A checkoff or check-off is a bookkeeping mechanism that provides for regular payment of an obligation such as
union dues
Union dues are a regular payment of money made by members of unions. Dues are the cost of membership; they are used to fund the various activities which the union engages in. Nearly all unions require their members to pay dues.
Variation
Many ...
. The same term is used to refer to a tax on sales of agricultural goods that finance a generic commodity marketing program; one example is the
commodity checkoff program
In the United States, a commodity checkoff program promotes and provides research and information for a particular agricultural commodity without reference to specific producers or brands. It collects funds through a checkoff mechanism that is ...
s mandated by the
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, ...
to promote sales of
milk
Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digestion, digest solid food. Immune factors and immune ...
,
beef
Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus'').
In prehistoric times, humankind hunted aurochs and later domesticated them. Since that time, numerous breeds of cattle have been bred specifically for the quality or quantity ...
,
soybeans
The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses.
Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu and ...
, or
sorghum
''Sorghum'' () is a genus of about 25 species of flowering plants in the grass family (Poaceae). Some of these species are grown as cereals for human consumption and some in pastures for animals. One species is grown for grain, while many othe ...
. Some US states offer income tax checkoffs to contribute voluntarily to various state programs.
See also
*
Rand formula In Canadian labour law, the Rand formula (also referred to as ''automatic check-off'' and ''compulsory checkoff'') is a workplace compromise arising from jurisprudence struck between organized labour (trade unions) and employers that guarantees empl ...
*
Presidential election campaign fund checkoff
The presidential election campaign fund checkoff appears on US income tax return forms as the question ''Do you want $3 of your federal tax to go to the Presidential Election Campaign Fund?''
Originally $1 and implemented in 1966 as a start to the ...
References
Accounting terminology
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