Florence Unified School District will collect “Pay-to-Participate” athletic fees beginning with the 2012 Spring Sports:
Would you like to be reimbursed for those fees?
On December 7, 2011, the Florence USD Governing Board unanimously approved the recommendation to begin a pay-to-participate program for competitive sports in our District. Such fees have been discussed for the last two years during the Meet and Confer (employee financial advisory committee) process, but we have avoided pay-to-participate through reductions or cuts in other areas. With the loss of the November 8, 2011 override renewal, however, the District is faced with the need to offset a $1.7 million shortfall in the first year of the step-down. The implementation of a pay-to-participate program is one step in the plan to save/earn funds to compensate for that loss.
Why are we starting the program with the spring sports instead of at the beginning of the 2012-13 school year? Because every dollar we can save or earn this year will decrease that deficit, so we can do a better job for our kids next year.
Pay-to-Participate Fees
Implementation of pay-to-participate will begin for our high schools with the spring sports and in our K-8 schools with the 4th quarter sports of basketball, wrestling and cheerleading.
The pay-to-participate fees will be:
High Schools: $100 per athlete per sport with a $400 family cap.
K-8 Schools: $50.00 per athlete per sport with a $400 family cap.
Note: Family caps are separate for high school and K-8, therefore the most that any family would have to pay is $800.
* Our survey of schools in our immediate area shows a typical fee for high school interscholastic sports anywhere from $50 to $120 per athlete per sport with a family cap ranging from $150 to $700.
So how can you be reimbursed?
Pay-to-participate fees, as well as other extracurricular fees such as activity fees, field trips, student club fees, band camp, cheer camp, etc., all qualify for reimbursement through the Arizona Tax Credit Donation program! As difficult as it is to believe, it is true: the State of Arizona will PAY YOU BACK up to $200 per taxpayer ($400 if married, filing jointly) per calendar year IF you pay your fees through the Arizona Tax Credit Donation program!
How does that work?
When you pay your student’s fees, add one additional clause to your conversation. Instead of saying, “I want to pay the athletic fees for my child,” say, “I want to pay the athletic fees for my child using the Arizona Tax Credit Donation program.” You will be given a form that asks you to check the school, the activity, the child’s name and the amount you are paying. Then you will be given a receipt, which you will show to your tax preparer. (If you prepare your own taxes using software such as TurboTax, it will ask you if you have made a tax credit donation, and you will enter the amount of the fees paid through the tax credit donation program.)
That receipt, in essence, is documentation of the fact that you have pre-paid your state tax in that amount, so your tax liability is reduced by the amount that you paid for your child’s student fees! The net result is that your refund will be increased by the amount you paid for the fees, or, if you owe on your taxes, the amount you have to pay to the state will be decreased by the amount you paid for your child’s student fees. (You can also “donate” your student’s fees online by credit card at www.fusdaz.org; click on the “School Tax Credit Donations” banner.)
For example:
· If you owe $700 in Arizona state taxes and you have already paid $400 to a public school through the Arizona Tax Credit Donation program for your qualifying student extracurricular activity fees, then you will subtract the $400 you paid to the school from the $700 owed to the state for taxes and pay the state the $300 balance.
· If you are expecting a $700 refund on your Arizona state taxes and you have already paid $400 to a public school through the Arizona Tax Credit Donation program for your qualifying student extracurricular activity fees, then your refund will increase by the amount you paid to the school, and you will receive a total refund of $1100.
Note:
A couple filing jointly may contribute up to $400; an individual may contribute up to $200.
In order to make the most of this opportunity – which we have heard is unique to Arizona – parents are encouraged to take advantage of the Arizona Tax Credit Donation program prior to the donation deadline of December 31st for the 2011 tax year. By doing so, your reimbursement from the state will come with your AZ tax refund (or reduction of taxes owed) in just a few short months. If you choose to wait until after January 1st, you can still use the tax credit program to pay your student’s fees for this spring – but you won’t be able to apply the payment to your taxes until you file your 2012 state income taxes a year and a few months from now!
We encourage you to maximize your financial opportunity by using your 2011 donation to pay your student’s fees for the spring of 2012 – and then, plan to utilize your 2012 donation to pay your student’s fees for next year… and let Arizona reimburse you on next year’s taxes too!
Thank you, parents, for your support.
Respectfully,
Kathy Brown
Principal