The Laura E. Settle Foundation Needs You
Support Tomorrow's Teachers Today

"Ever since my amazing 3rd grade teacher, Miss Smith, I have wanted to become a teacher myself. I cannot think of a more rewarding way to lead my life than to spend it helping children create a solid foundation to build their lives on."—Sara M. Young, LES Scholarship Recipient

The Laura E. Settle (LES) Foundation has been making a difference in the lives of future California teachers for over 50 years, awarding tens of thousands of dollars each year in scholarships.

The LES Foundation is funded through gifts, donations and bequests and offers members a way to keep "giving back," though this time to future students instead of students. CRTA recently developed a Life Insurance Charity Gifting Program which helps members and creates a link of funds for the LES Foundation.

Life Insurance Charitable Gifting Program – in a Nutshell

Obviously you MUST have professional help to set this up properly, but here are two examples of how this might work:

• Donate an asset — an appreciated asset is donated to a Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT). The Charitable Remainder Trust can sell the appreciated asset and receive significant income tax deductions for the donor. The LES Foundation then utilizes or sells the asset, tax-free and sets up a lifetime income for the donor. The donor can also use an Asset Replacement Trust and purchase life insurance for the donor's heirs, thus replacing the value of the appreciated asset.
• Purchase Life insurance — a life insurance policy is purchased on the life of the donor using Required Minimum Distributions, making the distributions a charitable gift and reducing the donor's overall income tax burden. This method allows an individual with limited assets to "leverage" their donation. The value of the policy is inherited by the LES Foundation. The value is usually much greater than the amount of the donation. This technique is the simplest and allows an individual with limited means to "leverage" their donation's value.

The result: With some effective estate planning these examples can often be a true Win-Win-Win. Again, you will need to seek independent tax and estate planning advice as you prepare your trusts.

An estate plan can provide peace of mind and reduce estate taxes. The Laura E. Settle Scholarship Foundation's Life Insurance Charitable Gifting Program helps you take care of yourself AND help a future California teacher.

Glossary
Financial topics can be a bit confusing. Here are a few terms and what they mean:

• Required Minimum Distribution — Federal law requires that owners of tax-deferred accounts, such as IRAs and TSAs, must begin taking taxable deductions at age 70½. If donated, a significant tax savings could result.
• Appreciated Asset — An asset such as a stock, land, or a collectable that has increased in value and is subject to Capital Gains Tax.
• Charitable Remainder Trust — when an estate owner retains the income on an asset but transfers his or her rights of the remainder to a trust. To qualify for an income tax deduction the trust must be a unitrust, an annuity trust, a pooled income fund or a charitable gift annuity.
• Insurance Proceeds — Based on the face value of a life insurance policy.