Friends of Big Bend National Park

End of Year Giving and Beyond:  IRAs 
Congress recently passed and President Bush signed an extension to the IRA Rollovers of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 which allows traditional and Roth IRA owners, age 70 ½ or older, to make tax-free rollovers of any amount up to $100,000 to public charities, such as Friends of Big Bend National Park, through the end of 2009.  If you have such an investment vehicle and have a required minimum distribution, you may may wish to take advantage of this legislation.  Here’s an example of how this new provision could help you and Friends of Big Bend:

Suppose Maria, age 75, has a $500,000 IRA and wishes to make a gift of $100,000 to FBBNP. Under the new law, she could instruct her IRA administrator to directly transfer this amount from her IRA to the Friends. Although Maria cannot claim a charitable contribution deduction for this gift, she will not have to report this $100,000 distribution as income on her federal taxes – since Maria does not itemize, this is a very helpful provision. In 2009, Maria could make the same transfer without any adverse tax effects. If Maria has a spouse age 70 ½ or older, he can make a $100,000 dollar gift to the Friends from his IRA as well.

Required minimum distributions can be made to charities under this provision up to the $100,000 limit. You can avoid tax on the required minimum distribution and help your favorite charity at the same time.  This law is in effect until December 31, 2009.

For more information about how the IRA Rollover Extension and other planned giving opportunities with the Friends may benefit you, please contact Courtney at the Friends at 512-529-1149.

Deferred Gifts Give Immediate Benefits
There are many reasons people give to charitable causes like Friends of Big Bend National Park:  to further an organization’s work; a desire to preserve a place of distinction; to improve the quality of life for others; and tax savings.  But in almost every case a donor gives in order to obtain an optimum mix of monetary, social, and moral values from their assets. Here are some examples of how the Friends stand ready to help you achieve your objectives through deferred giving options.

Charitable Bequests
By designating the Friends of Big Bend National Park as a beneficiary in their Wills, donors can affect a lasting legacy for the Park and receive acknowledgement for it today through membership in the Legacy Society.

Charitable bequests may be made in the form of currency, securities, or other property, and may be a specific dollar amount or a percentage of a donor’s entire estate. The following provides some suggested wording for remembering Friends of Big Bend National Park in your will.
SPECIFIC BEQUEST
“I hereby give $____ (or a percentage of my estate) to the Friends of Big Bend National Park, a Texas Non-Profit Corporation.”

RESIDUARY BEQUEST
“I hereby give all (or a percentage) of the remainder of my estate to Friends of Big Bend National Park, a Texas Non-Profit Corporation.”

CONTINGENT BEQUEST
“In the event (primary beneficiary) does not survive me, I give said amount to Friends of Big Bend Natioanl Park, a Texas Non-Profit Corporation.”

By providing a bequest to the Friends in your Will or a codicil to your Will, and upon notifying us in writing that such provisions have been made, you will become eligible for invitation to the Legacy Society and participation in member events.

Life Income Gifts
Gift Annuities
Many people have stocks and real estate that have appreciated in value over the years but, because of the prospect of incurring capital gains taxes, are not available to produce more income for them today. If this reflects your situation, what can you do?

Establish a Gift Annuity agreement with the Friends of Big Bend National Park, and receive guaranteed fixed quarterly payments for life to you and/or another beneficiary. For advice about how a Gift Annuity would work in your situation, it is suggested you consult an attorney or estate planning expert.

Charitable Trusts
Another way to benefit the Park is to create a Charitable Remainder Trust (CRAT). Subject to what you may learn from your attorney or estate consultant, you can receive a fixed amount for the rest of your life (and that of an additional beneficiary), or for a term of years not in excess of 20 years. Your payout rate is based on standard actuarial tables. The advantage of such an agreement is that you can deduct the value of the remainder interest at the time the property is transferred to the trust. A second advantage is that you can avoid paying capital gains tax on a gift of appreciated property. Upon the death of the last plan beneficiary, the assets remaining in the trust will be transferred to Friends of Big Bend National Park.

Another type of charitable trust is a Charitable Remainder Unitrust (CRUT).  Under a CRUT, you can receive a fixed percentage of the trust assets rather than a fixed dollar amount. That is, the payments to income beneficiary(ies) will fluctuate with the value of the trust assets. While the advantages of a unitrust are similar to those of an annuity trust, the unitrust also provides a hedge against inflation. It also offers the advantage of flexibility in that additional contributions are permitted-allowing, among other possibilities, a future will pourover. Again, at the death of the last beneficiary, the Friends will receive what remains of the trust property.

If you’d like to learn more about how these and other deferred giving options might benefit Big Bend National Park, please contact
Courtney Lyons-Garcia, Executive Director
512/529-1149
or
PO Box 200
Big Bend National Park, TX 79834-0200.