Earmark fixed percentage of income for charity

[Mike or Penny Novack]

>
> Yes, I see your point.  I guess a report of my YTD income and 
> income-related expenses and YTD charitable contributions is all I 
> really need--but yes, if there is a way to automatically shift the 
> decimal point, subtract YTD contributions, and just tell me how much I 
> have left in my charity fund, I would really prefer that.
>
> thanks,
> Aryeh Leib
>
Well I do something rather similar (in terms of a set percentage of 
income goal) but I don't expect to be "in balance" with that throughout 
the year. In fact, doing that would greatly complicate making donations. 
Not all organizations on our list get the same amount and by and large 
they get set amounts per donation. If at the end, to make it come out to 
an exact 10% ONE organization got an odd sized donation that'd be OK. 
But all of them odd sizes?

Understand? Organizations might be on our list for $100 or $50 or $25 
(or some multiples of $18, the reason for which you probably understand) 
but none get donations like $73.57. Makes THAT part of the record 
keeping easier.

In a month where several of the "large donations" organizations received 
their annual donation we might be giving more than 10% of that month's 
income and in a month where a number of "small donations" organizations 
got theirs might be under 10%. It's enough trouble checking that the 
total for the year comes out right without having to adjust the schedule 
to balance the organization list. There are other reasons why certain 
organizations get theirs in particular months and that's irrespective if 
those are large donees or small donees.

But perhaps you don't have that sort of problem (you give multiple 
donations to a small set of organizations instead of one annual gift to 
each of a largish number of them)

Michael