tax write off?

It is my understanding that unless the donations are made to an approved tax-exempt non-profit org. there is no write-off allowed. Not sure there is a way around it.

What these businesses would be doing is a personal sponsorship. Certainly, some businesses in your local community may be very happy to sponsor your son as a member of the community. Try those that you frequent. Make an announcement at your place of worship. Solicit family members with a nice sponsorhip letter written by your son.

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Will the businesses have their names listed anywhere?

In order to be deductible, the organization you donate to must not only be tax-exempt or non-profit, they must also be charitable or educational. Lots of tax-exempt organizations still don't offer you the ability to deduct your donations.

I have seen some athletic organizations who somehow qualified as IRC 501(c)(3)'s, but it is rare that you would see a travel baseball program be that established so as to have gotten all of that accomplished.

Also, you're not supposed to deduct "donations" except to the extent they are truly donations. If you deal with a 501(c)(3) organization, then someone who sponsors your son might actually be making a donation. If you, on the other hand, are paying a participation fee for your son, you are essentially buying something and not making a qualifying donation.

Some youth athletic organizations also raise money by selling advertising. This allows people who perhaps own their own businesses to essentially pay their kids' way through buying ads for their businesses. The business then deducts the advertising expense, whereas the person could not deduct a simple fee payment.

In most cases, though, you pay the bills and bite the bullet.

P.S. It shouldn't cost all that much to go to JO's. Watch out for teams who charge exorbitant fees to pay their coaches. There are plenty of teams out there who will charge you just for the tourney fee and maybe a hat/jersey fee, so that you only have to worry about travel expenses. I have heard of people charging $2,500 for this trip, and that is ridiculous. Anything above a $200 team fee is suspect. And once you get down to that level, you don't really need to be worrying about tax-deductibility.

momandcpa, would it be possible to run an ad in the newspaper following all donations coming in thanking them for their sponsorship? Would that qualify as advertising?

I agree with Midlo Dad, you should check with your team that is going if they are 501(c)(3) and if they are, the business may be able to donate to the team and have funds go to your travel.

I also would echo, beware of the organizations which charge $2,000 - 6,000 for a tournament! These are for profit organizations and you would not be able to have the business' write off the donation.

I would contact the Junior Olympics staff and ask them if there is a program where the donor makes a contribution to Junior Olympics which is then credited to the player to pay for their participation. If the money were to be considered anything other than a donation or gift - there will be taxable consequences to the recipient. For example, if the player received a $1,000 in advertising from the company providing the funds - the company would get a write-off - however, the player would need to recognize a $1,000 in income. It would be Sch C income - subject to self-employment tax and regular tax. Still - it would be cheaper to pay the taxes than to pay for the participation costs out-of-pocket.

They are not 501c3. From people I've talked to that went in the past its going to cost around $450 which includes lodging,van, team and coach fees. It does'nt include meals and airfare. I don't have all the details yet they are supposed to send out the info in the next couple weeks after they get confirmation of a team entry. We don't have a lot of options in Oregon. There is one other organization but I'm sure they charge more.

From a technical point of view if you make a donation to a 501(c)(3) organization with the stipulation that it be used for Joe Smith Jr. you are not entitled to a deduction.

Realistically, an unrelated business can make a small payment (less then $500) to a player and deduct in a number of different ways, promotion, marketing etc... and most IRS agents won't care. However, if the business wants to make a large payment it may run into 1099 and other pratical reporting issues. i.e. Most IRS agents won't ask about a $200 promotion deduction but will ask to see the 1099 the business issued if its a $1,000 payment.

Many travel teams will provide players with form letters requesting financial aid etc. to help kids find "sponsors" for their trip.

fyi most Little League Babe Ruth etc. organizations are tax exempt as "educational" . Many travel teams are NOT 501(c)(3) organizations because they would become subject to public oversight by the state attorney general, would have some of their financial records open to the public and would be "owned" by the public.