There is a way to give something back to all the animals even after you’re gone. It's called "planned giving," and that's what this page is all about. Please take a moment to read it, and consider how wonderful a way it would be to say thank you to every animal who has touched your life.

Planning is something we all do. Grocery lists, children’s car pools, "to-do" lists. Many times planning requires looking ahead to the future. Planned giving involves making arrangements now to have PAWS benefit from some of your assets, either currently or in the future. A planned gift can be as simple as transferring long-term appreciated stock to PAWS directly (rather than selling it and donating the after-tax proceeds). Another very common type of planned gift is naming PAWS as a beneficiary in your will or life insurance policy. It is even possible—through a gift annuity or charitable remainder trust—for you (or someone else) to receive payments now, with PAWS receiving a gift in the future. Several additional options exist, as well.

Planned giving is another way to ensure that wild and companion animals are sheltered, cared for and treated humanely.

Preparing a will is sometimes an emotional and thought-provoking endeavor. Whether you have accumulated vast assets or have only a few possessions, a will prevents legal complications and delays. It directs your personal representative to deal with your estate as you wish.

Another important aspect of a will is that it allows you to provide for the animals you care about after your death. Whether this means your own companion animals or those at PAWS, your will can continue a legacy of kindness.

• A particular amount of money or an asset (e.g., stock, a coin collection, a house)
• All or a portion of the remainder of your estate after expenses and gifts to your loved ones have been paid out
• An interest in real estate or a trust designated initially for the lifetime benefit of a loved one
• A contingent gift that takes effect only under certain circumstances (e.g., "If my spouse does not survive me,...")

When you include PAWS in your will, please use the following designation: "Progressive Animal Welfare Society, Inc. of Lynnwood, Washington" PO Box 1037, Lynnwood, Washington 98046

You may also wish to notify PAWS as to the terms, conditions, and circumstances of your will so that we can confirm our ability to use your gift as intended by you. PAWS is a tax exempt charitable organization under Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3). Our Federal Tax Identification number is 91-6073154.

Often, you can add a bequest to PAWS to your existing will simply by consulting your attorney about an amendment known as a "codicil."

If you would like to create an estate plan that allows some privacy and has additional features, a living trust may be something you wish to discuss with your attorney. A gift to PAWS from such a trust can be arranged upon your death, just as with a will.

There are several ways to make a gift to PAWS and provide lifetime payments for you or someone you designate. Whatever is left will go to PAWS.

An advantage to these types of gifts is you can take an income tax deduction in the year you give, even though PAWS may not benefit from the gift for many years.

If you transfer cash or publicly traded stocks to PAWS, we guarantee to make lifetime payments to you or to any one or two persons you designate. The amount paid depends on the value of your gift and the age(s) of the person(s) receiving the payments. In addition, even the payments themselves are partially tax-free for many years. You will receive a tax deduction for the full value of your gift less the value of the payments PAWS makes to you.

A person age 77 donates $10,000 cash to PAWS to establish a gift annuity. Each year for life, PAWS pays the donor $820, of which $481 will be tax-free for 11 years. The donor also receives an income tax deduction of $4,654.

The procedure is the same as with a regular charitable gift annuity except PAWS doesn’t begin to make the payments until a particular time in the future. The longer the payments are deferred, the larger they are—and the larger your tax deduction. This is an especially attractive arrangement for people in their working years who would welcome a current tax deduction but don’t need the payments until their retirement years.

Cash or property transferred to one of these trusts results in income being paid to you (and/or others) for life or a term of up to 20 years. Thereafter, what remains in the trust goes to PAWS. Income can be either a fixed percentage of the original value of your gift or a specific percentage of the annual value of the property owned by the trust. Once again, significant tax savings can be realized, depending on which type of trust you select.

A husband and wife, both age 67, own $200,000 worth of a single stock they acquired many years ago for $50,000. It pays a dividend of only 2 percent, or $4,000, each year. They transfer the stock to a charitable remainder trust that pays them 6 percent of the value of the trust’s assets (as revalued at the beginning of each year). To achieve diversification, the trust can sell some or all of the stock and reinvest the proceeds without paying any capital gains tax. The donors receive initial income of $12,000 per year from the trust (and perhaps more in subsequent years), along with a tax deduction of $63,970. At the end of their lives, the trust’s remaining assets are distributed to PAWS.

When real estate, stock, and certain other property you have owned for more than a year is given to PAWS, you receive a tax deduction for its full value AND you completely avoid any tax on the capital gain.

If you own $5,000 of stock you bought several years ago for $2,000, you could sell it, pay the capital gains tax of $600 (20% of the $3,000 gain), and then give the remaining $4,400 to PAWS. This would result in a $4,400 tax deduction. You'll be better off, however, if you simply transfer the stock to PAWS directly. You’ll get a tax deduction for the full $5,000 and you won’t pay a penny of capital gains tax.

You can give your personal residence or a farm to PAWS while specifying that you (and/or another person) be permitted to continue using the property for life. This can result in a sizable tax deduction, depending upon the age(s) of the person(s) in question.

Other methods of providing for the animals involve life insurance. By making PAWS the owner of an existing policy, you receive a tax deduction. If premiums are still owed once the policy is contributed, you can obtain additional tax deductions by continuing to pay the premiums. Even if you want to retain ownership of a policy, you can still name PAWS as a recipient of some or all of the policy’s proceeds upon your death.

Often, people overlook various assets that can be quite appropriate for use in supporting PAWS. Examples include U.S. savings bonds, commercial annuity contracts, and retirement plan accounts such as IRAs. In certain cases, it is better to designate that PAWS receive these assets upon your death, but they can sometimes be used to make lifetime gifts, too.

PAWS advocates for animals through education, legislation and direct care. A Northwest leader in protecting animals since 1967, the Progressive Animal Welfare Society shelters homeless animals, rehabilitates injured and orphaned wildlife and works to end animal abuse and exploitation. We rely entirely on donations to carry out our work to help animals. Helping PAWS through planned giving will contribute to all the animals’ welfare. Please contact us for additional information.

Before deciding on what type of gift you might make to PAWS, please consult with your attorney. Tax laws change and an independent estate planning professional should always review your individual situation. The examples provided are only scenarios used for illustration and do not necessarily represent current IRS laws, annuity rates, or the particulars of your situation.

If you have any questions after reading this information, let us know. One of our knowledgeable staff will be happy to help. We can also work with your attorney, accountant, or financial advisor to discuss options that will address your individual needs.