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LAST MINUTE CHARITY

December 27, 2005

OK, you've been busy. Packages to wrap, football to watch, dinner to cook, kids to haul... and you've neglected your tax planning. While real year-end tax planning is best started January 1, all is not lost. You can still get a 2005 charitable deduction, and help a good cause in the bargain.

If you write a check to charity and it's postmarked by December 31, it counts this year. It also counts this year if you go online and pay with your credit card -- even if you don't pay your credit card bill until next year.

Many worthy charities make it easy to give online. Here are a few of my favorites:

Salvation Army. If you want your charitable dollars to be used helping people who really need it, rather than to pay for administration and fund raising, the Army can't be beat.

Hospice of Central Iowa. The Hospice people do tremendous and underappreciated work to help those facing death, and their families.

And don't forget that it's winter in southwest Asia, which last month suffered enormous earthquake damage. You can help the Save the Children relief effort here.

If you want to find out whether your favorite charity takes online donations, the Network for Good is the place to go.

This is another installment in our series on 2005 year-end tax planning.

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