For many Americans, giving to charities is almost as important during the holidays as celebrating with family. As a result, mailboxes often are stuffed with charitable solicitations as well as catalogs and shopping circulars this time of year.
Whether you celebrate or not, giving before Jan. 1 means your gifts can be deductible on your 2022 tax return.
While many well-run, legitimate charities are helping the community, others fail to live up to their promises to assist those in need. Better Business Bureau has issued warnings about several charities that devoted more money to raising funds than helping others. In some cases, these charities weren’t willing to reveal how their funds were spent or the amount of assistance they offered.
BBB Scam Tracker received more than 700 reports of charity scams during the last three years.
BBB encourages donors to give wisely. BBB has Charity Reviews on more than 1,000 local charities and 11,000 charities nationwide, including many national charities accredited with BBB’s Wise Giving Alliance.
When BBB evaluates a charity, it looks beyond finances and overhead, examining a charity’s governance, effectiveness and fundraising practices against BBB’s 20 Standards of Charity Accountability. Only after a charity meets all 20 BBB standards will BBB offer it BBB Accreditation and use of BBB’s seal. Browse local BBB Accredited Charities at BBB.org.
BBB has tips that increase your confidence that your…
