Carney Bill Would Give Tax Deduction To Hunters Who Donate Their Wild Game

Press Release

Congressman Chris Carney (PA-10) this week introduced legislation in the U.S. House that would enable hunters to take a tax deduction for the cost of processing wild game that is donated to anti-hunger programs. The measure, cosponsored by Congressman Scott Murphy of New York, also provides a tax break for processors who prepare wild game that is donated to charity by a hunter and whose processing costs are paid by a non-profit.

"Hunters who give to charity should be rewarded for their generosity," said Congressman Carney, himself an avid hunter. "This bill would not only provide a boost for our region's businesses and hunters, it would encourage donating to charity at a time when many are struggling to get by."

At least 100,000 pounds of venison are donated by hunters to anti-hunger programs every year in Pennsylvania, according to estimates by Hunters Share the Harvest, Pennsylvania's Venison Donation Program.

The legislation, sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Charles Schumer of New York, amends the Internal Revenue Code so that hunters who donate their game to charity can write off the processing cost. That means if someone pays, for example, $60 to process venison and gives that meat to charity, they can deduct that amount from their taxable income.

Likewise, businesses that receive income from a charity to process meat that has been donated by a hunter would be able to deduct that income from their taxable income.

For more information about venison donation in Pennsylvania, visit Hunters Share the Harvest Web site at www.sharedeer.org.

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