Tax Type
Individual Income Tax
Description
Charitable contributions to libraries and museums
Topic
Taxable Income
Date Issued
11-29-1985
November 29, 1985
Dear ****
This will reply to your letter of October 29, 1985, in which you submit a request for a ruling on the deductibility of contributions to the * * * for federal and Virginia income tax purposes.
* * * is a regional library established by seven localities under the authority of Section 42.1-37 of the Code of Virginia. The library is governed by a board appointed by the governing bodies of the localities making up the authority as authorized by Virginia Code Sections 42.1-38 and 42.1-39. The library is primarily funded by the local governments making up the authority and the state and federal governments. The museum is primarily funded through endowments and memberships.
Section 170(c)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code defines as a deductible charitable contribution a contribution or gift for the use of:
- A state, a possession of the United States, or any political subdivision of any of the foregoing, or any of the foregoing, or the United States or the District of Columbia, but only if the contribution or gift is made for exclusively public purposes.
- an organization . . . which normally receives a substantial part of its support . . . from a governmental unit . . . or from direct or indirect contributions from the general public (provided that the organization is organized and operated exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, literary, or educational purposes).
As the library in this case is an authority composed of several local governments that is funded primarily from governmental sources and as the museum is funded primarily from public contributions, the above federal statutes might serve to make contributions to the library and museum deductible for federal income tax purposes. Such a determination must be made by the Internal Revenue Service, however. If contributions to the library and museum are deemed deductible for federal tax purposes, they will automatically be considered deductible for Virginia income tax purposes.
W. H. Forst
Tax Commissioner
Rulings of the Tax Commissioner