Hi Horrace

You have posted before that you have a pretty thorough understanding of tax law, and I won’t dispute that, however, a few minutes spent on the IRS site turned up some interesting information. A 501 (c) 3 entity requires NO disclosure statement on de minimis donations or solicitations. The term “tax deductible contributions” is used in many examples on the IRS site. It is not as clear to me that a life membership in the AMA meets the de minimis test. It is clear, however, that the statutes leave it to the donor, rather than the donee, to support claims, provide proof and records, and make determinations. I was surprised to find that in some situations, a cancelled check is insufficient proof of donation (generally, for larger donations). I also found that the term “tax deductible” has an entirely different definition than “tax credit”.

It is just my opinion, not being any kind of tax expert or anything, but the way I read the bulletins and statutes, the use of the term “tax deductible”, as opposed to “tax credit”, makes the wording on the AMA page appear to be acceptable. It lies with the donor to understand and apply the correct statutes. That may be the reason so many people use tax preparation services.

Since Doug Holland is not one of the EC members that reads this forum, so far as I know, I doubt your query will be answered. If I happen to see him this weekend at the AMA Convention, and I remember, I will ask about your inquiry, unless, of course, you were stating you were actually going to call him with your query.

JR