What mileage rate do you use for volunteer driving when counting in-kind match on grants? I default to 14 cents/mile using the IRS charitable rate, and that tiny line can strengthen a budget narrative and help hit match targets — has any funder or auditor pushed back or allowed a different approach?
I stick with 14¢/mile on anything federal and only use a higher rate if a private funder okays it in writing — auditors sniff out “reimbursement creep.” If you need to boost match, track actual fuel receipts and use those as in-kind backup instead of a flat rate. IRS ref: Publication 526 (2024), Charitable Contributions | Internal Revenue Service; is this for a federal award or private?
To goose match without budging from “14 cents/mile,” we have volunteers submit mileage at our org’s business rate, then sign “reimbursement declined” so the difference is third-party in-kind; state and a private foundation both accepted it with logs and a written policy. Add actual tolls/parking if you have receipts, @edolan16. Which funders are you dealing with?