Law Adds Tax Form Check Box for SOKY, Pediatric Cancer Research

Saying “Let me tell you, if you’re into sports and helping people, Special Olympics is the organization for you,” Governor Steve Beshear held a signing ceremony for House Bill 178 today, surrounded by Special Olympics athletes and supporters and members of the General Assembly. The bill provides a check off box on the state tax return form, which will allow taxpayers to donate a portion of their refund to Special Olympics Kentucky.

Among those attending the signing ceremony was Representative Martha Jane King (D-Lewisburg), who filed the bill and championed the effort throughout the legislative process in order to get the bill passed.

“Getting a bill like this passed looks so simple,” King said, “but I’m sure all of you know how in the last day of Session how things will go. And I have to thank all the people that worked so hard on this bill. These athletes are special and this bill is about them. It’s not about me. It’s not about us. It’s not about the General Assembly. It’s about people that deserve recognition and help. Such a worthy cause that we finally have a little extra money for, and I’m proud to be the sponsor of this bill.”

SOKY President and CEO Trish Mazzoni speaks at the signing ceremony as Rep. Martha Jane King and Gov. Steve Beshear look on.

“House Bill 178 was a little change in one way and it’s going to be a change that has a big impact in many ways,” Beshear said. “It creates the opportunity for Kentuckians to donate a part of their tax refund to (Special Olympics Kentucky) by creating a check box on the state’s individual tax return. In the case of Special Olympics, this is critical because the organization doesn’t receive any public money in Kentucky.”

After mentioning that Special Olympics served more than 2.5 million athletes in 180 countries and held more than 30,000 competitions annually worldwide, Beshear said “This check off will help fund some of those events and athletes in Kentucky and I urge taxpayers to be generous.”

Special Olympics Kentucky President and CEO thanked those who helped the bill become law.

“First I want to thank Governor Beshear…for signing this bill,” Mazzoni said. “I want to thank the Legislature for their hard work in getting this bill passed. And I most certainly want to thank Representative Martha Jane King for filing this bill and for being such an amazing champion throughout this whole process.”

Speaking of the bill’s impact, Mazzoni said, “House Bill 178 is going to provide an additional revenue stream for our program that is going to help us continue serving our amazing athletes – more than 7,400 in Kentucky – and also grow the program even further.”
In addition to the check off for Special Olympics Kentucky, House Bill 178 add a check off box to the tax form for the Pediatric Cancer Research Trust Fun that Beshear said would be administered by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services.

For more information about House Bill 178 or about how you can support Special Olympics Kentucky through the tax form check off box next year contact Trish Mazzoni, President and CEO of Special Olympics Kentucky at 502-695-8222 or [email protected].