Army Regulation 1-100: The Army Gift Policy

By Kayla YatesMarch 31, 2024

The Army Regulation (AR) 1-100 assigns responsibilities and prescribes policy for the acceptance, recording, reporting, and accountability of gifts offered to the Department of the Army (DA) for the benefit of DA organizations and personnel, including non-appropriated fund instrumentalities in accordance with Department of Defense (DoD) Instruction 1015.15 and AR 215 – 1, pursuant to the following statutory authorities:

(1) Section 2601, Title 10, United States Code (10 USC 2601).

(2) 10 USC 2608.

(3) 10 USC 7456.

(4) 10 USC 7772.

(5) Section 2866, Public Law 107 – 107 (PL 107 – 107 Section 2866).

(6) 5 USC 7342.

d. Applicable Regulations.  Army Regulations 1–100, 12 May 2023.

Types of Gifts

Gift to the Army: A gift, devise, or bequest of real property, personal property, money, or services made on the condition that the gift, devise, or bequest be used for the benefit of, or in connection with, the establishment, operation, or maintenance of a school, hospital, library, museum, cemetery, or other institution or organization under the SECARMY’s jurisdiction, and that is acceptable under the applicable statute in accordance with Federal, DOD, and Army regulations and policies.

Gifts of Construction: Whether money or real property gifts of construction of more than $750K, require additional staffing with G-9 and Congress before construction can be executed.

Gifts to benefit museums and museum programs : Certain gifts of personal property to benefit museums qualify as artifacts , which are accessioned into the Army’s historical collection. These gifts are processing in accordance with AR 870-20 (Army Museums, Historical Artifacts, and Art).

Copyrighted or patented gifts: If a copyrighted or patented gift might be used for government purposes, it is accepted only if the donor grants the Army a royalty-free license, to the extent necessary under the copyright or patent.

Testamentary Gifts: A testamentary gift of real or personal property may not be accepted if a condition of the gift is that the Army sell the property or use it for a particular individual. All testamentary gifts require a written legal review, regardless of monetary value.

Federal income, estate and gift taxes: For the purposes of Federal income, estate, and gift taxes, gifts accepted under 10 USC 2601(a) and (b) are considered gifts or bequests to the United States.

Secretary of the Army Gift Delegations

The SECARMY has authority to accept gifts of real property, personal property, money, or services for the benefit of certain Army organizations pursuant to 10 USC 2601(a). The Secretary of the Army has delegated gift acceptance authority to 19 Army Commands.

Gift Procedures and Additional Information

Processing gifts. Gifts are processed in accordance with AR 1-100 and DoD 7000.14-R, Volume 12, Chapter 30 (Gifts under 10 U.S.C. § 2601) and Volume 12, Chapter 3 (Gifts under 10 U.S.C. § 2608). The following are procedures for processing gift of personal property, money, and services (if allowed by law). Gifts of real property require additional information and processing.

1) Army personnel may NOT solicit gifts or donations but may provide information, such as needs, to a prospective donor once contacted regarding a potential gift.

2) The donor must submit a written offer to the command or organization that will benefit from the gift. The written offer should include:

  • A description of the item (and quantity), its condition, material, and approximate size and weight, if applicable.
  • Any conditions and limitations of the offer. All conditions and limitations must be expressed in the written offer to ensure that any condition attached to the gift is not prohibited by law or regulation, puts in question the integrity of the Army, or discriminates.

3) The command or organization which will benefit from the gift must send an offer of a gift requiring Secretariat-level approval through command channels to the Army Gift Program Coordinator for staffing to the SA, which contains the following information:

  • The donor’s offer letter.
  • The item’s present use, location, and availability.
  • The coordination of any functional office that may be affected by the acceptance of an offer, such as public works, engineering, or contracting.
  • Gifts of Real Property must include the construction plans and complete details (including cost of construction and location site) with the associated DD Form 1391. All offers of gifts involving future construction on Army land (either by donated funds or in-kind construction) must meet requirements outlined in DOD Instruction 7700.18. Furthermore, OUSD(P&R) requires notification of gifted construction exceeding $200K, who will in turn notify Congress of the gift; for projects exceeding $750K, construction may not begin until Congress approves the construction.
  • Under 10 U.S.C. § 2802(e), the Army is required to report notify the congressional defense committees and wait 15 days before commencing the project when carrying out a construction project pursuant to a provision of law other than a Military Construction Authorization Act. A construction project subject to the congressional notification requirement is one that: (A) Is not specifically authorized in a Military Construction Authorization Act; (B) will be carried out by a military department…; and (C) will be located on a military installation.” 10 U.S.C. § 2802(e)(2).
  • The Secretary of the Army has the authority to accept gifts of construction under 10 U.S.C. § 2601, provided the gift is for the benefit of, or in connection with, the establishment, operation, or maintenance, of a school, hospital, library, museum, cemetery, or other institution or organization under the jurisdiction of the Secretary. That statute has no organic notification requirement to Congress.
  •  In the case of gifts of in-kind construction that exceed $1M and that could have been funded with appropriated funds (APFs) had the Army conducted the project itself, there is no statutory or regulatory requirement to notify Congress. That is because the project will be carried out by the donor, not the Army. Hence the project will not be “carried out by a military department,” one of the criteria applicable to construction projects covered by congressional notification requirements in 10 USC § 2802(e).
  • Notwithstanding that the Army is not required to report these in-kind construction projects under 10 USC § 2802(e) or any other statute, regulation, or policy, the Army has agreed to notify the congressional defense committees using 10 USC 2802(e) procedures as a matter of comity.
  • Any expenses associated with accepting and using the item (such as site preparation, maintenance expenses, or transportation expenses). If the receiving official recommends that the Army pay expenses in connection with a gift, the gift action will detail the expenses. Gifts may not be accepted if acceptance results in substantial expenditures or administrative efforts and maintenance that are disproportionate to any benefit. Funds for payment of expenses are the responsibility of the command or activity whose appropriations are properly chargeable with such costs. If a donor requires the Army to pay transportation expenses as a condition of the gift, the command, organization, or activity that will benefit from the gift must arrange transportation and include the details in the gift action.
  • A summary of the significance, if any, to the Army if it accepts the item.
  • A unique identifier or data element used to track the same or similar items from different sources.
  • The recommendation of the commander (or equivalent), who is required to transmit the offer and any recommendations from intermediate commands to the gift acceptance authority. If the receiving official recommends that the Army pay expenses in connection with a gift, the gift action will detail the expenses. Intermediate commanders do not have the authority to accept or reject gift offers.
  • The serving legal counsel to the command or activity must provide a written legal opinion for gifts valued at $10,000 or more, which must be included in the packet submitted to the gift acceptance authority.
  • The donor’s present or prospective business relationships with the Army.

Other Limitations

All gifts must be reported through the Army Gift Program to the Office of the Secretary fo Defense on a quarterly basis.

If a copyrighted or patented gift is to be used for governmental purposes (within the scope of the copyright or patent), it may be accepted only if the donor grants the Army a royalty-free license, to the extent necessary under the copyright or patent, or gratuitously assigns the copyright or patent to the United States.

For the purposes of Federal income, estate, and gift taxes, gifts accepted under 10 U.S.C. §2601 and § 2608 are considered gifts or bequests to the United States. While written notification of acceptance of a gift constitutes the Army’s acceptance and receipt, the Army will not render any opinion of value on a specific gift a donor has offered. Acceptance may not be backdated. Commands and activities must advise donors that it is the donor’s responsibility to consult a private tax expert for specific advice concerning the tax implications of gift-giving.

All bequests or gifts of money may be made payable to “US Treasury / DSSN 8522”  “Army General Gift Fund” and purpose of the donation written in the memo line.

AR 1-100-The Army Gift Program_12 May 2023.pdf [PDF - 401.7 KB]