It has been a difficult month with two areas being affected by major storms. First Houston and now Florida. Those in Trimaris and Ansteorra have been affected the most. I know many of you are asking about how you can help. The below was posted back during Katrina and still applies today. SCA BRANCHES MAY DONATE TO OTHER 501 (c)(3) ORGANIZATIONS. This includes the American Red Cross, Unicef, the Salvation Army, etc. These organizations work within the tax code to provide needed supplies and services to afflicted families. SCA BRANCHES MAY DONATE TO OTHER SCA BRANCHES. However, please wait at least a month or two so that the exchequer is ready to handle the donations. They may have real life to handle right now and sending them a check when they have no access to the bank would not be helpful. If a branch wants to donate SCA equipment or regalia, please check with the branch first to make sure that what you want to give them will be a) needed and used, and b) not also promised from another branch. No one wants to have 12 sets of thrones and no banners, coronets or pavilions. If your group donates to another SCA branch, the money may not be given to private individuals in any fashion. The funds can only go for items used within our organization. SCA BRANCHES MAY *NOT* DONATE TO ORGANIZATIONS THAT ONLY BENEFIT SCA MEMBERS. This is a clear violation of our tax-exempt status. SCA BRANCHES MAY *NOT* DONATE TO ORGANIZATIONS THAT DO NOT HAVE OFFICIAL IRS NON-PROFIT STATUS. Now for the technical stuff: If you do make a donation to another 501 (c)(3) Organization, you will need to obtain their Federal Tax ID number. The donation would be listed in your Quarterly workbook on 12b – Donations to SCA Inc. Subsidiaries and Other 501 (c)(3) Nonprofit organizations. Most non-profits are quite happy to give you their tax ID number to receive a donation. If you send funds to a branch that uses the same tax ID that your branch does, it is recorded as a transfer out. (In Kingdom or out of Kingdom, whichever applies.) If you send funds to a branch with a different tax ID number, follow the instructions above for donations to another 501 (c)(3) Organization. Make sure you get their tax ID number as you will need to enter this in your report. Lastly, if you want to raise money for individuals, it must be done unofficially. The money may not be handled by an SCA Officer or run through an SCA account. Please feel free to copy this to any appropriate lists. Kathy Palmer Society Exchequer SCA, Inc.