501(c)(3) Public Charity List

[allgoodthings1]

Bitcoin Accepted Here

Does anyone know of an active and comprehensive list of U.S. tax-deductible organizations that accept donations in bitcoin?  All I can find are old, partial and unverified lists.  I think our community deserves something much better.

I've helped connect a couple of groups through BitPay's great no-cost/no-fee initiative. But there's nowhere to list them so others can easily find them -- and many others! -- in a go-to list of such organizations.  I post about them here and on reddit; but within 24 hours, the posts pass down into oblivion and no one sees them again.

I've read comments by others here, wishing they had some community list for places to donate; we all bemoan the vacuum and still, nothing.  I'd be happy to give countless hours to such a project if there were a good place for it to hang its hat.  Any ideas?

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[wontonotnow]

Coinmap.org was the first place I registered our NPO (El Camino Real Academy in Albuquerque).  A comprehensive and automated list may be difficult currently as there is no automatic way to differentiate wallets nor a central authority to verify authentic non-profits/charities from other entities.  Adding a keytag similar to how coinmap works with finding BTC venues that adds the fact that the entity is non-profit/tax-exempt would be great, but requires active participation of NPOs and can be spoofed if successful.  I love the idea, just can't figure out how to do an NPO filter within the BTC ecosystem without changing the protocol itself and adding a verification system, which would be like "colored" coins which are anathema.  I'm also one of those people who immediately finds the issues/problems and just spurts them out, so I'm not saying it's impossible....I'm just seeing a lot of hurdles getting this kind of filter through, unless it is marketed and uses the social-aspect and not the technical.  Marketing NPOs is tough, I'm sure you agree...You're on to something I haven't thought of yet, but I'm getting caught up in the hurdles/weeds trying to find the gears that fit.

[wontonotnow]

sidenote: If there is a database system via .gov in USA that has an API to verify 501(c)(3)/non profit status we could link it to coinmap.org or other system...but now we're talking bureaucracy-bomb: WOW!  There should be  a way to verify address and EIN, making sure an org is actually non-profit.  We would essentially be adding a plug-in to a donation website that verifies via the feds that it is legitimate.  It also opens a hole for hackers, so it would need to be a pretty large/secure system.  I can't set up a mom-and-pop Tax Exempt-verified BTC donation website, that's for sure.  Bitpay has the groundwork already laid out though.  They had me email all sorts of documentation before they secured our status as an NPO.

[AdamWhite]

Hi, sounds like a very worthwhile project.

Please post the charities you know about here in the OP and keep updating it!

You could also have a link to this thread in your sig

[allgoodthings1]

Idea taking shape. Here's what I'm thinking now.  Still inviting your comments and suggestions.

* The IRS has an excellent tool for checking the tax deductibility of organizations. The EO Select Check, introduced here: http://www.irs.gov/Charities-&-Non-Profits/Organizations-Eligible-to-Receive-Tax-Deductible-Charitable-Contributions
* There are organization eligible for tax-deductible contributions that are not on the list. And the list has some organizations not categorized as Public Charities (PC).
* But for the sake of this bitcoin list, include only the PC organizations on this list. That will make it quick and easy for anyone to verify the status of an organization on our bitcoin list.

A second requirement for inclusion in our list would be that the organization have its own web site, which shows how to send it donations in bitcoin.  That might be a direct anonymous public key, or a link through a third-party like BitPay or Coinbase.

If this is something that would serve the community well, it's certainly something I could start and maintain right here in this forum.

[allgoodthings1]

This exploratory thread led to the following permanent topic:

IRS 501(c)(3) Public Charities That Accept Bitcoin

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=758674.0