$150!!! My advice was as it pertained to say a $20 gift. Mum is right,(not just that some husbands don't spend that much on a gift-do husbands have a handbook? [img]smile.gif[/img] ) discuss the IRS rule. In fact, according to the IRS - "The organization must not be organized or operated for the benefit of private interests, such as the creator or the creator's family, shareholders of the organization, other designated individuals, or persons controlled directly or indirectly by such private interests. No part of the net earnings of an IRC Section 501(c)(3) organization may inure to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual. A private shareholder or individual is a person having a personal and private interest in the activities of the organization. If the organization engages in an excess benefit transaction with a person having substantial influence over the organization, an excise tax may be imposed on the person and any managers agreeing to the transaction."
In other words, anyone who gets the gift or gives the gift, has to pay the IRS.
It's better to have the documentation to back you up when you discuss it.
It's going to be hard to go from extravagant gifts to a cake every month... :eek:
Sheesh--$150 for a gift? I don't think my husband spent that much on my last birthday gift! But then, maybe that's another issue...
If your unit is one that is big enough to file a tax return, you could point out that only $25 of your gift is deductible on the tax return (that's the IRS limit on individual gifts). Knowing that the IRS frowns upon such lavishness should in itself scare people away from this.
Thank you to everyone who responded. I feel better now. I knew it wasn't right but they tried to say they could. It's not like this was in inexpensive gift certificate it was atleast 150.00. We are a very low budget school. Funds are hard to come buy. Again thank you
I agree with the above posts that buying gifts with PTO/PTA monies should be a "no-no". We also have monthly staff socials and the staff takes turns hosting this to celebrate birthdays, but this is not a PTO function. A card or a mention in a monthly newsletter would be nice and simple to do. :cool:
