Guidelines for Gifts, Prizes, and Awards

As we are winding down the semester, departments often have questions related to gifts, prizes, and awards as a way to either recognize employee contributions or to provide incentives to employees (and non-employees) for participation in events, workshops, and conferences hosted by our various CALS programs.

The NC State University Controller’s website has a section dedicated to providing an overview of the tax implications for recipients and guidelines related to gifts and awards. 

The main things to note are that gifts, prizes, and awards are subject to state & federal income tax (to be paid by the employee/recipient), and ONLY discretionary funds (mainly ledger 35xxxx, 6xxxxx, 7xxxxx) are used for prizes and awards. No state, federal, or trust funds (unless disclosed in the appropriation or trust fund authority) can be used for these expenses. 
For additional information, see the Taxation of Gifts, Prizes and Awards document. Please share this information with your departmental staff and faculty so they know the rules, regulations, and guidance from the University level.