Colorado Tax Credits
We hope you have found this page because you are interested in donating to La Puente! Colorado taxpayers save significantly more with special state tax credits (HCTC and CCTC). Donors can utilize tax credits whether or not they itemize deductions. Moreover, tax credits can be used on their own or combined with partial deductions for extra savings. This is all great news for our donors!
The Homeless Charitable Tax Credit (HCTC) provides a 30% tax credit to Colorado taxpayers who contribute $100 or more (before any platform fees) to eligible homelessness-related projects. This includes several La Puente programs!
Colorado Tax Credits
Moreover, taxpayers that make a qualifying monetary contribution to promote child care in Colorado, such as PALS Children’s Program, may claim an income tax credit equal to 50% of the total qualifying contribution through the Child Care Contribution Credit (CCTC). We sincerely appreciate your support!
Learn more about HCTC or CCTC below. If you have additional questions reach out to us!
HCTC
The Homeless Charitable Tax Credit (HCTC) = a 30% tax credit for eligible donations to La Puente's housing and homelessness prevention programming!
The Homeless Charitable Tax Credit (HCTC) provides a tax credit to Colorado taxpayers who contribute to eligible homelessness-related projects within Colorado. Several programs at La Puente fall under this category of “homelessness-related projects.” To earn this 30% tax credit, designate eligible gifts to:
- General Operations - HCTC
- Community Shelter
- Street Outreach
- Adelante Family Resource Center
- Crisis Prevention
Because La Puente operates in a rural region, the tax incentive is 30% instead of the normal 25% for donations made to a non-rural organization. This is great news for our donors!
- Must be a Colorado resident and taxpayer
- The taxpayer cannot directly benefit from the contribution.
- The total tax credits allowed per taxpayer per year may not exceed $100,000.
Contribution Types:
- Cash contributions must be a minimum of $100 (before any platform fees, i.e. on Colorado Gives or PayPal).
- Contributions can be made in any form of US currency, including cash, check, electronic funds transfer, debit card, or credit card.
- A qualified charitable distribution of cash made from an individual retirement account
(IRA) to a qualifying HCTC organization or project is considered a monetary contribution. Please refer to this link for more information (page 13).
In-Kind Contribution
- A contribution that is not monetary and is valued over $5,000 under an independent third-party valuation. In-kind donations can include a contribution of property, services, stocks, bonds, or other intangible property.
This excludes things like clothing or furniture donations. Please refer to this link for more information.
Intermediary Organizations:
- La Puente partners with Colorado Gives (COGives.org) and Fidelity Charitable. If you contribute through either of these partners, your donation is still eligible for an HCTC certificate.
Donors submitting a contribution valued at over $5,000 (monetary or in-kind) on the date of donation must include documentation of the contribution that comprises the following:
● Independent third-party valuation (in-kind donation only)
● Copy of the check or Receipt for cash or check donations that include donor name, donation amount, donation date, nonprofit name, and a check number (if applicable)
● Credit card document that includes the approval code number for the purchase
● Aggregate report from an employer's payroll for payroll deductions
All HCTC certificates are produced by La Puente staff and provided to the donor. These are completed once the donation is made, usually within a month from the donation date.
The process requires the last four digits of your Social Security Number (SSN), Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), or Employer Identification Number (EIN). As a reminder, do not share sensitive information–including your full social security number–over email or text. This information can be collected by calling Claire at 719-589-5909 ext. 222 and providing it verbally. Alternatively, you could put the last four digits of your SSN in your gift memo.
All donations for this year should be made by December 31st. Tax certificates will be processed and distributed by Claire. As a note, any HCTC donations made in January of any year will not be processed until February due to State requirements.
CCTC
Child Care Contribution Credit (CCTC) = a 50% tax credit for eligible donations to PALS Children's Program!
Colorado taxpayers that make a qualifying monetary contribution to promote child care in Colorado may claim an income tax credit equal to 50% of the total qualifying contribution through the Child Care Contribution Credit (CCTC). La Puente’s PALS Children’s Program is a referral-based, licensed, after-school and summer program that qualifies for CCTC.
To earn this 50% tax credit, designate eligible gifts to:
- PALS Children’s Program
- Must be a Colorado resident and taxpayer
- The taxpayer cannot directly benefit from the contribution.
- The credit is equal to 50% of the qualifying contribution made during the tax year, subject to certain limitations. The total tax credits allowed per taxpayer per year may not exceed $100,000. The $100,000 limitation applies jointly to two taxpayers filing a joint income tax return together.
Contributions must meet the following three requirements to qualify for the credit.
- The contribution must be monetary.
- The contribution must be made to a qualifying child care facility or program to promote child care in Colorado, as described below.
- The contribution must be used by the recipient to promote child care for children 12 years of age and younger.
- The contribution must be certified by the recipient.
A monetary contribution is a contribution of U.S. currency in any form, including cash and payments made by check, electronic funds transfer (EFT), debit card, or credit card. A qualified charitable distribution of cash made from an individual retirement account (IRA) to a qualifying child care facility or program is considered a monetary contribution. Please see IRS Publication 590-B for additional information regarding qualified charitable distributions.
If a contribution is used for both qualifying and nonqualifying purposes, the credit is allowed only for the part of the contribution used for qualifying purposes. The child care facility or program receiving the contribution must state only the amount of the contribution used for qualifying purposes on the certificate.
All CCTC certificates are produced by La Puente staff and provided to the donor. These are completed once the donation is made, usually within a month from the donation date.
The process requires the last four digits of your Social Security Number (SSN), Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), or Employer Identification Number (EIN). As a reminder, do not share sensitive information–including your full social security number–over email or text. This information can be collected by calling Claire at 719-589-5909 ext 222 and providing it verbally. Alternatively, you could put the last four digits of your SSN in your gift memo.
All donations for this year should be made by December 31st. Tax certificates will be processed and distributed by Claire. To claim the credit, taxpayers must submit a copy of this certificate, along with the appropriate credit schedule, along with their income tax return.
Contact Us
Have questions about tax credits or how to make your gift go further? We'd love to help. Reach out to our team and we'll walk you through your options.