Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation

Our Funds

Donor-Advised Funds

Donor-advised funds allow you to play an active role in grantmaking without the expense and work of running a private foundation. A donor-advised fund at Berkshire Taconic is simple to establish and operate.

As a donor advisor, you recommend how the income from your fund is spent, suggesting the charities you want to benefit. Berkshire Taconic makes sure that legal requirements for investment, distributions and payouts are met.

You may contribute to the fund and recommend grants whenever you wish, with Berkshire Taconic handling all investment and administrative details. Gifts to your donor-advised fund are eligible for the maximum charitable tax deducations allowed by federal law.

Many donor advisors name additional family members as advisors, thereby creating a legacy of philanthropy for children and other family members.

Minimum to open a donor-advised fund: $10,000 non-endowed, $25,000 endowed

View a list of our donor-advised funds.

Grants

The process of recommending grants from a donor-advised fund is simple and can be done at any time. You submit the name of the organization, the grant amount (minimum $100) and how you want to be acknowledged or if you wish to remain anonymous. We exercise due diligence to ensure the Internal Revenue Service recognizes the organization as a legitimate charity, issue a check to the organization and send you a notification.

Investments

When you open your fund, you may select from one or a combination of our four investment pools. Our Investment Committee meets at least four times a year and monitors all investment activity. Our administrative staff, led by Jill Gellert, vice president of finance and adminstration, provides day-to-day oversight.

Any investment growth within the fund provides additional tax-free capital for grants to your favorite charities.

Fees

Each charitable fund pays an administrative fee, which help support our wide range of services and community work. The fees are assessed directly to the fund.

Administrative fees are charged quarterly based on the average daily balance of the fund (minimum fee is $87.50 per quarter).

The administrative fees for donor-advised funds are:

1.5 % per year on first $250,000
1.25% per year on portion $250,000—$1 million
1.0% per year on portion $1 million—$3 million
0.75% per year on portion above $3 million
or 3% of grants given out in a quarter, whichever is higher

To talk to us about starting a donor-advised fund, contact Jennifer Dowley, president, at jd@berkshiretaconic.org or 413.229.0370.