House and Senate Negotiators Agree to Permanently Extend IRA Charitable Rollover

The Council is delighted to report a major step toward victory for the charitable sector. In a deal announced this afternoon, the IRA charitable rollover would be made permanent law.

The ultimate outcome of the negotiated tax provision package may rest on the response of the White House. The Administration has in the past objected to the permanent extension of expired tax provisions if the resulting revenue loss is not offset. Nonetheless, this is a major step forward on a policy the Council has long supported. Thank you to all of our members who helped secure this policy success—lawmakers heard your voices loud and clear.

Word from Capitol Hill is that House and Senate negotiators have worked out a deal on the 55 expired tax provisions known as “tax extenders,” including the IRA charitable rollover. The publication Tax Notes reports that ten extenders (temporary tax provisions that must be renewed periodically) would become permanent law.

A permanent IRA charitable rollover will eliminate the harmful cycle of expiration and renewal that has created so much uncertainty for donors and nonprofits over the years. It will allow donors to plan their charitable gifts in advance, which will create increased charitable investment for your organizations and the communities you serve.

A permanent rollover is also a significant milestone towards the ultimate goal of expanding the rollover to other giving vehicles, including donor advised funds, private foundations, and supporting organizations.

The negotiated deal would also make nine other extenders permanent, including the deduction for conservation easement contributions and the deduction for gifts of food inventory. Two provisions would be eliminated entirely, while the 43 other expired provisions would be temporarily renewed through 2015.

While we wanted to share this news with you immediately, we are still waiting on further details.

One important caveat is that White House support for the deal is not certain at this point.

We will keep you informed as we work to ensure that this significant policy win becomes law!