America's Most And Least Charitable States: 24/7 Wall St.

From 24/7 Wall St.: The holiday season is a time for giving to family and friends. It is also apparently a time to give to those in need. Nonprofits rely on end-of-year donations to meet their budgets. While most Americans will not admit it, the IRS January 1st deadline encourages charitable gifts at the end of the year.

24/7 Wall St. identified the 10 states where Americans give the most and least to charity, based on IRS data for charitable giving.

Read: America's Most Charitable States

Read: America's Least Charitable States

24/7 Wall St. reviewed IRS data compiled by the Urban Institute, which reports on the most recent annual data available from the IRS every year. According to Katie Roeger, assistant program director at Urban Institute, "Only a handful of states saw increases in average donations in 2009. The increases came from both high-income states such as New York and Connecticut as well has lower-income states like Kansas or South Dakota."

The most generous states, for the most part, are also the wealthiest ones. Five of the 10 states that give the most to charity on a per taxpayer basis are among the top 10 states with the highest average income per taxpayer. There are also a number of relatively poor states that are generous, despite their low income. Alabama and Georgia have relatively low average incomes, but the average taxpayer gives more than taxpayers in other, wealthier states.

A similar trend can be seen among the least generous states. Eight of the 10 states have incomes lower than the national average, and five of them are among the 15 states with the lowest income per taxpayer. At the same time, a few states appear to be less generous, despite their wealth. New Hampshire and Alaska taxpayers make more than the national average, and have more households that make over $200,000 than most other states, but taxpayers give less on average than other, poorer, states.

24/7 Wall St. relied on Urban Institute’s methodology to determine the most charitable states. Using data collected by the IRS, the institute ranks each state by average charitable donation per taxpayer, highest to lowest. The number is calculated by dividing the total number of taxpayers in each state by the total charitable donations listed in itemized deductions for taxpayers.

The IRS only keeps track of charitable donations filed by taxpayers as part of their itemized deductions. While charitable gifts that are not included in tax filings are not tracked by the IRS, they only account for approximately 15 percent to 20 percent of total annual charitable giving in the U.S each year, according to The Giving Institute. According to the Giving Institute's Executive Director Geoffery Brown, because nonitemized deductions are not calculated at a state level, the Urban Institute's methodology is a good proxy for the average charitable donations given per resident in a state.

Profiles of Individual Charitable Contributions by State, the Urban Institute's most recent report published this year, is based on IRS filings for 2009, filed in 2010. To reflect the extent to which wealth impacts charity, 24/7 Wall St. also included average adjusted gross income per taxpayer, as well as the percent of taxpayers reporting charitable donation, both from the Urban Institute. The percentage of households that earn more than $200,000 per year per state and poverty rates are from the Census Bureau. We relied on Convio's list of the most generous cities in the U.S. for 2010, based on online donations per person, to demonstrate charitable giving on a local level.

Here are the most charitable states, followed by the least charitable, according to 24/7 Wall St.:

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Comments

[Tony Twohill]

12:08 AM on 01/03/2012

This report is from the IRS. The only thing it tells us is who is REPORTING their charity to the IRS. I give to charity but never report it for a tax break (I consider myself center left). That's not really the purpose of giving is it? This really only tells us with certainty that people in red states get the tax break, not that they give more. It also doesn't specify who is giving in those red states. It could be that almost all of those taxpayers giving in those red states are actually democrats. The IRS doesn't ask for party affiliation. The report also doesn't tell us what kinds of organizations the money is being given to whether they be churches, the United Way, or the KKK etc.
You really can't make any claims about who gives more simply from these reports.

[mynameisjen]

05:50 PM on 01/02/2012

Giving is so much more than money.

[Tom Iarossi]

05:18 PM on 01/02/2012

OK, Utah being #1 calls this entire story into question. Yes, they give more than the average to their church - a charitable donation under IRS rules - but that church spends a lower than average amount on pure charity, about $5 per member per year. If this is based on what people claim they give - a questionable basis at best - and that includes what goes to churches and organizations like Focus on the Family and the 700 Club, then these conclusions are, in a word, useless.

[Fretmaster 2]

03:51 PM on 01/02/2012

The average person in a red state gives at least once a week in church, and likely everytime they see a donation jar sitting on a counter in a store. The salvation army, Goodwill also get plenty of attention. It would be very hard for the average leftist to meet our intensity in giving as we have it down to a science.

[Fretmaster 2]

03:46 PM on 01/02/2012

Wow.....Look all but 2 are red states! I have been trying to tell leftists this for years now! The most giving people are Conservatives because that is how we are taught in our churchs and family's. Every Democrat I have ever met was greedy and un-caring. Now I have some proof to back it up. Thanks!

[meglon978]

05:14 PM on 01/02/2012

You have proof that conservatives give more to churches, who spend that money on themselves as opposed to helping people (average of 70% of church donations are used to pay for that church, another 20% is passed on to other churches to help themselves). The amount the actually help the poor with the money is minimal.

If you removed the amount of money that can be claimed as "charitable" giving that's give to pay for churches, you'd see a marked difference.

You could also consider that most blue states pay more taxes than most red states, and a lot of that extra money is then leeched off by those red states that won't do what is needed to take care of themselves.

[Fretmaster 2]

05:20 PM on 01/02/2012

You got a major spin cycle of BS here. The facts are easily on my side you are talking from your feelings.....not facts! SPIN!

[Tony Twohill]

12:04 AM on 01/03/2012

This report is from the IRS. The only thing it tells us is who is REPORTING their charity to the IRS. I give to charity but never report it for a tax break. That's not really the purpose of giving is it? This really only tells us with certainty that people in red states get the tax break, not that they give more. It also doesn't specify who is giving in those red states. It could be that almost all of those taxpayers giving in those red states are actually democrats. The IRS doesn't ask for party affiliation.

[HitnMyths]

12:28 PM on 01/02/2012

Very suspect when you count the self aggrandizing gifts to churches that use the money to promote themselves. My babysitter gives lots to her Mormon church which they then spend on - Mormon missions to convert! No charity there!

[JudgeCCrater]

01:01 PM on 01/02/2012

Very good point! Certainly explains the Utah data.

[BCS]

02:52 PM on 01/02/2012

Well, at least it was her CHOICE and not confiscation by the all-powerful and all-knowing state.

[Tony Twohill]

12:12 AM on 01/03/2012

Until the all powerful all knowing state took from MY pocket when they gave her a tax break for making that donation to her church. That wasn't MY choice. Donations should NOT be tax deductible. You give to who you want to give to, don't make partially responsible. I donate to charity but NEVER report it on my taxes because the point of charity is about giving. Nowhere in its definition is the phrase "and you get something back."

[Eagleman]

11:56 AM on 01/02/2012

Conservative states do lot of charity

Liberal states have lot of taxes

[Monodrone]

02:44 PM on 01/02/2012

You mean conservative states give all their money to churches.

[TeeLolly]

11:51 PM on 12/22/2011

As a resident of Ohio, I'm not surprised that my state is one of the stingiest. My question is, do they count all the money people pay for spaghetti dinners and pot lucks neighbors and friends throw so their friends and family can get life-saving medical treatment that their insurance (if they can afford any) refuses to cover?

[TaxpayingVoter]

03:14 PM on 01/02/2012

Frankly, I was expecting my state, Arizona, to be there rather than Ohio.

[fishinwithtom]

08:15 PM on 12/22/2011

Factoring church contributions it makes sense that Utah would come out in 1st place. A tithe of 10% times that many Mormons has to be a considerable sum. It doesn't all go to short sleeve white shirts, skinny black ties and bicycles.

[MarcDel]

09:58 PM on 12/22/2011

Yeah a lot of it for example went to defeating Gay Marriage in California. Hardly charitable when Mormons represent 2 percent of California's population while Mormons were the source of 70% of the money in the campaign. Keep it at home Mormon's

[posttheist]

11:52 AM on 12/22/2011

The picture for Kansas is of Kansas City, MISSOURI...

[TaxpayingVoter]

03:15 PM on 01/02/2012

Tomayto tomahto.....lol

[Eagleman]

09:04 AM on 12/22/2011

Interesting... Lot of liberal leaning states are least charitable....

[clearasmud]

12:28 PM on 12/22/2011

interesting a lot of conservative states are not only the least charitable, but 29 of the 31 states that accept more Federal Aid that other states are Red States.

[twitsted1]

03:47 PM on 01/04/2012

Is true Comrade, that's why they're called Red states. Income redistribution Republicans choose to ignore. The real welfare states.

http://www.taxfoundation.org/taxdata/show/22685.html#ftsbs-timeseries-20071016

[Jim bob]

08:43 AM on 12/22/2011

This is an absurd article. (that word is getting a lot of attention lately here at HP)...this only reports on what people say in their tax returns. Nobody's ever lied about contributions to charity there, right?

[SDLee]

02:14 PM on 12/21/2011

This totally BS. If you strip out donations to churches and religious charities the picture is completely different and more representative of philanthropy. Contributing to religious entities is self-enrichmment and shouldn't count in a meaningful survey.

[bejayech]

02:39 PM on 12/21/2011

That's a myth. When measuring charitable donations as a percentage of income, religious are about 4 times as generous as those who claim to have secular beliefs. Religious fund and run many of the public servies for the poor (food kitchens, food pantries, etc.).

As for Utah being #1, the study referenced in the article below found this:

"Relative to the rest of the population, Mormons are the one group that gives more to both religious and secular causes"

It shouldn't be controversial. It only makes sense to be grateful for people who give to others, regardless of whether or not you agree with their politics.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703766704576009361375685394.html

[SDLee]

04:06 PM on 12/21/2011

...and we know how non-political and objective, not to mention free from influence peddling the WSJ is. And naturally the mormon church never uses skewed public relations. But the main issue with your argument is you don't recognize the power of self enrichment, nor do you even acknowledge it. Self-enrichment is the yardstick that differentiate profit from philanthropy.

[boomer7391]

08:31 PM on 12/21/2011

yup and the poor give more than the rich - go figger....guess that says something too

http://www.american.com/archive/2008/march-april-magazine-contents/a-nation-of-givers

[Mile End]

02:53 PM on 12/21/2011

I was about to post exactly the same objection. Mormons tithe, so that accounts for Utah. The money is spend spreading their religion via missions. I don't consider that ''charity''.

[bejayech]

03:00 PM on 12/21/2011

incorrect stereotype. Study posted below found the following:

"Relative to the rest of the population­, Mormons are the one group that gives more to both religious and secular causes"

Clearly they give generously to their church, but their generosity is not isolated to religion alone.

http://onl­ine.wsj.co­m/article/­SB10001424­0527487037­6670457600­9361375685­394.html

[uniquindividual]

08:10 PM on 12/21/2011

Me Either. - It is clearly an investment in their self interest if it is needed to save one's soul.

[22Keys]

01:40 PM on 12/21/2011

The religious donate more money to secular charities than non-believers.

[uniquindividual]

08:08 PM on 12/21/2011

But if their motivaion is eternal salvation (self interest) is it really charity or is it n investment.

[Your Mother]

09:36 AM on 12/22/2011

well, if someone puts that to you (or implies it) as their justification, it's likely they're not much of a believer, and/or have only a cursory understanding of religion in general. and protestants in particular. for most religions, it may be "required" by their churches (based on scripture), but it's not some sort of prerequisite for eternal salvation. your charity won't "buy" you eternal salvation. the religious view is that we are all saved if we want it. it's a gift, not something you earn through gifts and acts.

[BCS]

02:55 PM on 01/02/2012

The motivation doesn't matter. Besides, salvation is not based on generosity in any religion I know of.
Being generous has it's rewards for non- believers too.

[Jim bob]

08:44 AM on 12/22/2011

Let's put it this way: The religious say they donate more money...

[22Keys]

12:06 PM on 12/22/2011

If that's the way you want to look at it, then why trust any survey statistics, EVER?

[JudgeCCrater]

01:05 PM on 01/02/2012

Very good point. These are tax return entries we're talking about.

[uniquindividual]

01:16 PM on 12/21/2011

Why is giving to a religious institution to help pay for the building, the weekly show, and the salvation of one's soul considered "Charity"

[Y3rMawm]

07:48 PM on 12/21/2011

Why is it that government expropriation at gunpoint, is considered charity?

[uniquindividual]

08:07 PM on 12/21/2011

Paying taxes is not charity, never has been.

What are you attempting to say?

[Jim bob]

08:45 AM on 12/22/2011

i'ts not, foo..

[Elk Hunter 1]

05:32 PM on 12/22/2011

What charity doesn't take care of thier expenses first?

All charity foundations have an overhead to meet before any money or sevices are given to the needy. The churches in general get more money than most charities and they also do more good for people all over the world than any other groups.

Just the ammount of money that the Mormon church puts into thier hospitals in Utah dwarfs what most charities do all over the world. They also take any man woman or child regardless of religion. The Catholics also have similar stories. They bith also do incredable things all over the world for people.

Your views on religions and what they do for people is kind of narrow minded. Many donate above and beyond what the churches ask for. Mostly because they know it is a good cause and the right thing to do.

[uniquindividual]

12:32 PM on 12/23/2011

No doubt there are exceptions, and many religious charities do good work. My beef is associated with the motivation of many of those who give to their religious institution and are doing so to pay for the building the show and the salvation of their soul - what is done with the money outside of those three priorities is often secondary. Small, evangelical churches run by charasmatic leaders often have this problem.