Legislation, however, such as The Charitable Giving Tax Relief Act would extend the tax deduction for charitable donations to nonitemizers, who represent over two-thirds of American taxpayers. Gifts to state and local government, the federal government, qualifying veterans and fraternal organizations and certain cemetery companies also may be deductible. Yes, and the record keeping requirements vary according to the amount and type of gift. Yes, but special rules apply for determining the value of donated property, for the records that the donor must keep, for the documents that must be filed with the IRS, and, in some cases, for the amount of the contribution that you can deduct. Some benefits are so insignificant they may be disregarded.
Special rules define when a benefit is insignificant.
Yes, but only if the donor explicitly rejects the benefit. It is not enough that the donor simply chooses not to use the benefit. Individual taxpayers may not deduct the value of their donated services. Some expenses incurred when volunteering services, for example, travel expenses, are deductible if they are not reimbursed by the charity. However, travel expenses are deductible only if there is no significant element of personal pleasure, recreation, or vacation associated with the travel.