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Today is last day for St. Lawrence County residents to make charitable donations that count against 2015 taxes

Posted 12/31/15

For St. Lawrence County residents planning to make a charitable contribution before the end of the year, you’re not alone since nearly 31 percent of all charitable giving happens this time of year. …

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Today is last day for St. Lawrence County residents to make charitable donations that count against 2015 taxes

Posted

For St. Lawrence County residents planning to make a charitable contribution before the end of the year, you’re not alone since nearly 31 percent of all charitable giving happens this time of year.

Whether it’s personal or a business donation, it’s important to make an informed giving decision. Do you need help distinguishing one charity from another? Better Business Bureau Foundation of Upstate New York’s Charity Review program can help.

“The volume of information available about charitable organizations can be confusing,” said Shawn Stover-Schofield, BBB Foundation director. “It can be difficult to sort through the many charities that focus on the cause you would like to support. It’s important to make giving decisions with good information. It’s why we always encourage people to do their research before they give.”

Unfortunately in today’s technology-driven world, unscrupulous con-artists can trick busy holiday givers by using names that sound similar to well-known charities. Scammers will use phishing emails or telemarketing calls to pull at donor’s heartstrings to either get a donator or infect a computer intended to steal personal information from your system.

BBB offers five tips to help you give wisely this holiday season:

• Verify websites. Fifty-five percent of all giving is through nonprofit websites according to Networkforgood.com digital giving index. Before you enter your credit or debit card numbers, review the website. Look for security in the URL, for example, the “s” in HTTPS means ‘secure.” Look for that in the navigation bar on the donation page. Also, read the organization’s privacy policy, to find out more about security measures and how your personal information will be used.

• Do your own research. No matter what you hear from friends or read on social media, you need to do your own research on a charity. You can go to Give.org and search for a charity to find out about its programs, mission, financial information and more. Look for Charity Reviews to see if BBB has an evaluation. If there is none, check BBB’s 20 Standards of Charity Accountability and consider asking the charity questions about those standards most important to you.

• Look for more details. Administrative and fundraising costs are commonly referred to as “overhead.” BBB understands that this is part of the overall picture but it shouldn’t be the whole picture. BBB’s Wise Giving Alliance participated in The Overhead Myth campaign which countered the false perception that financial ratios alone are the best indicator of nonprofit performance.

• Donate via text with caution. A text message to donate is fast and the donation appears on your cell phone bill. Make sure the charity is legitimate. Keep in mind donating via text can take 60 – 90 days to reach the charity since the funds are forwarded after you pay the donation charge on your bill.

• Keep emotions in check. Emotional appeals are just one tactic a charity could use to get donations. But how long has the charity been running a campaign? Be on the lookout for dated clothing in pictures and other indicators of age in a story. The rule of thumb for charitable fund raising appeals is that stories and pictures shouldn’t be more than three years old. If an organization is sharing dated accomplishments, donors should wonder what they have done with recent donations.