Congress OKs bill to extend date for 2004 tsunami relief tax deductions

[TXlib]

http://money.cnn.com/2005/01/06/pf/tsunamideduction/

MODS: Could this story be linked from the top tsunami relief banner?

Congress OKs tsunami tax break

Bill to extend date for 2004 deductions passes House and Senate, awaits Bush signature.
January 6, 2005: 6:03 PM EST
By Les Christie, CNN/Money staff writer

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Congress Thursday approved a bill that would extend the deductibility of donations made for tsunami disaster relief.

The bill would enable people to deduct donations made through Jan. 31, 2005, on their 2004 returns.

Under current law, those who donated after Dec. 31 would have to wait until filing their 2005 returns -- in the winter and spring of 2006 -- to take the charitable deductions.


The bill, which must be signed by President Bush to take effect, was passed by unanimous consent by both the House and the Senate.

Senators Chuck Grassley, Republican from Iowa, and Max Baucus, Democrat of Montana, proposed the bill on Tuesday.

Americans have reacted to the tsunami disaster in Asia with an outpouring of giving to a variety of charities -- the American Red Cross alone has already received more than $119 million in pledges.

According to the IRS, gifts to charities located in foreign countries are only deductible on U.S. federal income tax forms if a U.S. organization has full control over the funds.

[no_hypocrisy]

1. * must sign Tsunami Relief IRS bill - two choices.

A. If he doesn't sign it (reason: it will add to the deficit by reducing financial intake to the Budget), he's indifferent and/or antagonistic towards human suffering. Not very "Christian" or presidential.

B. If he does sign it, the neocons writhe in frustration because the exemptions mean an indirect federal subsidy to a foreign nation, not to private corporations in this country, less money into the Budget coffers, and the money exempted could have been collected and distributed to Faith-Based Initiatives.