The View From Here

Over the past four years I have had the immense joy of being a golf dad of my now senior daughter. I’ve held my breath on every backswing and held my tongue when I wanted to offer advice. I’ve crawled under bushes to retrieve unplayable balls, and I’ve discreetly placed hand warmers and beef sticks on her push cart while she’s on the green setting up her next putt. My greatest satisfaction, though, has come from seeing my daughter find something she loves, invest significant time, effort (and her parents’ money), and translating it into improved outcomes over time, even when it’s difficult or when no one is watching. Like everything worthwhile, preparation is key.

That brings me to my message. 2026 will see a number of changes in tax law from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, and preparation will be key to ensure your charitable giving strategies align with your values and are maximizing your impact and tax efficiency.

Impactful for many, is the availability of a $1,000 deduction or individuals and $2,000 for couples filing jointly ABOVE AND BEYOND THE STANDARD DEDUCTION for filers who don’t itemize. This can reduce the amount of income tax you owe while simultaneously supporting the people and projects of HaysMed.

For higher income donors, you may find yourself exploring donor-advised funds (DAFs) to take advantage of deducting larger contributions to your DAF during a year you itemize and making distributions from your DAF in years you take the standard deduction in a strategy known as “bunching.” Regardless, it is a good time to take a fresh look at your giving both before the end of this calendar year and after January 1. As always, we encourage you to ask your trusted tax and finance professionals as you make these decisions and remember the lessons of a golf dad, that few things worthwhile are easy and the best outcomes are often the result of the best work and planning.