January 25, 2007 | Read Time: 1 minute
New statistics released by the Internal Revenue Service show that deductions claimed for charitable contributions rose to $165.5-billion in 2004, compared with $145.7-billion in 2003, an increase of 13.6 percent.
The increase is the first double-digit percentage growth in charitable donations since 2000, when the stock market slumped and some people cut back on giving. It was the third straight year that charitable deductions rose.
Deductions increased by 3.6 percent from 2002 to 2003; rose by 0.1 percent from 2001 to 2002; and declined by 1 percent from 2000 to 2001. The previous year (from 1999 to 2000) charitable deductions went up by 11.8 percent.
Last year, the IRS released preliminary figures that showed an increase of 7.2 percent from 2003 to 2004 in the total amount written off for charitable deductions (The Chronicle, August 3, 2006).
The revenue service updates its numbers as it continues to analyze data on taxpayers.
The revised statistics show that the average contribution claimed on donors’ tax returns rose from $3,772 in 2003 to $4,076 in 2004, the highest average donation recorded in the 25 years for which the government has data.
The government’s preliminary figures had shown a smaller increase.
The adjusted figures show that the percentage of returns that included write-offs for donations increased from 30 percent in 2003 to 31 percent in 2004. In 2002, 31.5 percent of individual returns included write-offs for donations.
The IRS published the revised information in its Statistics of Income Bulletin for fall 2006. The report is available online. Copies may be purchased for $39 from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, P.O. Box 371954, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15250-7954.
