All the charities on this site have also chosen to participate in one of four promotional guides sponsored by Charitable Choices.  In 2004, we distributed 800,000 of these guides nationally, in California and in the DC metropolitan area.

     Being in our web site is a free service we provide these charities.  Charities participate in our joint promotional effort because they see it as a very cost effective way to tell potential supporters about their work.  Charities do not have to print and distribute their own brochures. You don’t have to wade through hundreds of individual brochures. (To learn about how to be in our guides, contact us at info@CharityChoices.com.)
 

     You can take a tax deduction for gifts to all these. Legally, they are nonprofit, tax-exempt, "501 (c)(3)" organizations. A "c-3" organization can do some lobbying and other types of advocacy, but it cannot engage in partisan political activity (such as endorsing candidates). In contrast, "c-4" organizations are nonprofit and tax exempt, but gifts to most of them cannot be deducted from your taxes (the exceptions are veterans organizations and fire and rescue squads). C-4s can engage in partisan political activity.