March 6, 2003 | Read Time: 1 minute
New statistics released by the Internal Revenue Service show that deductions claimed for charitable contributions rose from $125.8-billion in 1999 to an estimated $140.7-billion in 2000, an increase of 11.8 percent.
The jump marked the fifth straight year that charitable deductions claimed by Americans rose by 10 percent or more. Deductions rose by 15.2 percent from 1998 to 1999; by 10.1 percent from 1997 to 1998; 15.1 percent from 1996 to 1997; and 14.9 percent from 1995 to 1996.
Last year, the IRS released preliminary figures that showed a smaller, 6.2-percent, increase in the total amount written off from 1999 to 2000 (The Chronicle, May 16).
The revenue service updates its numbers as it continues to analyze data on taxpayers.
The IRS said that a big factor in the double-digit increases in charitable deductions over the past five years was a large rise in noncash gifts, which from 1999 to 2000 jumped by 23.4 percent.
The revised statistics show that the average contribution claimed on each giver’s tax return rose from $3,541 in 1999 to $3,749 in 2000. The government’s preliminary figures had shown a smaller increase — to $3,556 — in 2000.
The adjusted figures show that the percentage of individual returns that included write-offs for donations increased from 28 percent in 1999 to 29 percent in 2000, the highest share recorded during the past 10 years.
The Internal Revenue Service published the revised information in its Statistics of Income Bulletin for fall 2002. Copies of the publication may be obtained for $34 from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, P.O. Box 371954, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15250-7954.
