at]verizon.net> wrote:
- quote -


--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

"D. Stussy" wrote:

- quote -

If indeed it is a part of city government, I agree. I didn't read the OP
that way, but OP will know for sure.
--
Phil Marti
Clarksburg, MD

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

"Phil Marti" <prm20871[at]verizon.net> wrote in message
news:tXicj.6654$1q4.3884[at]trnddc06...
- quote -

I must disagree. As a CITY animal shelter, it is a "qualified organization"
per IRC 170A(c)(1) - "A State ... or any political subdivision...." It must
actually be city owned and operated to qualify under this provision. It's
not a 501(c)(3) organization because it doesn't have to apply - it is a
statutory QO.

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

jo <phillysleuth[at]verizon.net> wrote:
- quote -

Have they ever filed form 1023 or form 1024 with the IRS? If so,
what does their letter of determination say?

If they have not filed then you can deduct expenses as though they
were a 501c3 charitable org *only if* (1) they are registered with
your state government as a nonprofit corporation, and (2) their
bylaws would qualify them as an IRS charitable organization if they
ever did file, and (3) their annual gross receipts normally are
under $5000. Oh, and if (4) you keep good records of each trip
made to the shelter and all food etc bought to feed the kittens.

FWIW, some 501c3 orgs are *not* charitable, and some 501c4 orgs
(mostly fire department rescue squads) *are* charitable.

Una

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

"jo" wrote:

- quote -

<snip
- quote -

No. Many activities that most people would call acts of charity don't
create a tax deduction. For expenses to be deductible, the services must be
performed for a qualifying organization.

--
Phil Marti
Clarksburg, MD

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >

I fostered 3 kittens this summer as a volunteer for the (very large)
city animal shelter. This is not a 5013c organization, just a terribly
chaotic, underfunded place which gets by only because it has a large
number of inhouse volunteers and outside foster parents.

I incurred various expenses during the time I had the kittens.. cage,
food, driving back and forth-- nothing major. Ultimately I adopted
out one and kept two.

Am I allowed to deduct my fostering costs... say, up to the point
where I decided to keep the two... on Schedule A, despite the fact
that this organization is not formally classified as charitable and
despite keeping 2 of them?

--
<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >