Man Raises $40K to Feed Needy People During Pandemic, IRS Socks Him with $16K Tax Bill
Last year a Connecticut middle school teacher did his good deed by raising $40,000 to help feed his neighbors who were in need thanks to the coronavirus. Now he is being socked with a huge tax bill.
Teacher Louis Goffinet launched his fundraising campaign last April by appealing to Facebook users to donate money to help feed people in need.
The campaign grew much faster than he expected.
Per the Washington Post:
Much to his surprise, that effort quickly drew hundreds of donors from around the world. By July, Goffinet had raised more than $30,000, using the money to buy and deliver bags of food — as well as gas and rental assistance — for more than a hundred families in Mansfield Center, Conn.
Goffinet was soon feeding needy people in his neighborhood and he couldn’t have been happier.
But, the thrill didn’t last long. By January, the IRS struck.
“I was so shocked,” Goffinet, 27, told the Hartford Courant. “It’s such a big amount. It’s not like I can say, ‘Oh, for the next month or two, I’ll dial down my expenses and I’ll save $16,000.’”
Unknown to him at the time, third-party transaction sites like Facebook Fundraisers are required to issue a 1099-K form to the IRS on any transactions that exceed $20,000. While those guidelines are posted on the social media giant’s donation platform, Goffinet said he never thought his volunteer grocery effort would get so big.
Well, there you go.
No good deed goes unpunished.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Facebook at: facebook.com/Warner.Todd.Huston.