b'19FALL 2019increased the standard deduction. According2019 END OF YEARto the IRS, the act nearly doubled the stan-dardized deduction to $12,000 for individuals,GIVING DATES$18,000 for heads of household and $24,000 for married couples filing a joint tax return. These changes mean that, for most people,3Last day to contribute a mutual fund to itemizing every year is no longer worthwhile.TPF/CFWC (in most cases): Dec. 13.Many savvy taxpayers are now bunching their giving, meaning they compile their donations3 The opportunity to recommend a grant by into one large gift that exceeds the standardpaper or email for end-of-year payment minimum deduction. closes at 12 p.m., Dec. 20.While not all charities are set up to accept3 The opportunity to recommend a grant gifts of stock and other securities, communitythrough the online portal for end-of-year foundations such as The Pittsburgh Foundationpayment closes at 12 p.m., Dec. 27.can. Donors who set up donor-advised funds at3 The last day a stock gift can be deposited a community foundation then make gifts frominto the TPF/CFWC account: Dec. 31.*their funds to nonprofits they would normally support. This approach allows donors to exceed3 Checks must be postmarked by year-end: the standard deduction, to itemize in futureDec. 31.years and to benefit from the expertise of the3 Our offices are closed on Nov. 28, Nov. 29, Foundation for grant-making consultation. Dec. 24,and Dec. 25.The power of community foundation funds3 Our offices are open until 3 p.m. on The number of donor-advised funds (DAFs) atDec. 23 and Dec. 31.The Pittsburgh Foundation and the assets in *Please make the Foundation aware of your stock gift those funds have grown significantly over time,ahead of the transfer.creating significant benefits for the community: Tax information provided herein is not intended From 2009 to 2018, grants to nonprofits fromas tax or legal advice and cannot be relied on to avoid statutory penalties. Always check with your tax and DAFs doubled from 588 donor-advised fundsfinancial advisors before implementing any gift plan.representing $133 million to 1,070 donor-advised funds representing $338 million in assets. Likewise, in 2009, grants to the Pittsburgh community totaled $11 million. By 2018, the Foundations annual grantmaking had doubled to $22 million. This comes as no surprise to Foundation staff.I have never experienced a community of givers like Pittsburgh. Local people who make their money here give back here. Over the past three years, 70% of our grants were made to benefit nonprofits in Allegheny County, Maher says.The Foundation also sees donors using required minimum distributions from their IRAs to establish charitable funds.If youre 70 or older, you can give up to $100,000 annually to set up a scholarship fund at The Pittsburgh Foundation or establish a designated fund to benefit a specific charity, or an unrestricted fund that our Foundation can use to support the most pressing community needs, says Maher.ByKitty Julian | director of communications'