donated items

[mocat]

We had a nursery to donate some flowers and shrubs. They requested a receipt showing the
amount of their contribution for tax purposes. Do we need to show a contribution that reflects
the amount the donation was worth. Do we need to write them a check for the items and then
let them just give the check back to the church?
thanks

[NeilZ]

We had a nursery to donate some flowers and shrubs. They requested a receipt showing the
amount of their contribution for tax purposes. Do we need to show a contribution that reflects
the amount the donation was worth. Do we need to write them a check for the items and then
let them just give the check back to the church?
thanks

There is no need to do this, as this is a 'donation in kind' and really does not reflect any sort of monetary contribution to the church. What we usually do in this case is have the Financial Secretary or Treasurer write up a letter on church letterhead thanking the company for the donation, listing the amount given. This is along the lines of what you get when you drop something off at the Salvation Army. Something like this:

We wish to thank XYZ Nursery for the donation of 15 perennial flowers and 10 2-gallon shrubs on April 24th, 2010. This donation will greatly assist us in our building spruce-up campaign, freeing up money to be used elsewhere in the service of Christ.

In Him,

Jack Smith,
Treasurer, ABC Church

Note: No goods or services other than intangible religious benefits were provided by the church in return for the contribution.

We then file this for our records and hold it a minimum of three years.
For more info on this, check IRS Pub1828, page 24: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1828.pdf