Donor Advised Fund (DAF) giving is increasingly popular among individuals and families who wish to support multiple charities throughout the year and over extended periods.

A DAF is a separately managed philanthropic fund maintained and operated by a sponsoring organization, such as Vanguard, Fidelity, or Schwab. Once established by a donor, they (or a designated representative) have the ability to direct how funds are invested and distributed to various charities. A donor-advised fund offers a low-cost, flexible method to diversify your philanthropy without the complexities and expenses of creating a private foundation.

Recommending a gift to Clark County Historical Museum through your DAF is straightforward. You can donate directly by providing the necessary details to the organization sponsoring your fund. Each sponsoring organization has specific forms to facilitate your donation, usually accessible through an online portal. After submitting your forms, the sponsoring organization will process the transaction to distribute funds to Clark County Historical Museum.

Information to make a DAF gift:
Legal Name: Clark County Historical Museum
Physical Address: 1511 Main Street, Vancouver, WA 98660
Phone: 360.993.5679
Tax ID: 91-6055341

If you have any questions about what information to provide to your DAF’s sponsoring organization, please contact Brad Richardson.

Did you know that if you are age 72 or older, you are required to take a distribution from your IRA each year?

This distribution is called a Required Minimum Distribution (RMD). When you receive your RMD, the distribution amount is added to your taxable income. This increase in income can push you into a higher tax bracket, increasing your  tax liability, and potentially affecting Medicare premiums and Social Security tax rates.

If you don’t need the cash and don’t want to increase your taxable income, you can donate all or a portion of your RMD to Clark County Historical Museum.

Donating all, or a part of your Required Minimum Distribution is a special gift called a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD). A QCD is a type of charitable donation made directly from your pre-tax Individual Retirement Account (IRA) to a qualified charity.

When you make a Qualified Charitable Distribution gift to Clark County Historical Museum, the entire gift is transferred  tax-free.  The donation is not considered taxable income and will support Clark County Historical Museum’s mission.

For those who itemize, you receive a tax deduction for the value of the donation, lowering your adjusted gross income. Lowering your adjusted gross income can affect your tax bracket, reduce the amount of Social Security benefits subject to tax, and potentially lower the cost of Medicare premiums.

If you take the standard deduction on your taxes, the donated amount is excluded from your taxable income.

Please keep in mind that a QCD must be initiated by your retirement fund and mailed directly to Clark County Historical Museum. If the funds pass through you in any way, the tax benefits outlined above do not apply.

STEPS TO MAKE AN IRA QUALIFIED CHARITABLE DISTRIBUTION GIFT

STEP 1

Contact your IRA plan administrator. To make a gift from your Required Minimum Distribution to Clark County Historical Museum your plan administrator will need the following information:

Legal Name: Clark County Historical Museum
Physical Address: 1511 Main Street, Vancouver, WA 98660
Phone: 360.993.5679
TAX ID: 91-6055341

STEP 2

If you have any questions, or if you wish for your gift to be used for a specific purpose, contact Brad Richardson, Executive Director, director@cchmuseum.org, 360.993.5679.

STEP 3

Know we are filled with excitement and gratitude. Thank you so much!

Donating appreciated stock to Clark County Historical Museum can have significant tax advantages!

If you donate the appreciated stock directly to Clark County Historical Museum, you can avoid paying capital gains tax and, as an additional benefit, you receive a charitable deduction for the full value of the stock at the time of the donation.

Please contact Brad Richardson, Executive Director, director@cchmuseum.org, 360.993.5679, before beginning the donation process in order that we may alert our broker. If our broker is not advised before the transfer is initiated, it will be assumed to be fraudulent and, therefore, rejected.

You might also consider naming Clark County Historical Museum as a beneficiary of your investment or as part of your estate plan. You can update the policy’s “Beneficiary Form” on your broker’s website and provide these details:

Legal Name: Clark County Historical Museum
Physical Address: 1511 Main Street, Vancouver, WA 98660
Phone: 360.993.5679
TAX ID: 91-6055341

It is the general policy of Clark County Historical Museum to sell donated stocks. However, the investment committee reviews each stock donation and reserves the right to hold shares if there is significant long-term growth potential.

Leaving a charitable gift in your estate plan will ensure your commitment to preserving the history of Clark County and the Clark County Historical Museum will live on. It is simple to name Clark County Historical Museum as a beneficiary in your will, living trust, retirement, or life insurance plan. You can indicate a specific amount, a percentage, a residual share or name Clark County Historical Museum as a contingent beneficiary. Bequests can include a percentage of your estate, a specific asset, or a specific dollar amount. With a bequest, your estate will receive a charitable deduction for the full amount of a monetary bequest or the fair market value of donated assets.

SPECIFIC BEQUEST LANGUAGE
I give _____% (or specific sum) of my estate to Clark County Historical Museum, a nonprofit organization (Tax ID: 91-6055341), currently located at 1511 Main Street, Vancouver, WA 98660, for its general purposes.

RESIDUAL BEQUEST LANGUAGE
I give all (or _____%) of the rest, residue, or remainder of my estate, both real and personal, to Clark County Historical Museum, a nonprofit organization (Tax ID: 91-6055341), currently located at 1511 Main Street, Vancouver, WA 98660, for their general purposes.

CONTINGENT BEQUEST LANGUAGE
If any of the above-named beneficiaries disclaims or predeceases me, I bequeath his or her share to Clark County Historical Museum, a nonprofit organization (Tax ID: 91-6055341), currently located at 1511 Main Street, Vancouver, WA 98660, for its general purposes.

Did you know that if you gift your Traditional IRA, 401(k), 403(b), to an individual through an estate plan, up to 40% of its value may be lost due to taxes? You may want to consider gifting this asset to Clark County Historical Museum. Gifting your pre-tax retirement fund has three significant advantages:

• The entire value of the fund will transfer tax free, maximizing your retirement savings.

• The value of the IRA gift is deducted from the estate’s value, reducing the overall estate tax burden.

• Other assets inherited by individual heirs are not subject to a personal income tax penalty.

Changing the beneficiaries of your retirement accounts is straightforward and can be done without an attorney. Simply go online and log into your account(s) and complete the beneficiary designation form, or call your financial representative and request that a copy of the form be mailed to you.

Here is the information you will need:

Legal Name: Clark County Historical Museum
Physical Address: 1511 Main Street, Vancouver, WA 98660
Phone: 360.993.5679
TAX ID: 91-6055341

You can donate a whole life or term life insurance policy that outlasted its original purpose while you’re alive. This gift will receive a tax deduction equivalent to the settlement value (assessed by the insurance company). These gifts are accepted on a case-by-case basis.

Please contact Brad Richardson, Executive Director at director@cchmuseum.org or call 360.993.5679 to talk more about your individual situation.

You can also name Clark County Historical Museum as a beneficiary of your life insurance policy. Simply update the “Beneficiary Form,” on your insurance company’s website.

Information to make a retirement gift:

Legal Name: Clark County Historical Museum
Physical Address: 1511 Main Street, Vancouver, WA 98660
Phone: 360.993.5679
TAX ID: 91-6055341

Upon your death, the account is dissolved and transfers to Clark County Historical Museum, outside of probate and entirely tax free. Your estate will also receive a charitable tax deduction, which lowers the value of the overall estate.