The work we do at the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters Education Fund is about more than just today. We fight for transformative policy changes to build a more sustainable and just Connecticut for future generations. By making a legacy gift to the CTLCV Education Fund, you can ensure that our work can continue for years to come while maximizing your own financial benefit.
Will or Trust Giving
A gift through your will or living trust is convenient to arrange. Your attorney can make a simple provision or amendment at the time you make or update your will or trust. These gifts are flexible, easy to arrange, and are easy to change as your life circumstances evolve.
Here are some of the most popular ways to give through a will or trust:
Make a gift of a specific dollar amount.
Make a gift of a percentage of your estate.
Give the remainder (residue) of your estate – that is, provide that whatever remains after all other gifts are satisfied will be donated to the CTLCV Education Fund.
Give a particular property (e.g. real estate, stocks, other items of value).
Name the CTLCV Education Fund to receive a gift before the remainder of the trust is distributed to heirs.
Gifts by Beneficiary Designation
You can continue your support for the CTLCV Education Fund by naming us as a beneficiary of your retirement account, life insurance plan, bank account, or other similar assets. You can make this gift without an estate plan or lawyer and can change your beneficiary designation(s) at any time. Setting up a beneficiary designation is as easy as 1-2-3:
Contact your retirement plan administrator, insurance company, bank or financial institution for a change-of-beneficiary form.
Decide what percentage (1 to 100) you would like the CTLCV Education Fund to receive and name us, along with the percentage you chose, on the beneficiary form.
Return the completed form to your plan administrator, insurance company, bank or financial institution.
Sample Bequest Language
To add the CTLCV Education Fund to your will, please share this draft language with your attorney or financial advisor: “I hereby give and bequeath [dollar amount or a percentage of my estate] to the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters Education Fund Inc (Tax ID 06-1582273), located at 20 Church Street, Floor MEZZ, Hartford, CT 06103, to be used for its general purposes (or for a particular program or purpose).”
Gift Intent Notification Click below to let us know about your legacy gift plans.
As a 501(c)(3) organization, we are able to accept a wide variety of legacy gifts. Click here to learn more about additional giving methods.
Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs)
If you are age 73 or older, you are required to withdraw a certain amount (known as a Required Minimum Distribution, or RMD) from your IRA every year. By making a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD), you can support the CTLCV Education Fund’s mission and avoid income tax on your withdrawal. QCDs are only required from traditional IRAs, not Roth IRAs. Example: Jane is 75 years old and must take an RMD of $25,000 per year from her IRA. She directs $10,000 from her IRA to the CTLCV Education Fund as a QCD. That $10,000 counts toward her RMD and is not included as taxable income.
Charitable Gift Annuities (CGAs)
A charitable gift annuity is a contract between you and the CTLCV Education Fund. It’s very simple: you make a donation to us, we invest the funds, you receive a fixed payout (typically either monthly or quarterly) for the rest of your life, and the remainder of the funds goes to the League at the end of your life. A charitable gift annuity may be funded by cash, securities, and even in some cases personal property.
Example: Mark, age 63, establishes a CGA to the CTLCV Education Fund by making a contribution of $10,000. In accordance with the recommendations of the American Council on Gift Annuities, he receives a payout of 5.4% per year in quarterly installments. If Mark lives to 85, he will receive nearly $12,000 in payments – and, assuming standard investment performance, the CTLCV Education Fund will receive roughly $4,000 at the end of his life to support our mission for the years to come.
You may be eligible to receive a partial tax deduction on the lump sum in the year in which you make the donation establishing the CGA. In addition, a portion of the income stream you receive over the duration of the annuity may be tax-free. The tax deductibility of your specific gift depends on a number of factors, including your age and the type of asset(s) donated. Please consult with your financial advisor for more information about your personal situation. For much larger gifts (typically $100,000 or more), you may wish to consider a charitable remainder trust (CRT), which is similar to a CGA but somewhat more complex. Please contact us if you are interested in establishing a CGA or CRT.
Charitable Lead Trusts (CLTs)
With a charitable lead trust, you can power the CTLCV Education Fund’s mission today and reduce your heirs’ tax burdens in the future.
To make a CLT, you transfer assets (e.g. cash, securities, real estate, etc.) to a trust and specify how much the CTLCV Education Fund will be paid from the trust every year (this can be either a fixed dollar amount or a percentage of the value of the trust’s assets) and for how long (either a fixed number of years or for the duration of your life). At the end of the specified term, the remaining assets pass to the noncharitable beneficiary of your choice.
Example: James decides to establish a 20-year charitable lead trust with $200,000 in cash and names his daughter, Laura, as the noncharitable beneficiary. He specifies that the CTLCV Education Fund will receive a fixed 5% of the principal every year. As a result, the CTLCV Education Fund will receive $10,000 (5%) per year for 20 years, and then Laura will receive the remaining amount in the trust. Making a CLT dramatically reduces the amount that counts as a taxable gift, which reduces the amount of your beneficiary’s gift tax exemption they have to use (or any amount of gift tax that might be owed).
Example: Maria transfers $500,000 of Meta stock to a 10-year CLT and names her son, Ross, as the noncharitable beneficiary. The trust will pay the CTLCV Education Fund a guaranteed annuity amount of 8% of the initial trust value. The CTLCV Education Fund receives $40,000 a year for a decade, and then Ross inherits the remaining assets. With modest investment growth, Ross could inherit at least $600,000. However, the IRS will only count a small portion of that amount (likely around $125,000) as a taxable gift.
Please note that this is not legal advice. We strongly encourage you to consult with your attorney and/or financial planner to ensure that you are receiving the best possible information for your estate planning situation.
The CTLCV Education Fund is a 501(c)(3) organization, and all contributions are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law.
Contact Us We know how important it is to ask questions and have real conversations before making a significant financial decision. To learn more about legacy giving options and the impact your contributions will have for the League and our state, please contact Development Coordinator Michael Garman at (860) 236-5442.
