IRS Applicable Federal Midterm Rate for August 2010 is 2.6%.

The valuation rate for new pooled income funds in 2010 is 4.6%.

In this issue:

• Featured Topic: Gifts Funded with Multiple Assets
• Help Clip: Using Online Help in GiftWrap 4.0
• Quick Tip: Time to Update Your Gift Annuity Disclosure Information
• Marketing Corner with Ann McPherson: What Is a Gift?
• Client Spotlight: Mercy Home for Boys & Girls Values GiftWrap 4.0
• Washington State Annual Filing Changes
• Register for Migration to GiftWrap 4.0 Today!
• FASB Liability Calculations
• New ACGA Rates Effective July 1 – Is Your Software Up to Date?
• Join Us in Celebrating Our Anniversary and Get a $25 Amazon Gift Card
• Upcoming Webinar: Achieving Donor Goals with Gift Annuities – Case Studies
• Upcoming Group Training Sessions

Gifts Funded with Multiple Assets
While most planned gifts are funded with a single asset, typically cash or a single block of long term appreciated securities, it is not unusual for a donor to create a planned gift using a combination of assets, such as a block of long term appreciated securities plus cash, or a block of long term appreciated securities plus a block of short term appreciated securities.

Gifts of mixed assets pose a challenge to gift planners who want to help a donor determine the available charitable deduction or the taxation of gift annuity payments over the life of an agreement.

Learn more...

Past topics...

Help Clip: Using Online Help in GiftWrap 4.0
GiftWrap 4.0 constitutes a top-to-bottom rewrite of our industry-leading planned gift administration software. As part of the re-writing process, we also have revised not just the content of GiftWrap's Online Help System, but also how you use some of its features.

Learn more...

Quick Tip: Time to Update Your Gift Annuity Disclosure Information
The Gift Annuity Disclosure Statement in our Planned Giving Manager (PGM) software fulfills all of the requirements of the Philanthropy Protection Act of 1995 regarding the disclosure of information to potential gift annuity donors. This statement should be provided to each gift annuity donor prior to the completion of his or her annuity agreement.

If you have been using or plan to use PGM’s Gift Annuity Disclosure Statement, you should review and update the organization information that appears in this statement. To review and update this information:

-  Select Customize - Organization Information in PGM’s Menu Bar.
-  Select your organization, then click Edit.
-  Use the Next button to advance to the Gift Annuity Disclosure Statement screens, and then update your organization information as needed.
-  When done, choose File - Save Configuration in the Menu Bar to save your changes for use in future PGM sessions.

Marketing Corner with Ann McPherson: What Is a Gift?
I recently read a post entitled “Gifts Misunderstood” by renowned permission marketer Seth Godin that got me thinking about much of the marketing material I read, edit, and create.

"A gift costs the giver something real. It might be cash (enough that we feel the pinch) but more likely it involves a sacrifice or a risk or an emotional exposure. A true gift is a heartfelt connection, something that changes both the giver the recipient. The way I understand gifts is that the giver must make a sacrifice, create an uneven exchange, bring himself closer to the recipient, create change and do it all with the right spirit."

Certainly there is a place for material that talks about gift vehicles and how they work, but doing that is the easy part. How much of your marketing material tells a story so compelling that someone raises their hand? I think it's time to swing the pendulum the other way and focus on the mission and strengthening the connection between your reader and your organization.

Client Spotlight: Mercy Home for Boys & Girls Values GiftWrap 4.0
Angela Fatigato, Coordinator, Gift Planning at Mercy Home for Boys & Girls, a residential program that serves abused, abandoned, and neglected children throughout Chicago, sent us her comments about GiftWrap 4.0. “With almost 700 planned giving donors and only three full-time staff, PG Calc’s GiftWrap has been instrumental in managing our records, creating reports, and growing our planned giving efforts here at Mercy Home for Boys & Girls. With user-friendly features, easy-to-understand guides, enhanced security, and convenient web-based access, GiftWrap 4.0 provides everything that our team requires to fulfill the needs of our agency’s committed family of donors.”

Learn more about GiftWrap 4.0

Learn more about Mercy Home for Boys & Girls

Washington State Annual Filing Changes
Washington State has amended the Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 48.38.010 and issued new requirements it will implement in order to ensure compliance with the amended law. Implementation will begin with any charitable gift annuity issuer whose fiscal year ends June 30, 2010. Due to the amendment, the Annual Report is now due within sixty days after the end of the issuer's fiscal year. This includes the Prescribed Statement of Actuarial Opinion (PSAO). This new requirement will eventually affect every charity that holds a Certificate of Exemption issued by Washington State and has a fiscal year ending on a date other than December 31.

Learn more...

Register for Migration to GiftWrap 4.0 Today!
PG Calc officially released GiftWrap 4.0 on May 24, 2010. GiftWrap 4.0 is a new Web-based application hosted by PG Calc, not an update of your current GiftWrap software. This means updating to GiftWrap 4.0 requires coordination between your staff and PG Calc in order to transfer your data to our hosting facility.

We have been busy converting clients to this new Web-based version of GiftWrap. If you have not yet made a reservation, register your organization for migration to GiftWrap 4.0 soon to confirm a date that works best for your administration schedule. Spaces are filling up fast!

We have a wealth of information available about GiftWrap 4.0 on our website, including a page specifically dedicated to the migration process.

Register for migration today

FASB Liability Calculations
July and August is audit season for many of our clients. With this annual visit from the auditor comes a request for planned gift liability calculations to satisfy Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) requirements. We are pleased to offer guidance on how to perform these liability calculations properly and how our Planned Giving Manager and GiftWrap software can help.

Learn more...

New ACGA Rates Effective July 1 - Is Your Software Up to Date?
New gift annuity rates suggested by the American Council on Gift Annuities (ACGA) became effective for gifts established on or after July 1, 2010. If you follow the ACGA rates and have installed Planned Giving Manager (PGM) 6.3, which we released May 21, 2010, you are ready to go. All you need to do is confirm use of the “ACGA rate tables effective 7/1/2010” when prompted by PGM the first time you launch it on or after July 1.

To confirm that you are running PGM 6.3, launch PGM, then choose Help – About from the Menu Bar. The PGM version is listed on the second line from the top. If you find that you are not running PGM 6.3, contact Client Services at support@pgcalc.com or 888-474-2252 to request the update. If you do not follow the ACGA rates, but still want to modify the rates you are using, contact Client Services to discuss creating a custom annuity rate table.

Join Us in Celebrating Our Anniversary and Get a $25 Amazon Gift Card
In 2010, PG Calc celebrates its 25th anniversary with pride, enthusiasm, and gratitude. We invite our clients to participate in our celebration by contributing a story that highlights PG Calc’s investment in their mission. We’re excited to publish these stories on our website. Please email PG Calc at info@pgcalc.com with your PG Calc story. The first 100 people who provide a story will receive a $25 Amazon.com gift card. We thank all of our clients for the opportunities we’ve had to serve them, support their planned giving programs, and invest in their missions over the last 25 years.

Upcoming Webinar: Achieving Donor Goals with Gift Annuities - Case Studies
Gift annuities can take many forms, depending on who the donor is, who is receiving the payments, what is used to fund the annuity, and how the arrangement is structured, to name just a few considerations. Used alone and in combination, they offer solutions to a wider range of donor situations than you may think. This Webinar will employ case studies to investigate numerous instances where a gift annuity of some kind can provide a satisfying outcome to a donor dilemma.

Presenter: Bill Zook
Date: July 29, 2010
Time: 1:00 – 2:30 pm ET

Register now

Upcoming Group Training Sessions
We will be offering our Gift Planning with Planned Giving Manager and Gift Administration with GiftWrap group training sessions in Boston in August and in Orlando in October. The sessions in Orlando will be offered prior to the National Conference on Philanthropic Planning (NCPP). These sessions provide a solid foundation for individuals who are new to planned giving. They may also serve to reinforce the skills and knowledge of experienced gift planners. We hope you’ll join us!

Please note that our GiftWrap classes will work with the new Web-based GiftWrap 4.0.

August 9-10
Gift Planning with Planned Giving Manager
Introductory & Advanced
John Hancock Hotel & Conference Center, Boston, MA

August 11-12
Gift Administration with GiftWrap
Basics & Reporting and Analysis
John Hancock Hotel & Conference Center, Boston, MA

October 12-13
Gift Planning with Planned Giving Manager
Introductory & Advanced
Buena Vista Palace, Orlando, FL

October 12-13
Gift Administration with GiftWrap
Basics & Reporting and Analysis
Buena Vista Palace, Orlando, FL

For more information or to register

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