Tax Credit information
If you pay income taxes in the State of
Arizona, you are eligible to redirect your State income Tax toward
private schools in the State of AZ. You are allowed by law to contribute up to an amount of $1000 per married couple. A single taxpayer is allowed to contribute up to $500 per year. |
Make your online contribution for a Tax Credit HERE.
What is the Tax Credit and Catholic Education Arizona (formerly CTODP)?
A full 100% of the students attending St. Joseph’s Catholic School rely on tuition assistance. The majority of that assistance comes from designated contributions to Catholic Education Arizona (CEA). CEA is a non-profit organization that provides tuition assistance to K-12 students in our Catholic schools through individual and corporate Arizona tax credit contributions. St. Joseph’s Catholic School invites you to help provide a quality Catholic education to students by joining thousands of others in redirecting your Arizona tax dollars to CEA
A "no-cost contribution" to CEA allows Arizona taxpayers to receive a tax CREDIT of up to $1,000 (married filers) or $500 (single filers) on their Arizona State income taxes. In some cases, you can receive a federal tax deduction as well. In essence, by redirecting your tax dollars to support Catholic education, YOU are deciding how you want your tax dollars to be used.
By designating St. Joseph’s Catholic School as your school of choice (using the school code - 166), your contribution will go DIRECTLY to provide tuition assistance for a St. Joseph’s student. The same tax dollars that would be going to the State will be redirected to the school instead, funding scholarships for deserving students. This contribution to the CEA and St. Joseph’s is at no cost to you!
Redirect your Taxes to St. Joseph’s in 3 Easy Steps:
1. Determine your AZ tax liability by looking at last year’s tax return (to get an estimate for this year), or by completing your taxes for this year (to get an exact dollar amount).
2. Visit https://secure.catholiceducationarizona.org/step1.aspx to make your contribution, earmarking the money for St.Joseph’s. You may want to contribute the full amount of your AZ tax liability up to a maximum of $500 for a single filer or $1,000 for married filers. You will make a donation to the CEA at this time with your credit card or check (payment plans are available).
3. Claim the full tax credit on your AZ tax form when you do your taxes. The credit is called: “Credit for Contributions to Private School Tuition Organizations.” This credit will reduce your tax liability by the exact amount that you have donated to the CEA (up to $500 for single filers and $1,000 for married filers). If you are getting a refund from AZ, you will receive your CEA contribution back, added on to your refund check. If you owe AZ taxes, the amount you owe will be decreased by the amount of your CEA contribution. Bonus Tax Break: Since Catholic Education Arizona (CEA) is a 501(c)(3) charity, you may also be able to claim a deduction on your federal tax return.
Why direct your taxes to CEA to benefit St. Joseph’s Catholic School?
St. Joseph’s is a unique community in a number of ways:
1. 100% of St. Joseph’s students receive tuition assistance as a partial or full scholarship. Without this assistance, many students would not be able to attend St. Joseph’s.
2. A large percentage of our students come from low-income families. This year 27% of our students qualify for Title 1, “Free and Reduced Lunches.” In recent years, this number has been as high as 50%.
3. 60% of our students come from Catholic families. A full 40% come from Christian families of other denominations. St.Joseph’s serves not only the Catholic community, but also the larger Christian community of the Verde Valley, by providing a quality Catholic education regardless of religious affiliation.
St. Joseph’s Mission Statement
Inspired by Roman Catholic tradition, Saint Joseph’s School provides a Christ-centered environment; offering the highest quality academic education. By emulating the teachings of Jesus Christ, we prepare morally responsible leaders who think critically and value service within the community through a partnership with students, parents and staff.
Catholic Education Arizona FAQ’s:
Q: What does “redirect my taxes” mean?
A: We’re all used to paying taxes, without having a choice.
But in Arizona, taxpayers have the right to send - or “redirect”
- their tax dollars to support private education. “Redirect” means
exercising your option to use your tax dollars to create scholarships for
students desiring to attend Catholic schools.
Q: Who benefits from my “tax-redirect”?
A: You benefit financially since you receive the dollar-for-dollar
Arizona tax credit. Your gift then directly benefits financially-qualified
families who desire, but cannot otherwise afford, a quality Catholic education
for their children. Catholic schools, the Church and the State enjoy many
tangible benefits such as faith and character formation, increased school
enrollment, 99% graduation rates, 97% post-secondary rates, and enormous savings
(tens of millions of dollars) in AZ public education costs.
Q: Does redirecting my tax dollars cost me anything?
A: No. When you redirect your tax dollars, you are basically just
exercising control of how your money is used. Your contribution to CEA comes
back to you dollar-for-dollar as a credit against taxes you would otherwise
send to the State of Arizona, so giving effectively costs you nothing out
of pocket. You can redirect your taxes whether you will be receiving a refund
or if you owe taxes at the end of the year. It is the same process.
Q: When I give to CEA, how do I know if I get a State
and/or Federal tax benefit?
A: If you do your own taxes, just look at what your state tax-liability
is - if Arizona collects any taxes from you at all, you will receive a tax
benefit. In addition, because CEA is a 501(c)(3) charity, you can also enjoy
a federal tax benefit. (So even if you don’t pay AZ taxes, you can still
benefit from a tax deduction.)
Q: Are there any limits to how much of my Arizona taxes
I may redirect?
A: Max tax credit: $500 per taxpayer ($1,000 married filers). However,
you can still give charitably beyond these limits.
Q: What’s this about an April 15th deadline -
I thought I always had to give by December 31st?
A: New this year, you can now make a tax-redirect contribution to
CEA until April 15th, and apply the tax credit to your 2010 State of Arizona
personal income taxes. This means you can wait until you calculate your taxes
to determine how much tax liability you have, then redirect those dollars
to CEA for Catholic education instead (up to $500 single / $1,000 married).
Ready to contribute? Please make your online contribution here: https://secure.catholiceducationarizona.org/step1.aspx
Still have questions? Please visit the full page of FAQ’s here: http://www.catholictuition.org/faq.aspx#howitworks
Tax Credits for Corporations
In addition to individuals making contributions to CEA and receiving a tax credit, any C corporation may make a contribution to a school tuition organization and receive a dollar-for-dollar tax credit up to the full amount of its tax liability. There is no maximum amount that a corporation can contribute. Under this program, corporations, as well as insurance companies, can redirect their state taxes to St. Joseph’s. Insurance companies that do business in Arizona pay a state tax that is almost 2% of all the premiums collected. This premium tax can now be re-directed to fund scholarships at St. Joseph’s Catholic School!
More than 50 corporations, including Shea Homes, National Bank
of Arizona, Insight, Compass Bank and P.F. Chang’s are supporting Arizona's
Catholic schools by taking advantage of the corporate tax credit to help our
families in need. Many corporations are unaware of this opportunity and the
tremendous impact they can have on the lives of many students.
To learn more about CEA, the corporate tax credit, or to donate online, please
call the CEA office at 602-218-6542 or visit the CEA website at http://www.catholictuition.org/default.aspx.
If you have questions regarding the Tax Credit, please feel free to
call us at St. Joseph's office for information: 928-649-0624.
Thank you for supporting St. Joseph’s!