Overview of methodology for 2008 estimates Giving USA presents estimates for the four primary sources of giving and for nine principal types of recipients of contributions. These are preliminary estimates for 2008, which use the best information available as of March and April 2009. They will be revised in 2010 and in 2011 as more data are available. Revisions of Giving USA’s estimates for 2006 and earlier are reflected in the data tables in this volume.
The Giving USA estimates apply
methods developed by scholars of
giving and are reviewed and approved
by the members of the Giving USA
Advisory Council on Methodology.
Members of that group include
research directors from a number
of other organizations involved in
studying the nonprofit sector. They
are listed in this volume.
The rest of this chapter provides an overview of the methods used to develop the estimates for 2008, organized to present the sources of giving first, followed by the types of recipients. Separate methodology papers are available for estimating giving by individuals and corporations, and for estimating giving to religion.
Estimate of giving by individuals For giving in 2008, we used the final IRS data about itemized deductions for charitable contributions claimed on individual income tax returns for 2006. To this total are added estimated
changes in itemized charitable contribu tions for 2007 and 2008, plus estimates of giving by households that do not itemize. The nonitemizer household estimate is based on the Center on Philanthropy Panel Study (COPPS), which asks more than 7,800 house holds about their charitable giving. The Center on Wealth and Philanthropy at Boston College and the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University did the analysis of 2004 COPPS data to develop an estimate of giving by nonitemizing households. That estimate is adjusted for changes in household giving as household income changes and for the changing number of non itemizing households to create an estimate for charitable giving in each year since 2005.
Table 1 shows the components of the estimates of individual giving for 2006, 2007, and 2008.
The estimated change in individual giving is developed using government data about changes in personal income and tax rates, and the change in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index. The amount of estimated change is based on the longterm historical relationship between these economic variables and changes in itemized deductions for charitable contributions. This method was developed and tested by econo mists Partha Deb, Mark Wilhelm, and Patrick Rooney. 1
Estimate of giving by bequest The method of estimating contribu tions by bequest follows procedures
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