DONOR FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Transcription

1 DONOR FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS 1. What is the FSECC? 2. Why should I give to the FSECC? 3. Why should I make charitable contributions through the FSECC when I could just send a check directly to the charities I wish to support? 4. Where and when can I make my pledge(s)? 5. Can I specify which organization will receive my donation? 6. Why isn t my favorite charity on the list? 7. What does the percentage number listed with each charity in the brochure mean? 8. Why are we required to fill out our FSECC pledge form online this year? 9. Is my donation tax-deductible? 10. Will I receive a receipt for my donation? 11. Is there a minimum payroll deduction donation or a minimum one-time donation amount? 12. When would my payroll deduction donation begin coming out of my paycheck? 13. If I make a donation, can I later request a refund? 14. What if I don t know my People First Login ID number as requested by Giving Nexus? 15. Are there any instructions for using the Giving Nexus online pledge system? 16. If I contribute via personal check, who do I make it out to? 17. What do I do with my cash and/or check after I enter my pledge into Giving Nexus? 18. If I donate at an FSECC special event, do I still have to designate my pledge? 19. How do I confirm that the correct payroll pledge was processed in payroll? 20. I am employed in more than one position (including OPS)? How should I enter my pledge? 21. I am not interested in donating. Do I have to sign or complete anything online or on paper? 22. How do I make a payroll pledge when I know I will be retiring in the middle of the year? 23. If I wish for my payroll pledge to remain the same as last year, do I need to do anything? 24. If I made a payroll pledge last year does it carry forward to next year? 1

2 1. What is the FSECC? The FSECC is the only workplace charitable campaign that the State of Florida supports. In its 35 year history, FSECC has raised over $93 million. 2. Why should I give to the FSECC? Your gift to the campaign will improve the lives of fellow Floridians. The FSECC supports hundreds of health, social, animal, and environmental charities that work to make a difference and improve our communities. In addition, there are many national and international charities that you can support through FSECC, and which may represent an issue or cause that is very important to you. 3. Why should I make charitable contributions through the FSECC when I could just send a check directly to the charities I wish to support? By combining solicitations into a once-a-year, unified campaign, the FSECC reduces the need for individual, costly solicitations from charities. Charity accounting costs are lower because charitable gifts are consolidated into reliable monthly checks to the charity, reducing processing costs. A united campaign allows charities to know early in the year what their revenue from pledges will be, and to plan their programs accordingly. Systematic planning is not possible with sporadic individual contributions. Additionally, many donors find it easier and more affordable to contribute monthly or bi-weekly, with funds coming directly from their paychecks, rather than sending a check directly to an organization they wish to support. 4. Where and when can I make my pledge(s)? The campaign begins and online pledging will be available on September 1 and runs through November 6, 2015 at 5 p.m. EST. Employees can access the online system (Giving Nexus) by going to On Friday, November 6, the system will be closed to accepting online pledges. 5. Can I specify which organization will receive my donation? Yes-the FSECC is a donor-designated campaign, and it is Florida law that every FSECC payroll and one-time cash/check contributions must have a charity designation. When you complete your FSECC pledge form, you will be asked for the code(s) of the charity/charities of your choice as listed in the FSECC Approved Charity brochure, and this will ensure that your donation goes to support the causes that are important to you. Due to a recent change in statute, all monies donated through an FSECC special event are now treated as undesignated funds. These undesignated funds will be distributed to charities in direct proportion to the percentage of designated funds pledged to charities through payroll deductions and one-time contributions. 6. Why isn t my favorite charity on the list? Charities must apply annually and meet established criteria to be included. It is possible that the charity either did not apply or did not qualify, or were denied due to lack of 2

3 application compliance. Please encourage the charity to apply next year. Donors can only designate charities listed in the FSECC Approved Charity Brochure. 7. What does the percentage number listed with each charity in the brochure mean? The number you see at the end of each agency description refers to the fundraising and administrative costs for each individual charity. FSECC regulations require that participating charities keep their administrative and fundraising costs below 25 percent, unless there are extenuating and justifiable circumstances. This assures that the maximum possible funding goes directly to the programs that serve the people. 8. Why are we required to fill out our FSECC pledge form online? Except in cases where online access is not possible, all pledges will be made online using Giving Nexus. Instructions for how to submit your payroll and/or cash/check pledge using the online pledge system can be found on the FSECC website. There are numerous benefits to pledging online including: Easier, more accessible pledging donors can pledge anywhere internet access is available A more intuitive process Giving Nexus guides a donor step by step through the pledging process Improved accuracy Math errors will be eliminated. All payroll/pledge totals and charity coding will be automatically computed Elimination of legibility issues Charity searchability Charity preferences can be found quickly and easily, with donors having ability to search by keywords or regional area Time, cost and environmental savings Agency volunteers will spend significantly less time gathering and compiling employee pledges. The need to print off charity brochures and pledge forms is eliminated. 9. Is my donation tax-deductible? Yes. Every charity in the FSECC Approved Charity Brochure is a recognized 501(c)(3) charity registered with the Internal Revenue Service. 10. Will I receive a receipt for my donation? When making an online pledge, you will have the ability to print a receipt at the time you make your donation. You should keep a copy of this receipt, as well as your pay statements (if you made a payroll deduction contribution), as a receipt of your pledge. An employee who makes a one-time (cash, check, or money order) contribution must maintain a bank record and a copy of the receipt/ to show the name of the organizations contributed to, the date of the contribution, and the amount of the contribution. We recommend you print a copy of your pledge receipt for your tax records immediately after you complete your pledge. You should consult a tax adviser to determine if additional verification of the donation is required by the IRS. Official receipts will not be issued by the FSECC. 3

4 11. Is there a minimum payroll deduction donation or a minimum one-time donation amount? Yes. The minimum payroll donation amount is $1.00 per pay period for bi-weekly employees (an annual gift of $26.00) and $2.00 per pay period for monthly employees (an annual gift of $24.00). The minimum one-time donation amount is $5.00 per charity. Therefore, if you decide to contribute the minimum through payroll deduction and designate more than one charity, your total annual gift to each designated charity must be at least $5.00. There is not a specified minimum donation amount that applies to Special Events since these donations are not designated to a specific charity. 12. When would my payroll deduction donation begin coming out of my paycheck? As long as your pledge information is received by November 6, 2015, the first deduction would be made the first pay period in January 2016 and will run through the last pay period in December If I make a donation, and later change my mind, can I request a refund? No, the FSECC does not issue refunds. If you believe a payroll error was made, please contact your payroll office immediately. 14. What if I don t know my People First Login ID number as requested by Giving Nexus? If you are a regular user of the People First system, you know your People First Login ID as the 6 or 7-digit number that you are asked to enter when you are on the People First landing page, or when you call the People First Service Center and are asked for your User ID. However, if you do not use People First or are unsure about your People First Login ID, please contact your HR representative for assistance. 15. Are there any instructions for using the Giving Nexus online pledge system? Instructions for making an online pledge are available at under the For Employees menu. On the dropdown menu is an Online Pledging Help page. This page contains both a Cheat Sheet and a more detailed presentation of how to make a pledge. 16. If I contribute via personal check, who do I make it out to? FSECC 17. What do I do with my cash and/or check after I enter my pledge into Giving Nexus? Take a copy of your online pledge receipt and your cash or check donation to your local or statewide agency coordinator. If you do not know who your local coordinator is, please contact the statewide agency coordinator (SAC) for your agency. If you do not know who the SAC is for your agency, contact FSECC support (Solix) at or programsupport@fsecc.com. 4

5 18. If I donate at an FSECC special event, do I still have to designate my pledge? No, due to a recent change in statute, donations made at Special Events are no longer designated. All monies donated at an FSECC special event are treated as undesignated funds. These undesignated funds will be distributed to charities in direct proportion to the percentage of designated funds pledged to charities through payroll deductions and onetime contributions. 19. How do I confirm that the correct payroll pledge was processed in payroll? In January, employees can check People First (or their payroll system if they don t use People First) to see what has been entered as their recurring charitable deduction for the year. A reminder will be displayed in the People First system in January, encouraging employees to review their charitable deduction amounts. If their deduction amount is not correct, the employee should to notify their payroll coordinator immediately to rectify. 20. I am employed in more than one position (including OPS)? How should I enter my pledge? When registering in the online pledge system (Giving Nexus) you should indicate the specific agency that you work for that you want you deduction to be associated with. If you have more than one People First ID due to multiple employments, then when entering their pledge, you should enter the People First ID for the payroll and position that you want the deduction to come from. 21. I am not interested in donating. Do I have to sign or complete anything online or on paper? No, employees that do not wish to donate do not need to notify anyone, and nothing in writing or online is required stating as such. 22. How do I make a payroll pledge when I know I will be retiring in the middle of the year? There is not a way to make a "partial" pledge; all payroll pledges must be set up to be divided out among 12 or 26 paychecks depending on your pay cycle, so the reality is that at the point of your retirement, your contributions to the charity will just stop. If you want to make a payroll pledge, you can increase the amount of your pledge knowing that your pledges will stop at a certain date. So for instance if you wanted to give $120 in total but know you are retiring 6 months (July 1) after pledges start being deducted from your paycheck you can increase your total donation to $240 ($20 per month if on a Monthly pay cycle) and then the deductions automatically stop at the time of your retirement six months later. The other option is to make a one-time cash/check pledge instead of a payroll pledge. 23. If I wish for my payroll pledge to remain the same as last year, do I need to do anything? You will need to make a new pledge if you wish to continue your payroll donation in the next year. Keep in mind that the charity you chose last year may not be an approved charity for this year. Charities have to apply to participate in the FSECC each year. 5

6 24. If I made a payroll pledge last year does it carry forward to next year? You will need to make a new pledge if you wish to continue your payroll donation in the next year. Keep in mind that the charity you chose last year may not be an approved charity for this year. Charities have to apply to participate in the FSECC each year. 6