Jill:People that have participated in auction/benefits in the past will understand their receipts, those new to this type of fundraiser will learn something new. ..if someone is uncomfortable with the level of deductibility, you can always encourage them to provide direct support in the future. The cleanest donation is always a personal check with no side issues involved!
Here is a personal story which may help...Recently, I attended an auction/dinner/fundraiser. The cost per plate was $100. I received a receipt thanking me for my attendance and valued support and a short blip on the IRS regulation which valued the meal at $50, thus providing me a $50 tax-exempt receipt ($100 - $50 = $50).
At this same dinner, my husband entered a silent auction bid on a dry-cleaners card valued at $150. He started the bidding on this item at $50, no one else followed his example...so he received a $150 value for $50. He did not receive a 'receipt' for that "purchase" although all the funds went to the benefiting organization. He did receive a nice thank you note for participating, and supporting the auction benefit.
It is important to remember one basic principle: Tax receipts are for tax purposes. If someone does not gift a deductible expense, then no receipt is necessary, however; Thank You notes are always in order. If they have questions, they will call, otherwise they will ask their accountant for clarification.
Your original message was dealing with how your organization handles cash and material donations.
The cash gets tallied as cash. The material donations get counted as in-kind, unless you sell an item, at which point the money from that sale gets noted in your books for the amount it sold for - - Dollars in = Dollars in.
You may wish to utilize the search option at the top of the PND message board to seek out answers previously posted, and links to appropriate IRS website pages.
Best Wishes
