RCARC donations now tax deductible!

Donations made to the Rusk County Amateur Radio club are now tax deductible, thanks to the recent approval of the IRS. While the club was begun nearly a decade ago as a non-profit group, the club began working on the process of formal non-profit status several years ago. It was the most recent efforts of Karan Haverstock, our current club president, that finally pushed the paperwork through.

"I'm so excited to finally have this done," Karan told the club during a recent meeting. "It took some time, but now that we have our confirmation, I'm glad we did it."

The club is now formally recognized by the IRS as a non-profit "501(c)3" organization which allows donors to deduct most contributions when filing income tax forms with the IRS. Most corporations and foundations that offer donations or grants also require receiving organizations to be designated as a 501(c)3. It provides transparency and serves as verification that the organization it committed to a charitable cause. In the RCARC's case, that is to promote the Amateur Radio, provide education in the radio sciences and provide public service using radio such as storm spotting or emergency response. The designation also helps ensure that funds are used appropriately and do not personally benefit club members. 

The RCARC is also registered with GuideStar which helps to track non-profit organizations and provide transparency to the public. This opens the door for donations from companies like Amazon which will donate a portion of sales to 501(c)3 groups. (Visit Smile.Amazon.com to have your purchases count!) The RCARC is also recognized by TechSoup, a verification company that qualifies groups for donations from large technology corporations such as Google and Microsoft.