Notice 2017-73

The Community Foundation Public Awareness Initiative (CFPAI), representing 115 community foundations, supports the proposed regulations that facilitate charitable giving through donor-advised funds (DAFs). They argue for maintaining consistency between DAF and direct payments regarding bifurcated fees, support the ability to satisfy pledges via DAFs, and oppose new administrative burdens or timed payout requirements that would hinder philanthropic flexibility.

United Way Worldwide, representing a network of local organizations, supports the proposed regulations to clarify Donor Advised Fund (DAF) rules while suggesting specific adjustments to reduce administrative burdens on recipient charities. They advocate for mechanisms that allow charities to provide documentation for non-deductible benefits and request that DAF sponsors provide donor identification to simplify public support testing.

Vanguard Charitable, a tax-exempt public charity, opposes the proposal to regulate Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) like private foundations. They argue that DAFs are public charities where donors cede legal control, and they specifically oppose rules regarding "bifurcation" of contributions, "don't ask, don't tell" rules for pledges, and treating DAF grants less favorably for a grantee's public support status.

Nancy P. Marx, representing herself as a legal counsel for private foundations, provides a series of technical suggestions and concerns regarding the treatment of Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs) and public support tests. She argues for simplifying regulations to ensure cost-efficiency for foundations while proposing specific rules to prevent DAFs from being used to circumvent distribution requirements or provide improper benefits.

Chuck Feeny Jr. opposes the proposed rule change regarding the transfer of funds to donor-advised funds to meet qualifying distributions. He argues that the change would undermine his specific philanthropic strategy of investing funds for future, more effective charitable use and could discourage future donations to private foundations.

Wendy Nacht argues that transfers from private foundations to Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs) should be treated as "qualifying distributions" under Section 4942. She contends that changing the rules would be unfair to existing foundations and would unnecessarily make private foundations less attractive to donors.

John A. Motulsky argues against restricting private foundations' ability to count transfers to donor-advised funds (DAFs) as qualifying distributions. He contends that the current regulatory regime allows for efficient philanthropy, preserves donor intent, and supports long-term charitable goals without creating significant negative impacts on society.

Schwab Charitable, a tax-exempt public charity that administers donor-advised funds (DAFs), opposes the proposed regulatory burdens and treatment of DAFs as similar to private foundations. They argue that DAFs are already compliant, and that the proposed rules—specifically regarding bifurcated gifts, pledges, and public support—would create unnecessary administrative burdens and reduce the efficiency of charitable giving.

Carolyn Yeager, representing Mercersburg Academy (an educational institution), is inquiring about the status of the proposed rule and specifically seeking clarification on Section 4 regarding distributions from a Donor-Advised Fund (DAF). The comment is a request for information rather than a statement of support or opposition.

Bernard W. McDade III, a Government Information Specialist at the IRS, is responding to a FOIA request regarding public comments on Notice 2017-73. He argues that the requested documents are available through standard agency procedures and therefore fall outside the scope of FOIA.