90 days to give

The Senate and House are working hard to offer "tax relief" for victims of Hurricane Katrina. One thing they seem likely to do is give Americans 90 days (October 1 to December 31, 2005) to rollover funds from their Individual Retirement Accounts to charity and avoid taxes on the IRA withdrawal. For more information on rapidly moving legislative efforts (is that an oxymoron?) click here

If the IRA charitable rollover is passed it will mark a victory for nonprofit and philanthropic sides that have been working on this for years. Nonprofits will have to move fast - 90 days till the end of the year. If it passes, many organizations, including the Council on Michigan Foundations stand ready to help community foundations and other public charities take advantage.