Charitable Giving in 2006

The following are the key points reported in Stephanie Strom, Absence of Major Disaster in ’06 Affected Giving, NY Times, June 25, 2007:

• Charitable giving was up an inflation-adjusted 1% over 2005.
• Disasters in 2005 such as Hurricane Katrina triggered an increase in giving, especially when coupled with the accompanying tax incentives.
• “When donations for disaster relief are excluded * * *, giving rose 5.7 percent on an inflation-adjusted basis” in 2006.
• Religious-based gifts made up 32.8% of charitable giving in 2006.
• The biggest gains in 2006 was in the category of universities, private schools, and other educational institutions.
• Arts organizations saw a 6.5% inflation-adjusted increase in 2006.
• Organizations focusing on international affairs such as disaster relief saw a 12% inflation-adjusted decrease in 2006.