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Colleges and Charities Seek COVID-19 Relief

Posted on Dec. 16, 2020

The higher education community is asking the IRS for filing extensions and other relief to help colleges and universities cope with the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the same time, charitable giving advocates want Congress to provide pandemic relief in part by boosting the universal charitable contribution deduction that is available to all taxpayers.

In a December 11 letter to the IRS, the National Association of College and University Business Officers and other higher education organizations offered recommendations “to ease some of the regulatory strains and practical administrative hurdles colleges and universities face as they continue to manage through the ongoing economic and public health crises.”

Continued extensions of filing deadlines would help schools meet the challenges of completing complex tax returns while operating remotely, the letter said. The higher education groups sought extended deadlines for filing Form 990, “Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax,” and Form 990-T, “Exempt Organization Business Income Tax Return.”

Giving colleges and universities more time to respond to IRS notices on matters involving the schools would also be welcome because “most notices relate to prior periods for which a trip to the campus office would likely be necessary,” the letter added.

The IRS should accept electronic or digital signatures on all forms and documents filed by higher education institutions during the COVID-19 crisis, the education groups wrote.

“The pandemic has created logistical obstacles to executing in-person, ‘wet’ signatures,” the letter said. “With campus business officers and staff teleworking from their homes, often spread out over sizeable geographical distances, it is challenging to share hard copies of documents requiring wet signatures, then route them again to campus staff who can mail them certified from a post office.”

Enhanced Giving Incentive

More than 300 organizations have asked lawmakers to expand and extend the temporary above-the-line charitable deduction for non-itemizers that was established by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (P.L. 116-136).

A December 9 letter from the Charitable Giving Coalition asks congressional leaders to increase the $300 cap on the CARES Act deduction and extend the provision through at least 2021 in the next COVID-19 relief package that is being negotiated.

The coalition supports a Senate proposal to increase the cap to $600 for single filers and $1,200 for joint filers and the Universal Giving Pandemic Response Act (S. 4032, H.R. 7324), which would raise the cap to about $4,000 for individuals and $8,000 for couples.

“Enhanced charitable giving incentives would encourage all Americans to donate more, helping charitable and faith-based organizations continue to provide vital services to families, workers, and communities, especially those critically impacted by COVID-19,” the coalition wrote.

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