Deductions & credits

The only way you can deduct these expenses is if one or more of the teams is a tax exempt organization that is properly registered with the IRS.  (Usually a 501(c)(3) organization but there may be other types that might apply.)  You can search on the IRS website or ask the organization if they are a registered exempt organization.

 

Then, if the organization is a registered tax exempt organization, you can deduct out of pocket costs that you pay when providing service to the exempt organization. These deductions would be listed as contributions to charity on the deductions and credits page in TurboTax. 

You can deduct mileage to and from charity events using the standard charity mileage rate which is either $.14 or $.17 per mile (I forget which.)  You can deduct other out-of-pocket costs for training.  You can’t deduct meals, unless you needed to travel far enough that an overnight stay was required, to attend training or otherwise provide service to the charity. In that case, you can deduct your meals and lodging, but only if you were “on duty“ with the charity in a substantial and meaningful way for the majority of the trip and there was no aspect of personal or vacation time.  (For example, if you traveled to Hawaii and participated in a whale watching cruise to take a census of whales, but most of the trip was actually a vacation, you couldn’t deduct any of your expenses, even if the census was sponsored by a registered conservation organization.)

 

Clothing is tricky in this case.  You can’t deduct anything for the use of your property for charitable purposes. Normally, the property has to be donated to the charity so that the charity takes ownership.  (For example, if you were on ski patrol, you could not deduct even a portion of the cost of your skis and other equipment since they do not become property of the charity.)   in the case of a uniform, or clothing that contains the organization logo that you can only wear when providing service to the organization, you might get away with it, depending on the mood of the auditor, if you are audited.

 

Preferably, you will have some kind of letter or statement on the organizations letterhead or signed by an officer that acknowledges your service. The organization does not have to attest to your expenses, but if audited, you would need some kind of proof that the expense receipts you have saved were actually incurred in providing service to the organization.

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