Religious Charities Lobbying to Save Charitable Deduction

The new Faith and Giving Coalition is lobbying to save thecurrent charitable deduction.

This newly formed coalition of religious charities claim thecharitable deduction meets the three-prong standard set by Senators Max Baucusand Orrin Hatch.  As a part of theupcoming federal tax overhaul, tax breaks will only be preserved if they areproven to “(1) help grow the economy, (2) make the code fairer, or (3)effectively promote other important policy objectives.”  The coalition believes the charitable deduction applies because of its reliance on privategiving and the fact that charities provide social services that save the government money. 

The Faith and Giving Coalition includes organizations suchas the National Christian Foundation, the Jewish Federations of North America,the National Association of Evangelicals, the Salvation Army, and World Vision.  These organizations worry about Obama’sefforts to impose a 28% limit on itemized deductions.  This limit would generate around $321 billionin additional revenue through 2021, but could reduce donations by $9 billionannually.

See Doug Donovan, Religious Charities Ask Congress to SaveCharitable Deduction in Tax Overhaul, The Chronicle of Philanthropy, July22, 2013.