IRAs and Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs)

If you are 70½ or older, you can donate up to $100,000 per tax year directly from an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) to charities like High Country News.

Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs), also known as IRA charitable rollovers or IRA gifts, are a creative way to support High Country News AND give yourself tax benefits.

How a QCD works

• You must be 70½ or older at the time of your gift. 
• QCDs are limited to the amount that would otherwise be taxed as ordinary income. 
• You may distribute up to $100,000 in a calendar year to one or more public charities, so long as the distributions are completed by December 31 of that year.
• Your IRA administrator must make the distribution directly to the charity, or you may write a check to the charity from your IRA checkbook.*

*Important: Funds that are withdrawn by you and then contributed do not qualify.

Benefits to you

QCDs count toward your required minimum distribution (RMD) for the year. If you have to take your RMD but don’t need the funds, a qualified charitable distribution can be a great way to support nonprofits you love. As an added benefit, you’ll avoid paying income tax on your gross income up to the amount of your gift.

For additional information on QCDs and DAFs (Donor Advised Funds), please contact your charitable sponsor.

How to make a QCD gift from your IRA

1. Contact your IRA administrator or financial institution and request a transfer to HCN. The check should be made to “High Country News.”
2. Help us credit your gift and thank you by having your IRA administrator include your full name and mailing address on the gift. (Otherwise, we may get your QCD check and have no idea who it came from! That’s sad for us and potentially disappointing to you.) Also, please ask your administrator to note on the check or remittance form that the transfer is an IRA Qualified Charitable Distribution. 
3. They can mail the check directly to us:

High Country News
P.O. Box 1090
Paonia, CO 81428

If your financial institution cannot include your full name and address with the check, please complete the form below so that we can identify your donation when it arrives.

If you have any further questions about QCDs, please ask your financial advisor.

 Are there other ways I can support High Country News?

• Leave a legacy gift to High Country News in your will, or list HCN as a beneficiary of an account.
• Give a gift through donor-advised funds. [link to DAF page]
• Donate appreciated stock and securities.
• Ask your employer if they participate in a matching gifts program.
• Consider giving a multi-year pledge. 

If you have additional questions or just want to connect, please reach out to us at fundraising@hcn.org